Here's a list of the world's 13 most scenic and fascinating countries—that also happen to be among the most repressive. The pros and cons have been weighed, but only you can decide whether to buy the ticket!

Picture this: You excitedly tell your friends you're heading to China for the Olympics, and they start lecturing you about Darfur, human rights, and the Dalai Lama. "But what about Shanghai, and the terra cotta warriors, and all those cool new stadiums?" Stony silence. There goes your summer vacation. To some people, boycotting the Games—and China as a whole—is a way of protesting its government's policies. But does that mean those who visit condone repression—and even help underwrite it? Must travelers body-swerve countries with flagrant human-rights abuses altogether? "The question isn't really whether to go, but what kind of tourism is responsible," says Thant Myint-U, a Burmese historian who believes travel, particularly by citizens of democratic countries, is crucial to the development of civil societies. Other observers disagree, quite adamantly.

World's 13 Most Fascinating But Repressive Destinations:

1.
CHINA

Why go:
It's big on history and big on culture. Highlights include the Great Wall of China and the Forbidden City; natural icons such as the Huanglong Valley, home of giant pandas; the sandstone peaks and pillars of Wulingyuan; and the 21st-century urban glitz of Hong Kong and Shanghai. This year all eyes are focused on the Olympics and the amazing buildings created to host them (check out the Bird's Nest, pictured). The Games take place August 8-24 in 37 competition sites, mostly in Beijing.

Why not go:
China's human-rights record is poor throughout the country. The government has relocated millions of rural citizens without consultation or adequate compensation, for national projects including the Three Gorges Dam. Ahead of the Olympics, vast camps that provide temporary housing to rural petitioners seeking redress in Beijing have been moved to avoid another source of protest. While restrictions on foreign journalists have been relaxed to allow interviews during the Games, arrests and harassment of Chinese journalists continue. Abroad, China has supported the regimes in Sudan. Meanwhile, China's poor domestic industrial standards have led to the worldwide export of tainted medicines and lead-painted toys.

If you go:
Check your local Embassy Web sites, up-to-the-minute advisories for security issues. The International Campaign for Tibet (www.savetibet.org) has urged foreign travelers to use Tibetan guides.

2.
SYRIA

Why go:
Bad press can be a good thing for the intrepid traveler; it's why Syria remains one of the least crowded and least expensive destinations in the Middle East. Damascus has mosques, Roman ruins, and churches within its old walled city, whose 14th- to 19th-century courtyard houses are being gentrified into restaurants, nightclubs, fashion boutiques, and small luxury hotels such as Dar Al-Yasmin (Tel: 963-11-544-3380; www.daralyasmin.com) and Beit Al Mamlouka (Tel: 963-11-543-0445; www.almamlouka.com). The old city's centerpiece, Umayyad Mosque, contains a shrine reputedly housing the head of John the Baptist and the mausoleum of the Muslim conqueror Saladin, while the Hammadiya Souk is the place to buy rugs and Kilims. Syrian cuisine is excellent. Try jams made from Aleppo bitter oranges and winter stews infused with desert-blooming truffles.

Why not go:
The Syrian government is said to sponsor and enable terrorist organizations operating in Lebanon, Israel, and the Occupied Palestinian Territories. President Bashar al Assad has become a pariah among Arab leaders following his regime's suspected involvement in the 2005 assassination of Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. (Ironically, this Arab state's best ally is non-Arab Iran.) According to the Syrian Human Rights Committee, the regime has hundreds if not thousands of political prisoners and routinely detains and tortures citizens across the country on the mere suspicion that they harbor antigovernment sentiments.

If you go:
Despite sour political relations, you can often get a tourist visa in a few days, and they are free to travel independently within the country. In the old city, look for Dabdoub, an antique store off Azem Square, which sells collector-worthy carpets and kilims and old Turkish, Circassian, and Jewish silver.

3.
ZIMBABWE

Why go:
Huge elephant herds and one of the continent's largest concentrations of giraffes. The country's national parks range from Hwange, where you can easily spot more than 100 animal species in the Kalahari desert, to Matsudona, a base for houseboats, fishing trips, and game drives, to Mana Pools, which offers walking and canoeing safaris along the Zambezi River. Victoria Falls (pictured), on the Zambian-Zimbabwean border remains so popular that it is almost impossible to book a flight there in the July-September high season; thrill seekers use this as a base for bungee jumping and white-water rafting on the upper Zambezi.

Why not go:
Under the 28-year rule of President Robert Mugabe and his ZANU-PF party, one of Africa's breadbaskets has become a basket case with over 100,000 percent inflation. Economic reform based on the seizure of white-owned farms and land redistribution (as opposed to job creation) has led to food shortages. Police routinely arrest journalists (most recently New York Times bureau chief Barry Bearak, who was trying to cover the 2008 elections), human-rights activists, and political demonstrators; torture is frequent. The March 2008 elections appear to have resulted in the ZANU-PF party losing control of parliament for the first time in three decades; however, the government has refused to publicly release the vote count and has ordered a recount of the presidential tally.

If you go:
Do not use cameras or cell phones to take photographs in cities. Police have orders to arrest unaccredited journalists who have snuck in on tourist visas to cover Zimbabwe's plight.

4.
NORTH KOREA

Why go:
You don't go to North Korea to eat at great restaurants or see UNESCO World Heritage sites. You go to join an elite club and gain insight into one of the world's most xenophobic, repressive, and little known societies. (U.S. passport holders are restricted to four-night stays timed to coincide with annual mass games in Pyongyang - August 4 to September 31, 2008). It's unlikely you'll have witnessed a sporting event quite like this one: Think synchronized performances of 100,000 gymnasts, dancers, and musicians, while uniformed school children flip colored placards to create images of birds, flowers, Kim Il-sung, and his son Kim Jong-il, the current leader. Visits to the capital, Pyongyang, usually start with Mansudae Monument, where foreigners must bow and lay flowers at the feet of a 100-foot-tall bronze statue of Kim Il-sung (pictured), who died in 1994 but remains the country's Eternal President. Cultural highlights include a ride on the Pyongyang metro, where murals declaring "Korea Is One!" form the only public advertising. Outside Pyongyang, the government tourism bureau lays on sightseeing to the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea.

Why not go:
North Korea not only has a nuclear weapons program, it also stockpiles a biological arsenal including anthrax, cholera, and the pneumonic plague, and maintains at least eight chemical weapons manufacturing plants, according to intelligence reports. Leaving the country without permission is considered treason, and the U.S. Committee for the Rights of North Koreans claims some 200,000 political prisoners are being held in remote labor camps. In the 1990s natural disasters combined with economic mismanagement led to the starvation of an estimated two million people, nearly 10 percent of the population.

If you go:
All travel must be conducted in the company of North Korean government guides on prearranged itineraries. The Beijing-based, British-managed Koryo Group has specialized in North Korean travel since 1993, and has long relationships with guides who are slightly more relaxed and permissive as a result (Tel: 86-10-6416-7544; koryogroup.com). Director Nicholas Bonner encourages and sometimes personally accompanies tours for U.S. citizens, who must travel via Beijing to obtain a North Korean visa.

5.
TUNISIA

Why go:
Mediterranean beach resorts, fantastic desert scenery, and some of North Africa's best-preserved Roman ruins, including El Jem, the largest coliseum outside of Rome; the Antonin baths at Carthage (pictured); and Bulla Regia, an ancient city of underground courtyard houses, paved with mosaics. The troglodyte desert houses of Matmata doubled as Luke Skywalker's home in the first Star Wars film; and the desert wadis near Tamerza served as a backdrop for The English Patient. The old medina of Tunis now has guest houses, theaters, art galleries, and restaurants geared toward Tunisian yuppies eager to rediscover their roots.

Why not go:
President Zine el Abidine Ben Ali has cracked down on Islamic fundamentalists and shepherded the emergence of the Arab world's largest middle class, comprising 80 percent of Tunisia's 10.1-million-strong population. But the price of prosperity and political stability has been the loss of liberties, in particular freedom of the press and the right of free association. According to Amnesty International, opposition journalists are said to be monitored, harassed, and sometimes beaten, and political dissidents disappear into countrywide secret prisons.

If you go:
The Tunis-based agent Atlantis Voyages specializes in guided and independent travel for small groups of foreigners and has a roster of academic guides. The company rents SUVs with or without a Tunisian driver. Solo off-road travel is not recommended, especially near the Algerian border (Tel: 216-71-784-555; www.atlantis-voyages.com).

6.
CUBA

Why go:
Besides Old Havana and its cathedrals, museums, music, and atmospheric Malecón, Cuba has some of the least crowded beaches in the Caribbean. Outside Havana there are two resort strips, golf courses, and romantic honeymoon accommodations; divers should head for Playa Maria la Gorda, while wannabe castaways will prefer the tiny southern island of Cayo Largo del Sur. Trinidad and Matanzas are Spanish colonial towns full of sugar barons' mansions and architectural heritage. Back in the capital, the Hotel Nacional has kept its 1930s grandeur intact (Tel: 53-7-836-3564; www.hotelnacionaldecuba.com). Compared to the rest of the Caribbean, Cuba is a bargain, with restaurant meals costing less than $20, and that includes the mojitos.

Why not go:
Although he has started to loosen the economy, permitting citizens to stay in hotels and buy DVD players and cell phones, Fidel Castro's brother and Acting President Raul Castro still runs a repressive police state that denies citizens the rights of free speech, assembly, and due process.

If you go:
Travelers checks and credit and ATM cards may not be accepted in Cuba, so bring cash. You can obtain a visa through your Cuba flight airline ticket office.

7.
MYANMAR (BURMA)

Why go:
The devastation caused by Cyclone Nargis—much of the country flooded, as many as 100,000 feared dead and 1 million made homeless—means a long recovery period for tourism in Myanmar (formerly Burma). In the long term, however, the Southeast Asian nation has much to offer visitors. The country is awash in golden temples, and destinations such as Inle Lake, the former royal capital of Mandalay, Ngapali Beach, and Bagan, an ancient city of temple complexes similar to Angkor Wat, receive just a fraction of the tourists crowding neighboring Thailand and Cambodia. Hill tribes in the mountains around Keng Tong remain culturally intact; the newly opened far north Putao district offers five-star adventure safaris with elephant treks, white-water rafting, and hiking in the Hukawang Valley Wildlife Sanctuary, Asia's largest tiger reserve.

Why not go:
We'll obviously discourage visiting a country undergoing a disaster on this scale—and the government's reluctance to accept assistance from other countries has hampered the relief effort (check out the International Federation of the Red Cross for more information and how you can help, www.ifrc.org). But even before the cyclone, there were reasons to skip a visit: In the 1990s democratic opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi called for an international tourism boycott to undermine the then cash-strapped military government, which looked to tourism as a source of income. Apart from canceling the 1988 election won by Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy Party, putting her under house arrest, and shooting thousands of student protestors, Myanmar became notorious as the only country in the world to use forced labor to build hotels, airports, and other tourism infrastructure. The ruling junta has conducted ethnic cleansing campaigns against indigenous Karen and Kachin people, while neglecting and mismanaging the country's economy. In fall 2007, military violence to end marches by Buddhist monks protesting fuel price hikes and other hardships killed at least 30 people and led to the detention and disappearance of more than 3,000.

If you go:
You should work with specialists such as Colorado-based Asia Transpacific Journeys (Tel: 800-642-2742; asiatranspacific.com) or Yangon-based Good News Travels (Tel: 95-137-5050; www.MyanmarGoodNewsTravel.com) which both arrange independent travel and can steer clients away from government-owned or -connected enterprises.

8.
RUSSIA

Why go:
Rich in museums and culture, Russia is an eye-opener for Americans raised on Cold War propaganda. Check out Moscow's Red Square, the Bolshoi Ballet, and Moscow Circus, then catch an overnight train to St. Petersburg to see the Hermitage Museum, Peterhof Palace, and the Mariinsky Theatre, home of the Kirov Ballet. Russia has freewheeling nightclubs, designer boutiques, and over-the-top luxury hotels including the Grand Hotel & Spa Rodina in Sochi, near Vladimir Putin's Black Sea summer house (www.grandhotelrodina.ru). Moscow is the epicenter for the country's new luxury fixation. Even if you don't eat there, take a peak at Turandot, an Asian fusion restaurant housed in a $50 million pastiche of a gilt Baroque palace (Tel: 7-495-739-0011).

Why not go:
According to Amnesty International and other observers, torture, including beating and electric shock, is used in police custody throughout the country to force confessions; underpaid judges are vulnerable to corruption; and ineffectual investigations of complaints result in state impunity for human-rights violations. While the Chechen war has ended and Russia is spending money on Chechen capital Grozny, the Russian and local pro-Kremlin governments reportedly abduct and torture pro-separatist opponents. (Chechen rebels also conduct politically motivated "disappearances.") Throughout the Russian federation, independent news outlets have been stifled, and journalists are intimidated, and in some cases murdered, after criticizing the state.

If you go:
Condé Nast Traveler's "Iconic Itineraries" article on Moscow and St. Petersburg has tips on getting into closed museums and palaces and hiring a good guide. Western embassies advise that travel to Chechnya and its North Caucasus neighbor is dangerous.

9.
ISRAEL AND THE OCCUPIED TERRITORIES

Why go:
Old Jerusalem alone encompasses the Wailing Wall (pictured), the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and the Via Dolorosa, and Al Aqsa Mosque's Dome of the Rock. But it's not all about religion: Israel also has sunning and surfing beaches on the Mediterranean coast around Tel Aviv, while Eilat, on the Red Sea, is the place for scuba diving and snorkeling. Caesarea, 35 miles north of Tel Aviv, has 12th-century crusader castles, the ruins of King Herod's capital, and an undersea archeological park. The West Bank has more than 1,000 archeological sites and great tourism potential; security issues make travel inadvisable except to Bethlehem and the Dead Sea town of Jericho. In the Judaean desert, the Roman hilltop fort of Masada, reachable on foot or by cable car, overlooks the Dead Sea, whose shore is now lined with health spas.

Why not go:
Both the Israeli government and the Palestinian Authority have been accused of human-rights abuses linked to the ongoing Arab-Israeli conflict. The Palestinian Authority's ruling Hamas Party, refuses to recognize Israel and has condoned and carried out suicide bombings and rocket attacks on Israeli civilians. Gaza militants have fired rockets at Israeli communities. Israel has been accused of discriminating against its Arab citizens and has a long history of air strikes and artillery shelling of Palestinian settlements in the Gaza Strip to combat militants in hiding, which has resulted in hundreds of civilian deaths, according to Amnesty International. Its policy of building settlements in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem is in violation of the Geneva Convention, and human-rights groups say the policy of barring Palestinians living in the West Bank and Gaza from entering or transiting Israel means they can't go to school, find work, or visit relatives.

If you go:
If you do decide to venture into the West Bank, daytime road travel is safe on Highways 1 and 90. Do not take Israeli-plated rental cars or taxis into the Occupied Territories lest you be mistaken for an Israeli settler by Arab militants.

10.
ETHIOPIA

Why go:
To visit Addis Ababa's Merkato, Africa's largest open-air market, and the historic towns of Axum, supposedly where the lost ark ended up, and Lalibela, the site of 11 spectacular rock-cut churches linked by underground tunnels (pictured). Bahir Dar is the site of the Blue Nile's largest waterfall, while Simien Mountains National Park is simply one of the most beautiful places on earth: Plateaus, clouded amethyst peaks, grass-covered volcanic cones, and deep canyons shelter unique species, including shaggy-haired Gelada baboons. In the southwest, the Omo River Valley is one of Africa's last repositories of authentic tribal culture. A safari by 4x4 and delta boat will take you to the Karo, known for their chalk-white body painting; the hippo-hunting Mugiji; the Nyangatom, crocodile hunters who wear lip plugs and blue and ochre hair buns; Mursi women, famous for their lip disks; and the bull-jumping Hamar.

Why not go:
The Tigrean minority government is reportedly engaged in dubious and morally repugnant activities. According to Human Rights Watch, security forces use rape, torture, public executions, and village burnings to quell a long-simmering rebellion by ethnic Somalis in the eastern third of the country, where the Ogaden National Liberation Front is demanding independence and has attacked government convoys and foreign oil workers as part of its campaign. In Oromia State, where the Oromo Liberation Front has also been demanding independence, it's reported that government forces imprison, harass, and abuse government critics. Ethiopian troops deployed to Mogadishu in 2006 to prop up Somalia's secular interim government against Islamic militias have indiscriminately shelled and fired rockets on civilian neighborhoods, killing hundreds and displacing 400,000 people.

If you go:
Will and Joan Weber, directors of Journeys International, are former Peace Corps volunteers who specialize in culturally respectful African travel that goes beyond mere sightseeing (Tel: 800-255-8735; www.journeys.travel).

11.
SUDAN

Why go:
Sudan has more pyramids than Egypt and hardly any tourists. Other off-the-radar but spectacular sites include Musawwarat es Sufra, the dramatic desert temple complex that comprises an ancient manmade lake and labyrinths of courtyards, ramps, and causeways; Jebel Barkal, Sudan's version of Ayers Rock; the Coptic Christian churches of Old Dongola; and the ruins of Napata, capital of the Kush kingdom, which ruled Egypt from 1650 to 1550 B.C. In the capital, Khartoum, Sudan's National Museum houses artifacts from Paleolithic times to the fall of the Ottoman Empire. On Fridays, Sufi dervishes whirl at the tomb of local saint Hamada el Nil just before sunset prayers.

Why not go:
After five years, some 200,000 deaths, and the creation of 2.3 million refugees, the genocidal violence in Darfur province continues unabated. The government signed a peace accord in 2005 with the Sudan Liberation Army, but according to humanitarian organizations, official government forces and pro-government janjaweed militias continue to raze villages, torture opponents, rape women and girls, and forcibly recruit child soldiers. But this impoverished nation's problems aren't limited to the conflict, which is rooted in historical divisions between the Arab north and non-Arab south. The controversial Chinese-built Merowe Dam, above the Nile's Fourth cataract, will begin operations this year, flooding 100 miles of river basin, displacing 50,000 people and irrevocably drowning thousands of rock carvings and antiquities sites.

If you go:
Khartoum's oldest hotel, the Acropole, is a favorite among aid workers, journalists, archeologists, and independent travelers, and manager George Pagoulatos can provide up-to-the-minute information on travel conditions. The hotel can arrange vehicles and drivers for trips to Omdurman, Meroë, and beyond (www.acropolekhartoum.com). Darfur and the Chad border area are definite no-go zones.

12.
IRAN

Why go:
You won't find a city in the Islamic world more dynamic than Tehran, with its museums, art galleries, and coffee shops filled with a young population (more than two thirds of Iranians are under 30). The basic program for first-time visitors takes in the capital; 2,500-year-old ruins of Persepolis, seat of the Achaemenid Empire (pictured); Shiraz, a cultural treasure house full of monuments to Persian poets; and the 16th-century city of Esfahan, with its squares, mosques, fantastic bridges, and one of the Islamic world's great covered markets. Iran is also an adventure destination. You can camp with nomads in the Zagros Mountains, ride horses across the Turkoman steppes, climb 15,312-foot Mount Damavand, and ski at Dizin. This is the Old Testament come to life: You can visit the tombs of Esther and Mordecai, as well as Kandovan, a troglodyte village some say is the original Garden of Eden.

Why not go:
The state has reportedly jailed journalists and newspaper editors and subjected dissidents to torture, while university professors critical of the regime have been fired or forced into retirement, and students and other civilians who stage demonstrations are detained. Christians, Zoroastrians, and the Islamic world's largest Jewish community may practice their religions, but the state denies the same right to the Baha'i community. Arabs, Kurds, Azeris, and other minorities are repressed.

If you go:
Geographic Expeditions, based in San Francisco, has been taking Americans to Iran since 1993 (Tel: 800-777-8183; www.geoex.com). Zohreh Majidian, an Iranian living in London, has arranged journalist reporting trips (Tel: 44-1344-622-832; www.magic-carpet-travel.com).

13.
VENEZUELA

Why go:
Amazing natural attractions including beaches, deserts, the Andes Mountains, and the wildlife of the Orinoco River Basin. In one trip, travelers can visit the world's highest waterfall (3,000-foot Angel Falls), take the world's longest and highest cable car (15,633 feet above sea level), and see the world's most dangerous fish (the piranha). Worth a trip on its own is the Los Roques archipelago in the Caribbean, more than 300 islands devoid of cruise ships and major development—just beaches and towns of pastel-painted houses.

Why not go:
Although it's an oil producer, OPEC member, and one of the richest of Latin American countries, Venezuela has rampant unemployment, rising violent crime, and pervasive poverty. Commentators critical of President Hugo Chávez are reported to suffer government harassment. According to Human Rights Watch, the national security forces were responsible for more than 6,000 extrajudicial deaths, mainly of criminal suspects, between 2000 and 2007. The CIA believes that Venezuela has become an export center for cocaine, heroin, and human trafficking, while Venezuelan companies are reported to have served as covers for Iranian-government arms sales to Uruguay and other Latin American clients. Chávez advocates a world "devoid of U.S. influence" and has strengthened political and economic ties to Iran, Syria, and Cuba.

If you go:
Arrange transportation to and from airports in advance, and stay clear of the Colombian cross-border violence, kidnapping, smuggling, and drug trafficking are frequent. If you are not a fluent Spanish speaker and want to travel to remote areas, it's worth working with Geodyssey, a British company that has specialized in Venezuela trips since 1993 (Tel: 44-20-7281-7788; www.geodyssey.co.uk).

Source: Concierge