I’ll be home for Christmas!! Scratch that! Pack up your suitcase, bring your warmest jacket, your fluffiest scarf and winter mittens, throw in a pair of earmuffs and head to to those twinkling Christmas Markets in Europe! From the cutest, quaintest snow covered markets, warm Glühwein and a feeling of good cheer, it’s the happiest season of all when friends come to call! There’s no better way to describe the most wonderful time of the year when you visit a Christmas Market!
One of my favorite childhood Disney films is and still is Beauty & the Beast and one of my favorite scenes is when Belle meanders through a sleepy half-timbered town, with locals going about their morning in the market place, singing “Little town, in a quiet village”. While in Colmar, France, no one broke out in song, walking through the half-timbered town of Colmar is quite possibly one of the best things to do in France. So much beauty crammed into one little town, you wonder how it can possibly be real.
When in England, afternoon tea as much as possible is my motto! There are a million possibilities for afternoon tea in London, so it can be quite overwhelming to decide where to enjoy a tea that best fits you needs budget and personality. Enjoying an afternoon tea at Kensington Palace is a great way to combine some London sightseeing with a bit of culture. Known as one of the best locations in London for an afternoon tea, the advantages of an afternoon tea at Kensington Palace are lengthy!
Right off the bat, Edinburgh is a city of contrasts; embracing its rich history and inevitable cliches, yet at the same time it is a vivacious metropolis celebrated for as one of Europe’s most beautiful cities, as well as its hard-to-resist Scottish charm. Set across multiple rocky hills overlooking the sea, Edinburgh is home to almost 5,000 historic buildings, monuments and sites, so how does one go about visiting such a magnificent city without being completely overwhelmed?
There’s no denying it. Scotland is one of the most stunning countries on the planet and yet it often gets overlooked. But in recent years, people have started to catch on to Scotland’s undeniable natural beauty with monumental landscapes and a sense of complete isolation, which has put Scotland on the list of top places to visit.
An array of ochre, yellow and orange houses rise up from the sea, jutting out on to a thin strip of peninsula, sharply contracting against a blue sky. This is how I shall always remember Rovinj, Croatia, one of the loveliest towns along the Istria which stretches from the Gulf of Trieste to the Kvarner Gulf.
If ever there was the most idyllic castle that would suit my every need, then it would without a doubt be Miramare Castle, just 10 minutes from Trieste. A quaint, white stone castle perched on a cliff just feet above the Adriatic Sea, facing out to an endless blue sea and lush gardens with terracotta potted plants. I could have imagined a lovely, peaceful life here… until I discovered the curse of anyone who sleeps at Castello di Miramare…
Trieste, Italy, a beautiful coastal town on a small strip of land that borders Slovenia. You’ve probably never heard of it before, as Italy is dominated by headline cities such as Venice, Rome, Florence, Naples, Cinque Terre, Verona and many, many more, and still it offers many wonderful reasons for visiting. Despite being located on the easternmost tip of Italy, opposite Venice via the Adriatic Sea, this port city is spewing with things to see and do! So, the question remains, “What brought me to Trieste?”
You may not know it, but there are more things to do in Slovenia than just visiting Ljubljana or Lake Bled. And perhaps it may come as a surprise to you, but Slovenia also has a little sliver of beautiful coastline along the Adriatic Sea. While we settled in Piran (Pirano), the gem of the Slovenian Riviera, for our 4 day Easter weekend, it’s also an easy day trip from both Ljubljana and Lake Bled and I can say with absolute certainty that if you’re planning a Balkan road trip, you will want to add this to your itinerary! But what makes this enchanting city along the Adriatic so special?
When considering a visit to Europe, some might become overwhelmed with the endless options when it comes to finding the best places to visit and the huge variety between countries. While hitting up Europe’s capital cities like London, Paris, Prague, or Rome, it’s always a great idea to include a few, smaller, picturesque towns, but finding these pretty little towns can feel like finding a needle in a haystack. So, I’ve gathered 50 small cities and cute towns in Europe that are just downright STUPID PRETTY!
