Popular uprisings, while inspiring and (we hope) good for the citizens who spark them, aren’t just bad news for dictators. They’re often trouble for tourists as well. When Egypt convulsed with protests, airlines canceled flights to Cairo and guards barricaded the great pyramids of Giza. At the Cairo museum that is home to King Tutankhamun and some lesser mummies, troops circled to keep out the looters. The shutdown helped ravage Egypt’s economy, about a tenth of which revolves around tourism. It also served as a reminder that political upheaval—in the Middle East or elsewhere—can suddenly limit access to some of the world’s most breathtaking sites. With that in mind, Newsweek offers a guide for seize-the-day types.