Im in my mid 20s and about to embark on a long education into medical school. Before this, I want to do some traveling, but am at a loss of where. I am looking for ideas or resources that will help me enjoy life a little before my educational journey.

I have traveled to Europe, Australia, Malaysia, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Myanmar, and Costa Rica before, so I am not new to the traveling game (my previous work and education took me all over). I am at a loss of new places to explore.

Couple of details:

I will be traveling with my girlfriend of 3 years
I HATE large tour groups and tourist traps. A death sentence for me would be to trap me in an all inclusive hotel and not let me explore.
We are looking for some place that has good landscape, hiking, culture, food and drink (I guess this is what everyone wants).
We are more adventurous than most (I LOVE exotic food)
The less stress the better.
We are in our twenties, we arent rich…
Safety is important. If was traveling solo, I would travel anywhere. But I am with my girlfriend this time and cant take needless risk.

We were originally thinking Cuba, but since we are Americans, there are still complications getting their as tourists. I want to be able to enjoy the vacation and not worry.

Any help is greatly appreciated!