Setting up my life for some long term travel 2-5 months in March when hopefully there is a vaccine etc.

Looking for a place that is "otherworldly", cheap (compared to a big North American city), want to do some cool adventure stuff like scuba, diving with whale sharks, etc, Obviously a place where it's easy to pickup, and I think those on water villas would be sweet to check out for a week or two.

It might be hard to get all of those things in one but I was looking for some feedback and tips from the guys on TRP on where to go.

Me: white, 5'10, fit, 29, nordic looking, earning ~$17,000 usd per month but that looks like it will take a hit during my travels pretty seriously so closer to 10k/month.