Sandy beaches, sea birds, dramatic coastlines and scattered wild flowers bobbing in the wind form the scenery of the Lizard peninsula. This peninsula is home to peaceful coves and is an excellent spot for surfing and kayaking.

The recent popularity of the Harry Potter books has revived interest in all things wizardry, making The Museum of Witchcraft a fun way to spend a damp afternoon. Explore unusual artifacts related to witchcraft, from scrying mirrors to talismans or dried toads.

St. Michael’s Mount, Cornwall, UK by Alex Healing

On the summit of a rocky, windswept island perches St. Michael’s Mount a medieval church and castle. Reachable only by boat at high tide or along a winding causeway at low tide, St. Michael’s Mount features sweeping architecture complete with turrets and gun batteries. Clinging to the steep cliffs is a terraced garden overflowing with sub-tropical flowers.

For a fun day of rides for people of all ages, try Flambards theme park. Don’t miss the Victorian Village, where the Victorian era has been re-created complete with cottages and shops, such as the butcher’s shop and the apothecary.

Rumored to be the birthplace of King Arthur, Tintagel Castle is a magical site full of ancient, crumbling ruins. Waterfalls plummet down the cliff sides into the Atlantic below. Meanwhile, hidden underneath the castle is Merlin’s Cave, which is flooded with water during high tide.

Take a train ride through a secret garden with miniature trees, wind you way through a maze and follow a trail to a hobbit house at the Hidden Valley Discovery Park. Armed only with a map and your powers of observation, try going on a treasure hunt for lost crystals hidden throughout the park.

Spend a romantic evening at an inn famous for its exciting history of contraband smuggling, the Jamaica Inn. This inn is the inspiration for the book of the same name by Daphne du Maurier, who chanced upon the inn after getting lost in a storm. The inn has a large collection of smuggling artifacts and is located on the Bodmin Moor, where you can wander and get lost in its natural beauty.

Lost Garden of Heligan, Cornwall, UK by joannevc

“Don’t come here to sleep or slumber,” reads the inscription uncovered in a tiny room buried under collapsed stonework in the Lost Garden of Heligan. Overgrown and neglected for the better part of a century, the garden has been gloriously restored with a lovely Victorian garden, woodlands and a lush sub-tropical garden.

On a chilly, rainy day, nothing is more pleasant than a visit to a traditional Cornish pub, such as the Famous Barrel. Bask in the glow of the fireplace while enjoying cask ale in this 100-year-old pub that features a front door made from a section of a brewer’s barrel.

If you’re an adventure seeker, head to the Adrenalin Quarry, home of the longest zip line in the UK. Booking isn’t necessary; just show up and jump. Or try The Giant Swing, which hangs 150 over the water-filled quarry.

Cornwall has an abundance of activities from the cozy to the invigorating. It is a place of enchantment, bursting with history against a backdrop of stunning landscapes.

Sarah writes for Highcliffe Holidays, who have a great selection of Polzeath Cottages self-catering accommodation. They love pets and are proud to be amongst the top providers of dog friendly cottages in North Cornwall.

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Tramuntana Mountains

One of the most scenic parts of the island is the mountains of Tramuntana. These mountains are best explored on foot or on a bike. There is so much to see while you climb the trails of the mountains and you may be gob smacked with the views.

There is the Castell d’Alaro that is perched on the top of a rocky mountain overlooking the village of Alaro. This is a ruined castle and hilltop chapel that offers amazing views out towards the Tramuntana Mountains, Palma and further away the Mediterranean.

Coastline

The coastline of Majorca is varied dependant on the area of the island that you are visiting. The north is wild and rocky with steep cliffs while the south has coves, caves and ports. If you are looking for long walks along the beaches then the east and west coasts of the island are your best bet.

If you are looking for some privacy then you could hire a boat and sail to one of the quieter beaches that are only accessible by sea. There are many of these types of beaches so you can have some alone time.

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Palma

Palma has a massive reputation for partying as does Magalluf but if you stray from the norm then you will find that Palma has an old town that is worth a walk around. Discovering the architecture and culture that Majorca has to offer. Palma has a cathedral, ‘La Seu’, that took nearly four hundred years to build but the gothic architecture is amazing.

You could also relax in the ‘Banys Arabs’ (Arab baths). These are remnants of Palma’s Moorish past. Or if you would rather do some shopping then the streets of Palma are the best on the island to grab some retail therapy. There is everything from up-market boutiques to some more familiar high street stores.

Most of the towns in Majorca have their own weekly markets that typically start early in the morning and last until noon, the most traditional of these markets is the medieval town of Sineu.

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Above All

Be sure to enjoy yourself whatever you decide to do while you are on your get away in Majorca. Whether it is relaxing on the beach or exploring the hills and mountains of the countryside Majorca has everything all on one fantastic island.

Majorca is a lively but mysterious place to travel to and there are many resorts to stay at.

Why not find the perfect location to stay at using Majorcanholidays.co.uk

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This magnificent lagoon is one of the most beautiful places for scuba diving in the world and once you get there you certainly find out why. In good weather you can ask the local fishermen or use any boat service to take you through the tunnel where you can see the caves and dramatic cliffs, and two other natural attractions – The Azur Window and Fungus rock.

Azure Window is the famous natural rock arch, which towers majestically over the coast. The Maltese people call this, about a hundred meters long stone slab, which lies on two pillars, Tiega Zerga.

Another natural attraction is Fungus Rock – a cylindrical block of rock. Fungus Rock is currently uninhabited, but in the 17th century it was an extremely important site, because there is growing the specific mushroom with the Latin name Cynomorium coccineum, which have medicinal effects. The mushroom comes from North Africa, and this is the only place in Europe where such mushrooms grow. This can help in the treatment of stomach problems and hemorrhoids. It was used as an aphrodisiac and diminished bleeding. It has powerful disinfectant effects.

Knights of St. John guarded this rare mushroom very carefully, and who tried to steal it, was often sentenced to death. Between a rock and the mainland there were ropes and the mushrooms were transported to the mainland by cable cars. Coast guard tower Qawra was built on the island just to protect this site.

Between the Inland sea and Azure window there is a small chapel of St. Anne which was built in 1963 on the original site of the old church. If you continue further to the south along the coast, you find the Crocodile Rock.

During the years there were too many tourists coming to see Dwerja Inland Sea in Malta which contributed to the degradation of this place and left an impact on the environment.
However this site is really unique and probably doesn’t have a competitor in Europe.

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It is obviously desirable to maintain this natural wealth into the future. The part of the Pyrenees even got to the UNESCO World Heritage Site thanks to its uniqueness. It is an area around Mont Perdu, which limestone massif rises to a height of 3352 meters above sea level. The total area covers 31,189 hectares, although it was initially smaller. The first entry was made in 1997, and the protected area was enlarge three years later. It is also a place of the oldest Spanish National Park with long name Parque Nacional Valle de Ordesa – Monte Perdido, founded in 1918 on an area of ​​20.5km2 and later extended. On the French side it has a younger partner, the Pyrénées National Park established in 1967.

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On the Spanish side there are two largest and deepest canyons in Europe. On the French side you will find three great glacials. These geological formations are accompanied by mysterious caves, clear water lakes, deep forests and colorful meadows.

In terms of human life, the landscape of Mont Perdu is such a kind of window to the past. The farmers live in almost the same way of life as before, that was formerly common in all mountainous areas of Europe.

The most impressive canyons are mainly Ordesa, Pineta and Añisclo. You can choose from many hiking trails of varying difficulty, from very easy ones to the downright climbing. But you have to be prepared that the hiking trails can be challenging and sometimes a bit awkward. This applies to certain trails called “fajas” that lead over ledges along the canyon, but more to the trails “clavijas” that leads through the steel steps at the steep rock walls.

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Everywhere you see something interesting and very diverse, ranging from bare rock to almost impenetrable vegetation.

The highest summits of Pyrenees are Pico d’Aneto or Pic de Néthou (3,404 metres), Posets peak (3,375 metres), Mont Perdu or Monte Perdido (3,355 metres). You will find here also the highest waterfall – The Gavarnie, which is the tallest waterfall in France, and one of the most impressive and highest waterfalls in Europe.

Pyrenees contains three national parks – Aigüestortes i Estany de Sant Maurici National Park (Spain), Ordesa y Monte Perdido National Park (Spain) and Pyrénées National Park (France).

In winter the mountains are great place for alpine skiing.

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Peak District National Park was designated in 1951 and consists of two distinct types of landscape. The first type is located in the southern part of the park, called the White Peak, and is characterized by undulating limestone terrain. In the northern part – Dark Peak there are the wild moors and heaths.

Peak District National Park is interlaced with numerous hiking trails with beautiful vantage points – for example, Hathersage, from which you can get a panoramic view of the northern moorland or Edale, from which you can see the winding trail Pennine Way that is 412 km long.

Probably the biggest tourist attraction of the Peak District National Park is Arbor Low – stone ring, called the “Stonehenge of north”. The ring consists of 46 laying stones surrounded by a moat from 2000 BC.

Another beautiful place is Dovedale. In this southern part, the Peak District National Park is densely forested along with the most beautiful river valley, which is dominated by steep cliffs. The site is suitable not only for romantic walks, but also for fishing.

Thanks to limestone bedrock, the Peak District National Park is characterized by caves, such as Thor’s Cave or Treak Cliff Cavern.

But the Peak District National Park is not only about beautiful nature, you can meet lots of historical artifacts and ruins in many places, such as Alport Castle or Peveril Castle. One of the entry points for the park may be a picturesque spa town of Buxton, which opera house is due to its location in the beautiful surroundings of the town called “theater in the hills.” Another entry point can be Cromford village, which boasts the first cotton mill in the world, which used water power.

Peak District National Park also offers a unique tram museum in the town of Crich, where you can ride the old trams from around the world.

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Steep cliffs are covered with forests, and the geological bedrock (granite) affects both the landscape and vegetation. There are two castles at the borders of the national park, Burg Hardegg and ruined castle Kaja. You can find there about half of all plant species originating from Austria.

Animal World is so prominent and contains a large number of very rare species of vertebrates. In terms of sport, cycling and hiking are popular activities in the park.

At the Czech side there is one of the most beautiful water reservoir called Vranov. In the case of bad weather you can visit nice city of Znojmo and test the Czech wine.

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Triglav National Park is located on the northwest edge of Slovenia, near the border with Italy and is easily accessible from all directions. It is a paradise for nature lovers, who can enjoy intact alpine world here full of rare plants and animals. Therefore, there applies stricter rules than in other protected areas of lower status. The park area is covered with alpine karst, from the steep cliffs you can see falling great and powerful waterfalls and in the deep valleys are hidden glacial lakes. The largest lake Bohinj, which have tectonic-glacial origin, is situated at an altitude of 523 meters above sea level. With an area of ​​3,18 square kilometres and a depth of 45 meters it is the largest natural freshwater area in Slovenia. But they are also other minor lakes such as Kriška Lakes, Black Lake and Krn Lake (Krnsko jezero).

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The first a proposal to protect the area around Triglav was submitted in 1908, and in 1981 the region was declared a national park. It now occupies an area of 838.07 square kilometres wich is about 3% of the total area of ​​Slovenia. There are springs of two major Balkan rivers – the Sava and Soča. Soča rises at an altitude of 1050 m and flows into the Adriatic Sea. In contrast, Sava river is formed by the confluence of the Sava Dolnika and Sava Bohinjka streams, and flows into the Danube before Belgrade and then into the Black Sea.

The heart of Triglav National Park is formed by the dominant mountain Triglav, which, after recognition of an independent Slovenia became a kind of a national symbol, as is depicted on the flag, as well as the national emblem. Today it is a popular destination for climbers, adventurers and lovers of adrenaline. Its steep and clouds shrouded cliffs seemed to be insurmountable for a long time. Triglav’s north wall is with its width of 3 km and height of 1 km even the largest wall of the Eastern Alps. On top of Triglav over the north wall climbed the German-Austrian expedition for the first time in 1906, after which the route is now called the “German way”. Otherwise, it is possible to climb to the summit by following more than twenty other routes. A relatively simple and therefore most often used is that one from the southern side of Bohinj Lake.

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If you want to know Triglav National Park a little more it is good to stay here for at least a week, otherwise you can miss many of its attractions and beauty. Park crosses over 7000 km of marked and maintained paths, where you encounter many inns and lodges for tourists providing quality and adequate facilities. Triglav National Park offers excellent conditions for hiking, recreational, as well as mountaineering. Prepare yourself, however, that the biggest attractions such as waterfalls are charged. It is not allowed to camp or bivouac in the park.

The best starting point for tours is the town of Bohinj, Kranjska Gora, Bovec and Kobarid. The largest information center of the park is located in the town of Bled. For hiking trips along the most beautiful valleys such as Vrata, Kot and Krma are the best starting points in the villages Dovje and Mojstrana. Just beyond the north edge of Triglav National Park you can find a mountain valley Planica, which is a place of famous Championships in the ski flying.

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In the valley Vrata, which leads to the northern wall is a memorial dedicated to the local partisans from the World War II. Other attractions in the valley, but this time with the natural character is a waterfall Paričnik, falling in two stages – one from a height of 52 meters and the second from a height of 16 meters. The largest waterfall in the park is Zapotok waterfall (Zapotoški slap) measuring 73 meters, third largest then is the Savica waterfall with the height of 50 meters.

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