Aktau

Here lies a city that rests on the shores of the Caspian Sea and a place I’d never planned to visit had I not impulsively decided to commute 20 hours on a train to an Uzbek music festival at the Aral Sea. The township is quite new and sprung into existence in the late 1950s. Still, it packs a punch with its tourism offerings, being built to accommodate the region's massive oil and uranium discovery. They've recently opened up a fantastic boardwalk called Skal'naya Tropa, which hugs the coastline, and a stroll along here is one of the major highlights of any visit.

Location: Aktau, Kazakhstan