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Films like Crocodile Dundee did plenty to appeal to nature-loving tourists in search of something different. Australia is another destination that has lost little of its appeal. It still boasts all the natural sites that have always attracted tourists — including Uluru, the Whitsunday beaches, and the Great Barrier Reef — but it is also a top destinations for gourmets and culture vultures thanks to its plethora of museums, performance halls, Michelin-starred restaurants, and cafés.

Australia is also well favoured for its reputation as a safe travel destination health-wise. Few (if any) vaccines are recommended apart from primary courses and boosters for a trip to Australia. Moreover, Australia is home to a host of health-centered resorts and has a reliable health system that will cover travellers with health insurance. In the year ending on March 2020, some 8.76 million visitors flew to Australia.

Cruises were all the rage in the 80s but one destination that saw a big surge in interest was Antartica. It was in 1975 that Wally Broecker first published his paper, Are we on the brink of global warming? By the 1980s, many school children first learned about the effects of pollution on the ozone layer.

As sea levels continue to rise, cruise lovers are even more intrigued by the pristine beauty of ice-filled polar cruises. Many realise that the majesty of glaciers and icebergs will not last forever. Almost 66,000 visit Antarctica yearly, with American and Chinese travellers representing the largest tourist share. 

From New York to Antarctica, destinations that appealed to 80s travellers continue to ignite passions today. Rather than diminish in their beauty, many of these destinations have significantly improved, with countries like Australia seriously upping their cultural and gastronomic appeal. If the statistics prove one thing, it is that human beings enjoy seeing the world and heading to countries that are often far removed aesthetically from the place they call home.