Copenhagen is the fairy-tale capital of Denmark, where cobbled alleys dusted with snow or blooming with flowers wiggle past bohemian cafés and medieval towers. Amsterdam is the first city of the Netherlands, with its barge-filled canals and enthralling Rijksmuseum collections brimming with paintings by the revered Old Masters. Both should be on any must-do list … Read more
With Dam Square and the Vondelpark checked off the list, you’re probably looking for the next awesome European capital to explore. There’s a chance it awaits over 440 miles away, across on the eastern fringes of Central Europe. That’s where Prague sits straddling the Vltava River, spiked with the mighty turrets of Prague Castle (one … Read more
Paris and Milan have a lot in common. They are both fashion hubs, with a reputation for haute couture and beautiful people. They both sport grand architecture and buildings, whether that means the Gothic spires of Notre-Dame or the handsome turrets of the magnificent Milano Duomo. Each has its own unique cuisine, including saffron-scented risottos … Read more
If you’re going to Austria in search of charming, chocolate-box mountain towns topped by the outlines of the Alps and awash with wooden chalets blooming with flowers, Hallstatt is somewhere you should certainly be looking to visit. It’s actually not too hard to get to if you’re based in the city of Vienna. The two … Read more
Munich and Prague might be 295km apart and in different countries, but they’re not all that different. Both are mad for beer – the first has the annual Oktoberfest, the second is a mecca for lovers of Czech pilsner. Both boast handsome medieval-era cores with grand churches. Both are among the bucket-list towns of Central … Read more
Looking for a little break from the buzz and hubbub of The Dam? Want to see one of Europe’s most celebrated medieval cities? Keen to get lost amid fairy-tale church spires and cobbled streets? The perfect place might just be over the border in Belgium: Bruges. This UNESCO World Heritage city is a photographer’s, history … Read more
The capitals of Norway and Sweden sit almost directly in line with each other across the great Scandinavian Peninsula. One, Oslo, is nestled at the base of its own wild fjord, sporting glistening modern architecture and enthralling museums dedicated to the age of the Vikings. The other, Stockholm, is anchored on the fairy-tale Gamla Stan … Read more
There are 530km of Scandinavian fjords and icy Baltic waters and wild Nordic forests between the two great cities of Copenhagen and Stockholm. But don’t let that put you off planning a trip that sees you exploring the both of them. This guide delves down into all the modes of transport that can help you … Read more
If you simply can’t decide between the glorious exhibition rooms of The Hermitage and the twisted onion domes of Saint Basil’s Cathedral, the totemic sights of Red Square and the elegant Winter Palace of the onetime tsars, you could just do the whole lot. You’ll need to plan a Russian holiday that takes in both … Read more
Banks and businesspeople have turned Zurich into one of the wealthiest cities in the world. Today, folk flock in for board meetings, but also to see the wonderful Old Town and its Grossmunster church, or the glistening lake and bergs of the Alps beyond. To continue that adventure, an obvious next stop on the itinerary … Read more
So, you’re looking to swap a chic and sleek financial hub for the beer-sloshing capital of Bavaria? Excellent. Both of these enthralling cities should be on any Germany bucket list. Thankfully, they are very well connected, so smashing the 190 miles between the towns shouldn’t be hard. Whether you want to jet over to the … Read more
You might not know it, but Frankfurt actually rivals Berlin in size. It’s the epicentre of a metro area that has a population of nearly six million. It’s also the country’s financial capital, and the home of its largest airport. That all means a trip from one to the other is a trip between two … Read more
The journey from Madrid to Valencia takes you straight across the heartlands of western Spain. Between dusty sierras and the lands where one Don Quixote used to roam, it could be a 190-mile, multi-day odyssey filled with flamenco dances and tastes of Manchego cheese. Or, you could smash it in less than 1.5 hours, which … Read more
Once you’re done soaking up the rays on the Algarve’s award-winning beaches and tasting the fresh seafood of the south coast, you might want to plot a course north to the culture-rich, party-mad capital of Portugal. That’s Lisbon, which lies some 218km away, beckoning with its grand Age of Exploration architecture and formidable Moorish castles. … Read more