Venice Italy
Renowned for its beauty, architecture, art and the Grand Canal
Venice was a great maritime power during the Middle Ages, a cultural center during the Renaissance, and a staging area for the Crusader Knights to liberate the Holy Land. It was also an important center of commerce that enriched Venice.
Venice today, the capital of Italy’s Veneto region, offers unforgettable experiences through its picturesque canals.
It is located in a group of 118 small islands that are linked by canals and bridges and an impressive backdrop of Baroque buildings and famous monuments including Piazza San Marco, St. Mark’s Basilica, St. Mark’s Campanile (bell tower of the St. Mark’s Basilica), The Doge’s Palace, the Bridge of Sighs and the Gallerie dell’Accademia (gallery of the pre-19th century art museum) are just a few of its many attractions.
There are no cars or roads. Only canals and boats.
You can experience the wonders of this city rich in culture across the waters of the Grand Canal in a gondola and float down the world famous Rialto Bridge.
Venice and its lagoon were added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage sites in 1987.
Colmar-France
“Little Venice of Alsace”
Historic Old World charm
Founded in the 9th century, Colmar reflects eight centuries of Germanic and French influence in all its variety and vitality.
Colmar, on the Alsace wine route of northeastern France, near Germany and Switzerland between the Vosges and the Rhine, Strasbourg and Mulhouse is surrounded by natural forests, lakes and vine-covered hills of the southern Vosges and the valley of the Upper Rhine.
The historic city of Colmar is another of the beautiful places in Europe with its old town, its famous “Little Venice” lined with neighborhoods along the canal adorned with colorful flowers, cobbled streets and footpaths.
You can stroll past the half-timbered early Renaissance and medieval buildings, including the Unterlinden Museum with the Isenheim Altarpiece.
The 13th-century Gothic church Eglise Saint-Martin is located on the central Place de la Cathédrale.
Here in Colmar, you will also find wineries and cellars that dot the local vineyards that specialize in Riesling and Gewürztraminer wines.
Annecy-France
Venice of the French Alps
History and culture in alpine environments
The old-world charm of Annecy with its idyllic Alpine setting is found in the Haute-Savoie region of southeastern France and on the routes leading to Italy and Switzerland.
Its beautiful postcard settings include other nearby traditional villages, forests, snow-capped mountains and Lake d’Annecy,
Its medieval Vieille Ville (old town) with its winding canals are lined with shops and cafes, the Perrière Bridge (Pont Perrière) and its cobbled streets with Piedmontese houses, pastel colors and covered in geraniums are a photographer’s dream.
Other attractions include Rue Sainte-Claire with its arcaded houses and the fortified Sainte-Claire Gate, and you can visit the 14th-century turreted Annecy Castle, once home to the Counts of Geneva.
Giethoorn-Holland
“Dutch Venice”
Water wonderland
Away from the hustle and bustle of busy city life, you can explore the beautiful and laid-back water town of Giethoorn by boat, bike, or on foot.
Panoramic views, tranquility and beauty, Giethoorn, “the Venice of Holland” is in the center of the Overijssel canal and lake system.
Surrounded by the vast De Wieden nature reserve, this idyllic town of Durch was founded by fugitives from the Mediterranean around 1230 AD.
There are no roads or cars, just beautiful canals lined with colorful flowers, traditional 18th-century thatched cottages, farms, and more than 150 arched wooden bridges.
Imagine walking, biking or gently boating these serene canals in a postcard setting enjoying their beautiful and peaceful atmosphere.
And you can enjoy a meal or coffee in a canal side cafe or restaurant and watch the world go by.
Keukenhof-Holland
Garden of europe
Keukenhof is a world-famous attraction that is open for eight weeks each spring.
Visiting the tranquil settings of Keukenhof will be a unique and unforgettable experience.
Keukenhof is one of the largest flower gardens in the world and is open annually from mid-March to mid-May.
However, the best time to view tulips is mid-April, depending on the weather.
This panoramic Dutch garden is located about 20 miles southwest of Amsterdam, in the small town of Lisse, in an area called the “Dune and Bulb Region”.
Approximately 7 million flower bulbs are planted annually, including 800 varieties of tulips, and it covers an area of 32 hectares (79 acres).
Here you can enjoy impressive flower shows and panoramic gardens, unique works of art.
You can visit the Tulpomania exhibition at the Juliana Pavilion and you will also find beautiful and iconic Dutch windmills.
Attractions designed for children to enjoy include treasure hunts, a pet farm with lambs, goats, pigs and other animals, and there is a tall hedge maze and playground.
When you are hungry, you can visit the restaurant for pancakes and poffertjes (mini pancakes).
Northern Lights-Sweden
Nature’s Natural Light Show – Aurora Borealis
Abisko offers the clearest nights in Sweden, providing the best opportunity to see the brilliant display of colored lights in the night sky.
The Aurora Sky Station located on Mount Njullá, 900 meters above sea level, in the extreme northwest of Abisko National Park in Swedish Lapland, is considered one of the best places in the world to observe the Northern Lights or Aurora Boreal. .
This natural phenomenon is an impressive show of colored lights in the autumn and winter night sky that occurs under ideal conditions.
Swedish Lapland’s proximity to magnetic north provides ideal conditions in Arctic skies when charged particles discharged from the sun reach Earth’s atmosphere and collide with gaseous particles which in turn produce these different colors.
The auroras that occur in the southern hemisphere are called ‘Aurora Australis’ or ‘Southern Lights’.
A visit to the Aurora Sky Station begins with a 20-minute chairlift ride up the mountain.
Santorini, Greece
Magic island that awakens your imagination
Santorini, with its classical Greek architectural beauty, marvelous sea views and breathtaking sunsets, offers a unique vacation experience.
Classically Thera and officially Thira, Santorini is an island in the South Aegean, about 200 km (120 miles) southeast of the Greek mainland.
It is the largest island in a small circular archipelago that bears the same name and is the remnant of a volcanic caldera.
A giant rectangular lagoon measuring approximately 12 by 7 km (7.5 by 4.3 miles), it is surrounded by 300 m (980 ft) high cliffs on three sides.
See traditional whitewashed buildings, blue-domed churches, thriving nightlife, luxury hotels, and boutique guesthouses in scenic settings.
You can visit the Minoan historical site of Akrotiri, the traditional hilltop village of Oia, cross the bay to the capital of Santorini, Fira, swim at the famous black volcanic beaches of Perissa, Kamari and Red or go hiking along its adventure trails.
Santorini has also become a favorite destination for foreign couples who want to get married or enjoy their honeymoon in a wonderful postcard setting.
Rhodes Island-Greece
Famous for the Colossus of Rhodes, one of the Seven Ancient Wonders
History, culture and beauty
Beautiful beaches, historic places, traditional villages and a city divided in two: the Old City built by the Crusaders and the modern New City on the outskirts
Rhodes Town
The city of Rhodes is located along the port of Mandraki, which is the first of three ports filled with cruise ships, yachts, and fishing boats.
This is where the Colossus of Rhodes once stood before being toppled by an earthquake in 225BC.
The New Market (Nea Agora) with its Moorish domes that line Mandraki Harbor, is filled with lively cafes, food stalls, gift shops and souvlaki bars.
Along the Mandraki harbor there are neo-colonial and Italian style buildings and at the entrance to the harbor there are now two bronze deer where the Colossus of Rhodes once stood.
You can see the Palace of the Grand Master of the Crusader Knights of Saint John and a Turkish minaret, you have panoramic views of the medieval fortress of Saint Nicholas and three Byzantine windmills.
Around the island, you will find beautiful beaches, historical sites dating back to the classical times of the ancient Greeks, and traditional and picturesque villages.
Medieval old town
The Old Town of Rhodes is one of the largest and best-preserved medieval settlements in Europe inscribed on the UNESCO List of World Heritage Sites, which recognizes its exceptional value as a cultural site.
The old town is a legacy of the Crusader Knights of San Juan who built it to defend the island from invaders.
You can enter the old town through eleven entrance doors and walk through its maze of cobbled streets, alleys, and arches.
Life goes on in the old town with many houses, shops and businesses, as well as restaurants, cafes, bars, gift shops, pensions and museums.
Symi-Greece
Panoramic views of the harbor and city amphitheater
Stunning views, a beautiful harbor, and a wonderful island atmosphere make Symi a unique travel experience for its visitors.
Symi is a Greek island of the Dodecanese group of islands located about 41 kilometers (25 miles) north-northwest of Rhodes (and 425 km (264 miles) from Athens).
It includes the port city of Symi, its adjacent upper city Ano Symi, as well as several smaller towns, beaches, and areas of importance in history and mythology.
It is a popular tourist destination known for its beaches, its annual music festival, and for its breathtaking views of one of the most beautiful harbors in the world, surrounded by colorful neoclassical houses built on its mountain slopes.
From its mountainous slopes you can take in panoramic views of the city, the harbor and the surrounding sea, the islets and the peninsulas of Datça and Bozburun of Mugla province in Turkey in the distance.
Panormitis Monastery
On the southwest coast, the 18th-century Monastery of the Archangel Michael Panormitis, which overlooks a bay and is still inhabited by monks, is an important Greek Orthodox pilgrimage site with a Byzantine museum.