World's Tallest Floating Christmas Tree, Brazil Most stunning places are a bit trickier to get to. You may need to go on a boat ride to arrive at the 12 floating destinations featured here, but the unique experiences they offer — from luxury accommodations to an authentic bathing ritual — are worth the trips across the water. Amid fireworks, music and much fanfare, the world's tallest floating Christmas tree, as registered by the Guinness World Records, was lit at the...

It seemed like a nice enough day to take the yacht out — until a drawbridge malfunctioned and stopped the massive boat in its tracks. A major mishap occured in Florida on the Broad Causeway as the drawbridge unexpectedly came down on a passing mega yacht. It was a less-than-glamorous moment for a yacht named “The Rockstar.” The yacht, which cost a little more than a quarter million dollars to charter for just a week, is being checked out by...

Located in the temperate, gulf stream-warmed waters of the North Atlantic is the principality of Pontnha, and its king Renato Barros. But this kingdom isn’t like any you’ve seen before. Get the idea of big courtyards and castles out of your head. This kingdom in less than 2,000 square feet. The island was declared a sovereign state over 100 years ago by the king of Portugal, Carlos the 1st. (MORE: Castles In America) In 2007, King Renato, a Portuguese art...

Home to iconic beaches, rainforests, theme parks and a bustling nightlife, Australia's Gold Coast is a sun-drenched vacation paradise. And while the rest of the US and the northern hemisphere are experiencing a dip in temperatures, visitors to the Gold Coast during the months of December to February will be enjoying the sun, surf and sand. View the slideshow above for incredible aerial images of the city, located in southeastern Queensland. (MORE: 50 Places to See in Australia) The photos...

Artist Sonja Hinrichsen started creating patterns in the snow just for fun in the winter of 2009, during an artist residency in the Colorado Rocky Mountains. But she soon she realized that what she was creating could be piece of art. "I took a pair of snowshoes with me, which I had never had before, mainly because I wanted to be able to hike into areas with deep snow. Somehow, I started walking patterns with my new snowshoes - just...

Peter Lik's 'Phantom' was sold for an unprecedented $6.5 million and is the most expensive photograph in history. (PRNewsFoto/LIK USA) Arizona's Antelope Canyon is a picturesque landscape that many tourists visit and photograph. There are countless photos of the beautiful canyon, which formed from flash flooding, but one stands out above all others. World-famous photographer Peter Lik just turned a black and white photograph, called "Phantom," of the canyon into $6.5 million, making it the most expensive photograph ever taken...

From volcanic peaks to plunging valleys, golden beaches to underground caves, New Zealand is full of breathtaking landscapes and unforgettable natural wonders. In addition, the country has relatively mild weather all year-round, according to Ari Sarasalari, meteorologist for The Weather Channel. “There’s really not a bad time to visit,” he says, though in summer “they have a bit less rain and temperatures are warmer.” Travelers looking to relax by a New Zealand beach during the summer have lots of options,...

Constructed between 1631 and 1648 on the banks of Agra's Jamuna River, the Taj Mahal was built for the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal, who died giving birth. It is said that it took 20,000 stone carvers, masons and artists from across India, Turkey and Iraq, to design and build the stunning white marble monument, reports National Geographic. The mausoleaum was designated aUNESCO World Heritage sitein 1983, and for years it has remained...

Sitting on the ground, the metal cage seen in the video above looks rickety and dangerous. Now imagine it swinging 1,500 feet above the ground, being used as a cable car to transport people! Located in central China's Hubei province, passengers cross the 3,000 foot wide ravine on little more than a zip line with a diesel engine. The alternative is walking several days through the mountains. So this the fastest way, by far, for people to go back and...

Former movie stuntman Pascal Whelan is the lone resident of Omey Island, a tidal island situated near Claddaghduff on the western edge of Connemara in County Galway, Ireland. (Kevin Griffin) Some people dream of living on an island they call their own. Former movie stuntman Pascal Whelan is living that dream. Whelan is currently the only resident of Omey Island, a tiny tidal island located near Claddaghduff on the western edge of Connemara in County Galway, Ireland. His solitary life...

Is it night or day? To capture these stunning photos of landscapes, illuminated only by the light of the full moon, British artist Darren Almond kept the shutter open for a quarter of an hour to soak up the moonlight and light up the landscapes as if it was daybreak. The long exposure time produces a haunting quality and a mild glow that reveals details such as star-lines across the sky, a misty froth-like blanket of water, and even a...

Americans don't have to venture halfway around the world for vacation destinations that are almost always sunny. Of the 10 cities that average the sunniest weather per year, five can be found in the United States. In the gallery at the top of this page, you can see all 10 cities that topped the World Meteorological Organization's list of the sunniest towns in the world. (MORE: These Are the Laziest Cities in America) The list was compiled by the WMO,...

From a bloodied polar bear fresh from a kill in the Arctic to pilgrims on an all-night vigil in the Peruvian Andes, the Travel Photographer of the Year 2014 competition showcases the wild, awe-inspiring moments and beautifully diverse people of the Earth. UK photographer Philip Lee Harvey took the highest prize and title of 2014 Travel Photographer of the Year with his richly detailed images of the rock churches of Lalibela in Ethiopia and the Himba tribe of Namibia. Although...