Lake Garda, Italy

If the shape of Italy is a couture boot, think of the imprint of Lake Garda as a design from the funky sister line — long and skinny at the top, opening up toward the bottom.

Plitvice Lakes, Croatia

In Croatia, the Plitvice Lakes offer hiking trails with killer views, especially of the 230-foot-high waterfall Veliki Slap

Lake Bled, Slovenia

The best view of Slovenia's Lake Bled is from a castle perched on a 460-foot-high cliff. Bled Island is a tiny forested circle that's home to the 17th-century Church of the Assumption.

Lake Nakuru, Kenya

An African buffalo wades along the shoreline of Kenya's Lake Nakuru. In the background, flamingos feed in the shallow lake.

Loch Lomond, Scotland

Scotland's Loch Lomond is like something straight out of a Victorian romance novel.

Lake Annecy, France

Lake Annecy meanders past eight miles of nature reserves, waterfront villages, and soaring peaks in the heart of the French Alps.

Lake Matheson, New Zealand

Lake Matheson in New Zealand is also known as Mirror Lake. For good reason.

ake Atitlán, Guatemala

A fisherman on Lake Atitlán, nearly a mile up in the highlands of Guatemala.

Peyto Lake, Alberta

In the Canadian province of Alberta, Peyto Lake lies amid the Canadian Rockies. Its waters pop with a brilliant turquoise more often associated with warm-weather paradises like Antigua and Bora-Bora.

Crater Lake, Oregon

About 8,000 years ago, the top of a 12,000-foot-high volcano in the Cascade Range exploded. The massive pit left behind became known as Crater Lake, the centerpiece of a national park in southern Oregon.