It’s a given that a region holding more than 20,000 islands offers a spectacular collection of beaches, some miles-long and surf-washed, others diminutive and sheltered by headlands or shadowed by towering limestone monoliths. The region’s rich cultural diversity stems from millenniums-old empires that absorbed the global influences of travelers, traders, and colonialists from Africa, India, the Middle East, and Europe, yet still hold to many of the old ways and traditions.
