‘The Amazing Race 29’: Five countries that should be visited this season (or beyond)

Before we dive too deep into this “Amazing Race” article, let’s go ahead and remind you that we’re aware season 29 is already in the can, and at this point, we’re just waiting for CBS to give it a premiere date. We try to avoid location spoilers, so with that in mind, we’re looking at this article as a hypothetical one in which the season’s still to be filmed. If you can’t wrap your head around that, then consider this list for a potential season 30 or beyond.

What we want to do in this article is speculate a little bit further about what some future locations should be, given that there are some countries (India, China, France, Argentina) that have, if you average all the Pit Stops out, at least one appearance every two or three seasons. We want to look at five possible locales that either have never been visited, or have not been in a really long time. Note that we’re leaving out obvious trouble spots like Syria or North Korea, since we want to think of places the show could actually go.

Cuba – Let’s start with the obvious choice. Other editions of the show have visited here, but for Americans who casually watch this version of the show only, the change in diplomatic relations offers up a chance to allow viewers to get to know this country and its culture better. For the most part in general, the Race hasn’t been kind to Caribbean countries over the years.

Nicaragua – The same goes for Central American nations. We know that for some of them, crime could be an issue, but if “Survivor” is able to visit Nicaragua, shouldn’t the Race also do show and showcase a different side of the country’s culture? What’s also surprising is that Belize, despite being a popular tourist destination for many, remains left off the Race map.

Greenland – Maybe this one is a cost issue, since travel to the sparsely-populated place is not always affordable. Also, maybe there’s not too much the show can do there. We’d just remind people that “The Amazing Race Canada” has succeeded in pulling off wintry legs before. Why not give it a shot here?

Benin – In general, this is a part of Africa that has been relatively untapped on the show, largely for similar reasons to Central America. Yet, Benin based on some information we’ve seen is one of the safer countries in West Africa, one marked with beautiful scenery. It also happens to be the birthplace of voodoo, so you gotta imagine that something fun could come out of that.

Czech Republic – One of the most wonderful historical locales in Europe, and it’s only been visited once back in season 15. In general, you can look at many Eastern European countries as places underutilized for the show, whether it be Estonia, Greece, Hungary, or Bulgaria, which somehow hasn’t been visited at all.

Honorable Mentions – It’d be nice to see the show venture over to places like Iceland or Ireland, given that it’s been years since either place was visited. Meanwhile, the show’s never ventured to Nepal, and they’ve spent a ton of time in Asia over the years. Mongolia’s also underserved, and Ghana could be fun as a repeat destination in Africa.

If you’re going to stick with familiar countries, why not go somewhere like the northern or southern parts of Japan away from the typical cities, parts of Mexico that aren’t often considered tourist cities, or even some American territories? American Samoa would be interesting, especially since we imagine a certain percentage of the country doesn’t know it is there.

Where would you like to see the show visit? Share below, and click here to read up on what the full-season order for “MacGyver” could mean for the show! (Photo: CBS.)