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World's best Christmas markets
50 things to do in Hong Kong this winter
DMZ: Road trip to the world's most heavily armed border
Best of Week - Christmas travel ideas, world's longest cake, bizarre bangkok eating
Thai floods crisis: Updated info for tourists
Top Xmas markets, HK winter to-do list, Sydney's neon surfers
保暖良方：禦寒美食
保暖良方：禦寒美食

Posted: 02 Dec 2011 02:00 AM PST

Since Germany gave the world the first Christmas market in 1545, the tradition has spread throughout Europe and crossed oceans to reach Asia, Australia and the United States.

Here are 10 of the best, some in distinctly unexpected locations.

Also on CNNGo: Travel advent calendar: 24 Christmas travel ideas

1. Weimar, Germany

Germany gave the world the first Christmas market, and Weimar the first public Christmas tree, put up by a bookseller who wanted to bring joy to poor children.

50 things to do in Hong Kong this winter

Posted: 02 Dec 2011 01:59 AM PST

1. Ice skate in the snow

It's the best place to pretend it's snowing in Hong Kong. The Ice Wonderland set up at Tsim Sha Tsui's waterfront has outdoor ice-skating and fake snowfall. With the merry festive lights and a bit of imagination, we can almost believe we are a little bit closer to Santa. Until January 1.

2. Clap politely for Hong Kong Open golfers

The early birdie catches US$2.5 million at Fanling's Hong Kong Golf Club on December 1-4. US Open champion Rory McIlroy and friends will descend upon the New Territories course for the UBS Hong Kong Open.

DMZ: Road trip to the world's most heavily armed border

Posted: 02 Dec 2011 01:55 AM PST

Tour guides share stories of heartbreaking escapes at the most fascinating tourist site on earth

As the tour bus moves from central Seoul to the city outskirts, the seamless transition from one of the world's biggest and most vibrant cities to the world's most heavily armed border is as surreal as it is functional, with roadside bus stops soon giving way to security fence and military watchtowers.

"Many South Koreans don't think so much about the North", opines So Yeon (real name withheld for security reasons), a North Korean defector in her mid-thirties currently working for the Seoul-based Panmunjom Travel Center.

Best of Week - Christmas travel ideas, world's longest cake, bizarre bangkok eating

Posted: 02 Dec 2011 12:19 AM PST

Newsletter Date:

2 December 2011

Newsletter Contents

By City:

Where to party: The complete guide to Bangkok nightlife

Bangkok's most bizarre eating experiences

Airlines, hotels roll out deals to lure tourists back to Thailand

50 things to do in Hong Kong this winter

Michelin deems Hong Kong restaurant top Italian outside Italy

Interview: Angelababy opens café inspired by travels

Best talks at Mumbai's first major lit fest

Mumbai souvenir: Britannia's sali chicken recipe

How fake train tickets are made in India

6 tips for traveling with kids in China

Hainan Island: Heaven or hell for luxury hotels?

A complete guide to China's high-speed rail

World's best Christmas markets

10 Singapore hotels for art lovers

10 reasons we love Singapore

Koban unwrapped: Tokyo's colorful police boxes

How 'vacation-deprived' are you?

UK airports running smoothly despite fears of strike chaos

Test-tube coral: How scientists are saving the Great Barrier Reef

Oz adventure: 40 summer outings

7 beach getaways in southeast Queensland

Korea Tourism Organization wages war on 'Engrish'

Official Korean ski packages announced for international sports travelers

Seoul: 24 hours, 24 adventures

Thai floods crisis: Updated info for tourists

Posted: 02 Dec 2011 12:19 AM PST

With the worst of Thailand's flood crisis over, travelers are begining to return now that many governments have lifted their advisories against visiting.

Though some of Bangkok's outskirts are still flooded -- the government promises the entire city will be dry by the end of the month -- from a tourist's perspective Bangkok is for the most part back to normal.