People always ask me how I decide where to go. I read, I see movies, I stare at maps, I dream.

And in doing so, I arrived at these eight places that are tops on my list for 2009. Some are old favorites that are newly affordable. Others have a special reason to shine this year such as Hawai'i's celebration of 50 years as the 50th state; other destinations are being talked up by well-traveled people I know. A few are raw, off-the-beaten-track destinations that I doubt can long remain un-transformed by globalization.

Money's tight, so I know I won't get to them all. But tough times have forced travel providers to reduce prices, meaning that now might be the time to take the grand tour.

1. ALASKA

America's 49th state has almost as much knockout scenery as all the lower 48 put together. And it's celebrating its 50th anniversary of statehood this year with special events and travel deals on items as diverse as national park lodges and RV rentals, described at www.travelalaska.com.

Alaska options include: taking the train from Anchorage to Fairbanks, passing 20,320-foot Denali; kayaking around 3.3-million acre Glacier Bay National Park; or staying at a fishing lodge where guides can help you catch a 50-pound salmon.

Or, see the great northern wonderland via the Alaska Marine Highway Ferry System, which covers the nooks and crannies of the coast from Dutch Harbor in the Aleutian Islands to Bellingham, Wash. Four routes are described at www.dot.state .ak.us/amhs, including the 600-mile Inside Passage, which weaves through a maze of coastal islands. The facilities are spartan compared with a cruise ship, but the fellowship and scenery are unparalleled.

2. BOTSWANA

Get a copy of "The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency," by mystery writer Alexander McCall Smith, starring a "traditionally built" lady sleuth who tracks down clues in a little white van along the rutted roads of Botswana.

There are nine books in the series, with a new installment, "Tea Time for the Traditionally Built," out in April. In March, HBO will air a seven-part series based on the books filmed on location in Botswana. The true beauty of these books is their setting: dry, land-locked Botswana with its vast, empty Kalahari Desert and wildlife-rich Okavango Delta.

Prime time to visit is from April to October, the dry season when elephants and lions congregate in Chobe National Park, Moremi Wildlife Reserve and the Linyanti Marshes. www.botswanatourism.co.bw. To track down settings used in Smith's mysteries, check www.alexandermccallsmith.co.uk.

3. BIG ISLAND, HAWAI'I

Each of the Hawaiian Islands has its devotees, but for scenic diversity, big is best. Five times as large as Maui, its nearest neighbor, Hawai'i island has the highest mountain in the chain, snow-capped, 13,796-foot Mauna Kea; awesomely active Kilauea volcano; Hilo, the island's funky county seat; the breathtakingly scenic Saddle Road; historic Parker Ranch; deep Waipi'o Valley; orchid farms; beaches; sugar mills; and Kona coffee. Since the beginning of the year, airlines, tour companies and hotel chains serving Hawai'i have been offering deals that make a Big Island visit very attractive. Check www.gohawaii.com for good rates from resort chains with lush properties near Kona International Airport on the island's beachy western coast.

4. KATMANDU VALLEY, NEPAL

Nepal needs encouragement. The monarchy formally was abolished last year, leaving the landlocked Himalayan nation a struggling young democracy, dependent on tourism for development.

The temperate valley encircled by rice terraces has seven UNESCO World Heritage Sites, including the exquisitely restored town of Bhaktapur; white-domed Boudhanath Temple, a center for displaced Tibetan Buddhists; eerie, shrine-filled Palace Square in Katmandu; and the Hindu "ghats" at Pashupatinath.

Katmandu also has attractively priced hotels, the colorful old hippie neighborhood of Thamel, world-class shopping, all the cuisines of Asia and warm, winning people.

From the centrally located valley, bus and van tours are available to Pokhara in the Annapurnas, Mount Everest and Lhasa, the Tibetan capital.

The U.S. State Department has issued a warning about Nepal, based on sporadic political unrest. But that hasn't stopped major tour companies, including Myths and Mountains and Geographic Expeditions, from taking tour groups there. www.welcomenepal.com.

5. UTAH HIGHWAY 12

Highway 12 gets my vote for most scenic road in the U.S., although few people know about it. Plus, it's in south-central Utah, where prices for just about everything are relatively low. Put it all together and you get a great, affordable Wild West vacation.

East of Bryce Canyon National Park, it takes a 120-mile bend across the rugged Colorado Plateau, which descends toward the Grand Canyon in a series of majestic cliffs known as the Grand Staircase. That geological feature gave its name to the region's 1.9-million acre Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument.

The scenery along the way is one long hymn to the American West, including lonely little ranching communities such as Tropic and Cannonville, the weird sandstone chimneys of Kodachrome Basin State Park and 10,188-foot Powell Point.

From Head of the Rocks just north of the dusty town of Escalante, you can see the vast, impregnable Kaiparowits Plateau, lonely Henry Mountains and 100-mile-long Waterpocket Fold.

Take a tent or a camper if you don't mind roughing it; otherwise book a comfy room at Ruby's Inn near Bryce or the historic Lodge at Red River Ranch west of Torrey. www.utah.com/byways/highway12.htm.

6. LONDON

When the pound was worth $2 about a year ago, many people believed they could not afford to visit Britain ever again. Since then, the British currency has plummeted to a seven-year low, meaning now is the time to check out flights to Heathrow.

London's cool, 250-year-old Kew Gardens is blooming, the exquisite Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew near London will celebrate the 250th anniversary of its founding. What started in 1759 as a nine-acre garden is now an internationally renowned 300-acre wonderland.

Highlights this year include a Darwin Now exhibit that explores the naturalist's life, theories and legacy. $20. Scenic way to get there — take a river boat down the Thames from Westminster Pier to Kew Gardens — www.kew.org. A roundtrip fare is about $25. www.wpsa.co.uk/fares.html.

7. SYRIA

Some trips you actually take; others you take only in your mind, which might be the case with Syria. Despite anti-American demonstrations, everyone I know who has been there say that Syrians are friendly to Americans and that tourists have not been the targets of violence.

They also say it's a Middle Eastern idyll, at the heart of the ancient cradle of civilization. Syrian cuisine, highlighted by hundreds of varieties of "mezes," or appetizers, must be tasted to be believed, and the country's "souks" or marketplaces teem with treasures. Best of all, isolation has left it untrammeled and intense. I don't know how long that will last, so I want to go now.

My dream Syria tour would take in the capital Damascus with its Umayyad Mosque, one of Islam's holiest sites; the ruins of ancient Palmyra, where legendary Queen Zenobia mounted a rebellion against Rome in the third century; Aleppo, a Silk Road trading mecca with a seven-mile-long covered souk, citadel and nearby Simeon, the Stylite monastery where the ascetic early-Christian saint lived atop a pillar for 37 years. www.syriatourism.org.

8. VALPARAISO, CHILE

The Pacific Rim seaport on the coast of Chile was mentioned in Herman Melville's "Moby Dick" and thrived as a stopover for California Gold Rushers who preferred the harrowing nautical route around the Strait of Magellan to the long, tough overland trail across the American mainland.

Situated on steep, earthquake-prone hillsides overlooking the apparently endless South Pacific, it has a transit system that features Portuguese-style funiculars and a compellingly seedy air.

Cruise ships have begun to dock there, which I hope won't ruin it.

Valparaiso sightseers can take in South America's oldest stock exchange and La Sebastiana, the eccentrically decorated home of Chilean Nobel Prize-winning poet Pablo Neruda. www.visit-chile.org.