Iceland

A new #1 on my Most Beautiful Places list:  Iceland.

Crazy to think about how expensive Iceland was before the 2008 market crash.  Pretty much impossible to visit for vacation back then, given prices were 2-3x what they are now (and they're still expensive).

With only 350K people on the island and 75% in Reykajavik, the rest of the country is totally wide open.  If you like diverse terrains and waterfalls around every turn, it's a good place for you.