Blarney Castle is one of Ireland’s most famous landmarks, and it all comes down to a single stone. The Blarney Stone, set into the battlements, is said to grant the gift of eloquence to anyone who kisses it. Thousands of visitors each year lean backwards over the parapet to plant a kiss on the stone. […]
The oldest city in Ireland wears its Viking heritage like a badge of honour. Waterford was founded by the Vikings in 914 AD, and its triangular medieval quarter still follows the street pattern laid down by Norse settlers. The Waterford Crystal factory continues a tradition of glassmaking that began in 1783, producing the world-renowned cut […]
The road unwinds through the Irish countryside, past green fields dotted with sheep, stone walls that have stood for centuries, and the ruins of medieval castles standing sentinel over the landscape. Touring Ireland by car offers the freedom to explore at your own pace, to stop at a pub in a village you cannot find […]
Categories: Ireland
Thinking of visiting West Ireland this summer and want to know what outdoor activities are available? From dramatic coastlines to enchanted forests, f
Categories: Ireland
Deep in the southeastern corner of Sicily, a hidden world of limestone cliffs and emerald pools awaits your discovery. Cava Grande del Cassibile is not just a canyon. It is a natural cathedral carved by water over millennia. The hiking trail winds down into the gorge, passing ancient rock shelters and wild olive trees. At […]
Five fishing villages cling to the rugged Ligurian coast, their pastel houses stacked like children’s blocks against the steep cliffs. The trails that connect them wind through terraced vineyards and fragrant lemon groves. Monterosso has the beach. Vernazza has the harbour. Corniglia sits highest, reached by a long staircase. Manarola and Riomaggiore face the sunset […]
Categories: Italy, National Parks, Nature, Nature, Virtual Travel
The scent of espresso and fresh pastries drifts from a doorway as the morning sun warms centuries of travertine and cobblestone. In Rome, history does not sit quietly in museums. It rises from the pavements, arches overhead in ancient aqueducts, and peeks through cracks in medieval walls. The rumble of Vespas mingles with church bells […]
The Mediterranean crashes against golden sand as the Rocca looms overhead, a massive limestone promontory that has watched over this fishing town for millennia. Cefalù is the kind of place where life moves at the pace of the tide. Narrow alleyways wind past pastel coloured houses, laundry fluttering from wrought iron balconies. The Cathedral, a […]
You lie flat in a small rowboat as the oarsman guides you through a tiny opening in the cliff face. Then the world turns blue. The Blue Grotto glows with an ethereal sapphire light, as if the sea itself is lit from beneath. Sunlight enters through an underwater cavity and reflects through the water to […]
Categories: Caves, Islands, Italy, Nature, Nature, Sea Sites
Stromboli is not merely an island, it is a living volcano that has been erupting continuously for over two thousand years, earning the nickname Lighthouse of the Mediterranean. Rising from the Tyrrhenian Sea off the northern coast of Sicily, this small Aeolian island offers one of Europe most extraordinary natural spectacles: watching molten rock explode […]
Categories: Islands, Italy, Nature, Nature, Sicily, Volcanoes
