Exploring Indonesia, Mexico or France can take years. If you’re strapped for time why not try a cultural theme park instead?

Island hopping

At the Taman Mini park near Jakarta, you’ll find Indonesia’s over 17 500 islands in miniature format plus architecture, dances, crafts and culinary specialties from across the archipelago.

tamanmini.com

Mexico Express

Enjoy dance and music shows, watch traditional potters and smiths at work, stroll the ruins of a real Maya settlement – all at Xcaret, the Mexican culture park near Cancún.

xcaret.com

Showtime

Puy du Fou in Vendée, France, has been named the world’s best theme park multiple times. Its spectacular shows spotlight French historical and ­mythol­ogical heroes.

puydufou.com

On Scheelhoek Island in The Netherlands, you can observe sandwich terns, an endangered species of bird, at the egg-shaped TIJ Observatory jointly designed by RAU Architects and Ro&Ad Architects – composed entirely of natural materials.

rau.eu

The Kakku pagodas – of which there are over 2000 – have bells in their dainty towers that tinkle in the wind. The 16th-century temple complex is sacred to the Pa-O people, but visitors are now allowed to enjoy the magic, too.

inlelaketourism.com/kakku-pagodas.asp

If you and your family can’t decide where to take your next vacation, try one of these tips: They combine the sea, the mountains and a city getaway in a single destination.

So you think if you’ve seen one pair, you’ve seen them all? Wrong! Chopsticks vary greatly from (Asian) country to country – in their design and the way they are used.

forest fruit

Each year, some 25 million trees are felled to produce chopsticks in ­China alone. A single tree provides 4000 chopsticks, which are generally 27 centimeters long – longer than elsewhere in Asia.

Skewering is a no no

Japanese chopsticks are shorter and more delicate. Ideally, they measure one-and-a-half times  the distance between thumb and first finger. Whatever you do, don’t skewer your food or stand your chopsticks upright in the rice. The latter is only done at memorial services.

Spooning is better

In China and Japan, it’s perfectly acceptable to raise your bowl to your lips and shovel rice into your mouth with chopsticks. In Korea, it’s con­sidered bad manners, so the bowl stays on the table and everybody uses a spoon.