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"Listeners often ask me where is my favourite place in the world. It's such a difficult and personal question! And, for instance, my favourite place for romance is different to my favourite place for adventure, and so on. I have enjoyed reviewing my travel diaries and looking through my photos to bring you a very personal view of my favourite places! The nice thing about "Top Ten Lists" is that everybody's list is different - see how much you agree with mine....

Chris Robinson

Chris' Top 10 Lists

Listeners often ask Chris his favourite places in the world. This is a series where Chris will share his favourite Wild Places, Romantic Places, Cities, Beaches, Train Trips and more..... So check back as he shares his selections each month.

Click on the images below to see Chris' favourite parts of the world. 

   VOLCANOES Volcan Santa Ana, El Salvador: Known as ‘The Mother Volcano’, this is the largest and highest volcano in El Salvador. I recently hiked the remote trail to the summit through jungle, scrub and finally lava fields to the crater edge.
CANADIAN WILDLIFE EXPERIENCES Bison – Edmonton, Alberta: Elk Island National Park is the closest National Park to any major Canadian city. Just 35 km east of the city, it is home to free-roaming herds of elk, moose, deer and bison. My up-close-and-personal encounter with a huge bison came within 100 meters the park entrance as it straddled the road imperiously.
HOT SPRINGS St Lucia’s Drive-in Volcano: Don’t worry, the last major eruption was 40,000 years ago! These days there are boiling mud pots colourfully stained by mineral deposits and once the rotten egg smell becomes too much to bear, you can retreat to the Diamond Botanical Gardens to soak in the hot spring waters amidst gorgeous tropical flora.
LAKES Finger Lakes, New York State US: This chain of lakes in Upstate New York is such a civilized Lakeland landscape! Over 100 wineries and vineyards are centred around Seneca, Cayuga, Canandaigua, Keuka, Conesus and Hemlock lakes, and the rolling hillsides and often secluded shores are a perfect getaway retreat.
BEACHES Seychelles: Like sparkling emeralds on blue velvet, these lush granite mountains in the Indian Ocean each have their own set of dramatic beaches, often backed with lush palms and studded with huge rounded granite boulders.
NATIONAL PARKS Elk Island, Alberta: Just a few minutes east of Edmonton on the Yellowhead Highway lies one of the prettiest and most under-rated of the Canadian national parks… Elk Island is wilderness of aspen parkland and is home to herds of free-roaming plains bison, wood bison, moose, deer, and elk – as well as over 250 species of birds.
DINOSAURS Museum of Natural History, Denver - US: Watch Allosaurus and Stegosaurus do battle with an 80-foot-long Diplodocus towering overhead. Or wander prehistoric habitats and examine ancient plants. And observe scientists as they study and prepare fossils using modern technology to decipher the past.
WILD PLACES Canadian Arctic: Larger than Western Europe, this land of islands and waterways is full of Northern Wonders from glacier and fjord to whales and native culture that remains close to the land.
NATURAL WONDERS Bay of Fundy - Canada/US: One hundred and fifteen billion tonnes of water from the Atlantic Ocean is funneled into this bay twice a day producing 17 metre tides – the highest in the world. This makes for a spectacular coastal landscapes and a nutrient-rich soup for the large
  Vacation Safety Tips
 Determine your level of concern and choose your destination accordingly: Everyone has different levels of concern about personal safety and this should inform your choice of vacation destination. Every destination has different safety aspects from health to security. The bottom line is that you should choose a place where you can totally relax and have no worries about your safety.
Can’t Travel Without Tilley: Quite simply, the perfect travel clothes. Easy to pack. Easy to wash. Tough and practical. They also look good. I have Tilley’s from top to toe - and even underneath - when I travel. Their iconic hats are the crowning glory for any Tilley Man (or Woman), but my favourite bit is the secret pockets they design into many of their items.
Canal Trips Panama Canal, Panama: One of the engineering wonders of the world, over 27,000 workers gave their lives to create this 77km long link between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Today, cruise ships offer a leisurely 10 hour transit through the massive locks, cuts and Lake Gatun, surrounded by tropical rainforest.
Train Journeys Silverton & Durango Narrow Gauge Railway, Colorado: In the 1800’s gold and silver were hauled on the narrow-gauge tracks of this authentically restored 1880 train which sweeps past abandoned gold mines, wild forests and the untamed Animas River up into the San Juan Mountains, to the old gold mining town of Silverton.
Travellers’ Transports Hot Air Balloon, Masai Mara: Rising silently into the skies as dawn breaks over the Mara-Serengeti Plain in East Africa, you drift over a primeval landscape teeming with wildlife. Time it right, as we did, and you can take in the immensity of the annual wildebeest migration: nearly two million wildebeest, zebra and gazelles moving as one.
Travel Books The Great Railway Bazaar – Paul Theroux: The Great Grump of travel writing, I wouldn’t like to be in the same carriage as Mr. Theroux, but I love his travel books for their intimate description of conversations that he uses to reveal people and place. This was his first and possibly best, but his recent Dark Star Safari is riveting too.
  Favourite Canadian Scenic Drives
 Top of the World Highway, Yukon: The name has it half right. It’s certainly no highway, but it truly feels as though it’s the top of the world as its route follows the ridge lines with forever panoramas. This 127km long summertime-only road begins with a ferry across the Yukon River at Dawson City and ends at the Taylor Highway in Alaska.
  Favourite South American Cities
 Cartagena, Colombia: There’s history around every corner in the old city from where the Spanish gold was shipped across the Caribbean. Nearby coral reefs, powdery beaches, impressive mangroves, and waterways complement the historic beauty and it’s the only city on this list that’s accessible by great value packages from Canada.
Best Wine Destinations Ontario - Canada: With over 120 wineries in four wine regions to choose from, there’s so much to see and do. Explore charming towns and historic villages with quaint boutiques, shops and galleries. Surrounded by charming vineyards and beautiful architecture, revel in one-of-a-kind festivals and special wine country events.
Best Little Capitals Ottawa: No other major capital city of the world is built on such a human scale. Ottawa is over-endowed for its size with national museums and historic buildings and everywhere is walkable. Winterlude, the city’s February festival, makes an attraction of Winter’s worst!
Islands Grenada: A gem of an island in the southern Caribbean, this lush yet petite corner of tropical paradise is a heady mix of old plantations, dramatic mountains, perfect beaches and the most picturesque capital town imaginable.
Romantic Places St. Vincent & the Grenadines: Undeveloped, unspoiled and cloaked in emerald green rain forest, the mother island of St. Vincent also boasts an archipelago necklace of pristine tropical islands for the most perfect get-away-from-it-all experience.
Favourite Hotels The Phoenician, Scottsdale Arizona: The Phoenician is an iconic hotel on the slopes of Camelback Mountain in Scottsdale Arizona with every luxury you could imagine. From the three golf courses to a heavenly spa, from endless pools cascading down to desert gardens, The Phoenician is simply wonderful.
Cities Sydney: A unique setting, with miles of coastline with over 70 beaches, a breathtaking harbour and mountainous parklands are all complemented by a benign sub-tropical climate. Sydney Harbour Bridge is an icon and Sydney Opera House is so elegant. Bondi Beach and the Pacific Ocean provide a fabulous alternative to the city sights.
Family Favourites Myrtle Beach, South Carolina: Plain, honest-to-goodness, wholesome fun for everyone! It starts with the Grand Strand, 100kms of beaches fronting the Atlantic, and continues with oodles of family-focused accommodation, dining and entertainment, sprinkled with natural beauty and historic sites for some ‘edu-fun’ as well.
Fabulous Florida Orlando: The fun centre of the universe! I have visited Orlando more than anywhere else in the U.S. and always, always find myself caught up in the infectious spirit that seems to pervade the place – from the theme parks to the often-overlooked Downtown Orlando. Gastronomy has also been taken to a new level here recently too.
Mexico Huatulco: Green Mexico: the area is a national wildlife preserve and many of the nine bays and thirty six golden beaches remain undeveloped and accessible only by boat. It has a rich colonial history and provides an authentic Mexican experience - plus gourmet dining and three hundred and thirty days of sunshine a year.
Hidden Gems Kefalonia - Greece: Of all of the many Greek Islands I have visited, this is my favourite. It’s the largest Ionian island, its quiet, relaxed, unspoiled and quintessentially Greek.
Hotel Groups Couples: For weddings, honeymoons, vow renewals or just plain romancing, the four Couples resorts in Jamaica are perfect. Situated in Ocho Rios and Negril, the resorts are focused on creating the perfect atmosphere for lovers. Readers of Travel and Leisure Magazine voted them as the highest rated all inclusive resorts in the Caribbean.
Marathons and More Cambridge Boundary Marathon, UK: My running life kicked off one night at a boisterous Cambridge University student party: I took a bet to run a traditional 32 mile race around the medieval boundaries of Cambridge…the next day. I did so, through muddy fields and over hedges – but I couldn’t bike to lectures for a week!
Fun Places Orlando, Florida: The Theme Park Centre of the Universe, there’s one for every day of the week with everything from Disney’s unique “imagineering” to Universal Orlando’s tributes to popular culture and Seaworld’s incredible animal experiences.
Adventures Climbing Kilimanjaro, Tanzania: Watching dawn break over the plains from Africa’s highest point makes the exertions of the week-long trek fully worthwhile. Go quickly as the snows of Kilimanjaro are melting…
Spookiest Places Fort Fright, Ontario: Fort Henry National Historic Site guards Kingston as a brooding fortress above the waters of Deadman’s Bay. Its dungeons and secret passageways are always unnerving, but on fall nights each year the Fort comes to terrifying life each night with ghostly apparitions and spooky creatures as Fort Fright takes wing.
Religious Sites Jerusalem: Uniquely, Jerusalem is a holy city to three major world religions—Judaism, Christianity and Islam. The Old City is home to sites of key religious importance, such as the Temple Mount, the Western Wall, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the Dome of the Rock and al-Aqsa Mosque. To visit this city is to witness the fervor of the centuries.
Markets Christmas Markets, Germany: These unique and traditional markets are held in cities, towns and villages throughout Germany from the last week in November to Christmas Eve and are a refreshingly noncommercial and festive way to experience regional foods and crafts, such as toys, candles and crib figurines.
Canadian History Rideau Canal and Kingston Fortifications, Ontario: Ontario’s only UNESCO World Heritage Site is a unique combination of military canal, Martello Towers and mighty Fort Henry that mix pageant, entertainment and history seamlessly with scenic cruising and rural idylls.
Warmest People Irish: Emerald Isle, diamond people - without question, it’s the warmth of the Irish people that will linger longest in your memories of any trip to Ireland; meeting total strangers who treat you as close friends and the ‘craic’ - party spirit - of the Irish pubs, is legendary.
Ancient Ruins Machu Picchu, Peru: One of the “New Seven Wonders” of the world, this mysterious Incan citadel straddles a mountain ridge nearly 8,000 feet above sea level….. and it’s simply breath-taking.