Divine art, Renaissance history, fashion, pasta that’s better than – well, you know – even more art. We’re all familiar with Italy’s attractions and allure – and even if there was any doubt, there are multiple shelves at the local bookstore dedicated to tomes regaling the joys of spending a year learning Italian in Tuscany while falling in love to remind us.
From porn stars to political scandal, the Italians don’t believe in doing anything by halves. Moving between north, south and central Italy you’ll encounter everything from designer-fixated cool cats and effervescent, pseudo-charming Romeos to “eat, eat” nonnas and every type of person in between.
Don’t let the hordes discourage you; Florence, Venice, Lake Como and the Amalfi Coast are all popular because they are worth it. Travelling in the off-season may help, but ‘discovering’ enchanting villages like Chiusa in the Dolomites or the tiny island of San Pietro in Sardinia will make you feel as though you’ve found another country entirely. In summary: tutti bene. It’s all good.
In the very centre of Europe lies a country rich in culture, history and scenery all competing for your attention. Poland is both urban and traditional, with the energetic Warsaw boasting beautiful architecture, while forests, lakes and mountains can be found outside the urban landscape. Hiking is a popular activity in the Tatra Mountains, look for bison in the Bialowieski National Park or descend into the eerie world of salt chambers at Wieliczka. Then there are the 500 kilometres of Baltic coastline, with their pretty seaside villages and health resorts.
Poland has a thousand years’ worth of kings, queens, castles and wars to discover and history buffs will fall in love with the former capital of Kraków. There’s a museum set in the Renaissance-style Wawel Royal Castle and moving interactive displays at Oskar Schindler’s former enamel factory. That tragic more recent history is also remembered in cities like Lublin, where visitors can trace the country’s Jewish history.
This cool spot in the Masuria region of Poland packs in plenty of Eastern European charm. About a three-hour drive from Warsaw in the country’s north-east, the ‘funky village for urban people’ – as it is described by its owners – is tucked in between a pine forest and a lake.
An old barn with a fireplace, library, cinema and bar forms the social heart of the camp, but each shelter is well equipped with a wood fire, fridge, wi-fi, bathroom and hammock strung up on the veranda.
Campers can gather provisions from the town a kilometre away, but for a more luxurious approach opt for full board and start the day with ostrich egg scramble followed by Polish and Mediterranean cuisine – think cured meats, grilled vegetables and ukha, a traditional soup made with fish caught from the nearby lake, washed down with a bottle of Zywiec, the local lager. Na zdrowie!
During the day go scuba diving, splash around the lake on kayaks or cool off in the swimming pool. Back on shore there’s beach volleyball and badminton, as well as trekking and bike riding. Once you’re done exploring, relax with a range of spa treatments.
Inspired by his work on the TV show ’71° Nord,’ Norway’s answer to ‘Survivor,’ Jan Fasting cobbled together nine yurts by one of the country’s lakes to create Canvas Hotel, striking a perfect balance between comfort and outdoorsy thrills. As a guest, you can hire a bike and spend your days throttling the 100 kilometres of granite tracks twisting through the bush, or head on one of the hotel’s organised tours. At the end of the day, return for refreshments from the beer tap on wheels, and enjoy a feast cooked on a raclette tabletop grill.
Soak your aching muscles in a vintage bathtub by the lake then simmer in the sauna and, if you’re game, do as the locals do and dive into the ice-cold water. Once you’re ready for bed, bunk down in your yurt where carpet, a layer of wool insulation and a log fire keep things comfy.
Add a touch of the bizarre to your experience by booking a lakeside concert with Keith Austin, a former member of the rock band Dr. Hook who lives in a nearby village, and relax with a massage. For the ultimate showstopper, explore the countryside by helicopter.
It’s not every night you get to bed down in a former brothel. If the walls of Cocomama could talk they would have some sordid stories to tell, but fear not, you won’t find any icky notches on the bedposts here.
Touted as Amsterdam’s first boutique hostel, Cocomama combines the elegant style of a luxury hotel with more informal comforts. Located in the heart of the city, the building boasts high ceilings, chandeliers and quirky Dutch ornaments hanging from the walls.
Travellers can keep to themselves or hang out in the ‘movie corner’ with Joop, the resident cat. Go for a private pad and choose between the Dutch-themed rooms – think tulips and forests – or grab a bed in the ‘red light district’ dorm.
Full of Dutch courage? Then join the 9,999 other orange-clad maniacs by the pier at Scheveningen on January 1 for a frigid swim in the North Sea, where the winter mercury plunges below zero. But it’s not an entirely masochistic enterprise.
Half of the proceeds from the exorbitant entry fee of €2 goes to charity, and you’ll be rewarded with a nice hot bowl of snert (split pea soup) for your troubles.
Seriously, who hasn’t thought themselves capable of fighting a tiger while dressed in a miniskirt? If this sounds like you, consider a) getting some professional help, or b) travelling immediately to the Italian capital and enrolling in Scuola Gladiatori di Roma, otherwise known as Gladiator School.
Here, in the rough-and-ready surrounds of a re-created Roman barracks somewhere on the ancient Appian Way in the heart of the Eternal City, you’ll be taught such useful things as basic hand-to-hand combat, the essential techniques of gladiatorial sword fighting and how to use a large net and an oversized fork to really ruin someone’s day. For those who like to get a bit of education with their ancient ultimate fighting classes, a guided tour of the Gladiator Museum and a horrible history lesson is included in the price. Gladiator School can also be arranged through the Rome Cavalieri, a luxury resort, two miles from the Vatican.
Iceland braved a beer ban until 1989, but boy oh boy, have they made up for it in the years since. The cool, vintage-styled Kex Drinx, tucked away in a former biscuit factory in downtown Reykjavik, is the place to go for frosty pints of local beer. Find your inner Rocky and get a good ol’ workout with the boxing bag, browse a wine crate stacked with well-loved books, or go for some Jack Daniel’s in a serving of chocolate mousse.
The bar is part of a hostel right by the sea, so you won’t have far to travel if you down a few too many brews to brave the outside chill. And don’t let the hostel part put you off – locals drink here too. Besides, any backpacker who has travelled this far is sure to have a bevy of tales to tell.
Free falling with cables and parachutes is for wimps. Take the 24-metre plunge into the icy Neretva River with nothing but your Speedos for comfort. Leaping off Stari Most (it translates to Old Bridge) in the city of Mostar gives thrill-seekers the ultimate chance to prove what they’re really made of.
And there’s a lot more at stake than your average adrenaline rush. Your life – not to mention your ego – is on the line as you plummet head or feet first into the teal-blue water with bone-shattering force. The dive has been a rite of passage for young local boys seeking to impress the ladies for generations, and every July the bravest – or stupidest – face off in the Ikari bridge-jumping competition. Tourists can take part, but be warned, deaths do happen.
Saved from abandonment on Antwerp’s docks, this collection of shipping containers has been revamped and artfully furnished for a new life as a roaming hotel. The four-room pop-up container village boasts everything you’d find in a traditional guesthouse – a comfy bed with luxury linen, air-conditioning, iPod docking station and a bathroom complete with a rain shower – all squeezed into a 20-metre box.
There’s a separate lounge container for breakfast in the morning and a glass of red before you slip off to bed, and plans for a sauna are hot in the works. So far the hotel has graced the city’s riverfront and partnered with a pop-up restaurant called Glow, but its future destinations are at the behest of public votes.
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