
Travel Guide: Getting to Padua, Italy and Top Activities
Padua is in the Veneto region of Italy, around 40km from Venice. It is home to the Basilica di Sant’Antonio, frescoes by Giotto, and Europe’s first botanical garden.
A Fresh Perspective on Travel Every Day
Padua is in the Veneto region of Italy, around 40km from Venice. It is home to the Basilica di Sant’Antonio, frescoes by Giotto, and Europe’s first botanical garden.
Driving a car in Italy certainly has its entertaining moments. However, walkers will find Assisi offers a variety of interesting pilgrimages, some of them off the beaten track.
Say what you will about natural disasters like the one that befell the little cities below Vesuvius in 79 AD, but one thing is for certain: Archaeologists and historians sifting through the ancient remains can tell far more about these cities than they can about ones that took their sweet time to collapse.
Verona is a popular tourist destination in the Veneto Region of Italy, situated on the Milano-Venice train line, approximately 70 miles west of Venice. A small airport is conveniently located just outside of Verona, and Lake Garda is nearby, offering stunning natural beauty. Additionally, other nearby towns worth exploring are Cremona, Brescia, and Vincenza.
Whether you’re religious or not, a trip to the Vatican in Rome is a fantastic addition to your European vacation. If you’d like to meet the Pope himself, you can make a formal request for a papal audience with relative ease.
Young English elites of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries often spent two to four years traveling around Europe in an effort to broaden their horizons and learn about language, architecture, geography, and culture in an experience known as the Grand Tour.
Liège is a vibrant city located along the Meuse River in Belgium’s French-speaking Wallonia region, near the borders of the Netherlands and Germany. This economic and cultural hub boasts a population of just under 200,000 residents. Before visiting, exploring the average weather conditions at theLiège travel weathersite is advisable.
Certainly, you’ve heard some tales from the Vienna Woods. If you’ve listened to Strauss lately, you have. In any case, you wouldn’t think woods would be conducive to growing grapes; however, if you’re thinking about getting out in the countryside and enjoying some great food and wine, the area around Vienna is a perfect choice.
One of the great things about visiting Belgium is its diminutive size and the interesting cities crammed together so they’re just a short train ride from each other. You won’t spend a lot of time (or money) getting from one destination to another. Plus, it’s very easy to get to London and Paris as well as other destinations in Germany, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg.
Bruges (Brugge in Dutch), the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders in Belgium, is located in the northwest corner of Belgium. Bruges is a mere 44km from Ghent to the southeast and 145 from Brussels.
It is a commonly agreed upon misconception that you cannot see the European countryside by train. The European rail system covers much more ground than you might expect, especially with maps available at your fingertips.
Bastia, Corsica’s second largest city with a population of about 40,000 people, is beautifully positioned on Corsica’s east coast, facing Italy with views of the Tuscan archipelago. To the north, accessible by car or bus, liesle Cap Corse, a rugged peninsula dotted with Genoese towers and a sprawling natural preserve that has become a hiker’s haven.
The Dordogne département (24) is located in the Aquitaine region of southwestern France. The region is often referred to as the Périgord, a name that predates the French Revolution. The remarkable beauty of the Dordogne features rivers carving through limestone, creating breathtaking cliffs and extensive caves housing ancient art.
Your Guide to Eating Venetian “Tapas” on the Run
You could argue that small cities (cities of fewer than 250,000 inhabitants) offer the best experience for tourists. Sure, larger cities like Rome and Paris have more to do; however, the time it takes to get across town and learn about the best places within a larger city can waste a lot of a tourist’s time. You probably won’t find it too daunting to drive into the cities listed below. Train travelers can take a hotel near the train station, dump the bags, and go exploring on foot, seeing the whole city in a day. The list isn’t complete, but these are some of my favorite small cities in Europe.
Saint-Flour is tucked between two volcanic mountain regions in the Massif Central in France in the Haute Auvergne region, offering travelers a chance to see the rural side of medieval France as well as the natural beauty of a volcanic landscape. Medieval Saint-Flour itself is perched on top of the Auvergne’s highest volcanic outcrops, and the views of the surrounding countryside from the high town are spectacular.
The Nürburgring is a captivating 14 miles of winding, narrow country roads that was once the most exhilarating and dangerous motor racing track in history. Due to high safety concerns, the track was deemed too perilous for competitive racing; however, you can still experience it at high speeds in your own vehicle.
Giverny is a picturesque village located in Normandy, approximately 75 kilometers northwest of Paris. It is famously home to Monet’s Gardens, a site of immense popularity, particularly during the spring season. Visitors can explore Claude Monet’s house and stroll through the gardens that inspired many of his iconic paintings, all while experiencing the unique ‘special light’ that captivated both Monet and other impressionist artists. The surrounding forests present excellent opportunities for walking and biking.
TheLille-Lesquin Airportis located about 5 miles from the center of Lille. An airport shuttle (from door A) gets you into the center of Lille in approximately 20 minutes.
Lucerne is located in central Switzerland, on the shores of Lake Lucerne, surrounded by the Swiss Alps, notably Mount Pilatus and Rigi. With its placid water and towering alpine vistas, Lucerne embodies what tourists think of when they hear “Switzerland.” Lucerne has a population of just under 60,000 people and is in the German-speaking part of Switzerland.