Bhutan

A 54-metre gilded copper Buddha statue on a hilltop south of Thimphu, completed in 2015, housing 100,000 miniature bronze Buddhas inside its hollow form.

A high alpine valley in western Bhutan ringed by 5,000-metre peaks, accessible via the Chele La pass, historically closed to foreigners and still the kingdom's least-visited major valley.

The fortress of Bumthang District, built in 1549 on a ridge above Jakar town; one of Bhutan's largest dzongs and a symbol of the nation's spiritual heartland.

Bhutan's commercial capital and primary border crossing with India — a compact city at the frontier, where the kingdom's Gross National Happiness philosophy meets the energy of cross-border trade.

A 17th-century fortress at the confluence of the Mo Chhu and Po Chhu rivers, former seat of the Bhutanese government and coronation hall of every king since 1907.

Tiger's Nest — a Buddhist nunnery and pilgrimage site clinging to a 3,120-metre cliff above the Paro Valley, built around the cave where Guru Padmasambhava meditated in the 8th century.