Some of the top things to do and to see around Bodrum (2026 UPDATE)
This post has been updated in August 2026 to add new information and recommendations in Göltürbükü, Gümüslük and Yalikavak.
Bodrum is one of the most popular destinations in the Turkish Aegean riviera, and of the whole Mediterranean basin. So, there is no shortage of information out there.
Therefore, what I will try to do here is to share my personal experience visiting some spots in the area which I think can be of interest, particulatly if you are looking for something more than just tanning by the beach (for the record, I did spend a considerable amount of time at the beach or poolside too!).
Before moving ahead, let me clarify that I have used the word “Bodrum” here to refer to the whole peninsula where this city is located. I think this is in line with how most people use this place name, since the points of interest and the related tourist infrastructure is spread out over a rather large area.
Another important point: if you wish to move around the area is best to rent a car. Roads can vary in quality, some are pretty good, like the one to and from the airport, but secondary ones can be a bit more tricky and signage is often lacking. It is overall manageable, though, best to carry a phone with interenet connection to be able to navigate the place.
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Staying in Gültürkbükü
As mentioned, the concept “Bodrum” is generally applied to a whole peninsula, which is roughly 15km long and 5km wide. The central part of the peninsula is rather mountainous and, while there are some roads, most movement is along the coastlines, which can take considerable time. Saying all this, because, even if you have a car rental (much recommended, btw), it is important to choose your base well.
In this regard, my choice is clear: Gültürkbükü is a town on the north side of the peninsula, which is large enough to have pretty much all services (including a rather picturesque once-weekly outdoor market) while not being crowded or overbuilt.
A great place to stay in Bodrum
Lavinya Hotel, Gültürkbükü
This is a really nice nice boutique hotel located right on the beach, and when I say right on the beach I mean that no more than a couple of meters of sand separate some of the ground floor rooms from the crystalline, warm water of Gültürkbükü Bay.
The whole property is built in Mediterranean style, with open areas like the bar, blending in with the beach (which is actually public). There are also this type of sea platforms (all seafront hotels and restaurants in Gültürkbükü have them), which act as “forward” terraces, allowing people to get more or less “onto” the water without actually getting wet. At night they become restaurants, as we shall soon see.
There is a summery, laid-back vibe that pervades the whole place. You can see how there are also plenty of flowers interspersed among the whitewashed walls.
As per the rooms, since Lavinya Hotel is not a chain hotel, they are not entirely standardised. They all share a common style and tone, though.
Next (below) you can get a glimpse of one of the “villas” on the ground floor. These are the rooms that located right on the beach, with direct access to it.
Let’s move one floor up next, to have a view of one of the rooms upstairs:
And, last but not least, you can see one of the “standard rooms”. These are located a bit further from the beach (but still less than 1min walk from it!) on an adjacent building.
Lavinya Hotel has also quite a nice open sea-facing common area, where breakfast is served in the morning. There is a bar and also some spots, sheltered from the sun but open to the breeze, that are great if, for whatever reason you have to do some remote work during your Turkish holiday.
I also recommend trying the hotel breakfast at least once. This is no buffet brekfast, but you can order sets like this one below. Pretty well balanced!
Gültürkbükü-la-nuit
Gültürkbükü is a relatively calm and family-oriented spot (compared to bigger and more glitzy towns like Yalikavak - more on this soon), it does have quite a lot going for it in the evenings, though.
The beachfront is lined with restaurants, which use the same platforms that during the day serve as tanning stations. From here you can gorge yourself in seafood (beware, though, it is not cheap!) while enjoying the view of the bay. This part of the coast, by the way, has quite a few luxury resorts, including some well known names such as Maxx Royal and Mandarin Orienta. During the season it is also visited by quite a few yachts, which you can be at their moorings.
Where to eat out in Gültürkbükü - Option 1: Lavinya Hotel Restaurant
One of the options to eat out in Gültürkbükü is, again, the Lavinya Hotel, which transforms one of its beach platforms as a venue for outdoor dining. Here below you can find some of the dishes I tried.
Where to eat out in Gültürkbükü - Option 2: Orkide Restaurant
Likewise, just a few meters to the left (facing the sea) of Lavinya is Orkide, which offers also the fish-focused, platform-based dining experience.
You can even see some of the local fish before ordering them.
As mentioned above, it is not cheap, even by standards of some high-price parts of Europe, but it is a nice experience to indulge in at least once if you happen to be holidaying in the area.
Below you can see what a self-curated degustation menu looks like (as is often the case in Turkey, the dessert merits a full two pictures and a mention on its very own!).
Warning: always ask for the price of every single item before ordering to avoid surprises (don’t ask me how I found out!), since Orkide Restaurant can get really, really pricey! As an example, you may end up paying the equivalent of €20-25 for a mid-range glass of wine and a serving of fresh fish can get you north of €60
Option 3 and our top pick to eat fresh fish in Göltürkbükü, Bodrum - Kara Balıkçılık Gölköy
This is, hands down, our pick to eat out in Göltürkbükü in terms of price-quality.
Kara Balıkçılık Gölköy is a actually a fishmonger which in the evening becomes a fish restaurant with an outdoor terrace. Here you will have most of the same fish specialities that you get at the seaside restaurants but at a fraction of the price (I guess because it is a slightly more casual setting not directly on the seashore).
Like in the other restaurants in the area, you can go check the fish before ordering and choose your pick (the difference if that this is something you can also do during the day and take the fish home, since this place works as a shop, as well).
It is better to book in advance because the place gets crowded in the evening.
Visiting the city of Bodrum
So, let’s say you have got enough of sun and sea and wish to see what’s around. Let’s head to downtown Bodrum for a glimpse of the southern side of the peninsula and a bit of Ancient history!
Bodrum is quite a sprawling city. There is not much flat space between the sea and the mountains and the modern city is spread over quite a long stretch of land. The most interesting part, though, unless you are going to one of its large shopping malls (complete with IKEA, Decathlon and all the big retail names), the part of interest is downtown.
This is quite a buzzing area in the summer, with hordes of tourists roaming the streets and hundreds of shops and other businesses catering to them.
There is a large port and marina along the waterfront, which hosts also the main landmark: Bodrum Castle and its museum collections.
Bodrum Castle is actually what gives its name to the modern Turkish city of Bodrum. The name being a derivation of “Petronium”, or “Castle of St. Peter”.
It was built by the Knights Hospitalier, one of the famous Christian military religious orders that were active in this part of the Eastern Mediterranean in the late middle ages. The castle is located on a narrow isthmus, which made it a very strong defensive position back in its time, and it seems that much of the material that was used to build it comes from the ruins of the nearby Ancient city of Halicarnassus (more on this soon).
Besides offering great views of the city littoral facade, the marina and its surroundings, Bodrum Castle is also a museum hosting several interesting collections.
There are a number of items that are straight out of Antiquity, gathered from the many archaeological sites found in the Bodrum area. This part of the Aegean was at one located right on one of the main trade routes of the Ancient World and there is a significant heritage dating back to thousands of years ago, from the bronze age to the Turkish conquest, pretty much every civilization has left its mark on this area.
One of the most interesting collection you can visit at Bodrum Castle is that of the Museum of Subaquatic Archaeology. Here you can see what has been recovered of several shipwrecks found in shallow waters around Bodrum. As mentioned earlier, this rocky coast was one of the main avenues of trade in early Antiquity, so a number of ships went down with their cargoes in this area. Each of these ships is an absolute trove of material for archaeologists and researchers.
(btw, a bit off topic, but if you are interested in the archaeology old shipwrecks, you should check also my post about Kansas City and its great museum of the Steamboat Arabia!)
Visiting one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World: The Maussoleum of Halicarnassus
Can you name the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World? Well, one of them and one of only two still (kind of) visible in some form is here, in Bodrum.
(Btw, in case you were wondering, the “7 Wonders of the Ancient World” were: the Great Pyramid of Giza, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the Statue of Zeus at Olympia, the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, the Colossus of Rhodes, the Lighthouse of Alexandria and the he Mausoleum at Halicarnassus).
How the Mausoleum of Halicarnasus looked like in its heyday
Interestingly for the vestiges of something with such a grand title, the ruins of what was once the Mausoleum of Halicarnasus is located at a rather unassuming spot in the middle of one of Bodrum’s residential areas. In fact, the access is through a rather narrow street and it is not even very well indicated.
Parts of the Ancient city were basically used as an impromptu quarry in the middle ages to source stone and buidling materials for Bodrum Castle, so there is little left today above ground of the Ancient city of Halicarnassus.
This mauseloeum was built in the 4th C BC by Masolus, hence its name, which was a Carian king (well, technically he was a satrap or governor of the Persian Empire). The Carians were the people that inhabited this corner of Western Anatolia at the time. They were close to the Greeks, but were not quite Greek and had, apparently, a distinct Anatolian identity. For example, they spoke their own Indo-European language, which is now extinct.
So, basically, Masolus decided to build his tomb in such magnificence that it soon became famous all over the Ancient world and other rulers and powerful people of that era were soon imitating him. Hence the name “mausoleum” became a common word to designate this type of tombs and it has made its way to many modern languages.
As you can see in the pictures, there is little left standing, although it is quite interesting that you can walk through the stones and even around the base of the monument.
The precinct is demarcated and there is an entrance fee to get in. There is also a small museum that explains the story of the site and how it may have looked like at the time of its construction.
Overall a very interesting site and I definitely recommend visiting, but a lot more could be done on the museum and interpretation side of it!
Interesting things to see around Bodrum: Gümüşlük
Driving west from Bodrum you get to the fisherman’s village of Gümüşlük, almost at the very tip of the peninsula.
This is quite a nice spot and a good option for a fish dinner by the sea. Gümüşlük has a rather pleasant seaside promenade, which is buzzing with visitors and lined by quite a few restaurants, each exhibiting the catch of the day.
But perhaps was I found most interesting of all here is the tiny island that encloses the bay of Gümüşlük bay. This island is the site of the Ancient city of Myndos (“Myndos Antik Kenti” in Turkish), where it is said that two of the assassins of Julius Caesar, Cassius and Brutus, sough refuge temporarily after their deed (unsuccessfully, as it turned out). It later became the site of bishopric, in early Christian times.
Well, this tiny island is linked to the mainland by an Ancient stone pathway that is partly submerged, but just enough, so that you can actually walk to and from the island if you are willing to get your feet wet! (as you can see in this picture below). Apparently
There is no shortage of dining options in Gümüşlük, rather the opposite, there are so many restaurants by the seaside, with the staff on each of them inviting you to stay there, that you can develop a bit of choice anxiety! In the picture below you can get an idea of what the views look like from most of the restaurant terraces.
Places to eat in Gümüşlük
Siesta Restaurant
So, we opted for the Siesta Restaurant, and I think it was a rather good choice (although I think the offering and prices are quite similar across the board).
As you can see, fish and octopus are the stars here, although I would also recommend trying one of the great yogurt-type entrants with the spicy peppers as well.
Walking the submerged road to the Ancient city of Myndos
One of the coolest things you can do in Gümüslük (and in the Bodrum Peninsula, more generally), is walk through the submerged stone road to Rabbit Island, where the Acropolis of the Ancient city of Myndos is located.
In Ancient times, the city of Myndos occupied part of what today is the modern town of Gümüslük as well as the waters of the adjacent bay. Apparently, the city withstood an assault by no less than Alexander the Great! The later ruin and abandonment of the city in late Antiquity is attributed to an earthquake, that left parts of the city under the waters of Gümüslük Bay.
The city’s main road, which runs straight for about 500 meters from the present day shore to what is now a small islet in the middle of Gümüslük Bay remains walkable, even if you get knee-deep in water (it is advisable to wear some type of waterproof shoewear, since the rocks under water can be a bit unequal).
On the island itself you can still see and walk amidst the Ancient ruins and from the top you can enjoy great views, not just of Gümüslük itself but also of the nearby coastline, all the way to the Greek islands opposite the Bodrum Peninsula.
Yalıkavak Marina
Also on the western tip of the Bodrum peninsula is Yalikavak, a rather larger town which has become known for its rather modern and luxurious marina (built with Azerbaijani capital, apparently).
If Gültürkbükü and Gümüşlük are quite laid back, casual places, at Yalikavak is rather the opposite. Here people come to see, be seen and show off.
It is interesting in some ways, but, in my opinion the whole ensemble lacks a bit of authenticity. Many renowned luxury brands, fashion houses and restaurants have opened branches here, to offer their wares next to the super-yacht moorings. But, at the end of the day, what you find here, you may find also in Dubai, Montecarlo or Marbella and you would be hard pressed to tell which one is which.
Good value places for casual eating in Yalikavak
Nevertheless, if you are looking for a bit of casual dining in Yalikavak, you can find some options as well in the streets just across the marina’s main access road, on the land side.
We ended up at Midye7, a rather unpretentious place which specializes in serving mossels with French fries, Belgian-style. It has an outdoor terrace where you can spend a good time while relishing the freshly steamed mossels.
Exploring the Yalikavak peninsula
If you are looking to get a more outdoorsy experience beyond the urban buzz around Yalikavak marina, you can head to the narrow peninsula that encloses Yalikavak bay to the north. Here are some non-urbanized beaches that can be reached through narrow winding roads.
On the south side of the peninsula you can drive almost all the way to the tip on paved (if narrow) roads. There is a large open space with plenty of (unpaved) outdoor parking and even some cows roaming around.
Unfortunately, this place has a massive drawback: it is full of garbage. And when I say “full” I really mean it (even if doesn’t really show in the pic above because I tried to pick a frame without trash it). Trash appears to be an issue throughout many of Bodrum’s public beaches as soon as you leave the immediate vicinity of hotels and resorts.
Another road runs along the north side of the isthmus, offering great views of the open Aegean sea and the rocky coastline. There are also some public beaches here with adjacent parking space (although they appeared to be relatively crowded at the time of my visit in July).
On the way there, look for the “Panormus Kaya Mezarları” a complex of stone-carved Ancient rock tombs on the west side of the road. This is a type of archaeological vestige that is common throughout the southern and western coast of Turkey, along the area of the Ancient Lycian civilization. This particular site, though, is in a rather bad conservation state, with no signage and modern graffiti all over. Still, it makes for quite an impressive view, though!
Bonus tip: best viewpoint in Bodrum
One last tip about Bodrum: if you are with a car, you may want to check the sunset views from a spot on the road that crosses the peninsula from north to south, from Yalikavk to Bodrum downtown, and that is marked in the maps as “Yel Değirmenleri” (which indicates that apparently there are some windmills, but I didn’t see them).
From here you can get some magnificent views of the sun setting over the Mediterranean and you can also see the Greek islands of Kalimnos and Leros, which are really, really close! (the latter was the setting of a WW2 battle between British and Germans, which later inspired the classic war movie, “The guns of Navarone”).
Just beware, because, to be honest, while the views are great, the place is not well prepared to get visitors. There is some space to park the car on the side of the road, but it is difficult and a bit dangerous to cross (it is located just at a turn of the road and the traffic is constant). There is also quite a lot of garbage around (this is one of the main issues in Bodrum, refuse, particularly plastics and cans, accumulates on the sides of many roads and streets, despite there being places to leave them!). Nevertheless, it seems to be quite a popular spot, with many people, both tourists and locals, spending some time here contemplating the sunset and taking pictures.
And this is the end of this Bodrum story, although, this is a destination that I may return to and where there are still many sights I haven’t visited and many stories to be told. Watch this space!
What to do and what to see in Bergamo and Lake Iseo
Bergamo, at the foot of the Italian Alps, is well known all over Europe because of its airport, Bergamo-Orio al Serio (BGY), which is one of Ryanair’s main bases and is used also by several other low cost airlines.
For many which have transited this airport, Bergamo may be just an alternative gateway to get to Milan, which is located roughly one hour drive to the southwest, yet, in this post I will try to explain how Bergamo is, in fact, a beautiful and fascinating destination one its very own!
What’s more, besides its many charms, Bergamo is also an ideal base to explore other great spots in throughout the nearby Alps, most notably among them Lake Iseo (“Lago d’Iseo” in Italian). Keep reading to learn more about what to do and what to see in Bergamo, Lake Iseo and the surrounding countryside.
Getting from the airport to the city
We have already mentioned Bergamo-Orio al Serio airport and this is, I guess, the way most visitors arrive in Bergamo. The airport is, in fact, quite close to the city center, so close that you can actually make out the countours of Bergamo’s old town from the boarding gates.
What’s the easiest way to get to downtown Bergamo from Orio al Serio airport, then?
The cheapest, and possibly fastest, way to get to the city center is to take the Bus number 1, which takes you from Orio al Serio Airport to the foot of Bergamo’s Città Bassa.
The bus passes roughly every 15-20 minutes and tickets cost €3 each way. They can be acquired at ticket machines which are found at the bus stop just outside the terminal.
A word of caution, though: this is a regular urban bus and sometimes it can get really, really crowded, making the trip, even if short at around 20-25 minutes, far from comfortable, particularly if you are traveling heavy and carrying bags.
By the way, Bus Number 1 also stops at the city’s main train station, where it is possible to connect with trains that go to other points in the Lombardy region and beyond.
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Bergamo’s Città Alta and Città Bassa, a tale of two cities
As mentioned in the previous section, Bergamo is divided in two major parts: the lower city (Città Bassa) and the upper city (Città Alta).
The upper part is the historical hilltop walled town, with its foundations dating back at least to Roman times. This is where most of the monuments and sightseeing spots are.
The lower town is essentially the modern part of the city, on the plains.
This part of the city has already been partly urbanized in some way or another since the middle ages, when a large trade fair started to be held at an ad-hoc spot near today’s Porta Nuova area. This is where most hotels and other services are located. It has also some nice walkable streets.
The two parts of the city are connected by a funicular, which is a tourist attraction on its very own. One way trip costs €1.7 (I think it is also included in some travel cards).
Nevertheless, you can also get to and from the Città Alta on foot through the old Venetian bastion gate of Porta di San Agostino, just that it will take you a bit longer from the Porta Nuova area (maybe a 15-20 min extra walk), and it will be a bit uphill.
I would leave this itinerary for the return journey from the Città Alta, not least because this way you can also pass by another of Bergamo’s top attractions, the Accademia Carrara art museum, which I also cover in this post.
Walking through Bergamo’s Città Bassa
A view of Bergamo’s Porta Nuova
But before we get to the Città Alta, a few words about the Città Bassa, because it has also some interesting elements.
If you start your itinerary at the Porta Nuova, which marks the limit of what used to be the second ring of walls of the city (Bergamo has three rings of walls, the latest of which, built by the Venetians in the 16th C. has UNESCO World Heritage Site status) and if you head from there to the funicular you will pass through Bergamo’s modern downtown.
If you have been to other Italian cities before, you will recognize many of the elements that make this part of town, such as the porticoed buildings dating back to the time of Risorgimento and the unification of Italy, in the 19th C. as well, as some reconizable examples of architecture from the Fascist period, housing the post office and other administrative functions.
By the way, here is a curiosity I was not aware of before this trip: Bergamo takes pride in being the world capital of Straciatella, the famous cream and chocolate ice-cream flavour. So now you know!
Nice places to have coffee in Bergamo’s Città Bassa
Bergamo’s Città Bassa has some great spots to rest and relax in front of a cup of coffee and some tasty local pastries away from the tourist crowds that roam the Città Alta. Here are my recommendations:
1- Elidor Patisserie
Via Torquato Tasso, 49, 24121 Bergamo
This is a really nice and elegant coffee and, as the name implies, pastry place in the heart of Bergamo’s Città Bassa. It is located in an quiet interior courtyard, which gives it a touch of sophistication. If your accommodation in the Città Bassa, this a nice spot to start your day gathering energies before heading uphill to the historical center.
2- La Caffetteria Di Porta Nuova
Via G. Tiraboschi, 55, 24127 Bergamo
This is a more simple place, but one not devoid of character. It’s, actually, a pretty small place: there is no place to sit inside, there are just a handful of tables right on the pavement. It is quite central, though, very convenient if waiting for the bus to the airport, for example.
Here you can also taste one of Bergamo’s specialities, called “Polenta e Osei”, an spherical sweet cake filled with a dense marzipan paste and crowned by a bird-shaped (hence the name “osei”) chocolate.
What to see in Bergamo’s historical center, the Città Alta
So, let’s say you have taken the funicular, which has taken you straight to the heart of the old (upper) town of Bergamo.
We’ll discuss shortly some of the main sights to see in the Città Alta, but, first of all, a couple of paragraphs about the history of Bergamo and the main events that shaped its past.
I referred earlier to Roman Bergamo, but I should also add that, while the Romans left their imprint on the city, there was already a Celtic pre-Roman settlement at the spot where the Città Alta stands today.
Although some vestiges from the Roman era are visible in the old town, the Bergamo most visitors come to see today is that of the late Middle Ages, when the city fell under the rule of Venice. The Most Serene Republic of Venice annexed Bergamo in 1428 during a period in which it vied with other Italian states to expand its continental possessions, the so-called “Terra Ferma”.
Bergamo remained under Venetian rule for more than three centuries, until the arrival of Napoleon and the start of the period of political change and agitation that culminated in the Risorgimento and the unification of Italy (check the section of the “Museo del ‘800 for more on this historical period).
So, now, without further ado, what sights are not too miss in Bergamo’s Città Alta?
The main square (“Piazza Vecchia”)
Apparently Le Corbusieur considered to be the greatest example of urban space in Europe (although knowing the aesthetic tastes of the Franco-Swiss architect, I am not quite sure this counts as praise!). This has been the political, civic and religious center of Bergamo for many centuries. Besides the large monumental marble fountain at its center there are quite a few monumental buildings of note here, concentrated in a relatively small space.
The Palazzo Nuovo, from the 17th C. and currently a public library dominates one side of the square
On the exact opposite side (technically a separate square, the Piazza del Duomo, although physically connected to the Piazza Vecchia through the portico of the 12th Palazzo della Raggione) there is a collection of rather impressive religious buildings:
The Duomo, which is actually Bergamos cathedral, even if most visitors focus on the most eye-catching Basilica and Colleoni Chapel next door.
The Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore, originally from the 12th C. although its constructions lasted several centuries. Look here for the pink marble Venetian lions at the entrance
The Colleoni Chapel, adjacent to the Basilica is perhaps the most eye-catching building of the ensemble. It was built in the late 15th C. as a mausoleum for a condottiero (essentially a Renaissance period warlord) called Bartolomeo Colleoni, hence its name. Sadly, not photos are allowed inside, so you will need to Google it to look how it looks like.
The Battistero, a small octogonal structure on one side of the square. This was actually not the original emplacement, which was inside the Basilica.
The main tower (“Torre Civica”), the Palazzo de la Raggione and Museum of the ‘500, is another building of note on one side of the square. This was originally the property of one family, which built a defensive tower, as it was the norm in many Italian cities at the time where different factions vied for power (often violently).
From the mid 15th C it became a city building, hosting the Venetian governor and, with its bell tower, also a sort of broadcasting station of the time. Nowadays it hosts the museum of the ‘500s, which is dedicated to the history of Bergamo during the Renaissance period. The museum is not huge, it includes the view of some Roman foundations and some interesting details about the history of Bergamo, but the highlight is the tower, which you can climb for amazing views over the whole of the Città Alta and the surrounding countryside. Ticket is around €10, but the views are worth it, in my opinion.
La Rocca (fortress) and museum of the ‘800
This is another point of interest in Bergamo’s Città Alta which I recommend visiting.
“La Rocca” is, essentially, the city’s fortress, which is located at the edge of the Città Alta overlooking the plains of Lombardy and the nearby Alps.
Access to the gardens is free. This part of the fortress is, essentially, an Italian war memorial dedicated to those that fought in WW1 and WW2. There are several pieces of artillery and armour from that period, as well as commemorative monuments for pretty much every single branch of the Italian military.
Inside the castle there is a small but pretty interesting museum, the Museum of the ‘800, which is focused on the history of Bergamo during the period that goes between the Napoleonic Wars and the Italian unification.
This is a well organized museum which focuses on the role that Bergamo and the surrounding region played in those momentous events and it provides quite a lot of information as well about the social and economic context of the time.
The museum has also a rather impressive collection of period items, including uniforms, documents and the like, it even displays a piano that was once played by Giuseppe Garibaldi no less! It costs €5 but if you are interested in this period of Italian history is well spent money.
A recommended itinerary through Bergamo’s Città Alta
Besides this handful of must-see landmarks, Bergamo, like so many historical cities in Italy, is a great place to spend a morning just strolling leisurely around.
Most of the main streets are, of course, pretty touristicized. (not even sure this word exists, but you get the idea!). However, I would say (based on personal vibes here) that it is not overcrowded and banalized to the same extent (at least not yet) than other more classical destinations, such as Rome or Florence. There are, of course, many souvenir shops, restaurants and ice-cream parlors that are clearly catering to tourists, but their offerings have kept at least an appearance of authenticity (whatever this means nowadays) and some local connection, for example, in the sort of products they offer.
In the map below I share the itinerary that I roughly followed during may wandering through Bergamo’s Città Alta.
Tasting Bergamo’s Casoncelli
I know I may get in trouble about this one, since food in Italy is a sacred topic, particularly whenever local specialities are concerned. However, here is a casual eating concept that I came across while walking around Bergamo’s Città Alta which I quite liked.
To be clear, we are talking fast food here, not high cuisine, but I quite liked the modern and imaginative way in which one of the signature dishes of Bergamasca cuisine is being offered to visitors.
The Casoncelli are a sort of dumplings which are served with a side of vegetables and bacon (a vegetarian version also exists, btw). So, pretty simple and easy to eat while on the go, which is the reason I had a bite here.
At “Casoncelli Nonna Alda” they play with the “local” and “home-made” concepts. This is a small food outlet on one of the main streets in the Città Alta, very close to the funicular station and the Rocca.
It offers just one thing, “casoncelli” (in classical and vegetarian formats) in three sizes, for €5, €9 and €14 respectively, which removes any anxieties about choices and prices.
The decor also panders to this “authentic food of the nonna” theme, with a lady preparing the casoncelli in sight from the street in an adjacent room. I don’t know if this is “nonna Alda”, most likely not, but “si non è vero, e ben trobato!”
A great, small art museum in Bergamo: Accademia Carrara
Bergamo has a top-level art museum in Accademia Carrara, and, actually, a pretty well historied one, since its roots lie in a private collection which was opened to the public in the late 18th C.
Its collections span Italian art from the Renaissance through the 19th century, and include some famous names such as Titian, Mantegna and Botticelli. There are also remarkable pieces from later periods, all presented in a nicely set-up display.
The building itself is also rather interesting, with a sober and majestic neoclassical exterior. The museum, however, went through a general revamp in 2023, which shows in the modern interiors.
Entry is €10, which is worth it if you are into these periods of art.
Museum of the Alpini
Bergamo has also a museum dedicated to the Alpini, the iconic Italian mountain troops, famous for the black feather they append to their hats. I include it here because this is a place I would really have liked to visit. Unfortunately this was not to be the case, because the Museo Alpino, which is free and run by a private foundation, opens only three days per week.
If you find yourself in Bergamo on a Monday, Thursday os Saturday and wish to check it out, here is the website.
Where to stay in Bergamo
Porta Nuova Bergamo Apartments
Largo Porta Nuova, 3, 24122 Bergamo
These apartments are located in one of the most central spots in the Città Bassa and they are also very conveniently located next to the bus stop to get to and from the airport.
The interior of the apartment was modern, yet, with a touch of personality in the decor which avoided the typical “corporate” look of many hotels. It is also worth noting that it had views of the Porta Nuova and the Città Alta and plenty of space and natural light.
By the way, make sure you have some cash to pay the tourist tax, which was something like €5 per person per night. It is, apparently not included in the Booking.com reservation and must be paid by leaving some cash on the table before leaving (checkin and checkout are totally automated via an access code which gives you access to a postbox in which you find a physical key).
You can book the apartments here.
A great day excursion near Bergamo: Lake Iseo
Lake Iseo (Lago d’Iseo) is one of the great lakes of northern Italy. Even if a bit smaller and perhaps lesser known than lakes Como, Maggiore and Garda, it is also very beautiful and of a respectable size.
Lake Iseo contains also the largest lake island in Europe, Monteisola, which is I cover in this post and happens to be an amazing place to spend some time if the weather is nice.
What to see around Lake Iseo
First of all, it is important to bear in mind that, while Lake Iseo is smaller than other lakes in northern Italy, it still is some 25km long by 5km of width, so it is a significant body of water.
If you are planning to visit as a day trip, it is, thus, advisable to be strategic about which spots to visit along the lake’s shores.
In this regard, my choice is clear: go to Sulzano to hop across the water from there to Monteisola, the large island in middle (actually a bit closer to the eastern shore) of the lake.
From there I drove along the eastern shore of the lake up to its head, to then turn slightly west to Lovere and then take the slightly longest but more panoramic way back to Bergamo across the mountains
Visiting Monteisola on Lake Iseo
Why if I had to pick up one spot ot. visit in Lake Iseo it would be Monteisola?
First of all because it is a beautiful spot. The island is close enough to the eastern shore that from Sulzano you can make out the contours of the picturesque little lakeside village of Peschiera Maraglio. The place does not disappoint once you come in to land at its quay. This would fit perfectly the sort of setting many have in mind when they imagine the so-called “Italian dolcevita”, just without the crowds you get in places like Portofino or Cinque Terre.
Now, a word of caution: I did visit on a sunny day in the middle of July. While I am sure it is still beautiful, the whole experience may be a bit different if you visit, let’s say, on a grey day in winter!
What’s more, visiting Monteisola gives you the opportunity to have the ferry experience. There are boats connecting Sulzano to the island every 15 minutes or so. The ticket costs about €5 return. It is a really short ride, no more than 5-10 minutes, but enough to get you a new perspective of the lake.
As mentioned earlier, Monteisola is the largest lake island in Europe. It has a perimeter of around 9 km and its center is a peak of some 600m of height with a monastery at the top.
Bear in mind that no cars are allowed on Monteisola and the ferry carries only people. You can rent bikes on arrival, though.
What’s more, you don’t need to visit the whole island to get a nice experience. I would say, if you are short of time, you can simply stay around Peschiera, which has also quite a few nice bathing spots around, if the weather permits.
My initial plan was, actually, to take a small winding path that takes you all the way up to the monastery, from where it is possible to get the best views of all Lake Iseo. However, it was so hot on the day of my visit that I soon abandoned this plan and switched to the beach instead.
There are a handful of public lakeside recreational areas on the south side of the island, just 5 minutes walk west of Peschiera Maraglio following the lakeside boulevard.
By the way, don’t expect large sandy beaches on Monteisola, the bathing spots on Lake Iseo tend to be more like relatively small openings between the rocks, with some pebbled open space where you can leave your stuff while you go for a plunge.
I mention it because, while I personally like this kind of beach, I am aware it is not for everyone!
I was surprised to find the water on Lake Iseo to be quite warm, but it was an exceptionally hot day in the middle of a heat wave when I visited, so it was possibly not representative of the usual experience.
What I can say for sure is that water was pretty clean, transparent actually, and there were plenty of fish and even ducks (and ducklings!) swimming around.
For reference, these images are from the small beach some 300m to the west of Peschiera Maraglio, on the southern tip of the island. From this spot you can also see the Isola di San Paolo, a small islet which is the private property of the Beretta family, of gun-making fame.
The Christo 2016 installation on Lake Iseo
At this point is worth mentioning a rather unique art event that took place in this part of Lake Iseo in 2016, when the famous Bulgarian artist Christo build its “Floating Piers” installation, which consisted in the construction of several ephemeral piers covered in yellow fabric which, with a length of 3km total, connected Sulzano to Monteisola and the Isola di San Paolo.
Nothing is left of those piers, although it is possible to find some decorative elements along the lake’s shores that recall that one-off episode. You can more information and some images of how it looked like here.
Wandering around Peschiera Maraglio
Besides the nature and the views, Peschiera Maraglio has a small urban nucleous that revolves around the quay.
It is here were most shops, bars and restaurants are, although there are also a handful of back streets climbing the lower parts of the hill and leading up to the village’s small church.
While this is obviously a tourist spot, it has preserved a modicum of authenticity.
You can try, for example, a local speciality, the Salame di Monteisola, which is a type of salami that is smoked in a cellar through an artisan process. And you can also complement it with a nice artisan ice-cream and some pastries from the local bakery.
So, here are my recommendations of casual places to eat in Peschiera Maraglio (I didn’t go to any “formal” or upmarket restaurant although there a few of these places too, if this is your preference). The options I mention here are all found within 20 meters of each other and can be combined for an on-the-go type of meal:
La Tindirlana, for a bite of Salame di Monteisola
L’Isola, for a scoop of tasty gelato
Forneria Ziliani, for some local tasty buns
Other spots to bathe in Lake Iseo
There is no shortage of bathing places on Lake Iseo. The only issue is finding places that are easily accessible from the road and with parking space at hand.
Signage on Italian roads is not great, so be extra attentive, because there are long stretches of road on the eastern side of Lake Iseo which are fully tunnelled, which means that if you take the wrong exit you may end up tens of kilometres from the intended destination.
There are several bathing spots on the mainland around Sulzano, for example, particularly on the south side of the town, and also near Marone and Pisogne, a bit further up the lake from Sulzano.
I personally went for another swim in the vicinity of Toline, which is a hamlet just to the south of Pisogne. There you will find a small beach area just south of the urban centre with some parking space nearby. As in Monteisola, the beach here is made of pebbles, so better carry some type of sandals that make it easier to get to water!
More interesting places around Lake Iseo: Lovere
The lakeside town of Lovere is on the northwestern side of Lake Iseo.
Lovere is included in the network of the most beautiful villages of Italy (“I borghi piu belli d’Italia”), which I found to be perhaps a bit of an overstatement. This is not because Lovere is lacking in charms, but because in a country like Italy, in which competition on the beauty front is fierce, this label raises perhaps some irrational expectations.
The best views of Lovere are actually from outside the village proper.
The marina area just to the south of downtown, offers a view of the village, silhouetted against the background of the lake and the nearby mountains.
Even if parts of the town are now relatively modernly built, Lovere is actually pretty old and it still keeps some urban elements that date back to the Middle Ages.
If you were to visit just one place in Lovere, go to Piazza Vittorio Emanuele I (depicted below), which is really picturesque and has a bust of the said king at its center.
By the way, just like Bergamo, Lovere has its own art and history museum set up in the late 18th C. by a local aristocrat, Count Luigi de Tadini. It hosts art and archaeology collections as well as a section about the Italian Risorgimento. I didn’t have time to visit it, but I thought it worth mentioning!
A place to have coffee in Lovere
Minuscoli Lovere
Via Tadini, 28, 24065 Lovere
This is a rather modern place, so, don’t expect the classical, old-style Italian café which may have been around at the time of the Risorgimento.
However, I quite liked it, because it had nice, clean, spacious and air conditioned premises, it offered a great choice of pastries.
It is located on the main lakeside road, on a small square just by the quais, so not in the very center of the historical town, but convenient if you have left the car in one of the parking lots by the lake.
I think that what this place lacks in history and authenticity more than makes it up in the choices available and nice and efficient service.
Bonus tip: visiting Clusone, in the Val Seriana
If driving back to Bergamo from Lake Iseo, you may consider, instead of returning via Sarnico and the main motorway, to take a bit of a detour through the mountains of the Val Seriana.
This route allows you to see this part of the Alpine foothills and the town of Clusone, which, like Lovere, is also included in the network of Italy’s most beautiful villages.
Clusone has also a medieval center with a few rather unique things to see
An astronomical clock (Fanzago clock) on the Palazzo Comunale, this is quite a unique piece of craftmanship. Designed by a local mathematician called Pietro Fanzago. Since 1583, Clusone’s astronomical clock has marked hour, day, month, the moon phase, and zodiac signs simultaneously.
The "Danza Macabra" fresco, painted in 1485 on the Oratorio dei Disciplini di San Bernardino, which is essentially a “memnto mori”, a reminder of mortality and Death as a great equalizer. It is located next to the Basilica di Santa Maria Assunta e San Giovanni Battista, which is a rather impressive 17th C. church built at the highest point in downtown Clusone.
The Chiesa di Santa Anna, built in late 15th C. and featuring some restored 16th C. frescoes on its facade.
The Monte Polenta (suspected location of a lost castle). This hill just outside Clusone takes its name from the fact that its shape reminds of the traditional presentation of polenta, the northern Italian dish. There may have been some sort of fortification here in the early middle ages, but, apparently, archaeological research has been inconclusive. What is sure is that from its top you will get some of the best views of Clusone and the surrounding countryside.
There are also a fair number of cafés, restaurants and shops in Clusone, unfortunately, I am not able to recommend any, because mine was a rather quick visit, a literal pit stop, in the evening.
From Clusone it is around 37 km by car down the Val Seriana to Bergamo.
If you are travelling around Italy, you may find the following posts of interest too!
3 Great unusual day excursions from Barcelona: mines, waterfalls & castles
Barcelona is one of the world’s top tourist destinations. This is so to the point that concerns have been growing that some of the city’s best known landmarks, such as Gaudí’s Sagrada Familia and the picturesque streets of the old town may be approaching saturation point.
As some of its landmarks are becoming increasingly well-known, it is natural that many visitors start looking for other types of experiences.
There is a wealth of interesting places within easy reach of Barcelona that make for great day excursions.
In this post I suggest just three great day excursions from Barcelona. There are many more interesting places, but each of these represents a truly unique place which combines some natural and historical appeal and also each of them represents a different type of requirements when it comes to distance and time.
By the way, only the first of them is relatively easy to reach by public transportation from central Barcelona, for the other two I really recommend getting a car.
So, here are three great day excursions that you can do from Barcelona, by order of distance.
The prehistoric mines of Gavà (required time: 3h)
The waterfall and monumental cliffs at Sant Miquel del Fai (half a day)
The salt mine and castle of Cardona (full day)
1- Visiting the Prehistoric Mines of Gavà
So, let’s start with an excursion which is just on Barcelona’s backyard and very close to its international airport, actually.
Today the city of Gavà is a Barcelona suburb, but 6,000 years ago (between 4,000 adn 3,000 BC) this place was the site of a large neolithic mining complex.
The galleries, which constitute one of the largest known mining complexes of that era anywhere in Europe, were dedicated to the extraction of variscite, an aluminium phosphate prized for its turquoise coloring. This material had an ornamental function but was likely also used as a stored of value and medium of exchange, not unlike precious metals.
What’s more, the people that exploited these mines didn’t have metal tools! The digging was made with tools made of red deer antler and stone.
The site was huge for its time, extending over at least some 200 hectares (almost 500 acres), most of it under the territory of the modern city of Gavà.
The people that worked at this site were part of what has become known as the “Sepulcres de fossa culture”, which thrived in what is now Catalonia and parts of southern France all the way to Switzerland. They are called this way because they buried their dead in pits, and, indeed, this is what they did with some of the galleries at the mines, where archaeologists have found ancient human remains.
The mines were discovered by chance in the 1970s and archaeological research has been going on since.
In 2007 an immersive modern museum was opened at the site, the “Parc Arqueològic de les Mines de Gavà”, which allows you to literally walk on top of the mine pits and enter a full-scale reconstruction of the mine’s galleries.
The latter is perhaps the most interesting and exciting part. Sadly, when I visited and due to some issues with lighting, I did not manage to get a picture of good enough quality to post, here, so you will need to imagine it. But I can tell you that it is quite an interesting experience (you even have to wear a helmet, since it is really an exact replica of the real thing!).
How to get to the archaeological park of the Gavà mines?
The easiest way to reach Gavà from central Barcelona using public transportation is to take the suburban train.
The R2 Line runs from Plaça Catalunya to Gavà several times every hour, with an approximate travel time of 25 minutes.
Having said that, suburban rail service in the Barcelona area has become notoriously unreliable at the time of writing these lines, in mid-2026, so I would check the state of the service on this website before doing anything.
From Gavà railway station you can walk about 1km to the archaeological site, which is on a hill top.
The other option is, of course, to get there by car. Gavà is actually just a couple of kilometers from Barcelona-El Prat International Airport, so, if you are looking for some interesting thing to do or to see before taking you flight which doesn’t require a lot of time, this could be an option!
2 - The Waterfalls and Monumental Cliffs of Sant Miquel del Fai
This is one of the most spectacular places you can visit within one hour drive of Barcelona.
Sant Miquel del Fai is a rather unique spot combining natural and historical beauty. It sits at the head of the Sant Miquel Valley, within the Cingles de Bertí natural area. This rugged landscape is presided over by steep cliffs and two rather majestic waterfalls.
But Sant Miquel del Fai is also a place of historical significance. In 997 AD, a small Benedictine monastery was established here, the Romanesque church of which, built using a sheltered space under a large rock. Later, in the 16th C. several other constructions were added, including the large building in Catalan style which is today one of its prominent features.
Getting to Sant Miquel del Fai
To get to Sant Miquel del Fai you will need to get a car. I am not even sure there is any way to get there on scheduled public transport, but if you have a car available is about a 45-minute drive from central Barcelona, taking the AP-7 motorway to Mollet del Vallès and then the C-59 road to Sant Feliu de Codines, the closes urban center.
It is important to book your visit in advance (no pre-payment is required), since the site is managed by Barcelona’s provincial government, which, after completing restoration works in 2026, implemented a slot system to better control visitor flows.
You can book your slot free of charge here.
If coming by car, access is through the north side, which offers a rather picturesque entrance pathway which includes a walk over the 16th C. stone bridge and a narrow passage between the rock formations.
This builds anticipation as you move into the grand setting of the Sant Miquel Valley and the Cingles de Bertí, the series of cliffs that run along the head of the valley. It is here that you will find one of the best viewpoints to contemplate this landscape in all majesty.
Bear in mind, though, that this is an area of Mediterranean climate and the amount of water flowing down the waterfalls could vary quite a lot depending on rainfall. Since the Winter of 2025/26 had been quite rainy in Catalonia, at the time of my visit, the waterfall was at its best.
But even if water levels are low, the landscape is well worth the trip!
The main structure in Sant Miquel del Fai is the 16th C. priory building, which today houses some of the site’s services and is also a venue for events. This building stands between the steep mountain slope and the rock cliffs, creating a choke point which is the site’s entrance.
The next point of interest is the 10th C. church, which is of the type known as “troglodyte church”. This name designates those churches that have been built using rock formations for at least part of its structure.
You can see how the small Romanesque church at Sant Miquel del Fai blends perfectly with its surroundings and, as you get close, you can appreciate, as well, how old it is.
There is a path that runs all along the cliffs and takes you to one of the highlights: the waterfalls.
Now, if you have been to Niagara Falls, Iguaçu or even the Rhine Falls in Switzerland, be warned, the ones at Sant Miquel del Fai are in not in the same league. Nevertheless they are quite impressive when seen from up close, particularly because you can get quite close to them, making this a rather immersive experience!
The monastery at Sant Miquel del Fai was secularized in 1567, with the monks leaving and the place turned into a regular priory. It is at this time when the site got most of its current appearance, with the construction of the priory house as well as the northern access path and the bridge that is now used by most visitors.
After a general privatization of church lands in the 1830s, Sant Miquel del Fai was acquired by a family, which turned it into an inn. This coincided roughly with the start of tourism in the 19th C. and Sant Miquel del Fai became a popular destination on account of its natural beauty and relative proximity to Barcelona.
The Diputació de Barcelona (the provincial government) acquired the site in 2017 and embarked on an ambitious process of restoration, which concluded in 2023.
A nice place to eat near Sant Miquel del Fai
El Racó de la Fonteta (Sant Feliu de Codines)
Plaça Josep Umbert Rosàs, 08182 Sant Feliu de Codines
It is a nice idea to combine a visit to Sant Miquel del Fai with lunch in the nearby town of Sant Feliu de Codines.
Perched on a mountainous plateau with views, this town preserves an elegant character from its days as a popular summer retreat for well-off Barcelona families, who built villas here. It also has a handful of restaurants and I am happy to recommend one of them which totally surpassed our initial expectations.
The “Racó de la Fonteta” is located next to the town’s civic center and it offers a great value menu. Rations are abundanat, of good quality and served in a really nice and elegant way.
What’s more, the service was impeccable throughout and, no doubt, I would come back!
3 - The salt mountain and castle of Cardona
If the two previous suggested excursions can be completed as a half a day outing, this one is more of a full-day excursion. Like the other two locations, Cardona is also rather unique.
It combines a natural and a historical wonder in one place: its mountain of salt,. which is the site of one of Europe’s most ancient and spectacular salt mines, as well as a majestic medieval castle which was never taken by the force of arms.
How to get to Cardona
The simple answer is: get there by car.
To be clear, there is a regular bus service from Barcelona (alas, no rail!), but it is quite slow, around 2h, and it has limited frequencies.
If you are driving, instead, it will take you a bit more than an hour to get to Cardona, taking the C-16 motorway (toll road) to Manresa and then road C-55 direction Solsona.
Having a car will also facilitate movement between Cardona’s two main sites, its castle and the Salt Mountain Cultural Park, which are in opposite ends of the town.
Cardona’s Monumental Castle
This castle is, easily, one of the most spectacular in Catalonia. Its origins date back at least to the 9th C. when Cardona was one of the southernmost outposts of the Catalan counties and, in fact, of Western Christendom, in their fight against the Saracens which had been occupying part of the Iberian Peninsula since the early 8th C.
The location of this frontier castle, is, of course, not random and is connected to the need to protect the nearby salt mountain, an incredibly valuable resource in that era of history.
The castle of Cardona was a work in progress for many centuries, which have given it the imposing aspect it has today.
Nowadays you can not only visit the castle to admire the view from the village. the surrounding landscape and its 11th C. Romanesque church, the “Col·legiata de Sant Vicenç”, but you can also spend the night in it!
This is because the Castle of Cardona has been turned into a hotel and is part of the “Paradores” network, a government-owned hotel chain which manages hotels located within historical monuments all throughout Spain. It is said that the “Parador de Cardona” has even a haunted room!
The castle commands great views of the town and the adjacent areas, including the Salt Mountain, which we’ll see next.
Visiting the Salt Mountain of Cardona
The Salt Mountain would, by itself, make the trip to Cardona worthwhile. Cardona is one of a handful of sites in Europe, such as Hallstatt in Austria and some others, that have been known since very early Antiquity for its salt deposits.
Salt mining has been going on in Cardona since at least Roman times, but very likely earlier than that. Salt was incredibly valuable at the time, since it was used extensively to feed cattle and was also currency and a medium of exchange as well.
To that, in the early 20th C. you can add the exploitation of Potash, which brought modern industrial mining to Cardona and thousands of migrants from all over Spain. While some of the other villages in the area are still fully engaged in this activity, industrial mining ceased in Cardona in the early 1990s, when its exploitation became uneconomic, and the mine has since been mostly a tourist attraction.
Cardona’s Salt Mountain Cultural Park is quite an interesting place. It has two components: one is above ground and it is a conventional museum and visitor’s center, where you can tour some of the mine’s facilities and learned how miners lived and worked there during most of the 20th C.
The other, and more unique part of the experience is the visit to interior of the Salt Mountain.
There are different slots to visit the mine, always with a group, since you are driven to the entrance, which is at the bottom of a rather steep valley, in a 4×4 vehicle. There you walk along a demarcated trail which takes you through some of the mine’s old galleries.
Before getting into the mine you are given a plastic cape and helmet, in part to protect you clothing, since salty sediments can drop at any time from the ceiling of the galleries.
Entering the Cardona salt mines is like stepping into a fantasy world full of many different shapes and structures formed by the continued salt deposits.
The mine is actually a dynamic environment, since water and salt continue to carve the interior of these galleries constantly. At one point in the visit you can even see an old wooden ladder, which was forgotten there by some miners some time many decades ago and have since become pretty much like another mineral formation.
A nice restaurant in Cardona
La Volta del Rector
Carrer de les Flors, 4, 08261 Cardona
If you visit Cardona, La Volta del Rector is a great choice of restaurant to refuel and taste some local, hearty produce.
It's located in the heart of Cardona's old town, so it also offers a chance to combine it with a walk through its picturesque streets.
The setting is rather elegant, with a modern touch, but keeps a sense of rural authenticity.
Prices are well balanced, and it offers good value for money.
Here you can see some of the dishes I tried at La Volta del Rector. Overall it was pretty good quality. The service was also pretty good throughout.
More top things to see in Uruguay: a day in Montevideo
Sandwiched between two giants, Brazil and Argentina, Uruguay often doesn’t get the attention it deserves and I am not even talking about the two World Cups this small South American country won in the past!
A previous post on this site offered a quick glimpse of Uruguay’s top historical site, Colonia del Sacramento, so now it is time to turn our attention to the country’s capital, Montevideo.
To be fair, Montevideo is a relatively small and quiet city, don’t expect the buzz of a megalopolis here. However it has just got enough to keep you going for a couple of days without getting the sort of anxiety that can get hold of you when visiting larger cities on a limited time budget. This was, in fact, my case, with my travel schedule allowing for a full 24h in the Uruguayan capital.
So, in the following lines I will try to provide a summary of my main impressions of the city and my thoughts about what to do and what to see in Montevideo, even if I had to leave at least a couple of things for my next visit!
Main areas to visit in Montevideo
First of all, let’s start with the general layout of the city of Montevideo to set the stage.
Montevideo is located mostly on a small peninsula protruding into the Rio de la Plata, the huge estuary which separates Uruguay from Argentina.
The old town ("Ciudad Vieja") sits at the tip of this peninsula, while the more modern districts extend inland in an orthogonal grid. The city also slopes gently toward the sea, with the central areas located at a slightly higher elevation. In fact, you can see the brownish waters of the Rio de la Plata from many areas of central Montevideo.
In this post I am going to focus my attention on:
Ciudad Vieja and the adjacent Independence Square
Palermo/Punta Carretas/Pocitos/Carrasco, the rather affluent seaside districts on the south side
Villa Muñoz, to the north of downtown
What to see in Montevideo’s Ciudad Vieja
This is the historical part of the city, a mostly pedestrianized area that runs along a ridge which offers views of the sea both right and left, as you walk its central streets.
Like Colonia del Sacramento, old Montevideo was at the tip of a small peninsula with its landward side fortified. The walls are now gone, but one of the gates remains as a reminder, demarcating the border between the old and modern parts of the city.
It is important to remember, though, that it is the “old city” in the context of Uruguay, which is a country that grew mostly between the second half of the 19th C and the first half of the 20th. So, it is a relative type of “old”, however, this area of the city does keep its own character, differentiated from the orthogonal grid that is the (formerly extra-muros) modern part of Montevideo.
The main points of interest in Montevideo’s old town are:
Mercado del Puerto
Palacio Taranco (Museo de Artes Decorativas)
Museo del Gaucho y de la Moneda
The Ciudad Vieja is very walkable and the distances involved are short. At good pace you can actually see almost all of it in a couple of hours, even if stopping for coffee at any of the several small cafés and bakeries that line its streets.
One thing to keep in mind, though is that some areas in the old town appear to be quite run down (I was told it may even be a bit unsafe to walk around at night).
This becomes very apparent if you walk all the way down to the seaside. In most cities this would be prime real estate, but in Montevideo’s Ciudad Vieja what you come across is a number of uninviting open spaces and semi-derelict constructions. At the far end you end up at a sort of embankment where some people are fishing with rods, but the whole area is, again, rather unappealing.
Also, worth noting that the separation between the old town’s pedestrian area and the industrial port is non existent.
One of the spots by the sea that I found most interesting, though, is a large white art-déco building towering over the Mercado del Puerto. Sadly, this is actually off-limits, since it is Uruguay’s naval headquarters!
In the following pictures you can get a sense of the look and feel of the area and see also how, even if not particularly accessible in this part of town, the sea, or more accurately, the Rio de la Plata, is always looming in the background.
Mercado del Puerto
This market is a must visit in Montevideo, not because of its size or the exuberance of the wares on sale. In fact, it is rather small and most of the shops are actually selling souvenirs.
But here you will find some totally great places to eat a typical (and very abundant!) Uruguayan asado!
Grilled meat is one of Uruguay’s specialities. So, provided you are not vegan, you will likely enjoy eating here.
There are different restaurants, all of them offering basically the same selection of grilled meats, which are cooked in the open on proper charcoal.
There is a rich meat-eating culture in Uruguay, so you will be offered a choice of different cuts, best served alongside some local red wine.
What is pretty much guaranteed is that the rations will be huge!
Cabaña Verónica
This was my choice at the Mercado del Puerto (it was later recommended to me independently by my hotel’s staff) and it did not disappoint. Amazing food and great service throughout.
Also worth mentioning that I sat at the bar, watching how the meat was being cooked, which adds to the speed of service and the authenticity of the experience!
In the picture below you can see what you get if you order one of the most basic cuts, the “tira”.
For good measure I also tried the grilled sausage (“chorizo”), which you can see below. All. of these dishes are served with accompanying breads, sauces (pour at your discretion, I personally found it very tasty without adding anything!) and a side, which is usually potato-based.
Visting the Palacio Taranco - Museo de Artes Decorativas
This is a small but beautiful and tasteful palace located on the main square in the Ciudad Vieja, Plaza Zabala. It belonged to a rich Montevidean business family, which lived here in the early 20th C.
Since the 1970s it has hosted the Museum of Decorative Arts (“Museo de Artes Decorativas”), which is essentially a small art museum which contains pieces by some famous European masters, from the Dutch Golden Era to more modern artists, like the Spanish painter Julio Romero de Torres.
Besides the art, Palacio Taranco shows how the elite of Uruguayan society lived at the time when the country was at its apogee. Palacio Taranco once even hosted the Prince of Wales, who later would become Edward VIII of England, when he visited Uruguay in the 1930s.
The palace can be visited in about 30 minutes or so (it is not that big!) and entry is free.
Museo del Gaucho y de la Moneda
This museum has a rather intriguing name, since it is devoted to two apparently unrelated topics:
On the one hand it tells the history and culture of the “gauchos”, the mounted frontiersmen that lived in the plains of Uruguay raising cattle and later expanded into the neighbouring Argentina and southern Brazil. They were, roughly, the South American equivalents of the “cowboys” of the US Far West which so popular became in pop culture.
The other topic is…the monetary history of Uruguay! Not for nothing, the rather majestic building which houses this museum used to be a bank.
The museum curators seem to be well aware that this mixing of topics can be a bit confusing to the visitor and they explain throughout the exhibition that the two are linked in the sense that they helped shape Uruguayan nationhood. Fair enough!
The exhibition part is rather small, with the gaucho history exhibition taking the side areas of along the grand central hall and the monetary-banking part located in the centre, where there is also an immersive video experience about life in rural Uruguay.
Altogether is a rather eclectic and unconventional mix, but not without interest. In any case, the building is well worth the visit, if only to contemplate its grandiosity.
Nice place to have coffee and breakfast in the Ciudad Vieja
Federación (Café y Panadería Urbana)
Calle Perez Castellano 1370, 11000 Montevideo
This is a cozy place where you can have a little rest while visiting the old town. It offers sitting space on the street as well as in a quiet interior patio. It has great croissants, “media-lunas” (which is another type of croissant) and other pastries,
Amazing boutique hotel in Montevideo
FAUNA Montevideo
Sarandí 287, 11000 Montevideo
This boutique hotel was one of the highlights of the trip. I booked it in great part because it had raving reviews on Booking.com. It is, in fact, rare to find properties with a spotless five-star rating, but I can confirm it is well deserved!
On top of that, it has great pricing and a location that is as central as it gets in the middle of the Ciudad Vieja.
The hotel is in a perfectly restored early 20th C. building, with the reception and some of the rooms on the first floor.
The interior is tastefully decorated to the slightest detail and the lady that manages was extremely nice throughout. She allowed me to check in considerably earlier than the regular time, something which simplified my logistics significantly and pro-actively provided recommendations via whatsapp about things to see in the Ciudad Vieja, as well as places to have breakfast (the hotel does not offer breakfast in its premises) and where to have lunch and dinner.
The hotel has a living room which manages to provide a really cozy atmosphere and it is even fitted with a liquor bar which is free to serve (in moderation, of course!). It was a bit chilly outside due to this visit being in the middle of the southern winter, and the heating in the premises provided just the right contrast.
The room was spotlessly clean and tastefully decorated, modern, with a few traditional elements woven in for good measure.
The finishings, materials and general quality standards were also excellent throughout; there was not even a scratch anywhere. I also liked, btw, the layout of the shelves, which makes it quite easy to store your things while keeping them easily accessible at all times.
The room had also a work desk, well stocked with tea and coffee (including a designer kettle!), a fridge with complimentary still and sparkling water and a flat screen TV with Netflix connection included (I didn’t really have time to use it, but some readers may find this information of use).
So, happy to give my five stars, as well, to FAUNA Montevideo and don’t forget to check it out if planning a trip to the city. You may be surprised by the cost per night of everything I just told you!
Exploring modern Montevideo
Plaza de la Independencia
So, now that we have seen Montevideo’s old town, it is the turn of its modern part and the first stop in our itinerary is the Plaza de la Independencia (Independence Square).
This square not only acts as the nexus between the old and modern towns, but it is also the closest it gets to a central node of the city.
It is here that you find the gate of the old walled town, the “Puerta de la Ciudadela”, which stands now at its original location, the only remnant of the old fortification. The gate, however, has had a more agitated life than it looks. In 1877 it was dismantled stone by stone and moved to another location and it was only in 1959 that it was again moved to its original spot.
The walls are gone, but, as you can see below, there are other wall-like structures nowadays guarding the entrance to Montevideo’s Ciudad Vieja.
But the most iconic and prominent building on Montevideo’s Plaza de la Independencia is, without a hint of doubt, the Palacio Salvo, which you can see in the picture below at the opposite end of the square from the citadel gate.
The Palacio Salvo, which is named after the businessmen brothers that commissioned it, was, at the time of its construction, in 1928, and for a bried period of time, the tallest building in South America, standing at 105 meters.
Its style is rather difficult to categorize, since it mixes elements of all sorts of styles (neo-Gothic, Renaissance, Neoclassical, Art-Déco) to come up with its very own character.
Also interesting is the fact that the Palacio Salvo has a twin across the Río de la Plata in Buenos Aires, the Palacio Barolo, designed by the same architect, Mario Palanti. There were even plans to link the two visually with a beam of light. That would have been something worth seeing!
It is possible to get to the top of the Palacio Salvo by taking one of the guided tours, which run at specific times (for example, before 1pm on Saturdays). I couldn't make it due to schedule issues, but this is something I would certainly have liked to do!
Here below, other interesting elements on Plaza de la Independencia: some oversized yerba mate cups (one of them featuring the bullfighting ring in Colonia del Sacramento, which I covered in my previous Uruguayan post), the statue of national hero Artigas, and the Teatro Solís, which can also be visited with a guided tour.
Another city view point is the top of the townhall (“Intendencia de Montevideo”), the red brick building you can see here above. This is further along the “18 the Julio” Avenue, which is the main thoroughfare running through the middle of downtown Montevideo.
The column on the left is also in the area.
Mercado Agrícola de Montevideo: a walk through the northern neighbourhoods
This produce market is a focal point in the northern part of the city center. I visited it in the morning as part of a walk from the area of Tres Cruces to explore this part of the city.
The maket stalls were just getting ready for the day, so it was all very quiet. I had breakfast at one of the cafés.
I would say, if you are short of time, you can skip this one!
The northern part of town has a totally different character, with many low-lying houses and broad and surprisingly quiet streets.
In this regard, maybe it was due to it being a weekend, but in general I saw few people on the streets in Montevideo. It is true, as some Uruguayan friends pointed out to me, that this is a very low density country, with 3.5 million people living in a territory almost the size of Britain, but didn’t expect the capital city to feel that empty as well!
The seaside neighbourhoods: Palermo, Punta Carretas, Pocitos, Carrasco
To be totally honest, my experience of this part of the city was rather fleeting: I did walk from the old town to Pocitos in one afternoon and the next day I had also the chance to drive by in an Uber all along the coastal road, also from the old town to the airport, which gave me a good panoramic ride of the whole seaside riviera of Montevideo.
This is, however, a part of the city that, while it doesn’t have much in the way of historical buildings or landmarks, appears to be rather pleasant, way more affluent than the old town and the northern districts and well suited for outdoor activities.
I had limited time to explore this part of the city, but it is well worth it if the weather is nice and wish to spend some time outdoors.
The southern side of Montevideo is where most of the best beaches area and the area is also peppered with many parks and recreational areas. For example, here above you can see the view from Punta Carretas (a small peninsula which is the southernmost tip of the city) and below you can see the beach at Pocitos, which is a fancy residential-commercial district to the east of it.
For many purposes, the area around Pocitos has become like a second downtown. There is even a modern business district next to it, with the typical glass and steel towers and the like.
The Montevideo riviera continues all the way east towards Carrasco, another fancy neighbourhood located near the airport, in a succession of beaches and residential areas.
Great place to eat in Carrasco
Restaurante García
Av. Alfredo Arocena 1587, 11300 Montevideo
And I would like to close this post with another restaurant suggestion: yet another place where it is possible to eat a proper Uruguayan asado, albeit in a bit more formal setting than at Mercado del Puerto, but one with a more local crowd.
The cooking here is not done in the open, but the results are equally impressive, as you can see in the following pictures.
The restaurant is in the main street of Carrasco, next to the beach, so relatively far if you are in the old town, but reasonably close if staying in Pocitos or one of the districts in the eastern part of the city.
Top things to see in Uruguay: a day in Colonia del Sacramento
Colonia del Sacramento (which from now on I will refer to simply as “Colonia”) is one of the top things to see in Uruguay outside the country’s capital, Montevideo (which I will cover in a separate post).
In fact, you don’t even need to visit Montevideo to visit the little gem that Colonia is. Its proximity to the large international gateway of Buenos Aires, just a short ferry ride away in Argentina, makes it possible to visit as a day excursion from the Argentinian capital.
Colonia, which has enjoyed UNESCO World Heritage Site status since 1995, is one of the earliest European settlements in the territory that today is Uruguay, and one that changed hands several times between Portugal and Spain. It is precisely this liminal status between the two large Empires that dominated South America during the Colonial Era which confers to Colonia its unique character.
To be fair, the historical centre of Colonia is pretty small, but this also makes it perfect for a short excursion without the anxiety of leaving too many things on the table.
So, without further ado, let’s have a look at the things to and to see in Colonia del Sacramento!
Getting to and from Colonia del Sacramento:
Arriving in the ferry from Buenos Aires
This is the option that most visitors take, since Buenos Aires is not just geographically closer to Colonia than Montevideo, but it is also a far larger metropolis with many international and long-haul air connections.
The distance between Colonia and Buenos Aires is some 40km as the crow flies across the Rio de la Plata, the large estuary that separates Argentina from Uruguay.
As of June 2026, there are two ferry companies operating the service, Buquebus and Colonia Express, each offering some 4-5 daily services in each direction (it is possible that there is some seasonality in the service, I will leave it to you to check it out!). Pricing can vary a bit depending on the time of the booking but it is roughly in the $25-50 range per person each way. Some ferries are faster than others but you should count 1.5 to 2h as the standard travel time.
Each of the ferry companies operates its own terminal in Buenos Aires, both of them quite close to Buenos Aires historical downtown, so they are pretty easy to reach.
I traveled from Buenos Aires on Colonia Express, which departs from the southern edge of Puerto Madero, the modern business area adjacent to Buenos Aires historical San Telmo district.
The terminal is super modern and it houses both the Argentinian and Uruguayan customs, so you get both immigration stamps before boarding the ship.
Likewise, I was positively impressed by the ship, which was also pretty modern, clean and comfortable. It has two passenger decks has a bar, a duty free shop, a currency exchange bureau and multiple toilet facilities. You can also go outside, which makes it possible to get nice views, particularly as you depart Buenos Aires, but most people just go inside after that as it can get terribly windy outside!
The arrival at Colonia is, likewise, at a modern terminal which is witihin 5-10min walk from the gates of the historical centre. At the time of my visit, the arrival terminal appeared to be undergoing some expansion or refurbishment work.
Also next to the maritime terminal there is the Tourist Information Center, housed in a stylish contemporary building in what it used to be a railway yard (the building actually re-uses some of the steel and iron elements in its design), so this is a good place to gather some information and start your visit to Colonia!
Getting to Colonia del Sacramento from Montevideo
The other way to get to Colonia by public transportation is to take the bus from Montevideo, which is around 2h 45 minutes away. I actually did that after completing my sightseeing in Colonia.
It is also possible, of course, to arrange a private transfer, but I am not sure the price differential makes it worth it, considering the bus is pretty comfortable and costs on the order of €25-30.
There are two bus companies, Cot and Turil, operating this route. They each offer several services per day and prices are pretty similar. The tickets can be booked online, both on their respective websites or on travel aggregators.
The bus terminal is right next to the maritime terminal and the tourist information centre and less than 1km away from the historical centre. It is a rather basic building, but it does have all the services, including a a bar, some small shops and a fair number of electric sockets to charge phones and electric devices (btw, unlike Argentina, Uruguay uses a type of electric socket which is compatible with the European type!).
The bus was surprisingly comfortable, with a larger seat pitch than you would expect on some European airlines’ business class cabins, and it has even a sort of foldable foot and leg rest for extra comfort. I think there was a sign saying there was wifi, but no network appeared to be active.
Btw, the bus stops along the way multiple times to pick up people, so better make sure you are seated on the seat assigned during booking (they are numbered). The bus also has a toilet.
The terminal in Montevideo is in Tres Cruces, which is pretty central in the modern part of the city.
The historical centre of Colonia del Sacramento
Colonia has a really interesting history. It was, in fact, founded as a Portuguese outpost. The Kingdoms of Castile (the nucleous of what later became Spain) and Portugal agreed to demarcate their respective areas of influence through the Treaty of Tordesillas in 1494, which used an imaginary line to the West of the Cape Verde islands as the boundary.
With cartography being still, at the time, a rather inexact science, Portugal tried to enforce a rather favourable (to its interests) interpretation of this line to claim the northern part of the Rio de la Plata and the territory of what is now Uruguay.
So, in 1680, the Portuguese founded Colonia as their southernmost outpost in the Americas. At that time, Spanish settlement of the area was still not fully consolidated, so the Portuguese kind of got away with it for some time. But, it was not long before tensions started between the two European kingdoms, as they both tried to create facts on the ground.
Spain took Colonia by force several times between 1680 and the mid-18th C. and each time the Portuguese recovered it through diplomatic means. This went on until 1777, when the Spanish Crown reclaimed Colonia one last time.
Colonia, however, was not to remain in Spanish hands for long, since in the early 19th C. the independence movements kicked off in Latin America, taking advantage of the Napoleonic Wars in Europe.
Colonia did eventually end up being part of Uruguay, which obtained its independence in 1830 (after yet another war, this time between the United Province of the Rio de la Plata, which later became Argentina, and a Brazil that has just become independent).
The foundations of Colonia’s Portuguese governor palace, which was razed to the ground by the Spanish, can still be seen in the centre of this square
If I am explaining all of this in detail is because it is essential to understand the uniqueness of Colonia and the reasons that led it to become the first UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Uruguay.
Colonia del Sacramento is the only place in the Americas which has managed to preserve a fusion of both Portuguese and Spanish colonial era styles, something that can be seen in the architecture and urban planning of the site.
Four top things to see in historical Colonia
The city wall and entrance
The Portuguese were well aware of the nature of Colonia as an outpost in contested territory, so one of the first things they did was to build an enceinte of fortifications, complete with its own colonial-style gate.
After the Spanish takeover, however, the walls lost much of their utility and they were mostly demolished. The inhabitants at the time were not that appreciative of their historical and aesthetic value. This, however, changed a bit later, in the 1970s when work started on the preservation of Colonia as an heritage site.
Fortunately, most of the stones of the old wall had been deposited right to their original location, so a large portion of the wall and the gate could be reconstructed, which is what visitors see now. So, not quite the original thing…but almost, since the reconstruction is an exact reproduction of the original and it even used the very same stones!
2. “Calle de los Suspiros” ("Street of Sighs")
This is one of the most scenic streets of Colonia, combining traditional houses in the Portuguese and Spanish styles, with an irregular cobbled pavement which is more typical of Portuguese settlements. The street has also embellised with some tiled street signs in the Portuguese style, although these appear to be a later addition.
In fact, Colonia is not a historical center in the European sense, with densely packed narrow streets, but more of a spread-out settlement with rather wide streets and plenty of open spaces.
In this street you will also find a shop selling produce from the nearby countryside, which is famous in Uruguay for its wine and cheese production.
3. The old lighthouse
This lighthouse was built in 1859 on top of the ruins of a former Portuguese Franciscan monastery. Located on the historical’ town’s main square (“Plaza Mayor”), this tall structure provides a point of reference in the otherwise low-lying urban grid. It is also located on one of Colonia’s two major historical squares. It is possible to climb up the lighthouse to get the views.
4. The oldest church in Uruguay
Built in 1699, the church of the Holy Sacrament (“Iglesia del Santísimo Sacramento”) is the oldest in Uruguay. It was built opposite the Portuguese governor’s palace, located on the highest point of the historical town (apparently it was a common Portuguese practice to build the main church and the governor’s house on the highest point in town, unlike the Spaniards, which did so at sea level when possible).
When the Spanish took over the governor’s palace was demolished (its foundations can now be seen in the middle of the square), but the church was modified to fit the Spanish aesthetic canon, which involved covering most of the original stones and some architectural elements with stucco. Modern restorations have brought back some of those original elements while leaving also as much as possible of the Spanish additions.
Other than that, as mentioned earlier, Colonia is not a large place. There are quite a few shops and cafés, but if you visit off-peak as it was my case, it doesn’t feel crowded. So I would suggest wandering around a bit.
The bullfighting ring in Colonia del Sacramento
The historical town is linked through a seaside promenade to the other major landmark in Colonia: its former bullfighting ring which has now been turned into a cultural centre.
The ring was actually built at the initiative of Nicolás Mihanovich, an Argentinian shipping magnate of Croatian ancestry, who had the vision of turning Colonia into a sort of “South American Riviera” at the turn of the 20th C.
The idea was that the ring, which was capable of hosting up to 10,000 spectators, would be the centerpiece of a whole leisure complex which would include a luxury hotel and some other entertainment amenities around it, such as a “frontón”, a venue to play the game of Basque pelota, which is now also being restored. The complex had also a small rail line connecting it to the ferry terminal, which would bring visitors from Buenos Aires.
This project was partly realized in 1910, when the ring was built in a rather impressive period of 6 months (possibly would be impossible to do the same today!) using pre-fabricated modules and structural sub-assemblies which were shipped from Europe. Mihanovich also brought some of the top bullfighting stars of the time from Spain for a grand opening.
However, the project was short lived, since Uruguay banned bullfighting in 1912. So, Colonia’s ring hasn’t actually hosted a show of this nature for more than a century.
In fact, after losing its primary function, the ring fell progressively into disrepair and it was already in a very poor state of conservation when, already in the 21st C. it was decided to turn it into a culture and events venue. The structure was restored and had its grand re-opening in December 2021.
Today it hosts corporate and civic events regularly and it is also being readied as a sports venue, using the central ring as the pitch. It also hosts several shops, cafés and temporary exhibitions, as well as a small museum of bullfighting which shows also an interesting video animation documentary about the history of the ring and Colonia as a tourist destination.
Even if you are not into bullfighting (which I am not), it provides some interesting context to the building and the reasons that led to the set up of the ring in Colonia and the vision the Mihainovich had for this place.
Btw, the ring is in an area called “Real de San Carlos” (named after Charles III of Spain, because it is where the Spanish army that took over Colonia in the late 18th C. set up its camp) located some 5 kilometres away from the historical town along the coastal path. So, a distance technically walkable from the old town, and possibly a nice walk on a sunny day, although a bit on the edge and, if you are short of time, possibly best to order an Uber, which works generally well in Uruguay, or rent a bike!
How to visit Europe’s weirdest border town: Baarle
Regular readers of this site possibly know by know that I am fascinated by the topic of borders. It is not for nothing that we have a dedicated “Borders” section here. And this is a topic which I have also explored on CNN on several occasions, whether in Europe or elsewhere.
But when it comes to borders, there is no other place like Baarle. Well, there kind of used to be one, the enclaves of Cooch Behar on the border between India and Bangladesh, but the two countries decided to straighten the border back in 2015, so that border line got greatly simplified.
Feudal land divisions and the messy divorce between Belgium and The Netherlands shortly after the creation of the former in the early 19th C. led to the formation of what is most likely Europe’s weirdest border arrangement.
Fortunately, though, the fact that both Belgium and The Netherlands are part of the EU and the Schengen Area facilitates enormously not just the lives of its inhabitants but also of the many visitors that come here on purpose to check out this border curiosity of the first order.
By the way, in order to keep it simple, throughout this post I am going to refer to the town simply as “Baarle”, since there are technically two towns in one: Baarle-Nassau if you refer to its Dutch portion, Baarle-Hertog when it comes to its Belgian municipality, which has also part of its territory on the Belgian “mainland”.
And I use the word “portion” very purposefully here, and not “side” which is often used when talking about borders, because it is frankly difficult to define “sides” in this corner of Europe.
There is, of course, the main border line between Belgium (and Flanders) and The Netherlands, and then there is the enclave of Baarle-Hertog, a piece of Belgium north of it, but if you zoom in, a more complex panorama appears, since the Belgian enclave is, in fact a patchwork of 22 smaller enclaves which have another eight Dutch meta-enclaves (or counter-enclaves) in them. There are also a few smaller Belgian enclaves on Dutch soil outside the urban centre, but we’ll leave those aside for the purposes of this post.
In the images below you can see how all these enclaves look like on the map:
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Main points of interest in Baarle
Baarle is not large and most of its commercial activity happens along what could be considered the town’s neuralgic center, the Singel. It is here that you find the tourist information center, the church and what is possibly its café of reference.
It is really helpful that the local authorities have taken the care of painting the border line on the pavements, with the letters “B” and “NL” to indicate in which country you are at any time.
Café Den Engel
Singel 3, 5111 CD Baarle-Nassau
If you don’t know where to start your route through the streets of Baarle, this is a good starting point.
It is here also that you will find the Café Den Engel (“The Angel”), which is also a hotel (you can check the prices here) and has a bi-national terrace in which it is possible to sit down at a table that is bissected by the border.
Note also, in the picture below, which zooms out from the outside of the café, how the border does not necessarily follow straight lines. At this point the border does a sort of zig-zag, making to straight angles in the middle of the road which leave Den Engel fully within Dutch territory.
Baarle Tourist Information Office & Museum
If you think border tourism is weird, just go to the Baarle tourist office and you won’t feel alone anymore, because the facility is dedicated to serve the constant stream of visitors that come to check “The Line”.
So, Baarle’s tourist office, which is also located on the Singel, is well stocked with all sorts of maps and other reading materials about the border. Here you can also get suggestions and advice about the best walking routes routes to see the most picturesque border points in and around town. By the way, here you can also buy some border-themed merchandise!
There is also a small museum in the basement. It is just one room, but it has some interesting stories, pictures and other border-related items. It’s worth checking.
By the way, not everything in Baarle is about the border.
There is also a WW2 memorial, which is located in front of the church. It is dedicated to Free Polish troops which liberated the town of Baarle and the surrounding region in October 1944.
The rather long list of names in it gives you an idea of how fierce the fighting was in this area, with many young Poles losing their lives in the combat for this borderland.
This episode of WW2, in which the 1st Polish Armoured Division under general Maczek went on to liberate much of the region of Brabant, in the southern Netherlands, was also remembered by a 34km remembrance walk organized by organised by WIEGO, a Dutch walking association, and the Maczek Memorial.
The walk took place on September 21, 2024, between Baarle and Breda to mark the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the city by Polish troops.
De Biergrens, a bi-national beer & liquor store
Molenstraat 98, 5111 CE Baarle-Hertog
This is another interesting spot to visit, first because the short walk to get there is a perfect excuse to check a few more of the border “crossings”, as the two countries intersect several times along the way.
But, also because this store, De Biergrens (which could be translated as “The Beer Border” or “Beer at the Border”) has the particularity of sitting right on the border line. And it does so, because part of the building is actually within one of the Dutch counter-enclaves, the smallest of them all, actually!
The fact that the sale alcohol is usually subject to a whole set of taxes and regulations depending on the country you are in, only makes the place more interesting.
The store owners are well aware of this and have actually laid out a line with the flags of the two countries to demarcate the border inside the store.
Here you can also buy the local, border-themed beer, called “Smokkelar” (“the sumggler”).
Baarle’s bi-national apparel store
Zeeman
Stationsstraat 1A, 5111 CK Baarle-Nassau
If you are not into beer, here is another bi-national store you can check, this one is a Zeeman apparel store.
It is located next to Baarle’s main commercial street, at a spot where the border makes an angle.
Like at De Biergrens, here the border line has been demarcated with a line showing the two flags which runs all through the store’s floor. I assume, though, that the administrative complications of selling apparel and household items across border lines are not nearly as great of those of selling alcohol.
Baarle’s WW1 Radio Station
This is actually a spot in Baarle which has quite an interesting story.
During WW1, the Germans occupied almost all of Belgium, except for a tiny pocket in the westernmost side of the country and, of course, the Belgian enclaves in Baarle, since they protected by a narrow slice of neutral Dutch land.
This meant that Belgian authorities could continue to operate freely within their own territory in Baarle, so a radio station was smuggled in through Dutch territory to operate as both a listening and a broadcasting post.
Zendstation MN7 had a 40-meter tall mast, a replica of which was erected again, just few years ago, at its original location on one of the Belgian enclaves. Unfortunately, the mast appeared to have been taken down, perhaps for maintenance, at the time of this visit. However, it was possible to read about this fascinating story on several information panels at or near the spot where the original mast was located, at the corner of Leliestraat and Sint Janstraat.
Even if the mast was no longer there, the walk to get there offered the chance to see some more bi-national streets.
The bi-national house
We have seen a number of commercial establishments that sit right at the border, but there are also private homes where this happens.
This is the case of the house in the picture, located partly on one of the Belgian enclaves, which has the distinction of being the smallest enclave in the World, actually.
In addition to featuring two flags, this house has also two addresses, Loveren 2, Baarle-Hertog (Belgium) and Loveren 19, Baarle-Nassau (The Netherlands), because the border goes literally through the door.
This is not as unusual as it might sound, for example, check this story I wrote for CNN about the Franco-Swiss hotel which sits right at the border between France and Switzerland, with the border running through the middle of some rooms and even beds.
It is worth noting that in Baarle through which the location of the front door which determines the address and to whom do you pay taxes. So, there have been recorded cases of people that have physically modified their own houses to “move” to their preferred jurisdiction.
Recommended place to eat in Baarle
Eetcafé De Lantaern
Molenstraat 42, 2387 Baarle-Hertog, Belgium
This restaurant, which is located entirely within one of the Belgian enclaves, is a nice option to eat in Baarle. To be honest, the food choices are not huge, also don’t expect super-sophisticated cuisine, but it offes good value, in my opinion.
The portions are reasonably good, the desserts in particular, and they also have a very large selection of Belgian beers.
But, the best of this place is the atmosphere, which is pretty nice and cozy inside. It also has a courtyard, which I guess it is a plus when the weather is nice.
The main B-NL border and the WW1 fence
Here is another point which would be of interest on its own right, but there is part of history that makes it even more interesting.
During WW1, Imperial Germany decided to seal off occupied Belgium from The Netherlands, which were neutral. However, since there are no natural borders in this part of Europe and people on both sides of the border speak the same language and have also many links, this was very difficult to do without an extreme level of coertion.
So they built the “Dodendraad” (“the Wire of Death”) an electrified fence which would kill anyone touching it while trying to cross it. It is estimated that while it was in place this fence killed between 2,000 ad 3,000 civilians trying to cross it!
Today, a reconstruction of that fence stands at the exact spot where it used to be, as a memorial. This is a poignant reminder that borders are not always a safe or friendly place!
There is a little parking next to it, so you can stop your car here and walk along the border if you feel inclined to do so.
Also, note that, at this spot, the border does not run in a straight line across the road, but it makes a 90º angle at about one third of the width of the road. The quirks of the border in this part of Europe are almost endless!
Additional resources:
If you wish to know more about Baarle and how this weird border layout came to be and, more generally, about borders, here are some additional sites and resources you can check:
The great and comprehensive post about Baarle on the Frontera’s Blog (in Spanish)
A road trip through the Douro Valley: what to see & to do
Let me set the tone for this article by saying that the Douro Valley is one of most beautiful wine regions in Europe, if not the entire World.
The are is, of course, famous for being the place of production of the rather unique and famous Port wines, but also of a whole variety of other wines under the Douro Designation of Origin (Denominação de Origem Controlada - DOC). There is a large number of cellars, many of them small, family-owned businesses, all along the Portuguese stretch of the river Douro, pretty much from the Spanish border to the city of Porto and the Atlantic Ocean.
But even if you are not into wine, or your wine-tasting capability is limited because you need to drive (there is a touristic train that runs along the valley from Porto, but to visit the places named in this post you will need a car), the Douro Valley is a magic place full of incredible landscapes.
What’s more, it has pretty good infrastructure throughout, and in here I include not just roads and the like, but also hotels and restaurants, which are in most cases, small family-run affairs as well.
In fact, I would say the main problem when visiting the Douro Valley is the large number of choices, of wineries to visit and potential places to stay at. I hope this post, while inevitably limited in scope, will provide a starting point for those doing this type of research ahead of a trip to this beautiful part of Portugal.
In the map below you can see some of the places that are mentioned in this story in which I will share my experience driving through the Douro Valley and sharing some tips, from my own experience, about which wineries to visit (or which “Quintas” to visit, to use the local parlance) and what to do and what to see in this beautiful area of northern Portugal.
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A good base to explore the Douro Valley: Lamego
This town makes a good starting point for any road trip through the Douro Valley.
It is located on the south bank of the river, about an hour drive from central Porto.
It is actually a place of historical significance in Portugal since it is here where, it is said (apparently it is has not been completely ascertained), the first King of Portugal was proclaimed in the Middle Ages.
The town is also a place of pilgrimage, since it has the Sanctuary of Nossa Senhora dos Remédios (“Our Lady of Remedies”), which sits, very spectacularly at the top of a hill and is reached by an impressive flight of stairs.
Unfortunately, we arrived to Lamego when it was already late in the evening, so didn’t have the chance to visit it, but enjoyed the views from the town’s main avenue.
Btw, below is a picture of the landscape around Lamego taken from one of the nearby hills, where our hotel was located.
Check this great place to eat in Lamego
Douro Excellence, por Paulo Matos & Jacira Galhardo
Largo da Vitória, R. Macário de Castro, 5100-196 Lamego
We stumbled upon this restaurant almost randomly, after arriving in Lamego quite late (most of the town was closed) and asking some locals. It turned out to be an excellent piece of advice!
So, if you are in the area, definitely make some time to eat at this restaurant, even better, just call to book in advance, because it is well worth it.
The restaurant is run by a husband-and-wife team and it has a really welcoming and homely atmosphere. The food was also really good, with plenty of Portuguese specialities, nicely presented in slate plates and matching local wines.
Nice place to stay in Lamego
Paraíso Douro AL
Caminho Da Serra Das Meadas 44, Quinta da Pegada
5100-043 Lamego
This hotel is a bit out of town on a hill with amazing views (check the pics below).
It has rather large grounds, with a garden area and a pool, although we just stayed there for a night, so didn’t use it much.
Very large rooms and good breakfast!
Visiting wineries in the Douro Valley
So, after Lamego, it was time to cross onto the northern bank of the Douro for the first winery visits. Here are a few things that I wished I knew before planning this trip.
Number one is: book in advance your winery tours. Yes, with the large amount of wineries in the Douro Valley, it may be easy to assume that there should be no problem with access, but this is not the case.
Many of these wineries run tours only at certain times and for small groups and we found out that quite a few of them were quite full, actually. You may find one that is available, of course, but the issue is that if you go on knocking doors time and kilometers start adding up, since the Douro Valley is quite a large area, and you have wasted your morning before you have even noticed!
As we shall soon see, in our case, this ended up being a blessing in disguise, because, after all we had a limited amount of time (one day) for the winery tours and ended up having a great experience at the one we ended up at, but a bit of planning wouldn’t have been out of place!
So, here are two wineries that we called at, and stopped by, but couldn’t properly visit. Although they looked quite interesting and had a well stocked shop where it is possible to do some sampling of wines.
Quinta do Vallado, in Peso da Régua
This is one of the most historical wineries in the Douro Valley and it has been run by the same family since the 18th C.
Traditionally its product had always been Port wine, but in recent years it has diversified into other types of wines, as well.
The family’s old manor house has also been transformed into a boutique winery hotel.
Quinta do Crasto
This is another of the most prominent wine estates of the Douro Valley. Its roots date back at least since the 17th C. and the name hints at a possible Roman presence (“Castrum” or castle at this spot).
But, even if you don’t do the tour, is worth stopping by the estate to check the amazing sights of the wine groves all around, since the winery is on top of a hill overlooking the Douro river on one side and the nearly endless wine terraces on the other.
Driving on the north bank of the Douro: from Peso da Régua to Pinhao
Another good reason to pass by the Quinta do Crasto is that it lies in the middle of an absolutely scenic road. The route from Peso da Régua to Pinhao makes a large arch, heading first towards the northeast towards Vila-Seca and then southeast back towards the river by way of Gouvinhas. It is near the spot where the road rejoins the river that Quina do Crasto is located.
This last stretch of the route, from Gouvinhas to Pinhao is a winding countryside road full of curves but it provides some postcard-perfect (or Instagram-perfect, if you prefer) pictures of the Douro Valley landscape, with its green terraced slopes mixing vines with olive groves.
This is a very rural area and every now and then you come across some village which looks as if it has come out of some time-travelling machine!
Winery visit: Quinta das Carvalhas
Quinta das Carvalhas, 5085-034 Pinhão
So, after a few frustrated attempts to do the winery tour, we did find one winery that would take us and it was actually a pretty good one!
If you are looking for a comprehensive winery visit, with great explanations, landscapes and tastings, the Quinta das Carvalhas, just outside Pinhao, is an excellent option.
Pinhao is also on the railway line from Porto, so even if the winery is on the opposite bank of the river, it is next to a bridge and should be easy to reach even without a car.
Quinta das Carvalhas offers a guided tour which, rather than showing you the cellars, takes you outdoors through the different areas of the estate. The vines grow on the slopes on the southern bank of the river, offering some truly amazing views.
Since the whole mountain is within the estate, from its top you also have a nice view of the land side, the wine landscape that extends towards the south from the Douro river.
Our very knowledgeable guide provided us a really interesting explanation of how the estate is run and the different types of grapes that are grown there and how and why they are used.
The visit ends, of course, at the winery’s visitors centre, where there is a rather large and modern shop and restaurant.
In addition to the wine tasting, there was also a chance to taste some local cheese and cured meats.
A nice place to stay in the Douro Valley
Quinta da Portela Douro
CM1099, Quinta da Portela n.º 123, 5110-662 Vacalar
This is a another place to stay at the heart of the Douro wine region.
The Quinta da Portela is located on a hill on the south bank of the Douro, near the village of Vacalar (again, you will need a car to get here, but most of the best hotels are in those rural locations anyway).
The Quinta da Portela manages to combine a modern setup with a homely feel remarkably well.
In fact, when we went into the nearby village to have dinner, we were told that, since there would be no one at the reception when we came back, we should just use our set of keys to access the hotel's common areas and make ourselves at home.
The hotel is perched on a hillside and it has its own private parking space, a nice terrace and a pool, which I am sure is great during the summer months, but, as you can see, we didn’t really have this type of weather. The one element that spoils the view a bit is the nearby electricity line, although you do not see it when looking towards the valley.
Here you can see the breakfast area, which could well be the living room of a designer house. So, overall, I must say, the experience at Quinta da Portela was pretty good.
A great place to stay in Porto
While it is a bit out of the scope of this post, it is safe to assume many travellers visiting the Douro Valley wine region will start or end their journey in the city. This is the reason that I found it appropriate to provide also a recommendation about where to stay in Porto. And my pick is…
Oporto Maison Anselmo
Rua de Anselmo Braamcamp 165, 4000-082 Porto
This property is technically an aparthotel although it has pretty much all the services you would expect in a hotel.
It is located in a rather modern facility, just one the edge of the historical center, which it makes it quite convenient if you are traveling by car. The aparthotel has, actually, its own parking space (which can be booked for a fee), although there appeared to be quite a lot of parking space also on the streets around it.
In fact, in terms of location, I’d say the Oporto Maison Anselmo hits the sweet spot, because it is close enough to the center that you can walk, it is about 20min of a nice walk, but it is also close enough to the main motorway ring and the accesses to the city that it saves you from having to navigate Porto’s very intricate urban grid in the very center.
The Oporto Maison Anselmo has also its own courtyard and a pool, although we didn’t really make use of these facilities, since were staying only for one night.
Also worth mentioning is that the staff were very friendly throughout and gave us plenty of guidance about moving around town, for example. Also worth noting is that there is an amazing bakery (“Confeitaira Miguel Ángelo”) just around the corner, which is where we had breakfast.
As per the room, we were given not just a room, but a whole two-floor modern apartment, complete with a large living room, two bedrooms, kitchen and even a small patio.
We didn’t spend that much time there to be able to enjoy all of this fully, but I must say we were really impressed by the whole setup and the value for money this establisment provides.
What to do in Penang & Malaysia’s Cameron Highlands
This is the second post about things to do and to see in Malaysia outside Kuala Lumpur.
If in the first instalment we travelled to the resort island of Langkawi to check its beaches and nature reserves, on this one we are going to explore another island, Penang, as well as the Cameron Highlands of Central Malaysian, a surprising lush cool mountain area covered by rainforest and tea plantations.
Our itinerary concludes in Kuala Lumpur, and although the capital of Malaysia is a bit out of scope for this post, since the city l is usually the gateway to many itineraries within the country, I have included a recommendation of what is, in my opinion a great value quality hotel in KL.
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What to see and what to do in Penang: walk around Georgetown
The historical city of Georgetown, capital of the island of Penang, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This designation recognizes the different cultural layers which over centuries have made of this traditional trading entrepôt such an interesting place to visit.
Located at the northeast of the island, Georgetown has, in fact, one of the best preserved historical centers in south-east Asia.
Like most other “Georgetowns” in the world, the city was named after a British sovereign (George III).
In fact, the arrival of the British in 1786 was the turning point in the history of Penang, since it turned the island into a sort of early version of what Singapore is today: a commercial hub which, under British protection, soon started attracting people and mercantiles communities from all over Asia and beyond (there is even an Armenian quarter).
This created a melting pot of Malay, Chinese, Indian, European, Indonesian, Arabic, Armenian and other peoples, with which is still reflected today in the varied architecture, religious practices and the local cuisine.
How to get to Penang
The easiest way to get to Penang is by air, with its international airport located on the south side of the island.
In fact, the island is currently connected to the mainland by two bridges, at its northern and southern ends, so you can also travel by land if driving through Malaysia, as was our case.
Penang is approximately 24 km long by 15 km wide (a similar size to Singapore, and, as we have seen, not the only thing that the two places have in common!) so, if you intend to see a bit of the island outside Georgetown the best way to move around it to rent a car (which is what we did).
Roads are ok, particularly in the area around Georgetown, but the island is very mountainous, particularly in its central part, so depending on where you go to you may encounter narrow roads or traffic jams (again, around Georgetown).
While I wouldn’t say Georgetown is harmonious or coherent in the sense in which historical towns may be, for example, in parts of Europe, its appeal is the different types of styles and contrasts you may find in and around its historical centre.
The centre is quite walkable and, in fact, it is what you would recommend doing in Georgetown first and foremost. You quickly pass from one of the historical “ethnic” neigbourhoods to the next. There is “Little India”, an Armenian quarter, then an area with Chinese clan houses (called “kongsi”) and so on…
Also worth mentioning that here is also a considerable amount of street art which keeps popping up around every other corner, making the ensemble more lively.
The “Kongsi” or clan houses of Penang
One of the top things to see in Georgetown’s historical center are the Kongsi, or Chinese clan houses.
Their origin is in the arrival of Chinese immigrants from the late 18th C. and all the way through the early 20th C. Those migrants usually clustered around a specific clan or extended family with which they tended to share a surname.
These Kongsi were built in a very distinctive Chinese style and were a bit like a mix between a palace, a warehouse and a temple which acted as a base for a specific clan or group.
I recommend you visit at least one to get a good idea of this concept and how this type of societies work in Colonial Penang.
There are several Kongsi which have been turned into museums and can be visited nowadays in Penang, like the Cheah Kongsi, which you can see in these pictures above and right.
By the way, another area that was “divided” along clan lines is the jetties by the seaside. Penang was a busy port and the jetties were a key gateway for all this trade with each of them controlled by one of the clans.
The jetty area, by the way, can be visited today. These wooden platforms protruding into the sea are no longer used for bulk merchandise trade, but they have significant commercial activity in the form of restaurants, bars and the like.
Georgetown’s Blue Mansion
This is another interesting piece of heritage you can visit in Georgetown, which brings you back to the times when the city was one of the top commercial entrepôts of South East Asia.
The Blue Mansion, which gets its name from the intense indigo colour it is painted on, is a palatial house associated to the figure of Cheong Fatt Tze, a Chinese entrepreneur and self-made millionaire, which used its as one of his residences (apparently he had eight different mansions through southeast Asia for as many wives).
Born to a poor family in Guangdong (Guangzhou), in the Pearl River Delta area, in 1840, Cheong Fatt Tze emigrated as a young man to the then Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia) and managed to make an immense fortune by engaging in different sorts of trade. He was so rich that, at some point at the turn of the 20th C. he became known as the “Rockefeller of Asia”.
After the death of Cheong Fatt Tze, and I guess, the decline of Penang as the commercial hub of reference in the region, the building became progressively neglected, to the point that it required a thorough restauration in the 1990s to recover its former splendour.
Today, Penang’s Blue Mansion is a boutique hotel, but parts of the building are also open to visitors, offering a glimpse into that Golden Era of Penang.
Exploring the colourful streets of Georgetown
As mentioned earlier, one of the good things about Georgetown is that it has a relatively compact and walkable town centre.
Another of the top attractions you can find there, this one a bit outside of the inner core of the old town, but still reachable on foot, is Jalan Kek Chuan street. There you will find a row of beautiful painted houses with original front porticos.
Now, while these period houses are certainly cute, I think some Penang guides may be overselling them a bit. I even read somewhere that it was considered one of the most beautiful streets in the world, which I think is quite an exaggeration!
There are quite a few streets in central Georgetown where you can find plenty of street food. The picture on the right, for example, is from Lebuh Carnarvon street, which is a top area for hawker food stalls.
Kek Lok Si Temple
Kek Lok Si Temple is the largest Buddhist temple in Malaysia. It is located on a hill some kilometres southwest from central Georgetown. To be honest, I did not get inside, but the views from the street of this monumental religious complex are really impressive.
Where to stay in Penang
PARKROYAL Penang Resort
Batu Ferringhi Beach, 11100 Penang
Penang is not just about urban exploration, the island has its fair share of beach resorts (and even a national park!).
In fact, if you have a car with you, the beach resorts may be an excellent option to use as a base for your intra-island trips, coming back to relax in the afternoon/evening to the seaside.
Many of these resorts, as is the case of the PARKROYAL Penang Resort, are on the north coast of the island, just west from Georgetown. Remember that this is a relatively small island, so, if there is no traffic, you can be in Georgetown in half an hour drive or so.
Like in the case of Langkawi, I wouldn’t say the beaches are super amazing (don’t expect turquoise, crystalline waters), but the whole package, which includes a modern resort with its gardens, direct beach access, several swimming pools, parking, etc. can provide pretty good value.
Now, I am aware that many readers from the US, Europe or elsewhere outside the Asia-Pacific region may not be familiar with the PARKROYAL brand.
It is an upmarket brand of the Singapore-based Pan Pacific Hotels Group and it has properties all over South East Asia.
In the following pictures you can get an idea of the feel and look of the PARKROYAL Penang Resort. It is a rather large resort, tucked between the beach and the road that runs all along the northern shore of the island, in an area in which most of Penang’s upmarket hotels and resorts are located.
The hotel, however, is isolated from the buzz on the town-side, since most of its facilities are oriented towards the seaside and the surrounding gardens.
In addition to direct beach access (with some activities like parasailing, being offered for an extra fee), there is also a large pool area, with several water-side bars and a sort of mini-amusement aquatic park for children with slides and the like.
The rooms are modern and rather large. Some of the rooms have also a terrace and direct access to the gardens.
The PARKROYAL Penang Resort has also a rather elegant classy bar by the lobby, as well as several restaurants.
In case you were wondering, breakfast is really good, as well! So, all together, I would say this hotel is a great value option to stay at in Penang.
Driving from Penang to Kuala Lumpur
First Stop: Penang Bird Park
The Penang Bird Park is a zoo which is located on the mainland, very close to the northern bridge going into Penang Island. As the name implies, it is mostly about birds, although there are quite a few other animals, as well.
Now, I am not super big fan of zoos, but had read this one was quite interesting, not just because of the impressive collection, but also when it comes to the sort of setting, with plenty of vegetation and ponds. And on this account, it certainly delivers.
The Park is a rather low key attraction, there were just a few people, mostly locals. Also worth noting that it is a small island of greenery in what is, otherwise, a very industrial, and quite ugly, area. It made sense for use to make a quick stop, since it was pretty much on our way south, but wouldn’t have done the trek on purpose from Penang Island.
Driving through the Cameron Highlands: Malaysia’s tea country
Here is a truly different destination in the very heart of continental Malaysia. The Cameron Highlands, named after the British surveyor that mapped the area in 1885, are a series of mountain ranges located roughly half-way between Penang and Kuala Lumpur.
Because of their elevation, between 1,300 and 1,800 meters above sea level, they have a climate that is cooler than on the coasts. In fact it can even be a bit chilly in the evening. This is the one of the reasons that the British set up here one of the so-called “hill stations”, that is places where the colonial administrators and their dependants could spend the hottest months of the year in relative coolness.
The other thing that draw the British to the Cameron Highlands is that it has the right conditions to grow tea (particularly Assam-type black tea) and to this day tea plantations are the defining element in the Cameron Highlands landscape and the main reason they draw many visitors every year.
By the way, tea-growing has its complement in another cash crop: strawberries, which are now grown also in greenhouses all over the Cameron Highlands.
The Cameron Highlands cover a whole district, but one of the main settlements is in the area around Brinchang and Tanah Rata. It is here that you find most of the tourist infrastructure, in addition to a relatively large commercial area (including a McDonald’s!). It is also a central base from where to explore the nearby tea plantations.
To reach the core of the Cameron Highlands, you leave the motorway at Ipoh, the closest large city, and take Route 185, which is a winding mountain road with a fair amount of curves. It is a two-lane road, although in good state throughout.
If driving from Kuala Lumpur, you can leave the motorway further south, near Tapah, and take Route 59, which runs uphill through a deep narrow valley. This road offers some really great views of the tea terraces in its upper reaches.
We did both, arrived from the north, crossing the highlands and exiting them through the south.
To be fair, the urban part of Brinchang is not very beautiful. It is basically a main road that crosses the town and a rather chaotic sprawl around it.
The whole area is very hilly, so constructions of different styles and heights pile up in the few flat areas around the road. This is also the town where you will find most services and places to eat, although we just had our meals at the hotel (more on this below).
Brinchang Central Market is, perhaps, the one spot that deserves a brief stop, if only to check the buzz all around, with many shops and stalls selling all types of produce, including, of course, the local strawberries and tea!
Where to stay while in the Cameron Highlands
Cameron Highlands Resort - Small Luxury Hotels of the World
This is the hotel of reference in the whole Cameron Highlands area.
As you will see in the pictures below, it is a classic, upmarket hotel in colonial style.
It is located right on the main north-south road, which makes it a convenient base to reach the Boh Tea Plantation (more on this soon). It is also adjacent to the Cameron Highlands Golf Club.
It is part of the Small Luxury Hotels of the World network.
You can get an idea here of the look and feel of the rooms, which is very different from the beach resort that we have seen earlier in Penang and also, as you will soon see, of our recommended high-rise hotel in Kuala Lumpur, the Sheraton Imperial Kuala Lumpur.
The hotel has also a very nice restaurant and it is, actually, a very good option to have your meals (we didn’t find the options in town that convincing). Service was also excellent throughout!
In line with the “colonial hill station” theme, you can have afternoon tea English style at the hotel.
As per the breakfast, unlike so many other modern hotels, here, at the Cameron Highlands Resort, it is not a buffet, but more of an à-la-carte experience, although with ample choices for all tastes.
Visiting the Boh Tea Plantation
The top thing to do in the Cameron Highlands is, of course, visit a tea plantation. Actually, strictly speaking, you don’t need to get into any single plantation to enjoy the green, lush, undulating tea landscapes, since they pretty much everywhere around you in this area. But if you have the time and inclination to do so, I recommend visiting the BohTea Centre (“Sungei Palas Garden”).
The Boh Tea Centre is at the heart of a tea-growing valley, which completely covered in terraced plantations.
The Centre is run by Boh, which is one of the main producers in the area and in Malaysia.
Boh has built a large and modern hilltop visitor’s center where you can learn about tea growing in this region, enjoy the views from the café and, of course, buy many different varieties of tea at the visitors’ center shop.
Besides the actual center, the drive there is worth the excursion, since you pass through some stunning incredibly green landscapes.
There is a large car park at the bottom of the valley and from there you walk uphill to the center, enjoying the views along the way.
There are also some other great views when driving along Route 59 (as you can see in the picture below). In fact there are several viewpoints where there are some roadside bars and restaurants with panoramic terraces.
A great place to stay in Kuala Lumpur
And this is how, a few hours after leaving the cool air of the Cameron Highlands, arrived in back in Kuala Lumpur.
So, since this most trips to Malaysia start or end in the capital city, I thought this post wouldn’t be complete without a brief mention to my recommended place to stay in Kuala Lumpur.
Sheraton Imperial Kuala Lumpur Hotel
Jln Sultan Ismail, Chow Kit, 50250 Kuala Lumpur
This is a rather central five star hotel which offers some pretty good rates, great food and amazing views. As you can see below, it has pretty large rooms as well. And I can also add that service was excellent throughout our stay.
The hotel offers parking for an extra, rather reasonable fee, but it is also located next to a metro station, and in front of a commercial centre, so pretty well served in terms of services.
Last but not least, a couple more points about the Sheraton Imperial Kuala Lumpur: it has also a small rooftop pool and, while I don’t have pictures to share, I can also tell you it has one of the best breakfast buffets I have seen in quite a long time!
The Top Three Things to do in Langkawi
It may not be as globally famous as Bali or Pukhet, but Malaysia has also its own island paradise.
Located just a few miles off the northwestern corner of Malaysia, right on the Thai border, Langkawi is a bit more than a tropical beach resort. The island has been designated a UNESCO Global Geopark. This is not quite the same as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, but it is, nevertheless, a recognition of its natural singularity.
In fact, UNESCO defines this category of site as "a single, unified geographical area where sites and landscapes of international geological significance are managed with a holistic concept of protection, education and sustainable development.” Interestingly, this designation also involves explicitly the pursuit of some specific sustainable economic development goals to the benefit of local communities.
By the way, although I will be referring to Langkawi as “an island” throughout the text, Langkawi is, in reality, an archipelago with dozens of small islands and islets. However, many of the smaller ones are not inhabited and practically all population, resorts and infrastructure is on the main island, which is where I stayed (I am not even which of the smaller islands are open to visitors, since quite a few of them are officially categorized as nature reserves).
How to get to Langkawi?
The easiest way is to fly. Langkawi has an international airport which is connected multiple times a day to Kuala Lumpur (around 1h flight away) by several airlines. I found, for example, that Air Asia offers extremely cheap flights on this route, as well as a nonstop short connection from Langkawi to Penang, which comes in handy if you wish to see a bit more of the country outside the capital (Penang is another interesting Malaysian island that I will cover in another post soon!). Some major international airlines, such as flydubai and Etihad, have also started serving Langkawi too, providing some interesting connectivity options with the rest of the world.
The airport even hosts its own airshow every other year, the Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace Exhibition, but this is material for specialized aviation sites, like Allplane, rather than this one!
By the way, Malaysia is quite an open country when it comes to visitors, and citizens of many countries, including the EU, UK and UK do not need a visa to enter (just fill in the Malaysia Digital Arrival Card (MDAC) within three days of your arrival). Transport infrastructure is generally good.
How to move around Langkawi?
My answer to this is rather straightforward: just take cabs and don’t bother with renting cars or motorbikes. I don’t do the latter, so won’t comment on it. As per renting a car, I did it in Penang and I am happy to report that driving in Malaysia is generally fine when it comes to infrastructure and general civility of the traffic and as long as you have no issue with driving on the left (a legacy of the time under British rule!).
However, the distances involved in Langkawi, an island that is no more than 20 miles across, combined with cost of local cabs and their ubiquity, makes this the best option, in my opinion. Now, I would recommend you download and open an account with Grab, the Malaysian ride-hailing app, since it is the one that works best in Langkawi (as in the rest of Malaysia).
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Top things to do in Langkawi: 1) the Langkawi SkyCab
The Langkawi SkyCab is one of the must-dos in Langkawi.
Located at the western end of Langkawi, this cable car which will take you to the highest point in the island (708 meters) from where you will be able to enjoy a broad panorama covering many miles around.
I said “a cable car” but this is not entirely accurate, because, just as with the island, there is not just one. In fact, there are two stages. The first and longest one takes you to an intermediate station at an altitude of 650 meters. From there you can take yet another gondola which takes you to the top.
The path is really steep (42º) and goes over a heavily forested area.
In fact, these hills that the cable car climbs to are among the oldest on Earth, dating back 550 million years and the surrounding rainforests are also very Ancient. This is one of the reasons, though not the only one, Langkawi is considered a “Global Geopark”.
The cable car ride itself takes around 15 minutes, although you are likely to spend some more time up the hill if you walk the Skybridge and take your time to take photos and so on.
I would recommend booking in advance because the SkyCab is a genuinely popular attraction. The ticket gives you access to the SkyBridge, as well, which is a suspended footbridge which allows you to walk between different points in the ridge. It has even some patches with a glass floor for extra excitement (beware if you are afraid of heights, though!)
In addition to the regular shared SkyCab gondola, it is possible to book several more premium options, such as a private one or one with a glass bottom. To be honest, I think the regular one provides a nice enough experience and, if you want to feel the thrill of the heights, you can get that at the SkyBridge!
Last but not least, a word about the SkyCab base station, which is nothing short of a recreation park. There are lots of shops, different types of entertainment venues for kids and catering establishments. We didn’t spend much time there, but you can easily spend a whole morning there if you are into this type of thing.
2) Rest at a beach resort
That’s the other thing that people come to Langkawi for. And the island is well endowed with resorts for all tastes and budgets, including those from top-end international chains such as Four Seasons and St. Regis. So, while this site usually champions an active approach to traveling, sometimes is just a good idea to get a spot by the pool and enjoy a good rest. Why not?
A great resort to stay at in Langkawi: The Westin Langkawi Resort & Spa
This beach-side resort is located on the southeastern corner of Langkawi, half an hour ride from the airport and on a small peninsula which it shares with the St. Regis resort next door.
The grounds of the The Westin Langkawi Resort & Spa face south, towards the narrow strait that separates Langkawi from several of its smaller adjacent islands.
It’s got a large infinity pool, which you can see here below, as well as direct access to the beach.
To be clear, the beach is not private and exclusive to the hotel, although due to its location, it is unlikely you will see random bystanders passing by.
I must add, as well, that the beach, at least on this side of Langkawi, is not the main allure of the resort. In fact, I saw few guests actually using it, most just stay at the pool. There are several reasons for this:
First, the tides are strong and depending on the time of the day you would need to walk quite a bit in muddy sandy soil to get to the water. And when the tide is up, it is quite shallow, so you can’t really swim in the strict sense of the word.
Also, although clean, the water is not the turquoise, crystalline type you get in, let’s say, the Maldives.
Having said that, I did go to the beach, spend some time in it and swam in it, so if you are a salt-water person, definitely, don’t forgo it!
Most of the rooms (the resort has bungalows too) are located on the main corpus of the resort. Since the hotel has been built adapting to a terrain that is somehow sloping towards the sea, some of the upper floors do get actually a small patio.
The rooms are modern and furnished in contemporary style. The bathrooms, likewise are large and modern. Bathrobes are provided for the spa (the pool area has also its own towel service). There is also generous space to leave baggage.
One thing to bear in mind, and which you are constantly reminded of, is that there are wild monkeys living in the resort grounds. It is easy to see them, as they often come close to the buildings are not afraid of people at all. This adds a touch of exoticism, imo!
The Westin Langkawi Resort & Spa has several restaurants and bars, including one with a sea-view terrace. The food was great, although the service at the restaurant was a bit more irregular. We also tried the room delivery, which was a good option since we had the little patio in our room.
Breakfast was abundant and varied, with plenty of tropical fruit in the buffet.
3. Take a boat tour of the mangroves at the Kilim Geoforest Park
This is the other outdoors experience that I would recommend on Langkawi. You would need a guide for this one or to join one of the many organized tours that run throughout the day.
The Kilim Geoforest Park, on the northeastern corner of the island, is best seen from a boat (in fact, I am not sure whether is it possible to visit it any other way), since this is a natural area that combines the coastal karst formations with riverine landscapes covered by mangroves and the open sea.
It is a truly immersive experience which starts at a river station where are little armada of tour boats of different types and sizes assemble for the excursions. From there, the boats take the visitors through the different waterways that cross the natural reserve.
The boats stop at several spots along the way. One of them is this cave, where lots of bats live. There are also plenty of monkeys all over the place and you can see them as the boat gets close to the mangroves, which are the dominant form of vegetation in all this area.
The whole excursion takes 3-4h and ends at one of the several fish farms which dot the waters of the Kilim Geoforest Park. At one, in particular, you can walk around the cages holding different spices of fish. The farm has a restaurant adjacent to it, with a terrace overlooking the river. It is pretty simple, street-food-style, but the food looked of good quality and with honest portions. Here you can try several dishes prepared with local seafood and fish.
So, these are, I think, the top three things to do in Langkawi. I know I may have missed some interesting places and stuff, but overall I think they encapsulate what this island has to offer: not necessarily the best beaches, but some interesting sights, relaxed atmosphere and closeness to nature.
This post will have a follow up featuring other interesting places to see and things to do in Malaysia outside Kuala Lumpur. Stay tuned!
Top things to do and to see in Franconia (& 4): Nuremberg
And this is how, after an intense weekend traveling by rail through the Franconia region of northern Bavaria, a journey that took me earlier to the beautiful historical towns of Bamberg, Forchheim and Fürth, reached its end at the Imperial city of Nuremberg.
Why Imperial city? Because since the Middle Ages and until Napoleon dissolved it in 1806, Nuremberg was governed as a free city that owed its allegiance directly to the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire.
What’s more, Nuremberg was also a designated meeting place for the Imperial Diet, a sort of proto-parliament attended by representatives of the many polities that made up the Holy Roman Empire, and it safeguarded also the Imperial Regalia.
But Nuremberg was also an important commercial city which commanded a rather large and rich hinterland from the safety of its imposing walls.
Nuremberg was perhaps at its peak during the early modern era, in the 16th C. and early 17th C., when it also gave the world its most renowned artist: Albrecht Dürer (1471-1528), whose home and studio in the city is still possible to visit in the historical downtown (in addition to giving its name to Nuremberg’s airport too!).
To be honest, this post possibly doesn’t do justice to Nuremberg, because due to time constraints I had to skip some of its top museums: the German National Museum of Toys (Spielzeugmuseum), the museum of the German railways (Deutsche Bahn Museum), the new Deutsches Museum Nuremberg, which focuses on technology, and the more classic Germanisches Nationalmuseum (Germanic National Museum), which focuses on German history.
What I did have time to visit were two sites connected to the more recent history of the city, and not a particularly proud period of it. These are two locations connected with the beginning and also the end of the Nazi period in Germany: Zeppelinfeld, where some of the first Nazi rallies were held, and the Nuremberg palace of justice, where the famous Nuremberg Trials were held after the war.
So, quite a lot to see in Nuremberg, a city that, while big, has still a very manageable size and a public transport system that makes it relatively easy and convenient to move around.
Traveler’s Tip: If you are planning to visit several of Nuremberg’s museums you can purchase a “Nuremberg Card”, which costs €38 and gives you access to most of them within 48 hours and includes also the public transport fare (metro, tram and S-Bahn) for Nuremberg’s Zone A, which covers the airport too.
So, without further ado, let’s have a look at the top things to do in Nuremberg if, like me, you are on a limited time budget!
Top things to see in Nuremberg that are covered in this post:
Nuremberg’s historical center
Nuremberg Castle (Kaiserburg), walls and gardens
Albrecht Dürer’s house and museum
Hauptmarkt, St. Lorenz and the river banks
Nuremberg Memorium:
Nuremberg Trials Museum
Courtoom 600
Zeppelinfeld
A great place to eat in Nuremberg
A great place to stay in Nuremberg
This post may contain affiliate links. If you book or buy something through them, I earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you. It's one of the ways I keep Places of Charm going. Thank you for your support.
I would like to thank also Franken Tourismus for facilitating this journey. All opinions are my own.
Things to see in Nuremberg’s historical centre
Nuremberg Castle (Kaiserburg)
Nuremberg’s castle has been the dominant feature in Nuremberg’s skyline since the Middle Ages. The castle is located on a hilltop at the northern edge of the old town, dominating the historical centre below it and providing some of the best of the city (but perhaps not THE best, as you will soon see further down this post!)
To get up the castle you will need to walk uphill, but the views are well worth it!
You can visit the inside of the castle if you feel inclined to do so.
The castle was, apparently, very heavily damaged by bombing during WW2, so many of the interiors are actually a post-war restoration.
In my case, I just walked around the outer areas to get a feel of the place and to optimize my time.
One of the aspects of the castle that are quite impressive is that it is atop a massive rock, which you can see in some places with the naked eye.
You don’t need any ticket to enter the castle’s enceinte and access the viewpoint facing the old town. It is also possible to walk a segment of the walls, which end in a small square adorned by some perfectly manicured gardens.
Albrecht Dürer’s House and Museum
The other focal point in this part of the old town and very close to Nuremberg Castle is the house where Albrecht Dürer lived part of his life. This half-timbered building is on the corner of a small square which opens up just underneath the castle and adjacent to the city walls.
This is a spot where many people congregate when the weather is nice and warm, since the south-facing slope makes it a good spot for groups to congregate and for tourists to get some rest and refreshment at the several bars that line the square.
Albrecht Dürer is one of the great artists of the Renaissance era. He was contemporary to the great Italian masters of the time (Leonardo, Michelangelo and Raphael), but developed his own brand and style of creation. And while he was a very talented painter, Dürer is particularly well known for his engravings. This technology, which used an early form of printing press, allowed Dürer’s work to spread fast across Europe, making it famous and celebrated across the continent.
In this sense, Dürer was also “modern”, not just in adopting new technology to amplify its work, but also in that he was one of the first artists to cultivate his own image and fame.
The house you can visit in Nuremberg was bought by Albrecht Dürer when he was already a well-known and reasonably well-off artist and he lived there with his family until his death in 1528.
Obviously, the building has suffered modifications throughout the centuries, but it has been painfully restored to something similar to what it may have looked like at the time. It now houses a small museum about the life and work of Albrecht Dürer.
It takes 30-40 minutes to see and it is a quite interesting way to learn more about a very interesting artist that is perhaps not as universally well-known as his contemporaries south of the Alps.
The entrance fee is €7.5 (it is also included in the Nuremberg Card) and an audioguide is included. Beware, that, as it is common in old buildings, there are some steep stairs to climb to do the visit!
A walk through Nuremberg’s historical center
Besides the castle and museums, Nuremberg is endowed with a very large and mostly pedestrianized historical center to walk through.
As mentioned earlier, a large portion of Nuremberg’s city walls are still standing and in a good state of preservation, complete with the moat and towers.
The river Pegnitz also runs through the city center, dividing it in two, and with its two opposite banks sloping gently towards it. This offers also some nice views from specific spots.
If you are entering the historical town from the side of the central station (Hauptbahnhof) a typical route that would take you to the castle past some of the city’s top landmarks would be through Königstrasse north towards Saint Lorenz (depicted right) and then onwards to Hauptmarkt (the setting of Nuremberg’s famous Christmas market!).
At Hauptmarkt (below left) you will find the Schöner Brunnen (Beautiful Fountain) and the Frauenkirche, both built in the 14th C. Just north of it is Saint Sebaldus, another large Gothic church of note.
Continuing further up you reach the Albrecht Dürer house and the foot of the castle.
But you may also choose to walk south and west from Hauptmarkt, across the several bridges spanning the river Pegnitz, towards the Weisser Turm and Saint Jakob’s (below right).
Nuremberg has managed to preserve the charm of its historical centre or, I should rather say “to restore” because the city, including the old town was thoroughly destroyed during the last months of WW2 and later faithfully reconstructed.
Let’s be clear, however, this city is not an open-air museum frozen in time, it has remained a lively,. commercial city throughout and this is apparent in the buzz and activity on its streets, even on a relatively Sunday afternoon, as it was the case of my visit.
By the way, since most of the city’s landmarks are well illuminated at night for effect, Nuremberg’s historical centre makes also for a beautiful walk at night.
The Nuremberg of WW2
Memorium & the Nuremberg Trials courtroom
And from medieval and early modern Nuremberg to WW2, because the city has preserved sites which are linked to two very specific moments to that dark historical episode.
Remarkably these refer to both the rise and the fall of Nazism. One of them is Zeppelinfeld (covered further down this post), the other, and more impressive from a visitor’s point of view, is “Memorium”, the museum and documentation center at Nuremberg’s Palace of Justice, in which Nazi war criminals were tried after the war.
Memorium is located within the Nuremberg’s Palace of Justice. Note that the building, including the historical Courtroom 600, where the trial of the main Nazi leaders (at least those that could be captured alive) took place, is still in use today as a court of justice!
This site is an absolute must for anyone minimally interested in WW2 and, more generally, in international political and legal affairs.
The Palace of Justice is not in the very center of the city, but it is not very far either. It can be reached very conveniently, a 10min metro ride (station Bärenschanze), from Nuremberg’s central station. From the metro station it is a 200m walk to the entrance of the museum area, which occupies a wing of the Palace of Justice building.
The entrance fee is €7.50, although it is also one of the attractions included in the Nuremberg Card.
Once there, you are encouraged to download an app which acts as an audioguide (and it has also some gamified features for children).
It is not a requirement to download it, but I would advise doing so if you want to fully enjoy the experience and get all the wealth of information in it.
To be honest, there is so much information, including all the transcripts of the different speeches and other texts related to the trials, that you possibly won’t use all of it. But, nevertheless, is a good way to learn about the many details of the trials.
The most well-known of these trials are the ones that took place in 1945-46, with some of the remaining Nazi leaders. However, there were other batches of trials in the second half of the 1940s concerning also other lower rank Nazis which also took part in war crimes.
The trials represented quite a feat and not only because they involved getting countries which, while formally allies had very different world views, to agree on some common definitions of justice and in what could be define as a crime against humanity.
There were also quite a few practicalities to solve, such as, for example, having real time multi-language translations or getting the media to cover and document the whole process, something which was not trivial with the technology of the time.
The trials, however, were quite a success in terms of what they were trying to achieve, which was to set an example and standard of justice for regimes that commit atrocities and crimes against humanity.
Courtroom 600
This is, without doubt, the highlight of the visit. It is the very same room in which the trials took place. Even if it has suffered some modifications since the 1940s (which are all explained in the app), the general appearance is easily recognizable if you have seen footage of the original Nuremberg Trials.
Quite an impressive sight, to say the least!
Then, there is the adjacent museum, one floor up.
The museum itself is not huge, but it is very dense in information and content.
The exhibition details the fundaments of international humanitarian law and the legal principles that were used to conduct the trials.
It then moves to explain the trials themselves, the charges presented against the defendants and the arguments that were used by the different parties.
There are lots of details about the practical aspects of the trials, the conditions in which the defendants were kept and their final fate.
You can also see some original items, such as the benches in which the defendants were sitting during the trial.
Below is the view from the wing of the building where the Nuremberg Trials took place. In the background is the former prison, where the Nazi war criminals were kept during the proceedings. Most of that old prison building was demolished some time after the trials, but you can get an idea of the place.
You can also get a view from above of the courtroom. In fact, during the trials, the American forces, which were responsible for the logistics on site, added a sort of elevated stage at this end of the room so that the attending media could better follow the sessions.
Visiting Zeppelinfeld
This is the other place in Nuremberg that is a must-visit for anyone interested in the history of the Second World War.
This is a large open ground which is infamously linked to the rise of the Nazism, since it was here that the Nazis held some of its mass rallies in the years before the war, with Hitler in attendance.
The name of the place actually comes the fact that, way before that, in 1909, airship pioneer Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin landed one of its airships here during a demonstration flight.
In 1937 Nazi architect (and later munitions minister) Albert Speer build a some monumental grounds at this spot, complete with a tribune from where Hitler and the other senior party leaders could preside the military parades.
In April 1945, the US 7th Army arrived in Nuremberg and after fierce fighting managed to capture the city. Shortly after the war was over, in a very symbolic move which was captured on camera, US military engineers blew up the large marble Swastika which was atop the main structure.
You can watch that moment in this short video documentary on Mark Felton’s channel, which contains also some interesting footage of the battle for Nuremberg in the last days of WW2 and shows the state of utter destruction in which the old town of Nuremberg was left.
After the war the venue was used for sports and music events and other public activities, but, apparently, no one was sure what to do with what was left of the main structures, which are still standing today, even if in a rather derelict state.
After the war the venue was used for sports events and other activities but, apparently, no one was sure what to do with what was left of the structures, so they have been left as they stood in a more or less derelict state.
At the time of my visit the tribune at Zeppelinfeld was cordoned off and covered in scaffoldings, since there is a project to conduct some restoration work in order to strengthen the site’s role as a place of memory and remembrance.
Besides the parade ground, with its tribune and grandstands, the Zeppelinfeld complex included also a large congress center across a small lake. Since 2001 that building, which was closed at the time of my visit, has hosted a research and documentation centre about the Nazi period.
The parade grounds themselves are open to the public, and are integrated in a larger outdoor recreation area, with quite a lot of greenery around.
Zeppelinfeld is a bit outside the city center, but it is quite easy to reach. You can take one of several tram lines or the S-Bahn. It takes a couple of stops and less than 10 minutes from the central station, getting off either at the “Nürnberg-Dutzendteich” or “Nürnberg Frankenstadion” stops and walking from there.
Great place to eat local food in Nuremberg
Bratwurstküche Zum gulden Stern
Zirkelschmiedsgasse 26, 90402 Nürnberg
If you are looking for a place to eat Franconian food or, more specifically Nuremberg’s signature sausage, the “Nürnberger Rostbratwurst”, look no further!
In fact, “Zum gulden Stern” claims to be not only the oldest Bratwurstküche restaurant in Nuremberg, but in the entire world!
Nuremberg Rostbratwurst is smaller than other German types of bratwurst and it is typically roasted over an open fire and served accompanied of sauerkraut, horseradish and a specific type of mustard that is sweeter than the standard one.
“Zum gulden Stern” traces its roots back to 1419, although it exists in its current form thanks to the efforts of a local entrpreneur, who is 1985 bought the derelict medieval building to save it from demolition and (re-)start the restaurant. His children are the ones now running it.
Whether the 600-year history claim is legitimate or exaggerated, the fact is that the owners of “Zum gulden Stern” do a really good job in creating the sort of cozy atmosphere with wholesome authentic local food that, I am sure, many visitors appreciate in a place like Nuremberg.
Most of the ingredients are locally sourced, as indicated in the menu, and the sausages are roasted in an open kitchen over a real wood fire. Prices are also very reasonable. So, overall this place provides a very nice experience and would recommend it to anyone looking to get the real Nuremberg culinary experience!
Top (literally!) place to stay in Nuremberg
Cloud One Hotel
Bahnhofspl. 1, 90402 Nürnberg
The Cloud One Hotel has possibly the best views in Nuremberg (by some parameters even better than the ones you get from the castle!).
This is due to the fact that it is one of the few high rises in town. Right outside the city walls but close enough to the historical centre to provide amazing views from its top floors. It is also just meters away from the central station (Hauptbahnhof), which makes it super convenient to go anywhere, since this is really the neuralgic centre of the city with most metro, tram, bus and rail lines converging here.
As an example, the Nuremberg Trials Memorium is less than 10min and the airport, 12 minutes away by direct metro. The nearby city of Fürth is barely 20 minutes and a couple of stops away by S-Bahn.
As you can see in these pictures, the rooms are small, but modern. The views from the 11th floor are absolutely stunning.
The Cloud One Hotel brand is apparently a premium offshot of the same German hotel group which manages Motel One. There are Cloud One hotels now at several German cities and even in New York City. The Nuremberg property, in particular, had been recently renovated at the time of my visit.
The hotel has also a very stylish cocktail bar on its top (14th) floor, also with truly privileged city views.
Breakfast was also pretty good, again with the majestic views (13th floor this time) and with lots of local products to try!
And, with this tasty Franconian breakfast, this itinerary through some of Germany’s most beautiful towns comes to and end.
If you are interested in learning more about Franconia and what to do and what to see in this beautiful part of Bavaria, check out my previous posts this region.
Top things to do and see in Franconia (III): Fürth, the “Franconian Jerusalem”
After visiting the beautiful historical towns of Bamberg and Forchheim, the next stop in my Franconian tour was the city of Fürth.
Now, if you look it up on the map, you will see that Fürth is today pretty much integrated into the greater Nuremberg urban agglomeration.
However, this Franconian city of more than 130,000 people has a rather rich and interesting history of its own and it is well worth a visit.
Fürth has enough to keep you going for a full day and it can also be visited as a day excursion from Nuremberg (since their urban transportation networks are interconnected, including the metro and S-Bahn, the suburban train system).
So, on this post I will share my impressions of my visit to Fürth and its main landmarks.
Here are some of the topics you will find next in this post:
The growth of industrial Fürth & its Italianate town hall
The Jewish heritage of Fürth
Protestantism in Fürth and the 30-Year War
The historical town of Fürth
Henry Kissinger’s birthplace in Fürth
Where to eat Franconian food in Fürth
This post may contain affiliate links. If you book or buy something through them, I earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you. It's one of the ways I keep Places of Charm going. Thank you for your support.
I would like to thank also Franken Tourismus and the Fürth Tourist Office for facilitating this journey and arranging a tour of Fürth with the great local guide Monika. All opinions are my own.
Walking around Fürth
Fürth is quite an old city, the origins of which can be traced back to the early Middle Ages.
In fact, its name is possibly derived from the old Germanic word for “ford” since Fürth sits at the confluence of the Pegnitz and Rednitz rivers (which join together a bit north of the city to form the Regnitz, the river which we have already seen in Bamberg and Forchheim earlier in this series).
While Fürth has grown over the centuries somehow under the shadow of the much larger (and Imperial) neighbouring city of Nuremberg, it has always had a very strong character of its own.
This is reflected today in some symbols of local identity, such as the cloverleaf, which is visible in quite a few urban ornaments (no connection with Ireland that I am aware of!). In past centuries, however, Fürth distinctive status in the German political order was based on a rather unusual political set up in which three entities shared power over parts of the city: the Princely Bishopric of Bamberg, the Principality of Ansbach, and the City of Nuremberg.
By the way, these three powers are depicted in one of the statues that adorn Fürth’s main commercial street (picture to the right).
This means, that, while very close to the Imperial city of Nuremberg, Fürth could sometimes carve its own path. For example, in the early 16th C., when many German territories, including the city of Nuremberg, were expelling their Jewish populations, Fürth welcomed them (in exchange of a “protection fee”, truth be told). This led, over time, to earn Fürth the nickname of “Franconian Jerusalem”, a topic we’ll revisit further down this post.
Another particularity of Fürth is that it was a Protestant stronghold in highly Catholic Franconia, this led to it being also the setting of some big military clashes in the 17th C. during the 30-Year War, something we’ll touch upon later in this post, as well.
So, Fürth evolved as a rather diverse cultural and religious entrepôt all the way to the industrial era, which Fürth also embraced wholeheartedly, becoming not just a major industrial centre but also the terminus of the first railway in Germany, which linked it to Nuremberg.
So, now, without further ado, let’s see what the city has to offer to the visitor today and my suggestions about what to do and what to see in Fürth.
Fürth has managed to preserve a small, nice historical center, however, the city has remained far from stagnant through the last five hundred years. In fact, most of Fürth’s current downtown is the product of the industrial revolution. Since the 19th C. Fürth became home to industries such as gold-beating, toy manufacturing, mirror production and electronics (radio and household appliances giant Gründig was founded in the city).
This gave Fürth the wealth and prosperity that allowed it to fund a world-class urban development program in the 19th C. and early 20th C. with broad avenues, elegant multi-storey buildings, department stores and a number of singular public buildings.
Among the latter was the Church of Our Lady, built in 1829, not long after Fürth joined the strongly Catholic Bavarian kingdom in 1806. Remarkably, the Church was built with voluntary contributions from the Protestant and Jewish communities.
Another civic venue which in the city which was built through citizen contributions (in this case with a major involvement of the city’s Jewish community) was the city’s majestic theatre venue, which was completed in 1902.
Interestingly, the architect that designed Fürth’s theatre used the blueprints it had devised for another theatre which had been commissioned to be built in what was then Czernowitz, in the Austro-Hungarian Empire (now Chernivtsi, in Ukraine). So the two cities did get eventually (more or less) the same building!
But perhaps the most eye-catching element dominating the Fürth skyline is the town hall, which was designed in the mid-19th C. If it reminds you of an Italian scene, it’s for a reason!
In their quest for something extraordinary, the citizens of Fürth decided that their city needed a replica of Florence’s Palazzo Vecchio as their new town hall!
It is possible to get to the top of the Town Hall tower to get a 360º panorama of the city of Fürth, with the city’s two well-defined parts, the old and modern ones, as well as the surrounding countryside and as far as the city of Nuremberg, the main landmarks of which are perfectly visible in the distance.
The Jewish Heritage of Fürth, the “Franconian Jerusalem”
We have already mentioned how Fürth became a safe haven for Jews which, in the 16th C, had to flee other parts of Germany.
Over the next few centuries the Jewish community of Fürth kept growing and the city became, actually, a very dynamic center of Jewish learning to the point that it became known as the “Franconian Jerusalem”.
The hub of Jewish cultural life in Fürth was an area called the “Schulhof” (or “School Courtyard”), which was exactly that: several centers of learning and prayer structured around a large open courtyard.
This part of Fürth’s history came to an abrupt end in the 1930s with the rise of Nazism in Germany. As it happened to other Jewish communities in Germany and Europe, the Nazis targeted Jews in Fürth and razed the Schulhof to the ground.
What you see today is an ensemble of modern post-war constructions more or less laid out around that central courtyard. A monument by Japanese artist Kunihiko Kato, now stands in the middle of the courtyard remembering that past and what happened to it.
Fürth has other sites connected to the Jewish past of the city, although I was not able to visit them all due to time constraints.
For example, there is also a Jewish Museum, which has been housed by a modern purpose-built facility since 2018 and documents the history of Jewish life in Fürth and Franconia.
Another interesting site is the old Jewish cemetery, which is located in the outskirts of the old town. Since it is no longer in use, vegetation has covered most of the large patch of land in which is located, including many of the old tombstones, giving it a somehow remarkable aspect, which invites contemplation and remembrance.
Visiting the historical center of Fürth
Continuing our walking tour of Fürth, we get to the historical town, which is not large, but survived WW2 pretty much intact.
Like many other historical German cities, Fürth has its fair share of half-timbered buildings, but if there is one aesthetic aspect for which this city stands out is its slate-clade facades.
Here, in Fürth, slate panels have been used profusely to cover all sort of surfaces, not just the roofs. Valued because of its insulating properties, slate is in facades and side-walls, often covering most of the building. In many places it is also possible to find facades which have been decorated by using patterned slate coverings.
The other thing that historical Fürth stands out for is the abundance of little courtyards, some public, some semi-private, many of them perfectly well kept as gardens.
This phenomenon may be partly explained by the location of Fürth on a major axis of communication linking Nuremberg to Frankfurt and other major German cities. With Nuremberg a mere five miles away, the city of Fürth made a convenient overnight stop before being able to cross Nuremberg’s city gates in the morning. the courtyards provided a a safe place for travelers to leave their horses or carts for the night while sleeping at the adjacent inns.
Protestantism and the Thirty Years War in Fürth
Fürth has also the particularity of being a majority-Protestant city in Catholic Bavaria. Fürth main Protestant church is Saint Michael’s, which is credired with being, possibly the oldest building in town, as well.
Fürth’s protestantism meant that in 1632, during the Thirty Years War, it hosted the King of Sweden, Gustavus Adolphus, which styled himself as a major defender of the Protestant cause in German lands.
The Swedish king is still remembered in Fürth, where a plaque and a bust remembers the royal visit. Gustav Adolphus apparently lodged at the rectory adjacent to Saint Michael’s church in June 1632. One of Fürth’s main streets is also named after the Swedish monarch.
Gustav Adolphus campaigning in the area of Fürth culminated in a battle at a nearby hill called Alte Veste (“Old Fortress”). There, after a prolongued stand-off, Swedish forces charged the Imperial army under the command of Albrecht von Wallenstein, with the latter reportedly getting the upper hand. The city of Fürth and the surrounding countryside reportedly suffered quite a lot of damage during that conflict.
Visiting Henry Kissinger’s birthplace
Fürth is the birthplace of two prominent statesmen.
One of them was Ludwig Erhard, who was Finance Minister of the German Federal Republic under Adenauer and later, between 1963 and 1966, Chancellor himself. A remarkable man who is widely credited with being one of the architects of the German post-war economic miracle (the so called “Wirtschaftswunder”).
The other major statesman born in Fürth is none other than Henry Kissinger, the formidable US Secretary of State.
Kissinger served in this capacity between 1973 and 1977 under Presidents Nixon and Ford, and later remained a very prominent and influential voice in international affairs pretty much until his death in 2023, at the venerable age of 100.
Kissinger was born to a middle class Jewish family at 23, Mathildenstrasse, in central Fürth and his native home still stands at this exact spot in a good state of preservation. A plaque by the door remembers visitors of this historical fact.
Kissinger’s family, however, had to flee Fürth, in 1938, as the environment was turning increasingly dangerous for German Jews. The Kissingers landed in the United States, where young Henry would go on to make a brilliant career, but this is another story that, I am sure, there are many other books and sources better qualified to tell in all detail.
Btw, the area in which Kissinger was born and spend his childhood in, with its broad, orderly avenues and solid residential and commercial housing blocs, is a good example of the modern expansion of the city of Fürth in the 19th C., as the city prospered as an industrial and trading center (in the picture below you can see how the streets of this district mostly look like).
Where to eat in Fürth
Gasthof Grüner Baum
Gustavstraße 34, 90762 Fürth
This restaurant and guesthouse is located in one of Fürth’s most historical buildings.
While the current building dates largely from the early 19th C., an inn has been documented at this spot since at least 1607. A 2018 renovation uncovered some parts of the old structure, such as a wooden ceiling. Legend has it that the Swedish king Gustav Adolphus may have dined here in 1632, but this is totally unverified!
It has a terrace which is lovely when the weather is nice, as it was the case during my visit.
The food was, you guessed it (particularly if you have followed the previous stages of this itinerary)…Franconian cuisine!
In this case it was the sausages, although those of you that prefer schnitzel, will also be well served here. The dishes were accompanied by a nice potato salad and Bavarian beer.
DÄCHLA Panoramic Terrace
Friedrichstraße 6a, 90762 Fürth
Another place of note in Fürth, particularly if you wish to have a coffee or a drink with some nice views is the rooftop bar at DÄCHLA, which is located at top of a the city’s public library in Dr.-Konrad-Adenauer-Anlage, a public park not far from the main train station.
Dächla, which apparently means “little roof” in Franconian dialect, has a large terrace offering nice views of the city (although not as impressive as the ones from the top of the town hall’s italianate tower).
This modern venue was renovated as recently as 2024. It works mostly as a coffee place during the day, doubling later as a trendy wine bar in the evenings.
Germany’s first railway in Fürth
This post about Fürth wouldn't be complete, even more so considering that this visit was part of an all-railway journey, without a mention of Germany's first railway, which connected the city to nearby Nuremberg.
This first German railway line opened in December 1835, with the Adler ("Eagle"), a primitive steam locomotive, making the inaugural six-kilometre run between the two cities.
The train departed not from the present-day railway station but from where today's Fürther Freiheit square is located. The original terminus, known as Ludwig's Station, was demolished in 1938 to make way for a Nazi parade ground. Today this area is a large open square which acts as a venue for several outdoor markets.
The history of Germany’s first railway is also remembered at Fürth’s railway station, where you can find several decor elements and even a scale model that relate to that major historical feat.
If you enjoyed this chronicle from Fürth, stay tuned for the fourth and last installment of the Franconian series, from its major city: Nuremberg.
Top things to see and do in Franconia (II): Forchheim & its underground beer cellars
We continue our rail itinerary through the heart of the Franconia region of Bavaria with a stop at Forchheim.
First of all, just a quick reminder that this is but the second stage of a four-city tour to explore some of the most beautiful towns in Franconia (“Franken” in German). You can, of course, read this post as a stand-alone, but if traveling to this area, let me suggest also our other stories about:
Let’s start with a few words about Forchheim, because, chances are you
With a population of around 30,000, Forchheim is actually larger than it looks when walking through its historical center. I am saying this, because the place is amazingly calm and relaxed, even when walking around on a weekend afternoon.
I guess this is due in part to the fact that, even if it is not lacking in charm and character, Forchheim does not get nearly as many visitors as nearby Bamberg, but also to a significant degree to the local population living kind of spread out all over the place rather than in a dense town center.
It is also worth noting that, during the warm months most of the social activity, particularly in the weekends and festive days, switches to the Kellerwald area, an outdoors recreation area with underground beer cellars (more on this unique feature of Forchheim further down this post)!
I must confess that I hadn’t really heard about Forchheim when the Franconia Tourist Office, which helped organize this trip, suggested a stop in Forchheim, but the place didn’t disappoint and, if you like artisan beer and traveling through Upper Franconia, you should definitely make some space for this town!
By the way, Forchheim is also considered to be one of the gateways to the “Fanconian Switzerland”, an area renowned for its natural beauty. Although this aspect of Forchheim is not the object of this post (I was sticking to the main rail axis on this occasion), it is worth noting in case you were traveling through Franconia by car.
This post may contain affiliate links. If you book or buy something through them, I earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you. It's one of the ways I keep Places of Charm going. Thank you for your support.
I would like to thank also Franken Tourismus for facilitating this journey and arranging a tour of Forchheim with the excellent local guide Christiane. All opinions are my own.
So, this is how I arrived to Forchheim from Bamberg, which is barely 20 minutes away by regional train (the ticket was around €6.5 at the time of my visit). The central station is literally 5 minutes away from the historical center (and 2 min from my hotel, the Arivo Aparthotel, which I will review, as well, later in this post).
Forchheim is, actually, quite an old place. There are mentions to it already in the Carolingian era and, from the 11th C. it belonged to the Price-Bishops of Bamberg, who had their own palace in town, as well. Like the rest of this ancient princely bishopric, Forchheim was annexed by Bavaria in the early 19th C.
Another important feature of the town is the river Wiesent, which runs through Forchheim’s old town before joining the river Regnitz just west of the city (besides being the same river that flows through Bamberg, the Regnitz is part of the river and canal system that connects the Rhein and Main basins to the Danube).
The waters of the Wiesent provide some of the most picturesque photo opportunities in Forchheim and give it also one of the first landmarks we encountered in our itinerary, the fish cages (“Fischkästen”). These are wooden structures lining up the banks of the Wiesent, where, for centuries, local fishermen have kept captured fish, mostly carp, alive before taking them to the market.
It is also along the banks of the Wiesent that we find a reminder of the fact Forchheim used to have a Jewish community, which was, sadly, destroyed in the late 1930s. A memorial (depicted below) is located in front of where the town’s synagogue once stood before it was torn down in 1938.
The historical center of Forchheim is made of (partly) pedestrianized cobblestone streets, so it makes for a nice walk.
There is one major landmark, which is the former Imperial Palace (“Kaiserpfalz”). This building, which is depicted below right, has a large open courtyard and today it houses the local museum. It takes it name from its early Carolingian origins, although the current structure dates back to the 14th C. when the town was under the rule of the Prince-Bishops of Bamberg.
Another curious structure in the historical center is this leaning timbered-house you can see depicted above.
Forchheim used to be also a fortified stronghold, which resisted successfully attacks by Swedish troops during the 30-years War in the 17th C.
Parts of the massive bastions are still standing and today they are part of the historical trail through the old town.
Most of the old town of Forchheim has preserved its authentic character, although many of its half-timbered houses were plastered over during the last few centuries, as, apparently, this type of style was, at times, not particularly popular. After restoration, many old houses in Forchheim, however, display again their half-timbered structure.
Forchheim is also a majority-Catholic town, so it is common to see religious imagery in public places, like the facades of homes.
Another important fact about Forchheim is that it used to have more than 20 breweries downtown. Their number, however, have been dwindling and today there are only three of them left.
The smaller number of commercial breweries does not mean, however, that the locals have turned their backs to beer. As we shall soon see, beer culture in Forchheim is alive and kicking and this does include a fair amount of home-made, artisan brews which are mostly consumed during the local festivals.
Where to eat Franconian food in Forchheim
Birgits Bauernstübla
Klosterstraße 18, 91301 Forchheim
This is a very nice place to sample from Franconian cuisine, particularly if the weather is nice, since it has an outdoor terrace.
Here I tried Schäufele mit Kloß. This a typical Franconian speciality, which consists in a slow-braised pork shoulder which has been marinated in dark beer. It has a deep, crackling, caramelised crust, the meat underneath which is extremely tender. It is served with a copious amount of gravy and with a side dish of sauerkraut and, another Franconian culinary must, the Klöße.
These are spherical potato dumplings, made from a mixture of raw and cooked grated potato. They are very dense and tasty. All of this, of course, consumed with some local Franconian beer. In this case it was Veldensteiner, made by a craft brewery from Neuhaus an der Pegnitz, a small town east of Forchheim.
Kellerwald & Annafest: exploring artisan beer culture in Forchheim
After our exploration of historical Forchheim and local Franconia cuisine, it is time to check a rather unique feature of the town: its underground beer cellars and the whole beer culture around them.
To do so, we leave the downtown and walk a couple of kilometres to the eastern outskirts of town, to a small forested hill known as “Kellerwald” (“Cellar Forest” in German). It is here that, for at least 400 years, the people of Forchheim have used and shaped the natural underground caves that form in the local limestone formations in order to store beer during the latter’s fermentation process.
The production of the type of beer that is popular in this part of Franconia requires relatively cold and stable temperatures and this is what these underground caves provided, since the temperature inside stays constant at around around 6–10°C throughout the year. This was particularly useful in the pre-industrial era, when to artificial refrigeration was available.
Nowadays, of course, you don’t really need to store beer in caves and, therefore, only a small portion of the underground cellar network is still used. However, a number of beer makers around Forchheim have preserved this tradition.
But don’t think of Kellerwald just as some sort of historical curiosity, it is here that, since 1840, Forchheim puts together one of the largest beer festivals in Bavaria, “Annafest”. Named after the festivity of Saint Anna, which is on July 26th (it takes places in the days around it), Annafest congregates some 500,000 people at Forchheim’s Kellerwald for several days (and evenings!) of beer drinking and fun.
Think of it as a sort of small-scale “Oktoberfest”, just that this one takes place in the middle of summer!
Annafest is really a big thing in Forchheim. It is an event that pretty much the whole community plan for during the whole year. There is even an official “Queen of Annafest”, which is elected every two years and represents the town of Forchheim at other similar events and festivals throughout Germany.
But you don’t need to wait to late July to enjoy beer drinking at Forchheim’s Kellerwald. While Annafest is the peak time of the season, the Kellerwald cellars start opening in spring, as soon as the weather is warm enough.
A whole network of beer gardens, restaurants and temporary food and beer stalls springs up around late April or early May and stays put all throughout the summer offering an outdoor venue for the citizens of Forchheim and visitors to enjoy the outdoors while sampling the fresh local beer.
The party at the Kellerwald starts in the evening, before dusk and can go on until relatively late (there are no sleepless neighbours at the Kellerwald!). It is not just about beer, there are also food stalls, live music and, above else, a lot of socializing!
Where to stay in Forchheim
Arivo Aparthotel Forchheim
Bayreuther Str. 1, 91301 Forchheim
This very modern aparthotel was a truly positive surprise. It is located right next to Forchheim’s train station, which makes it super convenient if you are traveling by train. By the way, the aparthotel may be located close to the tracks, but it is also very quiet, I had a room facing the station and didn’t hear a thing from that direction during my stay!).
Arivo Aparthotel Forchheim operates a clerk-less checkin, you are given a set of codes with your reservation and you can make your way to the room without having to interact with anyone.
The whole building appears to be really new and modern. My room was super big and had a common bedroom-living room area separated by a false wall which holds a large flat screen tv.
It had also a small kitchen and working desk as well as plenty of space to leave the luggage. There was some complimentary welcome coffee (from a Nespresso-style coffee machine) and some fresh sparkling water in the fridge.
The bathroom is also super modern and in contemporary style. Everything was super clean.
The ground floor has a rather large lobby-common area and restaurant, which is where breakfast is served in the morning. You can get the look and feel of the place in the images below. The breakfast was continental-type buffet.
The Arivo Aparthotel has also parking space, not relevant for me in this case, but I guess, it kind be quite an important detail to mention for those that are touring Franconia by car.
You can book this hotel here!
Top things to see and do in Franconia (I): a tour of Bamberg
If you are looking for a Germany of charming fairy tale towns, almost intact medieval heritage, artisan beer and bratwürst, look no further than Franconia.
A Russian doll of cultural identities, local pride rules strong in Franconia (“Franken” in German), which is a historical region of northern Bavaria, itself, a former Kingdom and one of the parts of Germany that has most fiercely preserved its own character and distinct identity.
Culturally, it is equally varied: part of it is wine country, while other areas lean firmly towards beer; and while Bavaria is predominantly Catholic, Franconia contains Protestant enclaves, such as the city of Fürth.
This is perhaps due to the fact that, like much of the German lands, historically, Franconia was a complex patchwork of sovereignties, with different rulers sometimes having overlapping claims to parts of the land. Among them, Nuremberg held a pre-eminent role, since it is the place where the Imperial Diet (of the so-called “Holy Roman Empire”). Franconia only became part of Bavaria in the early 19th century, when the whole area became one of Napoleon’s client states.
In fact, Franconia is large enough that it can be divided in three large areas: Upper Franconia (Oberfranken), Middle Franconia (Mittelfranken) and Lower Franconia (Unterfranken), although this series of posts will cover only a relatively small central section of it, starting in Bamberg in the north and ending in Nuremberg at the southern end of my itinerary.
What’s more, unlike in other itineraries that I have featured on this site, this time my entire journey was done by train, since all four Franconian cities that I had the chance to visit (Bamberg, Forchheim, Fürth and Nuremberg) sit neatly in a straight line. This was, I think, a pretty efficient (and sustainable!) way to explore this region.
So, this post is the first of a series of four installments in which I will share my impressions of this region and some tips about what to do and what to see when visiting Franconia.
My itinerary started in Berlin, from where I traveled by train to Bamberg and then moved continued moving south always by train, all the way to Nuremberg, the largest city of the lot, by far.
This post may contain affiliate links. If you book or buy something through them, I earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you. It's one of the ways I keep Places of Charm going. Thank you for your support.
I would like to thank also Franken Tourismus for facilitating this journey through Franconia and the visit to Bamberg with excellent local guide Sabine. All opinions are my own.
Half a day in Bamberg: what to do and what to see
Bamberg is one of the jewels, not just of Franconia, but of Bavaria as well. Besides being a town of historical significance (it used to be the capital of a small principality ruled by a bishop), Bamberg was practically untouched by WW2, so most of what you see here is what a German pre-industrial city used to look like. Since 1993, Bamberg has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
What’s more, it’s geographical setting greatly enhances its historical attractiveness. First, there is the fact that, like Rome and several other cities of note, the city of Bamberg was built on seven hills. Then, there is the presence of the river Regnitz, a tributary of the Main, and therefore, the Rhein, which is navigable and accessible by river cruises (such as those operated by Viking Cruises, an old friend of this site!) and other operators. The river divides its waters between several canals when it passes through Bamberg’s old town, adding significantly to the aesthetics of the place.
I arrived at Bamberg’s main train station mid-morning and, after leaving my luggage at the station’s storage area (make sure you have €2 and €1 coins with you!) I headed on foot towards the old town, which is a mere 15-20 walk away.
I was to meet my guide for the day, Sabine, at Schlenkerla, Bamberg’s most iconic brewery (more on this place further down this article), for a quick but relatively intense walking tour of the city.
Bamberg’s “Little Venice”
When approaching Bamberg’s old town from the train station, you will first have to cross the Reignetz and its several canals. You will then be in an area popularly known as “Little Venice”, obviously because of its connection to water.
There is even a gondola service that would give you a ride through the canals for a fee! Or, if you prefer something more conventional, you will also find here several boats that a carry tourists around. We didn’t do that, and went for a stroll along the banks of the Reignetz instead.
When the weather is nice, as was the case during my visit, Bamberg’s river side is an amazingly beautiful place. However, crowds can form at some spots, and for good reason!
One such spots is the small island that holds what is one of Bamberg’s most distinctive buildings, the old town hall (“Altes Rathaus”), which is the beautifully ornated historical building the picture of which opens this article.
The whole area along the river banks, though, is pretty harmonious and makes for a pleasant walk.
A walk through Bamberg’s old town
Our itinerary then took us uphill, for it is at the top of one of Bamberg’s seven hills that we find what was the nucleus of Bamberg’s political and ecclesiastic power for around eight centuries.
Bamberg’s Cathedral (“Bamberger Dom”) is the most imposing building of the lot and, from its hilltop position dominates the rest of the town. It has Romanesque and Gothic elements and no less than four towers.
Besides its religious and political importance, Bamberg Cathedral has two interesting curiosities: it has the tomb of Pope Clement II, which is the only papal tomb north of the Alps.
And it also has the Bamberg Rider, “Bamberger Reiter” in German (picture above right), which is a 13th C. statue which, to this day, no one knows who does it represent.
It is here, adjacent to each other and structured around a large open and somehow inclined square, that we find two other very prominent structures.
One of them is the Old Court, which is one of the oldest structures in the city and once upon a time an Epicospal residence, the other is the Neues Residenz (below), which was the main palace of the princely bishops of Bamberg.
Below you can see the Old Court, which is a collection of very old timbered buildings organized around a central courtyard.
The old town of Bamberg is surrounded by greenery and, while there is a constant flow of tourists, it has quite a few quite and really calm spots.
Another building of note is the Monastery of St Michael, which sits on top of another of Bamberg’s hills (the” Michelsberg”). It was built in the 11th C. as a Benedictine monastery and was secularized in the early 19th C.
It is one of the most iconic elements in Bamberg’s skyline, particularly when seen from the Rose Garden. The latter, which is an annex of the Neues Residenz, is a perfectly manicured classical garden which opens onto a terrace providing what is likely the best panoramic view of the city.
The walk through old Bamberg took us through several picturesque locations, with the unequal terrain offering several interesting perspectives.
There are several other large churches of historical interest in Bamberg, such as Saint Jakob (a branch of the “Way of Saint James”, the famous pilgrimage route, passes apparently through Bamberg), Saint Stephan and the Parish Church of Our Lady (“Pfarrkirche Unsere Liebe Frau”). We only visited the latter of these, which is presided by a rather magnificent Baroque altar.
Where to eat in Bamberg
Schlenkerla Rauchbierbrauerei
Dominikanerstraße 6
96049 Bamberg
Bamberg is known for its smoked beer (Rauchbier) and no better place to taste it than its oldest and most renowned brewery, Schlenkerla.
This beer house was reportedly established in 1405 and it still produces smoked beer in the traditional way (using malt that has been dried over burning beechwood instead of hot air, a process which infuses the grain with a distinctive smokiness before fermentation). It is served in two versions: dark and light, with the latter being seasonal and available only in spring and summer.
So, if you wish to get the full Bamberg experience, make sure you stop by Schlenkerla to try it, even if you are not a regular beer drinker, as it is my case.
What’s more, since it is also a restaurant, you can have your beer together with another of the local specialities: stuffed onions (“Bamberger Zwiebel”). These are filled with pork meat and served with a side of mashed potato and gravy. It’s quite a filling dish!
By the way, the beer you see here is Schlenkerla’s Pale Lager, which is a special edition beer that the restaurant offers exclusively on “Beer Day”, April 23, and while supplies last. No smoked malt us used in its brewing process, however, it’s brewed in the same copper kettles and with the same yeast as the traditional “Rauchbier” in order to give it a slight smoky flavour.
Grüner Markt and other Bamberg specialities
Bamberg’s downtown stretches onto the eastern bank of the Reignetz. And while this is still, technically, part of the old town, the streets here have a more modern feel, with Grüner Markt (“Vegetables Market”) and Maximilien Platz acting as buzzing commercial hubs of the city.
Grüner Markt, in particular, holds a street market for produce where it is possible to find some other local specialities, like the white aspargus and a special type of small crescent-shaped potatoes called “Bamberger Hörnla”.
Maximilien Platz (below), in turn, is the center of the city’s modern administration.
Yet another local speciality in Bamberg, this one in the bakery section, are the “Bamberg Hörnchen”, a type of croissants which are more curved than the regular ones and thinner at the center.
By the way, if you are into beer, before heading back to the station, you can stop at “Die Bierothek”, a shop where you can find specialty beer from Bamberg (including the famous smoked one) and the rest of Franconia (if you like beer, stay tuned for the next installment of this series, Forchheim, since it will feature plenty of it!).
If you enjoyed this post, check out the next stage of my Franconian trip: Forchheim and its underground beer cellars!
Two great unique hotels with character in Berlin
I have been traveling to Berlin quite a few times in the last few months and, for good or for bad, I have had a chance to stay at quite a few hotels all over the city. It is rare when to come across properties that really stand out, but every now and then I come across some true gems which I think it is worth sharing.
To be clear, this is not a post about Berlin’s main tourist attractions, there are plenty of other blogs that can provide that, but to share some details about what I think are two of the best options to stay in Berlin right now at price points that are, I think, not particularly extravagant for the typical business traveler.
A recent trip to the German capital offered me the chance to experience two greatly located hotels which I will proceed to describe next:
Radisson Collection Berlin
The PostHouse Berlin
This post may contain affiliate links. If you book or buy something through them, I earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you. It's one of the ways I keep Places of Charm going. Thank you for your support.
I would like to thank also Radisson for facilitating the stay at this specific property. All opinions are my own.
A review of the Radisson Collection Hotel Berlin
The Radisson Collection Hotel Berlin is truly a landmark hotel. It is located in what must be one of the most prime pieces of real estate of any hotel, of any category in Berlin, right on the banks of the river Spree, next to Museum Insel and the opposite the Berliner Dom.
The building itself is also quite remarkable, a compact and solid, building with a large indoor courtyard that is dominated by a rather impressive central structure that simulates a sort of giant tree.
The overall aesthetic is modern and elegant throughout, but with a rather cozy vibe which is rather different to that of other more, let’s say, “classical” luxury establishments.
In fact, all around the aforementioned central trunk, in the lobby area is a mixed bar/restaurant-library/reading room-workspace area, complete with a fully stocked library (interestingly, with what appears to be a rather large Scandinavian book section, which possibly reflects Radisson’s own roots!)
This somehow round floor plan makes it possible for all these different areas of the lobby to be conveniently compartimentalized while remaining within the same open plan. The reception area is also somehow segregated from this more innerpart (albeit still public) area of the hotel.
Access to the rooms is through the glass lifts which make for quite a scenic up and down the building. Access to each of the floors is also rather grand, with a large open space in a rather modern and harmonious style, including the colour palette, and local touches of decor.
The rooms at the Radisson Collection Berlin
As you may have already guessed, the rooms follow more or less the same contemporary style and no-nonsense approach to comfort. In this case, my room, located on Floor 11 (one of the highest) west side had also a special “surprise” that I will soon disclose, further down this post.
As you can see, the rooms have wooden flooring (another Scandi design touch), which I tend to prefer.
A few other details I liked about the room: note the large amount of storage space, both for luggage and also to layout clothes and personal items. Also, as is the norm in this category of establishment, there’s a coffee machine and some mineral water waiting for the guest.
The two-piece bathroom is also pretty impressive: very modern throughout and with a power shower. Bathrobes are also provided, since the hotel, as we shall soon see further down this post, has also a small indoor pool and a spa area.
The hotel offers also a whole range of additional ancillary services, from a choice of different pillow types to laundry, all through the electronic console which is accessible through the room’s work desk.
Best hotel room views in Berlin?
And now, the “surprise” that I mentioned earlier, because if this was an Instagram account, the moment of opening the room’s small balcony would be the time to do that typical influencer gesture of covering your mouth with the palm of your hand, in awe of the sights! The picture below is the unfiltered picture of what I could see from my room. Does it get better than this in Berlin?
And, for good measure, this is the view from the bed itself! That’s what I would call a central location!
Btw, in this picture you can appreciate the little balcony, which makes it easy to enjoy the views in full, since you can actually open the doors, a particularly suitable feature during the Berlin spring and summer when the weather can be quite balmy in the German capital! Btw, when that’s the case, you can just spend the afternoon watching the boats on the river Spree pass just underneath your balcony.
Also in the room is a work desk: the right size for the traveling professional and with plenty of natural light, as you can see!
Gym, Spa and Wellness at the Radisson Collection Berlin
As I mentioned earlier, there is a fitness and wellness center in the hotel. To be fair, the facilities are small, but they have pretty much all you would possibly need during a urban city break.
The fitness and wellness center is in the basement and accessible directly from the rooms through the lifts. There is a small pool, more for relaxation than exercises, tbh, as well as separate cardio, yoga, and weight rooms.
Eating at the Radisson Collection Berlin
The hotel has, of course, a restaurant. It is located on the ground floor on the west side of the property, which means that it has views of the river bank. The decor is aligned with the modern-cozy style of the rest of the property.
I had the chance to have my buffet breakfast there and it didn’t disappoint. The breakfast offering was predominantly continental, but with a fair amount of choices. This being Germany, the bakery section was particularly impressive!
So, overall, a very well rounded experience with the added touch that, as a guest, you have a very good chance of getting one of the very best panoramic views of the city of Berlin included in the fare (which, I may say, at this property tend to be in a very reasonable range for Berlin standards and adjusting for quality and location!), a true gem.
A review of The Posthouse Berlin Hotel - Potsdamer Platz
This was another find during a recent visit to Berlin, another real gem, offering great value at a prime location. The Posthouse Berlin Potsdamer Platz – Leonardo Limited Edition is a very modern hotel, which belongs to the Italian chain Leonardo.
It has the additional allure of being located in a historical building which once housed Berlin’s main postal distribution center, something that you can kind of guess looking at architecture of the place. In this case, as we shall soon see, Leonardo has fully embraced this truly unique character of the building when it comes to marketing this property.
While it is not located right next to the city’s top landmark, like the previous hotel we have seen, The Posthouse is also incredibly well located from the point of view of its centrality in the city. It is located within walking distance (10min) of Potsdamer Platz, right at the core of the Government District and pretty much on top (give or take a few dozens of meters) of where the Berlin Wall used to be. It has also within 5minutes walk of the Anhalter Banhof S-Bahn station and the Möckernbrücke U-Bahn station (in addition to the aforementioned Potsdamer Platz, which is also a major railway station).
What’s more the area is very walkable and safe, with broad avenues and lots of hotels, restaurants, shops and museums in its vicinity.
The rooms at The Posthouse Berlin
The rooms are large and very modern and cozy, with a mix of coulours that is warm and sophisticated at the same time. The little touches of colour make the whole ensemble more lively preventing it from being too “neutral”, while keeping the whole subdued.
The bathroom, rather large, also super modern and impeccably clean.
There is a little work desk, also very stylish.
On top of it, a little electronic console provides information and access to services, doing away with the old-school service directory folders.
Some more details that make The Posthouse Berlin a great hotel
A couple of additional details here: lots of space for luggage (you may have noted in the pics above that there is also a rather long bank opposite the bed) and even to sit down to take your shows on or off.
The windows open into a very calm street next to a large green area. In fact, the hotel is located in a rather nice area, with several pedestrian streets around and some shops.
As mentioned earlier, Leonardo has developed a whole brand identity for The Posthouse which is pervasive throughout the property. I particularly liked the very elegant way in which it is applied to all the small items you find in the room and in other parts of the hotel.
The Posthouse has also its restaurant, which shares the same ground floor space as the lobby and reception area. The different spaces are blended seamlessly and get plenty of natural light through the large windows that open onto the street on one side and onto a very large open courtyard on the other.
A couple of other details I liked in the lobby area:
A snacks and water station which guests can access at all hours. Even if the hotel staff renew the bottles of mineral water in the room, its location on the way to the lifts makes for a very convenient stopping point to get some refreshments on the way to and from the rooms. Btw, note also how the hotel decor takes into account the postal history of the place.
When you come into The Posthouse you will notice a bicycle parking. These bicycles are actually available for rental by the day, you just need to ask at the reception, here below you can see the prices.
So, what’s our take: this hotel offers also amazing value for any visitor to Berlin, whether for business or leisure. As was the case of the Radisson Collection Berlin, The Posthouse Berlin Postadamer Platz offers and amazing combination of modern, spacious and pleasant facilities, impeccable service and prices that are truly hard to believe for what you get!
One day in Marrakech, what to see and what to do
Marrakech is a top tourist destination and for good reason. The fact that Morocco has a visa-free policy for most countries and that it is part of the European single skies area (making it attractive and accessible to all European low cost carriers) makes it also a very attractive destination barely a couple of hours’ flight away from many European capitals.
There is, indeed, much to see in Marrakech, and Morocco in general, but what if you are somehow time-constrained, as it was, in fact, my case, as I was attending a conference in the city?
The good news is that most of Marrakech's highlights are within easy reach of each other, meaning an efficient day tripper can cover a surprising amount of ground. That said, a couple of extra days are well worth it to fully absorb the sensory experience that is Marrakech.
In any case, I have compiled here a list of the top things to do and to see in Marrakech in a day (and on a budget!).
Some of you may notice some omissions, like the iconic Villa Majorelle. I actually tried to fit it in my itinerary, but, alas! it was already fully booked during the time slots in which I may have been able to visit. So, the only advice I can give regarding this site is: if you are planning to visit, book in advance!
And, now, without further ado, let’s start our quick, but intense, tour of Marrakech!
In this post we will see:
Jemaa el-Fna, the beating heart of old Marrakech
A walk through Marrakech Medina and its different souks
Best rooftop view in Marrakech
The Ben Youssef Madrasa
Bahia Palace
Koutoubia minaret and gardens
Hotel La Mamounia
Recommended places to stay in Marrakech
Moving around Marrakech: practical tips
Modern Marakech
Menara Gardens
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What to see and what to do when visiting the Medina of Marrakech
Jemaa el-Fna - The main square of Marrakech
I decided to start with Jemaa el-Fna because this wide open square is not just the best known spot in Marrakech, but also the heart (not in a literal geographical sense though) of the Marrakech Medina.
Jemaa el-Fna is buzzing with activity throughout the day and evening. It is here where you can get the first taste of, let’s say, the exotic side of Marrakech. The large esplanade is full of street musicians, snake charmers and other sorts of stalls, each peddling their own merchandise or trade. There is also a whole section that is take by food stalls, forming a sort of open air, food court.
Jemaa el-Fna acts also as a nexus with the modern part of town, so if you are coming by taxi, for example, it is likely to be your gateway into the Medina. It is also on the main axis leading to the Koutoubia minaret and gardens and La Mamounia Hotel, which will explain in more detail further down this post.
Best view of Jemaa el-Fna? The rooftop terrace of Café Glacier
While a walk through Jemaa el-Fna is a must of any Marrakech visit, I also recommend getting the general perspective by visiting the rooftop terrace at Café Glacier (“Le Grand Balcon Café Glacier”). This is a traditional café which has views towards the main section of the square (it is the point from where the above pictures were taken).
The café is nothing luxurious, but it has a sort of old-school charm. There is a ground floor area as well (see the pic below), but I would definitely recommend going upstairs (just one note: there is little in the way of shadow, so it can be quite hot when the Sun is shinning!).
Visiting Jemaa el-Fna in the evening
Regardless of what is your itinerary throughout the day, make sure you allocate at least some time for an evening visit to Jemaa el-Fna. This is actually when the square is the most lively.
As the sun goes down (and outdoor activity becomes more pleasant in the balmy weather), activity picks up, with traders, musicians, performers and the like taking over Jemaa el-Fna.
The buzz goes on until quite late at night, with the numerous food stalls catering to a crowd of both locals and tourists. Be prepared for many of the vendors trying to get your attention as you walk by!
A walk through the Marrakech Medina
Whether you are into shopping or not, a walk through the Medina is going to take most of your time while in Marrakech. The place is simply huge! In fact, the whole historical town of Marrakech is like a giant souk, with seemingly endless streets and alleys fully lined up with shops and stalls.
The Medina of Marrakech is actually a UNESCO World Heritage site. When the French took over Morocco, in the early 20th C., they brought with them European-style urban planning, which is now visible in parts of modern Marrakech, but left the medina untouched. So, the city has preserved pretty much its entire walled ensemble.
When it comes to walking through the Medina, I don’t have a specific itinerary to recommend. In fact, the best plan is possibly to visit with no plan at all, just walk around randomly and you likely won’t be disappointed, since there is something new around every corner.
Nowadays the streets of the Medina are obviously quite tourist-oriented, although you can still see some scenes that look like from the old days, like people riding carts pulled by mules and the like.
The Medina contains, actually, a number of different “souks”, each dedicated to a different trade. The limits between them, however, are not very evident to the visitor, since they exist in a continuum.
Below are some of the souks, in practice you may walk from one to the next without even noticing:
Souk des Babouches for sandals and footwear
Souk des Caftan for traditional robes and garments
Souk Lghzel, a wool market
Souk des Tanneurs and Souk Cherratine , for leather goods
Souk Haddadine, for metal work
Souk des Menuisiers (Souk Chouari) for woodwork and carpentry
Souk des Teinturiers, or the dyers' souk.
Don’t expect, however, the sort of open, colourful dye vats that are found, for example, further north in Morocco, in the city of Fez. These, apparently, exist in Marrakech at small scale in the backyard of the establishments and some are open for visits upon request (and possibly a fee), but I didn’t, so I don’t have pics or specific advice about this.
If you have a sweet tooth, you can’t miss the stalls selling traditional Moroccan desserts and sweets!
The Medina is also interesting at night, when most of the shops have closed.
In the middle of the intricate street pattern of the Marrakech medina you will also find quite a few spots of interest, such as these ornate doors. You will also notice that most streets are actually covered.
There are also quite a few riads (traditional Moroccan guest houses) tucked into the old town (like the one I describe further down this post)
Top things to visit in the Marrakech Medina
Besides the random walk through the Medina, there are a couple of actual landmarks in the old town of Marrakech which are worth a visit. These are:
The Ben Youssef Madrasa
Bahia Palace
Visiting the Ben Youssef Madrasa
The Ben Youssef Madrasa is located next to a mosque and a square of the same name (which is one of the few open spaces in the old town). It also provides one of the key points of reference for orientation within the Medina (the other being Jemaa el-Fna at the opposite (south) edge of the old town.
This is quite a popular tourist spot and there was a constant stream of people walking through, although no queues at any time. Entrance fee is 50 Dirhams (around €5/$5).
The current building of the Ben Youssef Madrasa was built in the 16th C. (although the actual educational establishment is older). In its heyday, hundreds of students from across the Islamic world lived here while they were studying religious doctrine and law.
The madrasa is structured around a beautiful central courtyard with a shallow pool at its center. The upper floors contain a myriad of small tiled rooms which is where the students lived.
The Ben Youssef Madrasa was painstakingly restored to the smallest detail in the 1980s
Visiting Bahia Palace
This is another beautiful place to visit in the old town of Marrakech, although it sits at its southeastern edge rather than in its core. The Bahia Palace was built by a grand vizier (sort of a prime minister) of the Sultan at the turn of the 20th C. It was later used by the French resident-general (the governor, in fact), Louis-Hubert Lyautey, as his official residence.
The palace has plenty of ornamental details throughout, several courtyards and some rather large gardens. In fact, only part of it is currently open to visitors and the visit itself doesn’t take much time.
There were quite a few visitors, but it was much less crowded than the Ben Youssef Madrasa.
Perhaps is best let images speak for themselves…
At the time of my visit there was also an exhibition of traditional Moroccan doors, although I don’t know if this was a temporary or permanent exhibit.
At the time of my visit there was also quite intense renovation work going on. For example, a whole wing of the palace’s beautiful blue courtyard was being fully restored.
By the way, I didn’t mention it, but there is an entrance fee of 100 Dirhams (around €10/$10), which is a bit pricey, but definitely worth it.
Other things to see near the Marrakech Medina: the Koutoubia minaret and gardens
The 69-meter tall Koutoubia minaret is one of the most recognizable views of Marrakech and it defines the skyline of the city. It was built in the 12th C. and it is adjacent to two mosques.
If its outlines looks familiar it is perhaps because the Marrakech Koutoubia minaret inspired also the famous Giralda of Seville (as well as the Hassan Tower in Rabat).
Its location next to the Jemaa el-Fna means that you can’t miss it. There are some lovely gardens next to it, as well!
Visiting a legendary grand hotel: La Mamounia
La Mamounia is one of the world’s most iconic grand hotels and it is located just a short walk away from the Koutoubia and Jemaa el-Fna.
It was built in the 1920s by French architects who mixed art-déco elements with traditional Moroccan architecture. Over the following decades La Mamounia hosted many world leaders and celebrities, but perhaps the guest which has been most closely associated with La Mamounia is Sir. Winston Churchill, who had the place in great esteem and sojourned here several times, including during the war, in 1943, right after the Casablanca Conference.
Even if a stay at La Mamounia is beyond your budget, you may be able to visit its grounds to enjoy a drink (or two) at its bar or terrace. Bear in mind, though, that this is a rather exclusive, private venue, so at times, for example if events are taking place, external visitors may not be let through.
Besides its sumptuous lobby area, La Mamounia hosts also several luxury shops (making it, in practice, a mini-luxury mall) as well as some exhibition space displaying elements connected to the history of the hotel. Worth noting also that La Mamounia has a huge garden!
The bar at La Mamounia was one of Churchill’s favourites (it has since been obviously modernized) and it extends into the outdoor area. A coffee at the terrace at La Mamounia would cost you around 80 Dirhams (€8/$8), but, believe me, it is good value, all things considered.
This is a perfect oasis to recover some energy in the hottest time of the day, after a few hours walking nonstop through the souks. From here it is also quite easy to return to the Medina to check the evening atmosphere at Jemaa el-Fna.
Where to stay in Marrakech
Marrakech is a city of riads, that is the traditional Moroccan guest houses. Many of these have been modernized to cater to the standards of the modern sophisticated traveler, but keeping as much as possible of their authenticity.
Riad Maison D’Hôte Abdel & Jamila
25 Rue Mouassine, Marrakesh 40000
This is a recently renovated riad and at around €75 per night offers great value right in the heart of the Medina, as well as very nice service throughout.
Part of the experience is actually getting to the hotel, since you will need to navigate the maze of small narrow alleys to the side of one of the main souks.
It is a pretty small scale establishment structured around a central open air courtyard which is acts also as its lobby (so to speak) and brekafast area.
Upon arrival there appeared to be a small glitch with my booking.com reservation, although the wait allowed me to enjoy a traditional Moroccan tea in this very scenic room (pictured below).
My room was on the ground floor, which meant that the windows were directly next to the common area of the riad, which made me worry a bit about it getting noisy early in the morning.
However, this concern appeared to be rather unfounded, as this is a small scale, boutique hotel and, while there were people around in the morning, it was all very quiet.
Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the room was the bathroom, tiled, open to the bedroom, yet laid out in a way that still confers a degree of privacy.
The whole experience feels refreshingly analogue: a physical key, which closes an actual lock, and light switches that took a moment to locate, one of them turned out to be tucked behind a bedside table. Little to do with your traditional corporate hotel, but I guess that's the point!
The riad has also a rooftop terrace. There are no outside views to speak of (the inside view is quite a thing, though) but it is a nice spot to catch the rays of the sun (and you can have your breakfast there as well).
The breakfast was really good and substantious. It is served to the table, rather than being buffet-style. You have to wait a bit until it’s ready (breakfast service starts at 9am) but which gives kind of a premium feeling.
Another option to stay just outside Marrakech city center:
Caravan Serai Hotel
264 Ouled, Ben Rahmoune 40000, Marrakech
If you are looking for something a bit different and outside the buzz of the Medina, here is another rather unique hotel to check.
The hotel Caravan Serai is located in Marrakech’s northern outskirts, a few kilometers from the city center . It is located on the edge of a small hill overlooking the plains and offering views of the nearby Atlas mountains, as well as of the Marrakech Medina (you can even make out the siluete of the Koutoubia from there).
Bear in mind, though, that this location means you would need to take a taxi to go to and from the center, each way costing 150-200 Dirhams (€15-20/$15-20). When arriving for the first time it is a bit difficult to locate since it is in the outskirts of a little village literally on a narrow dirt track and there is only a little sign at the door which may be difficult to spot in the dark.
Once you step inside it is like an oasis of peace, very neat and quiet and with a truly unique character. I was told that the hotel opened some 20 years ago, after the owners fully restored a pre-existent structure according to traditional architectural standards.
The Caravan Serai hotel has a large courtyard with a pool, with the rooms, which are rather large and in traditional style, as well (see the pictures below) located all around.
The bathroom is quite something! And there is also a spa in the property, although I didn’t have the chance to check it out!
Each of the rooms have a terrace. As you can see, mine had a direct view of the pool and the courtyard.
The whole set up is quite interesting, with access to some of the rooms through a sort of rooftop terrace which you get to after climbing a narrow set of stairs in a tunnel-like set up.
By the way, if you are a cat person, you will be happy to know there are quite a few felines living in the property and roaming freely through all its common areas.
The hotel Caravan Serai has also a pool side restaurant area, which is where breakfast is served. Breakfast consists of a small buffet. It is not extravagant in terms of choices, although it covers the basics (and the staff can prepare some rather tasty pancakes on the spot and upon demand).
The hotel has also a nice garden, which I guess makes for a nice venue for weddings and other similar events.
By the way, cats are not the only animals roaming free through the hotel grounds: there is also a peacock! Also, note the monumental cactus that welcomes guests to the pool area!
As mentioned a bit further up, another plus of this hotel are the stunning views of the Atlas mountains contrasting with the that lush landscapes of the plain of Marrakech and its palm and olive groves. This view is particularly remarkable when there is still snow in the Atlas!
Moving around modern Marrakech: some practical tips
Let me start this section by saying that infrastructure to get to and from Marrakech is pretty good. Both the train station (left picture above) and the airport (right picture above) are state-of-the art and aesthetically beautiful.
Now, moving within the city is another matter, although you possibly won’t need to move around much if you stay close to the Medina, since the city center is pretty compact and you can get pretty much everywhere on foot.
Now, a couple of pieces of advice:
Get local currency in cash: while cards are accepted in most places, this is still a place that runs on cash. Also, I noticed that long queues form at the currency exchange and ATMs near Jemaa el Fna and the main tourist spots. However, if you look around a bit, you will see that there are some currency exchange shops which are much less crowded in adjacent areas, just avoid the main central spots and you will be fine.
Safety: I got the feeling that the Medina and central Marrakech are, in general, pretty safe. Also lots of tourists, including many families walking around pretty unconcerned. The usual precautions apply, of course, and bear in mind that some areas of the Medina get pretty crowded at peak times. As long as you are careful not to leave your wallet too exposed, should be fine. Also, while there is some hawking, mostly around Jemaa el-Fna, it is much less than I was anticipating.
Taxis: most taxis don’t take cards and are not particularly cheap. A ride to and from the airport, which is pretty close to the airport, can cost 150-200 Dirhams (€15-20/$15-20), which is quite pricey for the distance and local price levels.
Uber does operate in Marrakech, but it tends to be considerably more expensive. Other ride-hailing apps like Careem and Bolt operate in Morocco, but not in Marrakech at the time of writing these lines (only in Casablanca, Rabat and some other cities).
Languages: since Marrakech is a very touristy city, many locals, particularly those working in the tourist areas, know at least some basic English, which they usually use straightaway when seeing a foreigner. French is otherwise the lingua franca (in addition to the local Arabic and Amazigh). Quite a few people in Morocco appear to know some Spanish too.
The taxi app you may want to have when traveling to Marrakech is Roby, which is a Moroccan app. However, it is match-making app only. It connects you to an available taxi, but it does not process any payments. All payments on rides booked on Roby must be settled in cash. The app gives you the approximate amount, but it is advisable to confirm it with the driver before the ride to avoid any surprises later on.
I read there is another app called inDrive that works in a similar way and it is also available in Marrakech, but I don’t have direct experience using it.
Modern Marrakech
The modern city of Marrakech, starts just outside the walls of the Medina. The modern downtown is made of broad, palm-lined avenues.
The area around Gueliz, in particular, is pretty well maintained and its streets are quite walkable and lined with shops and restaurants (including the typical international chains).
It offers quite a contrast with the maze of narrow streets of the Medina.
A place to eat in the modern part of Marrakech
Verandah
232 Av. Mohammed V, Marrakech 40000
https://www.werandahmarrakech.com
So, continuing with the topic of modern Marrakech. If you are looking for a modern place to rest a bit from the frenetic activity of the Medina, here is a place that, while not claiming to be traditional or “authentic” in the exotic sense of the word, offers a comfortable alternative just outside the city walls.
It offers mostly international cuisine, although it has also some Moroccan specialities in the menu, such as the chicken tagine depicted below.
Bonus Tip: Menara Gardens
This Marrakech landmark offers one of the city’s most iconic views, with a water-side pavilion silhouetted against the backdrop of the Atlas mountains.
I had big expectations about this place, so I decided to stop by on my way to the airport, since it is located nearby. To be honest, after having been to all the other places I described earlier in this post, I found the Menara Gardens quite underwhelming.
First of all, I have no doubts that the view must be amazing when visibility is good but this was, sadly not the case when I visited. So, no views at all, although I was not too concerned about this, because I had enjoyed quite amazing views, perhaps even better, from the Caravan Seari hotel, as detailed earlier.
But also, the whole ensemble appeared to be quite run down in general and in this it contrasted with some of the other sites I had visited. I have read that there is an entry fee to enter the pavilion, but I didn’t even check since I had come primarily for the views.
The pavilion and the basin are in the middle of a large olive grove which is also a public park. By the way, one of the positives is that entrance is free (perhaps this explains the less than optimal preservation state). There are a couple of kiosks and little more in terms of infrastructure.
I also visited at a not very optimal time, in the early afternoon, when it is hottest, I guess it is much more pleasant around the evening. Nevertheless there were a few locals having picnics among the olive groves.
The Menara Gardens are some three kilometres in a straight line from Jemaa el-Fna and the Koutoubia, so, it is technically walkable, although it is a large avenue with quite a lot of traffic and little shadow, so may be better to take a taxi. It is also quite close to the airport, almost adjacent to it, actually, but the taxi would still charge the customary 150 Dirhams.
So, in short, feel free to visit if circumstances permit and you think that you will get the views, but don’t lose sleep over it if it’s not possible for whatever reason!
What to do and what to see in Baku and around
For many years, Azerbaijan barely registered on most travellers' minds, but not anymore.
Oil and gas wealth is undoubtedly behind this transformation. The energy resources that turned Baku into one of the largest cities in the Russian Empire, first, and the Soviet Union later, have also underpinned a rather comprehensive urban transformation programme in the last decade.
The skyline of futuristic towers and meticulously restored medieval streets are its most visible sign, but so is a newly found confidence and pride in the country’s ancestral Azeri culture.
Not unlike the Gulf monarchies further south, Azerbaijan has also backed up these public investment programmes with the organization of big-ticket international events such as the Formula 1 championship, COP29 in 2024 and many other international conferences.
And the strategy appears to be working. During this trip to Azerbaijan I came across a fair number of tourists from both east and west that have come to explore the so-called “Land of Fire”.
Not only is Baku no longer an exotic destination for adventurous travellers, its immediate hinterland, which includes a diversity of landscapes ranging from snowy mountain ranges to deserts dotted with natural and archaeological wonders, is starting to get more attention too.
However, and this is also part of the attractive, tourism in Azerbaijan is still far from being a massive affair and you can still get the sense of exploring a truly off the radar destination.
In this post I will try to summarize my experience traveling in Azerbaijan and visiting also a couple of other sites that are within a reasonable driving distance of Baku:
Old and new Baku
The ski resort of Shahdag, in the Caucasus Mountains
The Ancient petroglyphs of Gobustan, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
I am aware that there is another major site of interest just outside Baku: the mud volcanoes, which are clustered around two different sites, one to the north of the city, the other to the south, near the Gobustan archaeological park, actually.
Due to logistics and schedules, it was not possible for me to visit them this time and include them in this itinerary, but if you have the chance I would definitely encourage you to check them out. I have them in my Baku to-do list for my next visit.
So, now let’s dive into what is to do and to see in Baku and its broader vicinity!
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The Flame Towers and Baku viewpoint
It was a bit rainy when I visited, but still a pretty view!
The Flame Towers have become the symbol of modern Baku since they were completed in 2012.
These three curvy skyscrapers are certainly beautiful and original in their looks. It’s hard to miss them from wherever you are in the city, because they occupy a privileged position on top of a hill overlooking the sea.
However, they are mostly about the “continent” rather than the content. In fact, there is little inside them for the regular visitor, since they contain offices, luxury apartments and the Fairmont five-star hotel.
I think it is still worth going to see them from up close, though, not just because of the architecture, but also because the park next to them, the aptly named “Highland Park” offers some really nice views of the city.
The park has also has several interesting monuments within its grounds.
These are of a patriotic nature, such as the “Martyr’s Lane”, which is a memorial to those that died during the last turbulent months of Soviet rule as well as during the long-going conflict with Armenia (which is still not yet fully resolved at the time of writing these lines, even if Azeri forces managed to get control of the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh area in 2023). The park has also monuments dedicated to the Turkish-Azeri friendship (picture below) and to the British troops that were posted in Baku after WW1.
Baku Central Park and Taza Pir Mosque
Right to the northwest of the Old Town is the Central Park and within it is the Taza Pir Mosque (“Təzəpir məscidi”), which is the main muslim religious center in Baku. The mosque was built in the early 20th C. and was restored in the early 2000s. The park itself is quiet a large open space with a bit of incline which has been solved by having several subtly layered terraces.
You have some nice views of the Flame Towers from here and the outer wall of the old town is within walking distance, all downhill. To get there you pass several streets that, unlike the old town, have not (yet) been renovated, so you can get an idea of how things may have looked like just a few decades back in time.
A tour of the Old Town of Baku
The access to the old town of Baku near the "Icherisheher metro station
A must in any trip to Baku is a walk throught the old town or “Icherisheher” (İçərişəhər) in Azeri.
The old town of Baku is a UNESCO World Heritage site and its origins are very ancient (the place was inhabited already in prehistoric times). Its walls and architectural ensemble appear to be in a great preservation state, although you can tell it has also been object of rather extensive restoration project (a little bit like is the case of Al Balad, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, which we described on this post, as well).
The result is a very neat and orderly neighbourhood (perhaps even a bit too aseptic at times!), which makes for quite a relaxed walk around.
I don’t know if we picked up a particularly quiet day, but the place was pretty quiet when we visited it. Nevertheless, it’s refreshing to visit a major historical city center that is not overrun by tourists nowadays! There are also quite a few souvenir shops but you don’t get the feel of overcommercialization you see in other capitals.
One of the highlights of Baku’s old town is the Maiden Tower (Qız Qalası), a round 29-meter tall stone tower with a view point at the top. The current construction is medieval, but it looks like there has been some sort of tower at this spot for thousands of years and archaeologists can not agree as to the original purpose, whether it was religious or military.
All of this is explained as you climb up the tower (warning: it is done through a rather narrow staircase), as each floor is arranged a bit like a little museum hall, each explaining different aspects of the tower’s and city’s history.
But the big prize is climbing all the way to the top to enjoy the 360º views of the city!
A curious fact about Baku is that it has a fleet of London-style black cabs. They were, in fact, imported from England around 2011! (although the Bolt ride-hailing service is also available in Baku)
The taxis are not apparently the only bout of anglophilia in the streets of Baku, since I managed to spot at least one red British-style phone booth!
If you are looking something with a bit more of a local flavour, don’t worry, you will find plenty of these too!
Besides the medieval part of the city, Baku is also endowed with a modern downtown which is legacy from its time as an oil boomtown in the early 20th C.
The oil business made of Baku one of the top three cities in the whole Russian Empire and this shows in the grand architecture of parts of its centre.
This part of the city has majestic buildings in the European style, with broad straight avenues and tree-lined boulevards with shops and cafés.
There are also quite a few broad squares which act as public recreational areas and there is, of course, no shortage of statues and fountains.
The public spaces in this part of the city are also kept meticulously clean and orderly.
The Caspian sea promenade
Baku is a seaside city, even if the Caspian could be technically considered a lake, since it is fully enclosed. In practical terms it doesn’t matter, because the city has a long seaside promenade, complete with a number of piers and several contemporary architectural landmarks.
The latter include the Crescent Hotel, which is the doughnut-shaped building visible in the picture above (part of a larger Korean-designed development that includes also a mall), and the National Carpet Museum, depicted below (I didn’t visit it partly because of time constraints, partly because I am not really into carpets, but this is one of the traditional crafts of Azerbaijan, so maybe worth visiting if it is your thing!).
I must say that, despite being right by the water, Baku doesn’t seem to be a “beach city” in the way that, let’s say, Barcelona or Nice are.
The Caspian waters right by the promenade didn’t, actually, look very inviting and, I guess the proximity of oil extraction areas, both onshore and offshore but not far from the coast, has something to do with it. However, we were told by locals that there are some good areas for bathing in the peninsula right to the east and north of the city.
In any case, a walk onto the pier is totally recomended as it will give you an additional view of the city skyline from the water and allow you to enjoy the sea breeze.
Visiting the Heydar Aliyev Center
The Heydar Aliyev Center is the other must-visit architectural landmark in Baku.
This iconic building, the work of the late renowned architect Zaha Hadid, is part museum, part cultural centre, part conference venue. It was designed to become a symbol of the city and to represent the modernity of independent Azerbaijan, with an instantly recognizable tangible symbol.
One of the defining characteristics of the Heydar Aliyev Center is the fact that it does not have a single straight line. This gives it an appearance of dynamism and weightlessness despite being a really massive building! It is also located on top of a small hill with wide open spaces on all sides, which makes it easier to appreciate its uniqueness and the genius of its design.
While its outer appearance makes the Heydar Aliyev Center already worth the visit, its inside is also quite interesting.
First there is the architectural part, as well, with the internal spaces organized in a rather unconventional way. But the center houses also several collections and exhibits, ranging from art to the history of Azerbaijan and the life and works of the person that the center is named after, Heydar Aliyev, who ruled Azerbaijan both during the Soviet period and after independence and founded the dinasty that still rules the country).
The collections are quite well presented, even if the topics can be quite eclectic. You may wanna put aside a couple of hours to see them all.
From the Heydar Aliyev Center you can get yet another view of Central Baku.
Where to eat traditional Azeri food in Baku
Qaynana Restaurant
Kichik Qala, Baku
This is a restaurant of Azeri cuisine that is located at the edge of the old town, next to one of the old city gates. If you are looking to sample traditional Azeri food, this is a great choice!
It offers great ambience and large portions of tasty traditional food at reasonable prices.
Don’t be surprised if there is queue to get in, though. It is best to try to book in advance, because this place is popular and has high turnout!
One of the specialities of this place is the freshly baked bread called çörək, baked on the spot in a traditional tandoor clay oven.
You can actually watch the whole process, from the moment they shape the dough to its baking in the tandoor and, then, the moment when it comes out of the oven and is brought straight to the tables, warm and ready to eat.
Here below you can see the final results, it is an amazingly tasty bread, but take it easy, because it is tempting to eat lots of it without even noticing. I would recommend leaving some space for the other specialities the restaurant has to offer.
The signature dish I recommend tasting is Shah Plov, which consists of rice cooked inside this type of dough cake you can see depicted below, which is called kazmag, accompanied by lamb and dried fruit stew (chestnuts or plums with pomegranate). But this is not all…
…because of the highlights of a meal at Qaynana is the moment the waiter brings the Shah Plov to the table and cuts the kazmag open with a knife. Its sides fall perfectly in different directions, leaving the warm rice exposed and ready to be mixed with the stew.
It’s a really substantious and filling dish, you have been warned!
Where to stay in Baku
Hyatt Regency Baku
You can go wrong with this hotel. It is solid, modern hotel located in one of the city’s main avenues (not exactly next to the old town, but just a short Bolt ride away or a 25min walk if you feel like it).
The rooms are big (and the bathroom as well), staff were very helpful throughout and breakfast was really amazing, with lots of different local specialities.
Perhaps just a seasonal thing, but you can get really good rates for five-star hotels like this one in Baku!
Excursions around Baku
So, now that we have checked the key hotspots in Baku, it is time to see a bit of the Azeri countryside!
On this trip I describe two such excursions:
To the ski resort of Shahdag (some 2.5-3h from Baku by car to the northwest)
A visit to the rock art of Gobustan (1h by car towards the south)
Shahdag, to be fair, is a bit far for a one day trip, so I recommend spending one or several nights there, and will provide some recommendations in this regard. The excursion to the Gobustan Rock Art can be done as a day or even half a day trip from Baku.
To both places I travelled with a local driver that we hired in Baku through recommendations of locals, but you can find tours and excursions online to these places as well.
Before getting to destination, though, if you have the chance I suggest stopping at any of the many roadside produce shops that you find throughout Azerbaijan.
This particular shop, on the road between Baku and Shahdag was all about apples (btw, if you are into apples, do not miss this post about Mooma, the “apple paradise” in Catalonia!)
There are apples of all colours and shapes, as well as derivative products. The one that I found it particularly interesting, since I have not seen it anywhere else outside of Azerbaijan are these circles of different colours (red, brown, green) that you can see in the pictures above and below.
These are “lavashana”, a traditional Azerbaijani (and broader South Caucasus) which are round panes made of dried plum or apple paste. They are eaten as dried fruit snacks. You literally snatch little portions of the circle with your fingers as you eat it.
Skiing in Azerbaijan: the Shahdag ski resort
The Shahdag ski resort turned out to be an amazing find. It is located to the northwest of Baku, very close to the Russian border (you can actually see Russia from the top of the slopes).
The skiing domain has some 37 slopes ranging from 1,435 to 2,552 metres of altitude and even at the end of the season, as it was the case of our visit, you can expect really good quality snow here.
Shahdag has several things going for it:
The natural setting, which is truly magnificent.
The skiing area is quite compact, with pretty much all the slopes converging at the hotel area.
There are hardly any crowds
Prices, from the forfaits and materiel rentals to the hotels, even the most upmarket ones, have pretty reasonable prices if you compare them with what the equivalents would cost in Europe!
It is also worth noting that Shahdag is quite a young resort, which only opened in 2012.
It is also a sort of flagship project for the Azerbaijan tourism industry, in fact the country’s president, President Ilham Aliyev laid out the first stone of the project back in 2009.
You can tell a huge amount of investment has gone into its development because the equipment and infrastructure is all pretty new. Shahdag is, in fact, an ongoing project with plans to continue expanding it.
Shahdag is also a greenfield project. The centerpiece of the resort and, pretty much its only infrastructure, is the hotel cluster, which is located right at the bottom of the slopes. There is practically nothing else around.
This makes it really convenient if you are staying at one of the hotels (more on this below), but means you are virtually in an island in the middle of the mountains.
Where to stay in Shadagh
Park Chalet, Shahdag, Autograph Collection
This is one of two five-star hotels in Shahdag (there are four hotels and one apartment block in total in the resort as of 2026), both Marriott franchises and quite similar in style.
The picture above depicts the “Pik Palace, Shahdag, Autograph Collection”, as seen from the “Park Chalet, Shahdag, Autograph Collection”, where we stayed. Perhaps the Pik Palace, Shahdag, Autograph Collection is a bit more upmarket, but the differences are marginal, I think.
Park Palace, Shahdag, Autograph Collection is a rather stylish hotel, a modern take on the traditional Alpine aesthetics. You can get an idea of how the rooms look like in the pictures below.
When it comes to food, the good news is that each of the two Marriott hotels has a pretty good restaurant. The food is fresh and tasty. It is perfect if you like grilled meats, because they cook them on a proper charcoal barbecue in plain sight.
The bad news is that there is very little else around. There are a couple more restaurants in the resort’s small commercial area and that’s it. There are no supermarkets or produce shops, nothing. And the restaurants can be a bit pricey, so if you spend a few days at the resort it starts to add up.
As mentioned earlier, this being the Caucasus, grilled meats (“shashlik”), served with the corresponding sides, are the signature speciality.
The hotel has also a well-equipped spa area with an indoor swimming pool and a gym.
Another nice feature of the hotel is that it is located right in front of the starting point of most of the ski lifts and gondolas going up the mountain, so you can just walk from your room to the slopes in a matter of minutes!
Visiting the Gobustan Rock Art Cultural Landscape
And from the mountains to the desert! Because the other outdoor area I visited near in Azerbaijan is the Gobustan Rock Art Cultural Landscape, which is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The contrast with the mountains of Shadagh is sharp, the Gobustan rock art area is located in a very arid region some 60km south of Baku, where the flatlands are punctuated by a series of hills.
There are some mud volcanoes nearby but they were closed at the time of our visit, so I am not commenting on them in this post, but if you have the chance, it may be a good idea to include them in the itinerary!
It is on these ridges where the rock art is found. In fact, it is spread over a rather large area, but for regular visitors the core is Boyukdash Mountain, which is where some of the most impressive rock carvings and the museum and visitor center are located.
The Gobustan National Historical-Artistic Preserve Museum is quite modern (you spot the trend here!). It was inaugurated in 2011 and acts also as a visitor’s center for the main cluster of petroglyphs.
It does a good job explaining, through a rather immersive experience, the history of the area and the different rock carvings found, which stretch all the way back to the Paleolithic era 40,000 years ago, although some are as “recent” as the Middle Ages.
The visit then continues outside to see the rock art first hand. It is very accessible and you don’t need to be a specialist to see it, because it is all over the place. The petroglyphs are really diverse in their shapes and topics and depict humans, animals and things, like boats, for example (several thousand years ago, the Gobustan area was much closer to the Caspian sea and much greener).
The natural setting is also quite impressive from the point of view of the landscape. The hills where the carvings are located look a bit like a sort of gigantic disassembled lego set, with huge rocks and boulders laying out on top of each other in a rather chaotic manner.
So, even if you only have half a day free after visiting central Baku this can be quite an interesting excursion to do!
Getting to and from Azerbaijan and some practical tips
Finally a word about getting to Azerbaijan plus the usual practicalities to take into account.
It’s visa free for most countries (or e-visa on arrival to be more accurate), including the EU, the US and the UK.
By the way, the following is possibly only relevant to a very small subset of travellers, but, at the time of my visit and I think it is still the case well into 2026, it was only possible to enter Azerbaijan by air, its land borders having been closed since the Covid pandemic!
In any case, Baku airport is getting increasingly well connected with many points in Europe and the Middle East and it has become quite an accessible destination.
Again, the wonders of oil-funded investment in state-of-the-infrastructure become visible at the airport, which is a really modern and convenient facility (although there is still a small Soviet-era terminal in service, which is used by a small number of flights).
By the way, the best way to get to and from the airport, and to move around more generally, is to get an e-sim that works locally and use Bolt, which is the top Western ride-hailing app in Azerbaijan. Prices can be very competitive, a ride from the airport into downtown costs the equivalent of €7 (US$8) and within Baku’s downtown it can be just a couple of euros (or dollars).
By the way, Russian is still the main foreign language for most Azeris, although the younger generation tends to know at least some basic English.
It’s also a good idea to change a bit of cash upon arrival too, even if credit cards are accepted in most places.
Two hours from Dubai, a World away: visiting Musandam on the Strait of Hormuz
Now that the Strait of Hormuz is the centre of the global attention for all the wrong reasons, it is perhaps a good time to remember that its southern side is one of the most truly amazing destinations you can visit anywhere in the Middle East.
The Musandam Peninsula, an Omani exclave which protrudes into the sea giving the Strait of Hormuz its curvy, contorted shape, is a land of majestic desert fjords and dramatic vertical cliffs laid out in an extremely intricate pattern.
It is hard to believe that this area, with almost no flat land or roads of any type and populated only by some fishermen which move around only by sea, is located just a couple of hours drive from the buzz of Dubai.
If you are based in Dubai, the Musandam Peninsula is perhaps the top thing to do if you are looking for places to spend a weekend somewhere out of the city. In fact, traveling to Musandam from Dubai is like stepping into a whole other world entirely!
Now, what I am going to explain here refers to a visit made before the military conflict that flared up in the Gulf in early 2026. So, a word of caution here, since I have no idea how the war may have affected the Musandam Peninsula and whether it is advisable or even possible to visit during times of conflict.
In any case, the natural attractive of this area is there to stay, so hopefully these lines about how to visit the Musandam Peninsula and what to do there will remain relevant regardless of when the fighting ends.
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In an article I wrote about the area in 2023, was titled “The Norway of Arabia” and while this comparison helps frame the type of landscapes and environment Musandam offers, I think it is worth elaborating a bit more on this label and sharing some more details of this amazing and yet relatively unknown gem of a destination.
Khasab, the gateway to the Musandam Peninsula
How to get to the Musandam Peninsula
First of all some important logistic considerations:
Musandam is an Omani exclave, that is one piece of the territory of the Sultanate of Oman which is detached from the mainland and wedged between the UAE and the Strait of Hormuz. Therefore, if you travel there by land, you will have to clear Omani customs and immigration.
Now, the good news is, Oman is a relatively open country and citizens of many countries (including the EU, UK and US) can simply get a visa at the border, a process that involves just filing a form and paying a small fee.
However, it is still an international border and entry conditions may change, so check in advance on the websites of the Omani government and the travel advisory section of the embassy or consulate of your own country!
Another important consideration:
If you are traveling on a car rented in the UAE (as was our case), you need to make sure the terms and conditions of your rental allow for entry into Oman. Many car rental companies in Dubai or Abu Dhabi will do that for an extra fee. So, check it is possible before the booking and then ask for it again when picking up the vehicle.
Also, in addition to obtaining permission from the car rental company to take the car out of the UAE, you also need to take into account that Oman requires all vehicles entering its territory to have an insurance policy that covers Omani territory. Some car rental companies based in the UAE offer this, but, in such case, make sure you get all the papers and print them out, because they are going to be checked at the border and they are pretty strict with this.
The alternative is to contract an ad-hoc insurance policy for the duration of your Musandam journey right at the border. An Omani insurance company has a booth right by the border post just for this purpose. The process takes like 5min and it requires filing up a form and paying the insurance fee (at the time it was something like $60 for a 2-3 day period, but this may be subject to change).
In our case, while we had contracted the international insurance upon picking up the car in the UAE, there was, apparently, a mistake in the way it had been processed, so the border guards wouldn’t let the car in unless a new insurance policy was contracted at the local booth, which we did (we later cleared that out and got refunded by the car rental firm since it had been them messing up the paperwork).
The distance from downtown Dubai to the Oman border crossing is about 150km (90 miles) and to Khasab is about 200km (120 miles). It is nearly all through motorway, except for a short stretch between Ras Al Khaimah and the border in which it switches to a two lane road which crosses and industrial area. So, it takes a couple of hours to the border, and to that you should add another 30-40 minutes already inside Omani territory to Khasab.
You must also factor in some time for the border crossing, because it is necessary to stop, get off the car and clear immigration at the customs house. The time requirement depends on the amount of people and the “complexity” of your paperwork. On the way in we spend nearly an hour, but this is because we arrived just after several buses full of tourists (there are also some organized tours from the UAE going to Musandam) and we had to sort out the car insurance paperwork. On the way out it took us less than 10 minutes.
Roads are good. On the UAE side, you are almost all the time on a well-maintained, multi-lane motorway. On the Omani side it is a two-lane road, but it is also well-built, well-maintained and quite broad. So, as long as you take care of the border formalities, Musandam is pretty accessible.
You can also travel to Musandam by air, since there is also a small local airport. However, as far as I am aware of, it only has a few domestic flights to the Omani capital, Muscat.
Spending the night in Khasab
Fjord cruise departures are usually at 10am, so, while you could technically make it in one go from Dubai if waking up very early in the morning, I would highly recommend spending the night before the fjord tour in Khasab.
Where to stay in Khasab
Now, when it comes to choices, Khasab is nothing like the apparently almost endless supply you find across the border in the UAE. And this is a great part of what confers to Musandam such a sense of uniqueness and, without being luxurious in the material sense, of exclusivity, as well!
There are basically two major modern establishments in Khasab and both are managed by the same company, Omani hotel group Atana, the Atana Khasab Hotel, which is located in a small hill overlooking the bay of Khasab, and the Atana Musandam Resort, which is located in downtown by the port.
The latter markets itself as somehow more upmarket (perhaps on account of its slightly more central location), but, from the descriptions I have seen I think they are both pretty similar, in the four-star range. We stayed at the Atana Khasab Hotel and had a very good experience!
This, was at least, the situation when it comes to accommodation in Khasab at the time of my visit. Since things change really fast in this region, it is very possible, that some new hotels have opened since. In fact, and unless there is a deliberate policy of limiting visitor numbers, I wouldn’t be surprised if this is what ends up happening, since the appeal of the place is undeniable and it is only a matter of time until the word spreads out. I hope, if this ends up being the case, that Musandam is able to preserve its charm!
Atana Khasab Hotel
This modern hotel is located right on the main and only road leading from the UAE border into Khasab. It is located a couple of kilometres from the port and it has some very nice pool-side views of the bay of Khasab and the waters around the Musandam Peninsula. it has plenty of space to park your car, btw.
The facilities are quite modern and spacious and some rooms have direct access to the terrace.
We had dinner and breakfast at the terrace of the Atana Khasab Hotel and it was pretty good overall. The menu contains also quite a few local specialities, which is a nice touch (the um ali and mahalabia they serve for dessert are particularly tasty!)
The hotel has also quite a few outdoor spaces, including part of the dining area, which is quite nice considering that the weather in this part of the world is quite balmy in the mornings and evenings.
My description of the Atana Khasab Hotel wouldn’t be complete without a word of recognition for its staff, and particularly for Rasheed, the hotel’s restaurant manager, who went above and beyond to return us an item of great personal value that we inadvertently left behind at the hotel. Rasheed not only took care of finding it, but even drove several hundred kilometers into the UAE to deliver it in person to the resort where we were staying it at the time!
“This is Omani hospitality”, he simply said.
So, I am taking this opportunity to express again my huge gratitude for this very kind act!
What to do in Musandam?
While the base for any Musandam Peninsula excursion is Khasab, which is the main town in the exclave, there is little to see in the town itself, aside from a 16thC. Portuguese fort (Portugal controlled the area around the Strait of Hormuz for quite some time in the 16th-17th C.).
The rest of the town is pretty unremarkable. In fact, it is quite a small place. There is a sort of “downtown” with some shops and wholesale outlets near the port, but the population is pretty scattered otherwise.
The main thing to do in Musandam and, basically, the whole point of coming here is to enjoy a cruise along the fjords of the peninsula.
To do so, it is necessary to book one of the many day cruises that leave Khasab port in the morning. You can find quite a few options on Viator or Getyourguide.
We booked this tour of the Musandam fjords, which costs around $50 (€45) per person and the experience was great! I will describe it in more detail right below.
My impression is that most tours offer a pretty similar service, though: pick up in the morning at your hotel, drive to the port for a 10am departure. Then you spend around 6 hours at sea, returning in the afternoon at around 4pm or so.
The boats are of the traditional dhow type, although they are somehow modernized. They have a broad open deck where you spend most of the time. There is a protective canvas that is rolled out over it to protect from the sun as well as a cabin by the stern. The boat is also fitted with toilets, btw.
These boats are large enough to carry perhaps a couple dozen people onboard, but it is rare to see them full. In our case it was just around ten people and there was plenty of space to move around. It all felt like going on a private yacht.
The crew were also very nice. They took good care of us throughout the trip and you could see how they even strived to get us were the dolphins were!
Our route took us on a loop around the Musandam’s main fjord, which is located just to the west of Khasab. We started on the south side, getting past Telegraph Island (a little rocky outcrop which once housed a rely post of the British telegraph linking London to India) to the very bottom of the fjord and then back along its north side.
We did a couple of stops, each lasting about an hour or so, during which the crew anchors the boat next to shore and it is possible to swim. The crew also lends you googles and fins to do some snorkelling, which is quite an experience in these waters. There are coral reefs, plenty of fish and some interesting creatures, such as sea cucumbers and huge sea urchins!
Lunch is included in the experience and it is served on deck. It consisted of Arabian and Indian-style food, different types of roasted meat and vegetables with rice and different types of accompanying sauces and condiments plus flat bread. It was pretty tasty and abundant. It is self-service. The crew lays out the different foods and you take as much as you want. Drinks are also served.
During the trip you see several other dhows following roughly the same itinerary, but the distances are so big that it never feels crowded or “touristy”, even if it is obviously a touristy, packaged activity.
In fact, one of the most awesome things of this experience is the feeling of smallness in this rock and water landscape (there is not a single tree or even a little speck of greenery on sight!).
We also sailed past some settlements which can only be reached by sea. It is incredible to think this place is just a couple of hours drive from the Dubai Mall. It feels like a different planet!
One of the highlights of the tour is the dolphin spotting. At the start of the cruise I was giving a very low chance to this happening, but, actually we saw the first dolphins barely 15 minutes into the trip and then we spotted many more at different points during our journey!
Here are some more pictures of the secluded, mineral world that is the Musandam Peninsula.
This is a really rugged area, with some peaks towering nearly 800 meters directly over the water!
So, after returning to port, we just left Musandam for the UAE again, but you may want to consider staying for one or two more days to get more rest or simply to explore a bit more of the Musandam Governorate.
You can take the world’s longest zipline (1,800 metres), which has one of its ends right next to the Atana Khasab Hotel, or you can try to explore a bit of the interior of the exclave, which has some really high mountains reaching above 2,000 meters, although I don’t know how accessible those tracks are.
In any case, a day sailing through the waters of the Musandam Peninsula is an amazing, unforgettable experience and one I would recommend to anyone visiting this part of the world!
Further reading
If you are traveling in the area of planning to, you may want to check also my posts about:
Two days in Timisoara: what to do and what to see
Timisoara is the capital of the Banat, a historical region of Western Romania with a rather rich and interesting history.
Perhaps no other factor has contributed more to shaping the city than its location atop one of Europe’s civilizational fault lines.
The Ottomans conquered the city in 1522 and ruled it for nearly two centuries. During that time, Timisoara was one of the westernmost cities of their Empire. In 1716, the tables turned and it was the Austrians that took the city, transformed it from the ground up and made it one of their easternmost fortresses.
Later came the modern state of Romania and, of course, the Communist period under Ceaucescu, in the downfall of which Timisoara was to play a star role.
The city that most visitors see today, though, is the product of the Habsburg era. When the Austrians, led by the famous military commander Eugene de Savoy, took over the city, they soon started an ambitious program of engineering works.
In fact, to call it a “transformation” would be an understatement, because the Habsburgs basically built a new city over the foundations of the Ottoman-era one. The marshes around the old city were drained and a new urban grid was overlaid on the existing one, making way for the broad avenues and squares and Baroque buildings that make Timisoara such an architectural gem today. The city was also enclosed by star-shaped fortified enceinte containing multiple bastions.
Like many other cities in this part of Europe, Timisoara became also a cultural melting pot, with a population that, in addition to Romanians, has historically included also substantial numbers of Hungarians, Germans, Serbians and Jews. This shows in the fact that there are no less than three different cathedrals (Romanian and Serbian Orthodox and Catholic) in the historical centre of Timisoara, as well as a synagogue.
In this post I list the main points of interest in the old town plus some other things to do if visiting Timisoara, mostly connected with the role that the city played in the start of the Romanian Revolution of 1989, which ended up with the downfall of Ceaucescu’s regime and the democratization of Romania and its ultimate entry into the EU a few years later.
So what to see when visiting central Timisoara?
A walk through the Old town: from Piata Unirii to Piata Victoriei
Romanian Orthodox Cathedral
Banks of the Bega River
Maria-Theresa Bastion
Memorial of the Revolution
Museum of the Communist Consumer
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Top things to see in Timisoara’s historical centre
The historical centre of Timisoara is small, orderly and compact. It is structured along a number of large monumental squares linked by an orthogonal grid of cobblestone-paved pedestrian streets.
To be fair, the area of historical interest is not large and you can see most of it in a morning even if walking at a leisurely pace. If you allocate some time as well to visit the museums and enjoying the many cafés and restaurants in town, the two days that we I used as a reference to build this itinerary turn out to be quite optimal.
Piata Libertatii
This is one of the main squares in Timisoara. Piata Libertatii (“Freedom Square”) and, while it lacks the grand splendour of the nearby Piata Unirii (there are in fact, several buildings that are undergoing renovation), it is a lively square and a major crossroads where there is always movement of people.
It is also at one end of the Vasile Alecsandri avenue (depicted below right) the main commercial axis in the old town of Timisoara.
Piata Unirii
Piata Unirii (“Union Square”) is the main landmark in Timisoara’s old town: a large, open square which, in addition to the Austrian-built Catholic cathedral, contains also the city’s art museum as well as several beautiful and colourful historical buildings which line all its sides.
When the sun shines it offers an absolutely glorious panorama.
When walking through the city you can see that the historical centre has been painstakingly restored and, indeed, some buildings (including the one I stayed in, more on this further below in this post) are still undergoing a thorough renovation.
The public space has also been fitted with quite a few pieces of urban art and contemporary sculptures, as well as informational panels in both Romanian and English. There is also a QR code you can scan to get more in-depth info on your mobile phone, although, sadly there was some technical glitch that prevented the page from opening when I tried it on mine.
Timisoara seems to be a city well aware of its past, and it is also possible to find quite a few plates and signs marking important historical spots, whether its Romanian statesman Ioan Cuza or Eugene of Savoy, or the emplacements of buildings that are long gone, like the Ottoman hammam (roughly where present day Piata Libertatii now stands).
Another piece of relatively well preserved (and now restored) historical Timisoara is the Maria-Theresa Bastion, which was part of the Austrian fortifications, and is just a couple of minutes on foot from Piata Unirii. This is now the home of the National Museum of the Banat, but it was closed at the time of my visit.
Piata Victoriei and around
Piata Victoriei (“Victory Square”) is the third major square that gives shape and character to downtown Timisoara. Unlike the other two, this one has a more modern flair.
In fact, it is more than a square, because it transitions into an elongated gardened boulevard that ends in front of the Orthodox Metropolitan Cathedral.
At the opposite end of the boluevard from the cathedral is the National Opera House, a very distinctive building the façade of which is adorned by a large arch and a colonnade.
Piata Victoriei was a major scenario of the 1989 Romanian Revolution, with the balcony of the National Opera House acting as an impromptu gathering place for the revolutionaries. In fact, the imprint of those days is kept well alive to this day.
In addition to the musem and memorials that remembers that moment (more on this further below), it is possible to find reminders of those epic moments throughout the city, like the grafitti alluding to the 35th anniversary of those events, to the entire text of the “Proclamation of Timisoara” being proudly exhibited in Piata Victoriei.
As in Cluj-Napoca, the she-wolf statue acts as a reminder of Romania’s links to Ancient Rome
The Romanian Orthodox Metropolitan Cathedral of Timisoara is another landmark of interest in this part of the city, with a very distinctive architectural style which mixes Byzantine and local influences.
The cathedral stands at the edge of the historical town. Right next to it starts a series of gardens which run all along the banks of the Bega river and act as a nexus with the modern part of the town.
These ring of parks cover the area where the city’s outer defensive bastions used to stand. If the weather is nice, you can expect them to be packed with families strolling around or with young people having parties in the terraces and boat-restaurants.
While most of Timisoara’s modern parts are rather unremarkable from the point of view of architecture (several decades of Communist dictatorship left its urban mark), the area immediately to the south of the Bega river has some avenues that are not without interest.
Here you can see how in the early years of the 20th C. Timisoara was a growing city that expanded well beyond its original kernel.
Timisoara must have been a really thriving city in the late 19th and early 20th C. as shown by the fact that it was one of the first in Europe to introduce a number of public services that were truly pioneering at the time.
It was one of the first cities in Europe to have a horse-drawn tram network in 1867 (their electrically-powered successors still plod its streets, as you can see in the picture below) and the very first city to introduce electric street lamps in 1884!
The post-war Communist regime also tried to introduce its own version of “modernity” but with far less pleasing aesthetical results. Fortunately the historical perimeter of Timisoara was relatively untouched by this branch of “architecture”.
The Revolution Memorial
This is a must-visit in Timisoara, and a nice way to get a peek into the history of the city during the Cold War years, when Romania was under the totalitarian rule of Communist dictator Nicolae Ceaucescu.
The museum is, I think, run by non-profit, and the facilities are somehow basic (if quite centrally located just north of Piata Unirii) but it does a good job of conveying what life was like at that time and the sequence of events which, starting in Timisoara, led to the downfall of Ceaucescu’s regime in December 1989.
The Romanian flag with the Communist coat of arms cut off from its middle became the emblem of the 1989 Revolution. Unlike in other countries of the Eastern Bloc, the ousting of the Communist regime was a rather bloody affair, first due to government repression and later on due to the ensuing chaos.
This is a historical episode, by the way, which I covered also in my post about Bucharest, where some of the key developments of this story took place. Timisoara, however, is where everything started and today the city takes just pride in this fact!
Museum of Communist Consumers
If you didn’t have enough of Cold War Romania during the visit to the Memorial of the Revolution, you can also take a stroll to the Museum of Communist Consumers (“Muzeul Consumatorului Comunist“).
In fact, to call it a “museum” is a bit of a stretch, since it is essentially a bar which, in a rather ingenious marketing ploy, has transformed its basement into a makeshift repository filled with ordinary objects and memorabilia from the Communist period.
To be fair, there is not entrance fee, you just walk down the stairs and are free to roam the rooms (you may have to look for the electric switch as you walk into the next room, just as you would in a normal house). As mentioned, this is not an ordinary museum, so don’t expect any signage or audioguide.
If you are interested in that era, it is not without interest, if only because of the very original way to present the “collections”. If you were born before the 90s some of the items in the collection may not look entirely unfamiliar either!
In any case, since the bar-museum is located some 15 minutes walk south of the Bega river, it is a nice excuse to get out of the old town, as well. It’s a nice walk if the weather is nice and the bar has a terrace where you can sit down to replenish energies before continuing the sightseeing.
Where to eat in Timisoara
When arriving in Timisoara, one of my goals was to try some local Banat specialities and, I must say, that proved quite more challenging than I expected. There is no shortage of Italian and Asian restaurants and burger joints in Timisoara, but not really that many Banat or Romanian cuisine restaurants! In fact, I think I didn’t fully succeed at finding them, although I present here a couple of options which may be reasonably close and provide, I think, good value.
Paso Local Cuisine
Strada Eugeniu de Savoya 6B, Timișoara
https://www.pasorestaurant.com
This is a small restaurant located at the heart of the old town, providing good service and value for money in addition to a somehow lively atmosphere.
The speciality here are the meat dishes (although they do have some fish too) and, in particular, the roasted meat dishes that are so typical of the Balkans and southeastern Europe.
They only had one dessert choice, but it was pretty tasty.
Restaurant Tinecz
Calea Aradului 51, 300254 Timișoara
This restaurant is a bit further from the historical centre, so ideally you would need to take a cab (the Bolt ride from the Piata Unirii costs something like €3). I went to try it since I saw it had good reviews and a semblance of local cuisine.
This is, in fact, the case, although it combines some dishes with a local flavour, like the “sarmale” (below), which were excellent and pretty substantious, with more, let’s say, international cuisine.
The service was pretty good throughout, as well.
Coffee and pastries in Timisoara’s historical centre
If there is one thing I liked on the culinary front, though, it is the pastries. Here below are three places that I tried. All three are within 20 meters of each other on Vasile Alecsandri street next to Piata Unirii.
Patisserie-Cafetarie Prospero
This is, apparently, a local chain with three or four brances around town. It offers a nice range of sweet and savoury pastries and good coffee.
A’Clair by Alma Dulce
This place represents a totally different approach to coffee and bakery.
In fact it is more like a high-end patisserie offering some coffee as well.
The flagship product here is a sort of elongated sweet cake filled in the middle with cream of different flavours.
While there is not place to sit in the fancy, but rather small, interior, it does have sitting outside, on the street.
In line with the type of stylish experience it aims to offer, coffee here is served in some very original designer terracotta cups.
Service was great throughout.
Select Bakery
This is just opposite the aforementioned “Prospero” and it offers a similar selection of pastries. You can order to take away right from a little window on the side of the shop.
I particularly enjoyed this sort of triangular pastry, which is filled with a sort of cottage cheese and served warm. In fact, I liked it so much that I went back there for more the next day, and would have done the same if I had remained in town for longer!
Where to stay in Timisoara
City Park Apartments
Strada Carol Telbisz 4, Timișoara
This place was great value and in absolutely convenient location. It is located in one of the large old blocks next to Piata Libertatii. The place looks completely dilapidated on the outside, but the apartments inside are modern and renovated.
The place consists of a number of renovated apartments located in one of the wings of what I think must have been some old military barracks or something like that.
At the time of my arrival the place was pretty much a construction site. I guess the place will look completely different in a relatively short period of time, on account of its really prime location, since it is literally a two minute walk away from the main commercial axis in the historical centre.
So, don’t be fooled by first impressions when you come in (the check in process is fully automated, with the property sending you the codes to access the different parts of the building), the apartments inside are in good state, renovated and are very spacious. There is also a small, equipped kitchen, and some household supplies in an antechamber. There is also an espresso machine with some available capsules.
When I arrived there was no warm water, but this was fixed in a matter of minutes when I emailed the property and they sent me instructions about how to reset the heater, which was in an adjacent room.
There is high speed wifi as well.
Getting to and from Timisoara
Finally, before departing, a word about logistics and how to get to and from Timisoara.
The fact is that with low-cost airlines like Wizz Air flying to Timisoara from many points in Europe, never has been so easy to explore this beautiful city.
The airport is small but very modern and functional and it costs less than €10 to get there from the center with Bolt.
This ride hailing app is possibly the best way to move around if you don’t want to get messed up with public transport schedules and the like, and it is also not very expensive. In fact, if you stay near the old town you possibly won’t need transportation within the city at all.
If you are traveling from other parts of Romania, like Bucharest or Cluj-Napoca, you may look also at the train or the bus. In such case I suggest you check this website for schedules and bookings.
48 hours in Avignon and Nîmes: what to see, what to do
The south of France is so rich in sights and history that at, if you find yourself driving around the area on a sunny day, it is easy to feel overwhelmed by the amount of choices that present themselves.
There are, however, some sites that really stand out (and have even been recognized as such by UNESCO, which has granted them World Heritage Site status) and fortunately, several of them are relatively close to each other, so it is perfectly possible to visit quite a handful of them in a couple of days if you have access to a car.
So, what to see and what to do if you if you are traveling in the area roughly delimited between Nîmes to the west, Avignon to the east, Châteauneuf-du-Pape to the north and Aiguesmortes and the Camargue to the south? We’ll see it now!
In this post I am going to try do just that: describe an itinerary that includes, I think, some of the most impressive and interesting places to visit in the lower Rhône Valley and the region where Provence meets Occitanie. These are representative of a diverse range of historical eras and have some varied landscapes, as well.
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Visiting the Palais des Papes in Avignon
Our itinerary starts in front of the imposing ramparts of the Palais des Papes, the old papal fortress in Avignon. This small provençal town was for quite a few decades in the 14th C., the residence of a number of Popes, which made it, de facto, the centre of the Catholic world.
Pope Clement V, who was French, relocated to Avignon from Rome in 1309. Apparently in an attempt to be closer to the French court. After him, successive popes stayed in Avignon and kept enlarging their residence and making ever more majestic.
The Papal Palace in Avignon thus, evolved into one of Europe’s largest medieval fortresses, made even more impressive by the fact that parts of it are built on top of naked rock (see the picture below).
The Pope returned to Rome in 1377, although Avignon remained part of the Papal estates and, in fact, it didn’t, join France until after the French Revolution in 1791!
It is advisable to buy the entry ticket in advance online, since there is a slot system for visits. To be fair, we booked quite at the last minute didn’t have any issue finding available slots, but I can not guarantee this is always the case, particularly during busy holiday periods!
It is also possible to buy a ticket that combines several of the town’s historical sites, such as the palace, its gardens (which we were closed at the time of our visit and, therefore, not included here) and the bridge over the Rhône (the famous “Pont d’Avignon”). Prices range between €12 and €17 approximately depending on the option you take.
If arriving by car, the best option is to leave the car at one of the several underground paid parkings near the Palace. The closest one is just underneath the palace’s rock and it is very aptly called “Parking du Palais des Papes”. If you spend half a day touring the castle and walking around the old town you would possibly pay something on the order of €10 or so, but it saves a lot of hassle.
Allocate at least a couple of hours to the Palais des Papes, because the place is huge.
I recommend taking the audioguide since, in addition to having nice and comprehensive explanations, it comes in the form of a tablet with augmented reality effects. It allows you to see how the different parts of the palace-fortress would have looked like in its heyday by pointing out at specific locations.
The visit, by the way, combines indoor and outdoor spaces and it is even possible to climb to one of the fortress towers for a view of the town.
Sometimes there are also some temporary art exhibits throughout the palace (like is the case of these giant suspended crowns in the picture below).
“Sur le Pont d’Avignon”
A visit to Avignon wouldn’ be complete without visiting the bridge over the river Rhône, the “Pont d’Avignon” that gives its title to the famous folk song.
The “Pont d’Avignon” is a real thing and it was built during the Middle Ages. Besides its function connecting the two banks of the Rhône, it also acted as a checkpoint to tax goods and trade and move upstream from the Mediterranean and downstream from Bourgogne and northern France.
The bridge only makes it half way across the river nowadays, since part of it was destroyed by a flood. This was apparently a regular occurence, but for some reason they stopped rebuilding it at some point.
There is a small museum at the head of the bridge which explains not just the history of the bridge and the importance of the Rhône as a major trading artery in the past, but also sheds some light into Medieval bridge-building techniques.
It is also possible to walk over the bridge and, in fact, it is from the far end of the bridge that you can get what are, possibly, the best panoramic views of the monumental ensemble of the Palais des Papes. so, make sure you include this in your visit as well!
Wine tasting in Chateaunêuf-du-Pape
The village of Châteauneuf-du-Pape (which is named like this because the Popes had a summer residence there during the period they resided in Avignon) is home to one of France’s most prestigious wine “terroirs”.
Châteauneuf-du-Pape is an AOC (Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée) within the French and European system of geographical designations for origin for wine (and other types of produce) and a particularly renowned one, covering both red and white wines.
According to oenologists, the quality of Châteauneuf-du-Pape wines has a lot to do with the combination of sunny southern climate, the strong winds that often blow down the orographical funnel that is the Rhône valley and the soil of the area, which is peppered by a type of rounded rocks that were, once upon a time, underneath a large glacier that covered this region.
Now, I am sure a dedicated wine conoisseurs could spend a whole week in Châteauneuf-du-Pape from one cellar to the next, tasting all the different labels. We certainly didn’t have this luxury (neither do I claim to be a wine expert) and I guess that this is also the case of most of our readers (even if possibly many of you may appreciate a nice glass of wine from time to time), so we selected just one winery for a quick glimpse into the world of Châteauneuf-du-Pape wines.
Visiting Maison Brotte in Châteauneuf-du-Pape
Avenue Pierre de Luxembourg, 84230 Châteauneuf-du-Pape
This is one of the largest wineries in Châteauneuf-du-Pape and it runs a small museum dedicated to wine-making in the region as well as the history of the Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée and its natural environment. The visit includes a rather comprehensive audioguide itinerary and ends with a tasting of half a dozen local wines.
It is advised to book online in advance. The ticket costs something like €10 per person, give or take, and includes the tasting.
From Avignon to Châteauneuf-du-Pape is about 15km or so, about 20 minutes by car. Maison Brotte is right on the main road leading into the village and it has its own parking space for visitors. So, if you have the time, definitely worth a go.
Visiting the Pont du Gard
An itinerary between Avignon and Nîmes must include, of course, a detour to visit the famous Pont du Gard, one of the most impressive and best preserved Roman aqueducts to be found anywhere in the world.
This UNESCO World Heritage Site can be accessed from both banks of the river Gard. In either case, the car will only get you to about a kilometre or so from the actual aqueduct.
We approached it from the north side and there is a very large parking there and an interpretation center. Entry to the monument grounds is €8. I guess this is all the same on the south side.
A network of footpaths take you all the way to the aqueduct. You can even walk on it.
This is a very spectacular piece of Roman architecture by any consideration. We also got there at dusk when there was hardly anyone around, which made the visit even more impressive!
What to do in Nîmes
Next stop in our itinerary and our base for the night was Nîmes.
This is a very pleasant French provincial city which surprised me positively. I had heard, of course, about its Roman heritage (the city was called Nemausus in Roman times and the Pont du Gard was actually built it to keep it supplied with water), but Nîmes also has a beautiful and very walkable centre with some interesting architecture.
It is also a convenient place for an overnight stop, since, as we shall soon see, it has some great value options to eat and sleep and it is also quite easy to move around.
Visit the Arena of Nîmes
The roman amphitheatre (“Arènes de Nîmes”) is the jewel of the crown here. It is one of the best preserved (perhapsh THE best preserved) Roman arenas in the world, to the point that it is still used regularly nowadays for all sorts of spectacles. It is also super centrally located, so you can’t miss it!
Now, if you have visited other similar buildings in other parts of the former Roman Empire, you know what it is about. Nevertheless, it makes for an interesting visit, because most of the original structure is still standing you can roam through most parts of it, including the top rows, which good views of both the inside of the Arena and the city around.
The audioguide is also included with the ticket, by the way.
Visiting Roman Nîmes and the Maison Carrée
Nîmes is also home to another exceptionally preserved Roman structure, the temple known as “La Maisón Carrée”, which is also right in the middle of the old town. Besides the beauty of its proportions and the postcard-perfect look, it also has a small museum inside.
In fact there are quite a few Roman monuments in Nîmes in addition to the two presented here.
For example, there is also an old Roman defensive tower (the “Tour Magne”) at the northern edge of the city center, as well as a large archaeological museum located next to the Arena. The latter, known as “Musée de la Romanité” is housed in a contemporary landmark building next to the Amphitheatre. We didn’t have time to visit it, but read very good reviews.
It is possible to purchase a combined ticket which lets you visit all the sites for an advantageous price (although it is also possible to buy individual tickets, as well, if you don’t plan to visit them all).
Walking in Nîmes historical center
But besides the Roman monuments, Nîmes has also a rather beautiful, even grand, downtown.
Parts of it had the typical French “Republican” civic architecture. Large majestic buildings in neoclassical style and large open space are found in the area adjacent to the Arena (including a rather impressive Great War memorial with thousands of names on it).
The old town has a more intricate maze of small streets, with plenty of shops, cafés and small hotels.
Here are quite a few details from the morning walk through downtown Nîmes, from the crocodile that adorns one of the fountains in the old town, to some touches of contemporary architecture that mix with the more traditional harmony of the old town.
Where to eat in Nîmes
Wine Bar Restaurant Cheval Blanc
1 Pl. des Arènes, 30000 Nîmes, France
https://www.winebar-lechevalblanc.com
This is a cozy French restaurant located right in front of the Roman amphitheatre.
It features an artsy-bohemian decor with lots of motifs related to bullfighting, which is an activity which has a long tradition in Nîmes.
At Cheval Blanc you will find, essentially, French cuisine specialities. The food was rather good overall, it didn’t disappoint, it was exactly what we were looking for. You can see our choices here.
Service was a bit slow and at times the staff appeared a bit inexperienced, although to be fair they strived to make up for this by being extra nice and they were very diligent whenever we had some query or request.
Extra points for the desserts, which were amazing!
Where to stay in Nîmes
Appart'City Collection Nîmes Arènes
1 Bd de Bruxelles, 30000 Nîmes, France
This is an amazingly good value option to stay in Nîmes. It is as centrally located as it gets: just opposite the Roman Arena. and right next to the city’s main post office.
These serviced apartments (a hotel in all but name), occupies a grand, almost palatial, building which may have been a bank or something like this in the past, or at least it looks the part.
Staff at the reception were also quite nice in giving us very good advice for our visit downtown. It is also possible to park for free evenings and weekends on the nearby streets (there is a large paid car park under the adjacent square).
The room was huge! In fact it was more like a proper apartment with several differentiated areas: bedroom, living room-kitchen, with a large sofa that can be turned into a king size bed, bathroom and a sort of elongated studio and storage area as annex of the main bedroom.
I don’t know if all the rooms are that large, but it was truly spacious! And all of this cost around €100.
What to see in Aigues-Mortes
So, if you are in Nîmes and have a car, you may want to drive down to the Camargue, the marshy area at the mouth of the river Rhône.
The Camargue is, in fact, quite a large region that occupies most of the coastline between Montpellier and Marseille. To properly experience it, you would need to spend several days there, but, if you are short of time, you can make a quick stop at the walled medieval town of Aigues-Mortes, some 40 kilometres south of Nîmes.
Aigues-Mortes was a departure port for the Crusades in the 13th C. You can see, from the size of its walls that this was a place of quite some importance in the Middle Ages. In fact, Aigues-Mortes has managed to preserve, to a large extent, its medieval characters, being still to this day completely enclosed by the very impressive medieval walls.
As its name implies (“Dead Waters” in Occitan language), Aigues-Mortes is surrounded by water and swamps pretty much on all sides. It is also pretty close to, but not directly on the sea shore. There is a canal on one side of the old town and a lagoon and salt pans on the other one.
This lagoon turns pink at certain times of the year (not at the time of our visit), making for some amazing photo opportunities, although, to get the best angles I think you need to get to quite some distance from the ramparts!
As you would expect in such a heritage-rich city, its centre is all pretty much pedestrianized (there are paid car park right outside the city gates), and while there are not major landmarks standing out within the walls, the beauty of the place is the harmony of the ensemble.
Where to eat in Aiguesmortes
Restaurant La Citadelle
10 Pl. Saint-Louis, 30220 Aigues-Mortes
https://restaurantlacitadelle.shop
This restaurant is located on the main square of Aiguesmortes (Place Saint Louis).
We picked this place up a bit randomly (it was one of the few places that were open at the time of our visit) and it turned out to be quite a find!
It has two areas, a large spacious hall inside and a terrace (it is also a café) which I am sure it is rather nice when the weather is warm and sunny.
It is a rather unpretentious place overall, but here you can enjoy some local specialities, excellent seafood and great service.
A day in Málaga, what to do and what to see
Despite being the gateway to one of Europe’s top tourist regions, the city of Málaga is, I think, often overlooked as a tourist destinations on its very own.
Of the millions of visitors that pass through Málaga airport every year, only a relatively small percentage venture into downtown Málaga itself, the rest heading straight to the many seaside resorts and golf courses that dot this narrow strip of land between the Mediterranean and the Penibetic mountains, a stretch of coastline that has come to be known as the Costa del Sol.
I must confess that I was more or less guilty of the same sin, since my previous visit to Málaga, decades ago, had just been a quick ride through town on the way to the airport. The 2026 edition of the eMobility World Congress provided the opportunity to change that and to explore a bit more of the city. And, while it is true that most of Málaga’s suburbs look a bit uninviting, as is typical of cities that grew fast during that dark era of architecture that were the 1970s, the city centre has, fortunately, preserved some truly charming corners.
In the following sections I am trying to sketch the top things to do and to see in Málaga if you are on a short visit. The good news is that Málaga’s historical center is quite compact, so you can go quite a lot even if, as it was my case, you are truly time-constrained.
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A walk through Málaga’s historical town
Most of the sights cluster within or around the old town, which borders also the port area and the hill where two old fortresses stand (the Alcazaba and Gibralfaro castle). The good news is that most of this area is pedestrianised, so this makes for a rather pleasant walk between the different sights.
Calle Marqués de Larios
This is Málaga’s main commercial axis, which you can see below. It has a rather elegant pavement made of these large white stone slabs (although the red carpet is a temporary addition for the city’s film festival).
The street is named after the Marquis of Larios, which was a prominent local industrialist in the 19th Century. The Larios family played a very important role in Málaga during most of that century and held sway over large swathes of the local economy. Their palace was located right where the “Equitativa” building stands today, the very prominent 1950s rationalist building that takes center stage in the picture below.
This building, which used to be the local headquarters of an American insurance firm, has since been transformed into a boutique hotel, the “Soho Equitativa”, which I will review further down this post.
So, this street, “Calle Marqués de Larios” is where many of the well known consumer brands have set up shop (I read that at some point it was one of the most expensive locations for retailers in Spain). It was a bit rainy during the time I started my visit (so much for the “Costa del Sol” famous year-round sunshine!) but this gave the streets a particular patina that I kind of liked.
While Málaga hasn’t been immune to the sort of touristization and banalization that has afflicted most European historical centers, it is still possible to find some truly authentic retail outlets!
Málaga Cathedral
One of the highlights in historical Málaga is, of course, the cathedral. This one is particularly impressive because of its size!
Roman Theater
Málaga is a really ancient city! One of the oldest in Europe, in fact. Málaga appears to have been founded by the Phoenicians some 500 years before the Romans arrived in the Iberian Peninsula. Rome, however, did arrive in due turn and and the city continued to prosper, changing its name from Phoenician “Malaka” to Latin “Malaca”. One of the most visible landmarks from that era is the ancient theater (“Teatro Romano”). It has its own small dedicated museum, but it was closed at the time I visited. Nevertheless, you don’t need any ticket to admire the ruins.
To be fair, it is not as big as the Ancient theaters in places like Myra and Amman, but its locaation at the foot of the old Islamic-style fortress of the Alcazaba fortress, with its medieval walls, make it quite scenic. It is also right in the middle of the old town.
Right next door, between the Roman Theatre and the Cathedral is the Málaga Museum (Museo de Málaga), which is housed in a neoclassical former customs house. Now, I didn’t have time to visit the museum, something that I kind of regret, since I head good things about it. So, I included it here so that you don’t forget to add it to your list if you have the time. It has basically to main collections: 19th Century Spanish paintings and Ancient archaeology from the local area.
I did manage to admire the exuberant palm grove that surrounds the building, though!
The Alcazaba of Málaga
If you have to choose only one place to visit in Málaga, this is it!
The Alcazaba is a former fortress-palace that for centuries has dominated the city from its hilltop position. Now, there is another castle even higher up on the same ridge, the castle of Gibralfaro.
The two were connected by a narrow walled enceinte, now in ruins. You can visit both nowadays, although you need to do so separately (you can purchase a joint ticket, though).
Since I had limited time I opted to visit the Alcazaba only, which I think has most to offer to the visitor. The higher Gibralfaro fortress has perhaps slightly better views, but you get a pretty nice view from the Alcazaba as well, and it saves you the climb uphill. It’s just a matter of prioritization.
The Málaga Alcazaba as we know it today is mainly a product of the Al-Andalus era, when Spain was under Islamic rule. The foundations of the current castle were laid out in the 11th Century, but the complex has suffered modifications throughout the centuries.
By the 19th Century there was even a whole residential neighbourhood on top of the palace ruins and some plans were drawn to remove completely what was left of the old fortification.
Fortunately those plans didn’t materialize and, in fact, by the early 20th Century, with changing attitudes towards the preservation of historical heritage the Alcazaba was declared a legally-protected monument and a process of archaeological investigation, restoration (and in some cases even reconstruction!) started.
Málaga’s Alcazaba is, in some ways, like a mini-Alhambra of Granada, with its magnificent views, patios and palatial quarters in Islamic Andalusí style.
However, most of what you see today is a relatively modern reconstruction (albeit a tastefully done one!) since most of the buildings had become a total ruin and some areas had to be cleared of other later constructions that had been built on top.
Seeing the result, I think it was the good decision to take!
Entrance to the Málaga Alcazaba is €7 (or €10 if you buy the combined ticket that gives you also access to Gibralfaro fortress). The ticket has a QR code that you can access to get an audioguide which runs straight through your phone (you need an internet connection), a pretty smart and convenient approach!
The Alcazaba also opens a bit earlier than other museums, so it is a good idea to start the day here.
Picasso Museum of Málaga
Pablo Ruiz Picasso, one of the most influential and universal artists in history, was born in Málaga and, while he left the city quite early in his life, his imprint remains in the city through the Picasso Museum of Málaga.
The museum is located in the middle of the historical center in the Palacio de Buenavista, a fully restored 16th-century palace, which was, in turn, built on top of Roman and Phoenician foundations. IT is also adjacent to the church of San Agustín (picture on the right), also from the 16th C. and sharing its courtyard with the museum building.
Btw, the museum must not be confused with Picasso’s birthplace, which is actually some 200 meters away, on Plaza de la Merced, and it is also an exhibition space (which unfortunately I wasn’t able to visit).
Practical note: there are two queues to enter, one for those that purchased the ticket online (you are encouraged to do so by using a QR code displayed by the entrance to the museum) and another for those that wish to buy the ticket onsite.
It was a bit confusing, particularly since both queues appeared to be growing by the minute at the time of my visit. Interestingly, the “online ticket queue” was not only longer, but seemed to move more slowly. So, since I was not sure how much time would it take, I decided to try the ticketless-cash only queue. It turned out to be the right decision, since every few minutes a member of staff let some people from that, much shorter, queue in.
So, I don’t really know if this is how it always works, and hadrd to understand the logic when it looked like those pre-purchasing were being penalized (perhaps on some days there are numerus clausus and those that didn’t buy online can not get in?). In any case, but thought worth sharing the experience.
The entrance fee is not cheap (€13) but I think it is good value for what you get.
While the museum is not huge, it holds a really interesting collection that covers pretty much the whole of Picasso’s life and which were gathered by the artist’s daughter-in-law and one of his grandsons.
There is also a section with paintings by other influential artists that were contemporary with Picasso.
So, I would say this is the other highlight I would visit if having to prioritize the things to see in Málaga.
By the way, if you are interested in the life and work of Picasso, you may also want to check this piece I published on CNN a few years ago about the places that inspired and influenced the artist’s work in Catalonia during his youth.
The Port of Málaga
Since Málaga is a port city, a walk through the harbour could not be missing from this post. This time it had to be an evening one, but it still delivered some rather impressive sights, and I am not referring to the handful of mega-yachts moored along the quay!
There is a promenade all along the quais which offers the sea-view of the historical Málaga skyline, complete with the cathedral, the Alcazaba and the line of walls, illuminated at night, that run all the way up to Gibralfaro castle.
What’s more, the port of Málaga has also some interesting architectural landmarks that are made even more interesting because of the contrast in styles. This is the case of this Mondrian-style glass cube which hosts the Centre Pompidou Málaga and a small modern art collection, and the elegant Chapel of the Port nearby.
And if you make it all the way to the port’s lighthouse (“La Farola de Málaga”), you may as well eat or drink something at the “Trocadero Casa de Botes”. This is a stylish quayside restaurant which offers a cozy indoor atmosphere and some nice views of the port and the city. Definitely a place to check if you are looking for a place with real character to eat in Málaga.
Where to stay in Málaga
Hotel Soho Boutique Equitativa Málaga
Edificio La Equitativa, Alameda Principal, 3
29001 Málaga
This is a very nice hotel located right at the intersection of Calle Larios and the Alameda avenue, the two major avenues in Málaga’s downtown, and next to the port area. What’s more, as described earlier in this post, the Equitativa building is a landmark on its very own. Built in the 1950s, this 14-storey rationalist building would not be out of place in a major US downtown.
Rooms are not big, but are very cozy. The bed is comfortable and the room has everything you need to work, if needed. The bathroom is also pretty modern and stylish and has a huge shower room.
Also remarkable is that you may get great views of the city. I was just on floor 4th (of 14) and it was already like a panoramic viewpoint of the aforementioned Calle del Marqués de Larios right in front. I can only imagine how the views must have been from rooms further up.
By the way, there is a bar and a panoramic terrace (with a small outdoor pool, also with views) on floor 7th.
Last but not least, a couple of shots of the breakfast, which, as you can see here, was particularly solid when it comes to the pastry department!
So, definitely a hotel I would recommend as a place to stay in Málaga!
