Of course most people will make sure to go to the ‘big’ hotspots. Most people will visit the Eiffel Tower for instance, and most people will see the Coliseum and ticking off those things would be easy. But if it was only those big attractions you sought out in Europe then you’d end up with a very warped view of those countries and you would miss out on a lot of amazing things. Here then we’ll look at some of the biggest and best sites in Europe that lots of people will miss. Do the big ones sure, but make sure you visit a few of these too to get a more varied and unique experience of travelling here.

The Tatra Mountains – Poland/Slovakia

There are many beautiful vistas in Europe, but one of my personal favourites has got to be this beautiful mountain range. What makes it amazing to me is how easily you can access these stunning views.

Strbske pleso, High Tatras National Park, Slovakia by Claire for Europe Explored

St Paul’s – England

St Paul’s Cathedral in London is one of the best hidden attractions in England’s capital and has a lot going for it. Besides the beautiful interior of this cathedral, you also get to see the burial place of many famous characters from history, see a spectacular view over all of London and experience the ‘whispering gallery’ that really is as strange as people say.

The Maspalomas Mini Desert – Gran Canaria

When you think Europe you certainly don’t think ‘desert’, but that’s exactly what you’ll find in Gran Canaria if you head to Maspalomas. This makes for something completely different to what you’re probably used to, and it’s an amazing sight for anyone

The Vatican Museum – Italy

A normal trip to Rome will involve looking around a lot of ruins and probably a trip to the Vatican City. Rather than just experiencing it from outside though, it’s worth heading inside the Vatican museum to see an incredible collection of art and history. Better yet go at night and it’ll have an even more serene ambience.

Vatican city by Claire for Europe Explored

The British Library – England

The British Library is more than just a library and is filled with exhibitions, statues and history. It’s also rather impressive to behold in itself, and it’s completely free to visit so it’s worth checking out if you’re in England.

The Lochmuehle – Germany

If you have kids then the European destination at the top of your list is probably Disneyland in Paris. For something a bit different though, check out the Lochmuehle in Frankfurt, Germany. This is a huge playground, but one that is entirely self automated. Forget huge queues for two minute rides and try something different as you pedal to power the big wheel.

The Salt Mines – Austria

There are many great salt mines throughout Europe, but Salzburg has got to be home to the best family day out. Here you’ll get to travel deep underground to visit the crystalline salt mines, to take boat rides and shoot down slides.

Auschwitz – Poland

Auschwitz may not be the jolliest day out, but it’s a sight of incredible historical significance and one very much worth seeing. It’s a haunting location, but highly educational.

Wawel Castle – Poland

If you’re visiting Auschwitz then make a detour to Krakow and visit Wawel Castle – one of the most impressive piece of architecture that no one ever really talks about. This is a huge castle which is free to enter and explore, and which some believe to be one of the ‘energy centres’ of the planet.

Mount Teide – Tenerife

If you’re looking for a an amazing and unusual landscape, then you should certainly visit Mount Teide in Tenerife. This is a huge volcano that you can travel right to the top of, and it’s actually the location where they shot Planet of the Apes.

Mt. Teide & Rock Pedestal, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain by N. Tackaberry / License: Creative Commons

The author of today’s article is Ben Llewellyn, the founder of privatejetcharterprices.com. He has travelled extensively across Europe and knows some of the best locations in the continent. So, for people having a penchant for luxury, they can get Ben’s private jet hire information & news stories on his website.

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Photo licensed under the Creative Commons, created by tomasz przechlewski

Insights into the history
Gniew Castle was founded in the 2nd half of the 13th century and served as the seat of the Teutonic Knights. In the 15th century castle took possession of the royal family. Later, however, the fortress fell to Prussians, who established the military barracks and armory at the Gniew castle. In the first half of the 20th century the building was damaged by a large fire. About 50 years later, began an extensive reconstruction, and the whole place got back to its original form.

Attractions
Today the castle houses an archaeological museum, where you can see many exhibitions of medieval excavations and archaeological findings. The castle also hosts festivals of various historic characters and many exhibitions. In the vicinity of Gniew Castle you can find another great castle, Malbork Castle, which is the largest Gothic building in the world and the largest brick building in the world.

Practical information
You can visit Gniew Castle almost every day (except of Mondays) from 9:00 to 17:00. Admission is 8 PLN. The museum is open from 15 April to 31 October. You can even accommodate right in the castle complex or try some of the great polish traditional meals in the castle’s restaurant. Very impressive is night walking around the castle.

For further details visit official website of Gniew Castle.

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Author: dysiu

Mylna Cave is situated at an altitude of 1098 metres above sea level. Its total length is 1630 metres, but only 300 metres is open to the public. The temperature in the cave in summer is around 5 °C and in winter drop below freezing. The cave consists of several tunnels that lead into different cavities. Some corridors had to be artificially extended, so the visitors could pass through. There is a small stream flowing through the cavity, which is a home to a unique troglobite – a blind shellfish – Niphargus tatrensis.

It is possible to get to the cave by following the marked hiking trail that leads through the valley up to the cave entrance. If you plan to visit the cave, you must have a reliable flash light. The cave is not lighted, and it happened already several times that the visitors get lost in the dark. Prepare for the narrow passages (sometimes you even have to crawl), slippery rocks and mud in some areas. It is definitely not recommended to enter the cave with large backpacks. You should really wear good shoes and warm clothes. The tour is without guide and takes you about 30 minutes. The arrangement of the corridors is quite complicated, so they are carefully marked. You certainly should not abandon the route. Once you decide to visit a cave, you should also not enter alone or in such case at least let someone know that you intend to visit the cave.

Mylna Cave is accessible throughout the year.

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Photo licensed under the Creative Commons, created by Kristian Dela Cour

Final finishing works were carried out under the guidance of architect Henry Hetzel. From 1529 until 1945 it served to the Protestants. It was destroyed during the World War II and then undergone extensive reconstruction, just like many other monuments in Poland. The interior of the church is furnished with a Gothic, manneristic and baroque furniture. You can see here also several memorial plaques of the leading local families.

This truly monstrous Gothic building has the shape of the cross and features a great nave and huge windows along the entire perimeter. You should visit it early in the morning when the sun is still low – it’s worth to wake up early!

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Photo licensed under the Creative Commons, created by Maciej Kasprzyk

The first written mention of the Książ castle dates back to 1288. It was one of several defensive castles built by duke Bolek I “the Cruel”. In 1508 Książ castle fell into the hands of John von Haugwitz, who sold it to Conrad von Hochberg.

Książ castle was rebuilt many times, so it combines many architectural and artistic styles – including the Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque and eclectic elements. The most beautiful part of the castle is certainly Maximilian Hall, which was used for concerts and theater performances, and its interior served as a setting for several movies.

One of the most important and also the most tragic periods in the history of the castle was the time of the World War II. In 1941 Książ castle was occupied by the Nazis. All the valuable works of art, furniture and contents of the castle library where took by Nazis. Many underground corridors were built below the castle, which proves that Nazis prepared here one of the seats of the German dictator Adolph Hitler.

Książ castle combines the history of several nations and many people. In addition to the standard attributes of building castles like beautiful gates, bastions and towers, also hundreds of undiscovered secrets are waiting here for the visitors.

The castle is open daily except for Mondays from 10:00am to 3:00pm (extended in Summer and weekends). You can attend several routes, the basic admission is 20PLN (€5).

For further details visit the official website of Książ castle.

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Aquapark Zakopane offers lots of great water attractions. It is ideal for swimming as it offers a large 25 meters long swimming pool, with a depth between 130 and 150 cm and three swimming lanes. Another recreational pool has been created just for fun. It is equipped with water jets that provide a massage after which you can rest at the deckchairs around the pool.

But its major attraction is a large pool with geothermal water at a temperature of 30.5 °C. It is located on the terrace in front of the aquapark and from it you can enjoy views of the great snowy peaks of the High Tatras. Aquapark also have two water slides with a length of 167 and 106 meters. You can relax in one of the 6 types of whirlpools, where the temperature reaches 36 °C. For enjoying much more fun you can try “wild river”. Aquapark is suitable also for the youngest children and offers a smaller pool with a temperature of 33 °C.

If you get wet or tired at hiking throughout High Tatras, or after a cold day in winter skiing you surely enjoy several types of saunas (Finnish sauna – 96-100 °C, Bio sauna – 65 °C, salt sauna – 30-40 °C, or winter cabin – 10-15 °C). In addition, it has a steam bath and relaxation room.

There is also a modern bowling alley, which is open daily from 10.00 to 22.00. Aquapark Zakopane offers swimming courses and stays for children with defective posture. There are also several restaurants waiting for hungry visitors. Swimming pools at the water park is open from 9.00 to 22.00. Basic admission is 50,00 zł for the whole day.

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Aquapark Sopot has 25 meters long and 12.5 meters wide swimming pool. There is also a leisure pool with a water geyser in the middle of it, massage sofas, an artificial river and a cave with a waterfall. For the youngest children there is prepared a mini pool with a depth of 30-60 cm. You can enjoy a lot of fun in the form of water cannons, slides and animals. The water temperature reaches pleasant 31-34 °C.

Aquapark Sopot offers also an outdoor pool for seasonal recreational use, with a maximum depth of 130 cm. It is coloured and adapted for interactive games. For lovers of adrenaline and excitement there are 2 water slides, one with a length of 110 meters with many curves and a second, very fast, with a length of 70 meters. If you have never swim in the natural mountain streams you should try Wild River which is flowing at about 600 liters per second.

Aquapark offers also whirlpools with bubble massage with a water temperature of 34 °C. It is great for complete relaxation and cleaning the body. You can find here bars, steam, dry and Finnish saunas, a bowling hall, cosmetics and massage.

Aquapark Sopot is open daily from Monday to Sunday from 8.00 to 22.00 hours.

Admission to the complex Aquapark Sopot ranges from 20 zł /1 hour or 50 zł /whole day, children under 3 are admitted free. You can use a family and a student discount or discount for people with disabilities and visitors over 65 years.

For further details visit official website of Aquapark Sopot.

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It is worth to visit also Biale Skaly, which are 30m high white-colored rocks, or Skalne Grzyby, areas with high prevalence of these rock formations.

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Photo licensed under the Creative Commons, created by Grzegorz

According to an ancient legend, Błędów Desert was created by the devil, who tore the the bag of sand at the local church tower.

In fact, the sand is the remaining of melting glaciers. However it overgrown after some time. The present appearance of the countryside made people already in the thirteenth century, when they began to use land here, water and cut down forests. A narrow layer of the soil was destroyed and the sand appeared again. At the beginning of the 19th century, the desert had 80 km2. Now the sand is overgrowing again, and the desert is shrinking.

Since 2010, some projects have been initiated to save this unique area. Błędów Desert is often referred to as the Polish Sahara. This similarity is often used by the filmmakers. In the past, it was a training area for army. Today, you can find here the remains of fortifications however the part of the desert is still a military area.

Błędów Desert is best accessible from the village of Chechlo and Klucze, where you can follow the tourist trail. A popular way to see the beauty of this unique European piece of desert is from horseback.

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Biebrzański National Park is situated on an area where is a large representation of wetlands and swamps. They are also its main attraction. Biebrzański National Park is largely composed of forests, mostly deciduous. The rest of the area is occupied with already mentioned bogs and wetlands.

Biebrzański National Park is very rich in the representation of different organisms. It is a paradise for all kinds of water birds. One of them, the Ruff, even got into the character of the park. You can meet here also a beaver or moose. There are also various mosses and lichens.

The northeastern boundary of the park is near the Belarus.

Biebrzański National Park was founded on 9th September 1993 as one of 23 Polish national parks. In 1995 it was added to the list of The Ramsar Convention (The Convention on Wetlands of International Importance, especially as Waterfowl Habitat). The most important part of the Park is Red Marsh, which is under strict protection.

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