Two Canadian destinations named among world's most underrated travel experiences

A national park in Nunavut and an island off the coast of Nova Scotia have been named two of the world’s most underrated travel experiences because they don’t get enough recognition given how beautiful they are.

Sable Island and Auyuittuq National Park were ranked first and second most underrated travel experiences in North America by tour operator Explore Worldwide in its study released this week.

Meet wild horses on Sable Island

Kat Grant Photographer/Shutterstock

Sable Island is famed for the wild horses that live there — a herd of about 500 descended from animals introduced to the island in the 1700s. The island was established as a national park preserve in 2013, and visitors can now land a plane right on the beach to explore the secluded Atlantic island. What’s more? The world’s largest colony of grey seals live off the island, too.

Sable Island was ranked the most underrated travel experience in North America, and the third-most underrated worldwide.

Big rewards for serious hikers in Auyuittuq National Park

Summit lake in Auyuittuq National Park (Adam Aliqatuqtuq/Shutterstock)

Canada is featured again in second place for North America’s most underrated experiences for a tour of Auyuittuq National Park.

This national park encompasses remote arctic wilderness and features a skyline of craggy granite peaks, according to Parks Canada. Viewpoints overlook glaciers, tundra valleys, and steep-walled fjords where narwhal and ringed seals can be found in the water.

Parks Canada characterizes it as a “grand-scale arctic experience.”

Explore Worldwide highlights a 96-kilometre hiking trail requiring multiple overnights that rewards hikers with incredible views of Mount Asgard and the Owl River Valley.

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The tour agency’s travel experts analyzed data on more than 350 of the world’s hidden gems and scored them based on how popular they were according to Google search volumes and Tripadvisor data.

“From waterfalls and snowy mountains to tasty dumpling tours, vineyards and remote islands, the experiences that are revealed in the new research provide an enormous amount of different ideas to those who want to try something new on their next adventure,” the organization said in a news release.

Other gems that got a nod around the world include the Schafberg Peak Hike in Austria, Bungonia National Park walks in Australia, and the Gishora Drum Sanctuary in Burundi.

Explore Worldwide