As the history fan approaches the port of Naxos Town standing on deck the ferry, he or she will rejoice: it can already be seen from a distance that nearly 2000 years of history represented by some stunning monuments, can easily be explored and enjoyed within walking distance of each other. Sure, some legwork is [...]

It seems everyone was quite interested in my mention of Europe’s most westerly point – all four or five of them!  It seems that Europe’s boundaries are a very antiquated way of defining the continent.  Do you count the sovereign islands that dot the Atlantic, Arctic and Mediterranean?  What about Russia – is it in Europe? For your sun [...]

The Greek island of Crete has seen Byzantine, Venetian and Ottoman rule but some of the most spectacular traces of Venice have been left in the capital Heraklion.  The Venetians ‘conquered’ Crete in 1204, but for once not by way of bloody wars and violence; no, they simply bought it in a complicated deal which [...]

On a day trip from Heraklion to the traditional mountain village of Achlada, located approx. 25 km west, I discovered how luxury and the protection of the environment can go beautifully hand in hand by a visit to the Mourtzanakis Residence. Eco tourism has come a long way from being rather basic and more associated [...]

For anyone with a even a passing interest in European archaeology, the Greek island of Crete is certainly one of the best places to visit in Europe. The island has some of the iconic archaeological sites that will satisfy any passion for prehistory; the most well known of these is the ancient Palace of Knossos. [...]

Many people may wonder if my geography is correct when I speak of Europe and the World Cup. A couple of weeks ago I wrote about “Getting ready for the World Cup through European travel” and with the World Cup kicking off  this Friday June 11 in South Africa, one of its biggest, most passionate [...]

I can never resist visiting a museum which sounds interesting and when I heard about the Folklore Museum on the Greek island of Samos I simply had to go and take a look. Samos is a European destination with many attractions and, as I was there only on a day trip from the Turkish port [...]

We’ve all heard about the European trip planning gone awry with the recent eruptions of that-unpronounceable-volcano in Iceland that shut down much of European airspace.  But this isn’t the first time Europe has been affected by volcanic activity – and as a matter of fact, we were lucky.  Twice, entire populations were wiped off the [...]

Part of each year I live in a small Turkish town called Didim, a once upon a time fishing village located half way between Izmir and Didim’s more famous sister Bodrum. The great advantage of the place is that it’s ideally placed for excursions to other Turkish locations such as Ephesus or the delightful port [...]

In my recent article I speculated whether Easyjet might fly to Zakynthos in Greece (also known as Zante) in 2010 and it turns out that they have just launched flights there from London Gatwick Airport. Always aiming to bring you the best European travel tips, I thought I’d let you know about a couple of interesting places to visit that [...]