SINGAPORE - Haze, haze, haze … now that the election is over, we can really focus on what’s in front of us. And that is the smoggy, suffocating air due to forest fires in south Sumatra, Jambi and Riau.

While we can complain about the current situation, the better thing to do might be to look for alternative places with better air quality. Here are where to go to take a big gulp of fresh, crisp air and have your fill of clear blue skies:

Iceland

This Nordic country is a perfect escape in many ways: It’s a cool respite from the mugginess, heat and overcrowding—Iceland has a population of only more than 330,000 over a land area of 103,001 sq km. Moreover , it scored the lowest in terms of PM2.5 level (that’s the level of Particulate Matter in the air) at an average of just 2.95 ug/m3 (10 micrograms/cubic meter) compared to the current 8.5-112 ug/m3 in Singapore now. Fresh air aside, Iceland also has some of the most breathtaking scenery in the world—from the amazing waters of the Blue Lagoon set in a jetblack lava field to cliffs of Hornbjarg.

Mauritius

Mauritius scored 100 out of 100 for its air quality score for 2014’s Environmental Performance Index making it the number 1 country along with Seychelles, Palau, Antigua and Barbuda, Uruguay, Barbados and Grenada. But what gives Mauritius the edge over the rest to us is the fact that it is the most convenient to get to via an Air Mauritius flight from Kuala Lumpur. Plus, there are some amazing boutique resorts there that don’t cost an arm and leg such as the Hotel Cocotiers which got the top spot for Best Bargain Hotel in Mauritius in Tripadvisor’s Traveler’s Choice Award 2015.

Taiwan

Yes, Taiwan is where you want to go for fresh air thanks to the number of trees in the country. A Yale study mapping tree density around the world and published in Nature magazine in May reported Taiwan is the only Asian country that cracked the top five in terms of forest density per square metre after Finland, Slovenia and Sweden. Nearly 60 percent of Taiwan is made up of forests. Besides popular tourist spots such as Alishan Forest Recreation Area, Taroko National Park and Yushan National Park, locals love Aowanda National Forest in Nantou known for its fall foliage as well as Shei-Pa National Park for hiking.