DESTINATION HIGHLIGHTS
Explore comprehensive highlights of each destination, from popular attractions to off-the-beaten-path treasures. Discover what makes each place unique to help tailor your next adventure.
The Pantheon (from the Latin Pantheum ‘temple of all gods) is a roman temple built nearly 2000 years ago and is one of the best preserved ancient roman buildings in large part because it has remained in continuous use throughout its history and is still in use today as a Catholic Church. One of the […]
We have visited the Colosseum many times and are always amazed by this magnificent piece of engineering built nearly 2000 years ago. The Colosseum, which is named after the Latin noun from the adjective ‘Colosseus’, is an elliptical (oval) amphitheatre (open air building with viewing all around) in the centre of the city not far […]
An often unknown fact to many tourists that visit Venice is that it has a beach. 7 miles / 11km of it in fact running along the Adriatic Sea! Lido is an interesting place and very different to the main island of Venice but worth a trip out to if you have a few hours […]
Burano is a colourful small fishing island town in the Venetian lagoon 7 miles / 11 km from Venice and this once hidden gem is a must to visit. The town can be easily reached via a 45 minute Vaparetto (Water Taxi) on the Line 12 boat from Fondamente Nove (F.te Nove) which also stops at Murano […]
Murano is world famous for its glass making and is a must visit destination if you’re coming to Venice. The area is made up of a small series of islands all linked by bridges and is about 1mile / 1.6km from Venice and you can get there easily by the many Vaparetto’s (water buses). In […]
The Doge Palace (pronounced doh-j) is one of Venice’s most iconic landmarks and a must see for anyone visiting the city. The Doge Palace is located in San Marco’s square in the centre of Venice and was the residence of the Doge who was the elected head of state of the Venetian Republic. The Doge was […]
What is a trip to Venice without experiencing the canals and waterways on a Gondola ride! Here we’ll provide everything you need to know from how much it costs, where to go, when to go and the history behind the unique boats and their Gondoliers. How much does it cost? The average cost of a […]
What makes Venice so unique is it is not built on land but on wooden piles. There are no cars or motorbikes and bicycles are not allowed so the only way to get around is by walking or by boat. Fantastic! Early settlers in the 5th and 6th centuries had simple wooden huts built on […]
Ellis Island was once the busiest immigrant inspection and processing station in the United States. From 1892 to 1954 nearly 12 million immigrants arriving at the Port of New York were processed there. The name derives from Samuel Ellis, a Welshman who bought the island in 1774. It has been part of the Statue of Liberty National […]
The iconic Statue of Liberty on Liberty Island is a copper clad gift given from the French to the United States in 1886. The statue was designed by French sculptor Auguste Bartholdi in Paris and a Statue of Liberty scale model stands close to the Eiffel Tower on the River Seine. At 11.50 metre high […]
Why not splash some cash and take an amazing helicopter ride over New York and its iconic landmarks such as the Statue of Liberty, Central Park, Brooklyn Bridge, Yankee Stadium and the Empire State Building. There are a number of operators to chose from so it’s really just a matter of checking out Viator when […]
There are a number of skyline view options in New York but we chose Summit One Vanderbilt due to its central position to view the Empire State Building, its immersive experience, wrap around terrace and glass ledges suspended 1100 feet over Madison Avenue. Whilst the observatory is open 7 days a week from 8am to […]
Whether you are a street art lover or not you cannot help but be impressed by the amazing Bushwick Collection. Bushwick is a neighbourhood in Brooklyn and has become a mecca for street artists and enthusiasts and its murals, in the heart of the area, is known as The Bushwick Collective. There are no set […]
Respectfully we won’t write too much about the memorial and museum except to say it is quite an experience, impressive, reflective and very moving. There is plenty of information including ticket prices and opening times on the 911 Memorial and Museum website. It is highly recommended to pre-book tickets online but you can get tickets […]
Just 5 minutes walk from the Circle Line sightseeing cruises at Pier 83 is the amazing Intrepid museum which is located on an aircraft carrier with a submarine that you can also tour. The museum is open 7 days a week 10am-5pm and whilst its advisable to book tickets online through their very good website […]
The Circle Line sightseeing cruises are an absolute must do when visiting New York. They are great value for money and the perfect way to see New York from a very different perspective. There are numerous different cruise options from a 50 minute trip out to the Statue of Liberty to our recommendation of the […]
You can’t visit New York without a meander through Central Park. It is the most visited urban park in the United States with an estimated 45 million people visiting it every year. Although it’s the sixth largest park in New York city it covers an area of 843 acres (or 1100 football fields!) has eight […]
Manuel Antonio is the smallest national park in Costa Rica but is well known for its many beaches, rocky islands, hiking trails, tropical forests and a diversity of wildlife and..is a place for us to relax as our final destination. It’s a three hour drive from Puntarenas to Manuel Antonio, following our stay in Santa Teresa, […]
If you’re planning on visiting areas on Costa Rica’s southern Nicoya Peninsula like Montezuma, Mal Pais, or Santa Teresa a great option to reduce a little driving time and enjoy the countries scenery from a different perspective is to take the 70 minute crossing between the central pacific coastal town of Puntarenas to the Nicoya Peninsula […]
Santa Teresa is a beach town surrounded by dense jungle on the Nicoya Peninsular about six hours drive directly from San Jose and depending on your taste you’ll either love it or hate it! It was always going to be on our itinerary as its one of the best places to surf in Costa Rica […]
La Fortuna is a small town in the Costa Rican province of Alajuela nearly four hours drive from San Jose, on good roads via Route 1 and 702, and it’s known as the gateway to Arenal Volcano National Park which comprises of two volcanoes including the active and spectacular Arenal Volcano with its clearly visible […]
San Jose is the capital city of Costa Rica and is located in the centre of the country with a population of nearly 400,000 people. It is one of the safest latin american countries with a high quality of life. It has the main international airport for the country Juan Santamaria (SJO) however if you’re […]
Monteverde literally translates to ‘green mountain’ and this lush region of Costa Rica and its cloud forests have been called by National Geographic as ‘the jewel in the crown of all cloud forest reserves’. A cloud forest means a tropical or subtropical forest characterised by a low level of cloud cover usually at canopy level. So […]
Three nights and four days in Hydra (pronounced Ee-dra). A beautiful island just 90 minutes ferry from the Athens Port of Piraeus. The Port of Piraeus dates back to 2000-3000 BC and is the largest passenger port in Europe. Piraeus metro station is located next to the port and there is a direct Express bus […]
A must see on your visit to Athens and where you should set aside some good time to wander is the Ancient Agora which is a large site and one of the most important of the Greek capital located northwest of the Acropolis between the neighborhoods of Thissio and Monastiraki. Entrance is included in the […]
If you’re travelling in the summer have a morning start for a trip to the Acropolis and to the Parthenon. The multi-pass ticket online via Headout or Hellenic Heritage are the recommended options as they give a timed entry. There is a ticket booth near the site but there can be long queues and a […]
Within a few minutes walk from the historical centre, where we recommend the AirBnB, you arrive at the amazing Panathenaic Stadium, also known as the Olympic Stadium, which you can see very clearly from the outside or if you wish to go in you can buy tickets there for €10/£8.50/$11. You can’t buy tickets to […]
Athens (named after Athena, the goddess of wisdom) is Europe’s oldest capital city inhabited for nearly 8000 years and it is a vast city of around 3 million residents with 6 million visitors a year set in a valley surrounded on three sides by mountain ranges and on the fourth by the Saronic Gulf. The […]