The first time I ever walked onto Qufim, long, long ago, I got the impression of a true battlefield...it seemed like the sort of place where armies might clash, laying siege to Delkfutt's Tower or something...
I personally enjoy loitering around the lake in Jugner Forest. The clear water and the island in the middle add a very distinctive ambiance.
But recently, I had a new experience. I had nothing at all to do, I didn't feel like leveling, so I wandered to the Crag of Mea and got a chocobo.
I wandered generally northward, and found myself in Zi'tah, of which many tales have been told. That place has an ambiance of it's own, but then I found myself in Ro'Maeve.
Far from beautiful. Desolate cermet ruins in the middle of Li'Telor, not even vines would grow on the crumbling bone-like walls. Silenced, I passed through without drawing the attention of the Weapons that populated the place. Still, the atmosphere was tangible.
Finally, in the middle of all that, I got to the Hall of the Gods. Evocative doesn't even begin to cover it. Just go there. Do yourself that favor.