County Sligo
Sligo's ultimate rock pile sits atop a magical mountain hike. Knocknarea Cairn is popularly believed to be the grave of legendary Queen Maeve (Queen Mab…
Must-see attractions in Western Europe
Counties Fermanagh & Tyrone
In the 18th and 19th centuries more than two million Ulster people left their homes to forge a new life across the Atlantic. Their story is told here at…
Rotterdam
Designed and built between 1925 and 1931, this modernist World Heritage–listed factory northwest of the city centre is an icon of 20th-century industrial…
Gironde
This colossal sand dune (sometimes referred to as the Dune de Pyla because of its location 4km from the small seaside resort town of Pyla-sur-Mer), 8km…
Les Machines de l’Île de Nantes
Nantes
Nantes' quirkiest sight is this fantasy world – a serious and seriously wacky workshop with mechanical contraptions galore displayed in plant-filled…
Centre for Alternative Technology
Powys
A small but dedicated band of enthusiasts have spent 40 years practising sustainability at the thought-provoking CAT, set in the Dyfi Unesco Biosphere…
Strasbourg
Nothing prepares you for your first glimpse of Strasbourg's Cathédrale Notre-Dame, completed in all its Gothic grandeur in 1439. The lace-fine facade…
Orkney
Constructed about 5000 years ago, Maeshowe is an extraordinary place, a Stone Age tomb built from enormous sandstone blocks, some of which weighed many…
Le Mémorial – Un Musée pour la Paix
Caen
For a very insightful and vivid account of the entire war, with special focus on the Battle of Normandy, Le Mémorial is unparalleled – it's one of Europe…
Carrowkeel Megalithic Cemetery
County Sligo
With a bird's-eye view of the county from high in the Bricklieve Mountains, it's little wonder this hilltop site was sacred in prehistoric times. But for…
Tarn
Resembling a castle more than a cathedral, this formidable edifice in orange brick rises above Vieil Albi like an apparition. Its defensive walls hark…
Anglesey & the North Coast
Caernarfon is more complete, Harlech more dramatically positioned and Beaumaris more technically perfect, yet out of the four castles that compose the…
Amiens
A Unesco World Heritage Site, the largest Gothic cathedral in France (at 145m long) and the largest in the world by volume was begun in 1220 to house the…
Bayeux
The world’s most celebrated embroidery depicts the conquest of England by William the Conqueror in 1066 from an unashamedly Norman perspective…
St Ives
After an 18-month, multimillion-pound refit, St Ives' most illustrious gallery reopened its doors, complete with a monumental exhibition space that's been…
Glendalough
Nestled between two lakes, haunting Glendalough (Gleann dá Loch, meaning 'Valley of the Two Lakes') is one of the most significant monastic sites in…
Sintra
The star of Sintra-Vila is this palace, with its iconic twin conical chimneys and lavish, whimsical interior, which is a mix of Moorish and Manueline…
County Antrim
This spectacular rock formation – Northern Ireland's only Unesco World Heritage site – is one of Ireland's most impressive and atmospheric landscape…
Languedoc-Roussillon
The extraordinary three-tiered Pont du Gard was once part of a 50km-long system of channels built around 19 BC to transport water from Uzès to Nîmes. The…
Chamonix
The great rocky fang of the Aiguille du Midi (3842m), rising from the Mont Blanc massif, is one of Chamonix’ most distinctive features. The 360-degree…
Bonifacio
The great joy of visiting Bonifacio lies in strolling the tangled medieval lanes of the citadel. The paved steps of montée du Rastello and montée St-Roch…
Carrowmore Megalithic Cemetery
County Sligo
One of the largest Stone Age cemeteries in Europe, Carrowmore is finally receiving the renown it deserves and is Sligo's must-see attraction. Some 30…
Nîmes
Nîmes’ twin-tiered amphitheatre is the best preserved in France. Built around 100 BC, the arena once seated 24,000 spectators and staged gladiatorial…
Montpellier
Founded in 1825 by painter François-Xavier Fabre, this exceptional museum houses one of France’s richest collections of European art. The galleries…
Alfama, Castelo & Graça
Towering dramatically above Lisbon, these mid-11th-century hilltop fortifications sneak into almost every snapshot. Roam its snaking ramparts and pine…
Maison et Jardins de Claude Monet
Giverny
Monet’s home for the last 43 years of his life is now a delightful house-museum. His pastel-pink house and Water Lily studio stand on the periphery of the…
Den Haag
Offering a wonderful introduction to Dutch and Flemish art, this splendid museum is set in a 17th-century mansion built for wealthy sugar trader Johan…
Liverpool
Britain's largest church, this magnificent neo-Gothic building is also the world's largest Anglican cathedral. It was designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott …
Nice
Getting lost among the dark, narrow, winding alleyways of Nice’s old town is a highlight. The layout has barely changed since the 1700s, and it’s now…
South Holland
Impressive for both its size and its magnificent stained-glass windows, Sint Janskerk had chequered beginnings: previous incarnations of the building…
Montmartre & Northern Paris
Begun in 1875 in the wake of the Franco-Prussian War and the chaos of the Paris Commune, Sacré-Cœur is a symbol of the former struggle between the…
Avignon
The largest Gothic palace ever built, the Palais des Papes was erected by Pope Clement V, who abandoned Rome in 1309 in the wake of violent disorder after…
Oxford
Britain’s oldest public museum, Oxford’s wonderful Ashmolean Museum is surpassed only by the British Museum in London. It was established in 1683, when…
Alfama, Castelo & Graça
Wander downhill (to save your legs) through Alfama's steep, narrow, cobblestoned streets and catch a glimpse of the more traditional side of Lisbon before…
Peak District
Known as the 'Palace of the Peak', this vast edifice 3 miles northeast of Bakewell has been occupied by the earls and dukes of Devonshire for centuries…
Nice
The most famous stretch of seafront in Nice – if not France – is this vast paved promenade, which gets its name from the English expat patrons who paid…
Chamonix
France’s largest glacier, the 200m-deep 'Sea of Ice', flows 7km down the northern side of Mont Blanc, scarred with crevasses formed by the immense…
Lisbon
Set in a lemon-fronted, 17th-century palace, the Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga is Lapa’s biggest draw. It presents a star-studded collection of European…
Coimbra
Coimbra's Unesco-listed university, one of the world's oldest, was originally founded in Lisbon in 1290. It was subsequently relocated several times…
North London
Consisting of low-slung red-brick terraces and fronted by a large piazza with an oversized statue of Sir Isaac Newton, Colin St John Wilson’s British…
