THE National Geographic has chosen the Philippines as one of the ?25 best new travel destinations in the world for 2010.?

In its November Adventure issue, the popular American publication cited the Southeast Asian nation?s ?ancient cultures, structures and biodiversity? as key reasons to visit the country.

The Washington, DC-based magazine described the Philippines as ?harboring as many islands as the Caribbean and some of the most spectacular reefs on the planet.?

It described the Philippines and the 24 other destinations as ?just right for right now? for ?travelers who want their dollars to do more?for others, for the planet and for themselves.?

Among the magazine?s other must-see places were Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana, Costa Rica, Iceland, Ireland, Kenya, Laos, Nepal, Peru, Slovakia, and Sri Lanka.

Last month, National Geographic-Traveler magazine named the Ifugao Rice Terraces as one of the ?50 Places of a Lifetime: Greatest Destinations in the World.?

It described the rice terraces in the Cordillera Administrative Region, declared by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site, as ?masterpieces of agrarian art? and ?natural poetry.?

Other ?destinations of distinction and character? on the list are the South Pacific island of Aitutaki, Switzerland?s Mt. Rigi, the Yap outer islands in Micronesia, the Balkan country of Montenegro, the Gobi desert in Mongolia, Bwindi forest in Uganda, and the little-known islands of Lord Howe in Australia and Fernando de Noronha in Brazil, among others.

For more good news, visit GoodNews Pilipinas