Charyn Canyon and Kolsai Lakes, a great day trip from Almaty
If you are a regular reader of this site, you may have figured out already that I have a soft spot for Kazakhstan, a country which I have covered multiple times.
Yet, most of what I have seen so far (aside from a short outing to Shymbulak ski resort next to Almaty) was its urban landscape (see my posts about what to do in Astana and Almaty, btw!). It was about time I explored a bit of the countryside, as well.
Fortunately, while Kazakhstan is huge (if overlaid over the map of Europe, it would stretch all the way from the west coast of Ireland to the Russo-Ukrainian border!), many of its top natural wonders are located within driving distance of Almaty.
What’s more, these offer to the visitor a stunning diversity of landscapes and ecosystems, from the Alpine environment and peaks of Kolsai Lakes National Park to the sandstone cliffs of Charyn Canyon, often called “the Kazakh Grand Canyon”, and the broad steppes in between!
Covered in this piece:
Is it possible to visit the Kolsai Lakes and Charyn Canyon in one day?
Visiting Lower Kolsai Lake
Infrastructure at Lower Kolsai Lake
Where to eat at Lower Kolsai Lake
Charyn Canyon National Park
Infrastucture at Charyn Canyon
Trails to visit Charyn Canyon
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!
This post was made possible thanks to the support of Almaty Tourism Bureau and Air Astana. All opinions are my own.
Kolsai Lake and Charyn Canyon in one day? Long but doable
The itinerary of this excursion was as follows: leave downtown Almaty early in the morning, head straight for Lower Kolsai Lake (the only one of the three Kolsai Lakes that is easily accessible by car), retrace the road back towards Almaty and stop at Charyn Canyon National Park on the way. Finally, head back to Almaty in the evening.
If you look at the map, you will see that all these spots look relatively close to Almaty. And *relatively” is the key word, because this itinerary, while doable, is still a rather long drive for European (and even for US) standards!
The good news is that the roads are pretty good in general, including several stretches of multi-lane motorway, so you can complete this whole itinerary on a regular car.
For reference: we left Almaty at around 6.15am. The drive to Lower Kolsai Lake took us around four hours. Charyn Canyon is located roughly along the same route (it just required a detour of a few kilometers on the way back to Almaty).
From Kolsai Lake to Charyn Canyon it was around 1h 30 min. We arrived at Charyn Canyon at around 15.00 and left for Almaty at 16.30. So, it was a rather lightning visit, but enough to see the main highlights.
If you have the luxury of time, it wouldn’t hurt to look for a hotel in the area (as we shall soon see, there are quite a few unconventional accommodation options in the area, including yurts (the traditional Kazakh nomadic tent) and “capsule” bungalows) and visit these places as a more leisurely pace. For example, by accessing the upper Kolsai lakes or walking Charyn Canyon’s lower trail.
Another plus of this itinerary is the chance to take in the sheer scale of the Kazakh steppe, which meets the Tian Shan mountains here.
From this point, the arid plain stretches northwest for thousands of kilometres. In this region, though, it is far from featureless: ravines cut across it, and rocky outcrops rise from the grass. You may also spot Kazakh horsemen driving herds of cattle across it, a scene that would have been familiar to the nomadic peoples who have roamed this land for millennia.
After several hours heading east, the road turns south toward the foothills of the Tian Shan. The landscape change is abrupt. One moment you could be in the Arizona desert, the next, you may well think you are in Switzerland.
Visiting Lower Kolsai Lake
The Kolsai Lakes National Park has a three-lake system, with the Lower, Middle and Upper Kolsai Lakes.
The only one that is (almost) accessible by private car is the Lower Kolsai Lake. The middle one, which is famous for its underwater forest, can be accessed through a service of mini-vans (the sturdy, Soviet-designed “Bukhankas”) and the upper lake requires some serious hiking.
By the way, there is an access fee to enter the National Park, which is paid at the entrance (I can’t provide an exact fee indication since the fee is indexed to something called “Kazakhstan’s monthly calculation index”, which sets the exact amount, but I would say shouldn’t be more than $10/€10).
I only cover the Lower Kolsai Lake here, since it was necessary to prioritize in order to be able to also see Charyn Canyon on the same day.
Infrastructure at Lower Kolsai Lake
The road ends around 1 km from the Lower Kolsai Lake. It is here, a this terminus located at an altitude of 1,800m, where you find most of the infrastructure to service the visitors who come to visit the lakes.
There are a number of bars, cafés, restaurants and (paid) toilets, as well as the typical souvenir shops, as well as some companies that offer horse rides and other experiences, such as the drive in a special vehicle to the Middle Kolsai Lake. There is also plenty of parking space.
I didn’t get the impression that there is a lot of hospitality infrastructure at the moment (Oct.’26), but this is an industry that seems to be developing fast. In fact, when driving to the lakes you can see quite a few camping/hotel sites and the “/” is intentional, because I am not sure to which category of accommodation they belong since they tend to be either yurts (although I guess a modern reinterpretation of the traditional concept) as well as capsule-like bungalows.
I guess “glamping” is the best way to define these modalities of accommodation that appear to be popular in the vicinity of Kolsai Lakes National Park. Maybe something to find out next time!
From the road terminus and services base it’s a 15 min walk to the Lower Kolsai Lake. It is a rather pleasant walk with no particular technical difficulty. The trail is perfectly demarcated and maintained.
At the end of the trail you find a little dock and a water sports base where it is possible to rent rowing and pedal boats.
Top place to eat at Lower Kolsai Lake
Tary Café (by Sandyk Group)
Also at the edge of the lake, but some 100 meters uphill is the most upmarket establishment in the area: the Tary Café and restaurant, which has also a panoramic terrace and a souvenir shop.
This place is part of the Sandyk Group, which runs also a Kazakh cuisine restaurant which I featured in my Astana story, and has a partnership with Air Astana to supply the airline’s business class inflight meals.
The walk up to Tary Café is well worth it, since it is an ideal spot to rest a bit after the long drive from Almaty and replenish energies by tasting some Kazakh specialities, all while enjoying some privileged views of the lake.
The place is tastefully decorated, arranging traditional Kazakh motifs in a rather subtle minimalist way, and, at the same time, underlining the beauty of the surrounding landscape.
Charyn Canyon National Park
We shall soon see what’s in Charyn Canyon, one of the great natural attractions of Kazakhstan, but first I would like to highlight that Charyn is not the only canyon in this part of the world.
When driving between the Kolsai Lakes and Charyn, you pass by the “Black Canyon”, which is slightly smaller than Charyn and made of darker rocks (hence its name). Interestingly, a glass bridge is being built over the Black Canyon!
I didn’t stop due to time constraints, but even the drive by provided some really stunning views, which you can see in the picture below.
Arriving at Charyn Canyon - Infrastructure
Charyn Canyon is located in a totally different environment from Kolsai Lake. Here the landscape is desert as far as the eye can see, which is the Tian Shan range, on the border with China.
Access to the canyon is through a branch of the main road, which takes you to the visitors’ center car park, itself barely a couple of hundred meters from the edge of the canyon. By the way, just like at Kolsai Lake, there is also an entrance fee to access the national park.
The visitors’ center is quite a modern building (it opened in 2023) which blends quite well with the landscape. There is a small exhibit area, an ever smaller souvenir shop, toilets and a branch of Tary Café (the same that we have already seen at Kolsai Lake!).
Next to the visitors’ center there are also a number of structures painted in earthy colours. That is the Pana Unique Charyn, a glamping resort, also of recent construction.
Trails to visit Charyn Canyon
The section of the canyon that most visitors see, called “Valley of the Castles” is only a small part, a couple of kilometres long, of a whole geological system that stretches for over 150 km).
There are two main ways to visit it: through the upper or the lower part. Since there was time for one, opted for the easiest and fastest: the upper one. This upper trail has also the benefit of offering broad panoramic views.
The title of “little brother of the Grand Canyon of Colorado” is well deserved. Charyn Canyon is much smaller than its US counterpart but the overall setup is quite reminiscent of it and also very impressive, reaching a depth of 300m at some points (although the depth is closer to 150m along the most commonly visited area).
It was formed as the Charyn river (from which it takes its name) made its way from the nearby Tian Shan mountains, where it has its source, through sandstone and other soft rocks. In the picture below you can see the start of the upper trails, which follows the edge of the cliffs along the Valley of Castles.
The upper trail presents no technical difficulty, since it is rather flat. Every few meters there are salients that, like a terrace, offer a closer view of the valley below (through which the lower trail passes).
Wildlife at Charyn Canyon
While walking along the canyon you will come across large numbers of great gerbils. These little rodents are a constant presence during your walk as they constantly pop in and out of their little burrows and you can see them quarreling with each other or carrying materials for their “homes”.
I added the next couple of pictures to give you a sense of the scale of the scenery here. Zoom in and you will see a few people standing on rocky ledges along the rim of the canyon!
With these views, and little time to spare, this intense one-day excursion from Almaty came to an end. More than three hours of driving lay ahead, though fortunately much of it on motorways.
However, and before you go, let me recommend the following pieces, which you may find of interest if you are planning a trip to Kazakhstan in the near future:
24 hours in Almaty, Kazakhstan, what to do and what to see (updated 2026)
Almaty is Kazakhstan’s largest city and it was also its political capital until 1997, when the government moved to more centrally-located Astana (I did visit Astana in the same trip and a post with my impressions is coming up soon, btw!).
Kazakhstan is the size of whole of Western Europe and Almaty is literally at one of its corners, right on the foothills of the Tian Shan mountain range, which limits with Kyrgyzstan and China. The view of the Tian Shan’s snowy peaks is, actually, the first sight greeting visitors arriving at Almaty’s international airport (you can find also my review of Air Astana’s flight from Europe here).
These mountains play, actually, an important role in the life of Almaty’s residents and I had a chance to get a taster of them, but, since we have only 24 hours in the city, let’s go on a quick city tour first!
Covered in this post:
A walking tour of central Almaty
The Almaty metro
The city baths
Panfilov Park and the Orthodox Cathedral
The Green Bazar
Evening in Almaty
Shymbulak ski resort
Where to stay in Almaty
Where to eat out in Almaty
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.
A walking tour of central Almaty
If you have ever been to any of the capitals of the former Soviet republics, some parts of Almaty will look familiar to you. Although Almaty has been settled for many centuries, it was during the Soviet period that the city grew to become one of Central Asia’s largest cities and that it got most of the landmarks I visited during this tour.
What is interesting about Almaty’s architecture, though, is that, interspersed with the classical Soviet-era styles (like the Opera palace depicted above), there are many elements that draw from local Kazakh culture.
As an example, these intricate motifs (right side picture), inspired in traditional Kazakh art, which decorate the facade of quite a few buildings in central Almaty. Judging by the type of construction, I’d say these are from around the 1970s.
Also remarkable is that most of central Almaty is laid out in a grid-like pattern, with rather wide streets intersecting at right angles. There is also quite a lot of greenery, since the city is not very densely built and there is ample space between buildings.
Our tour took place on a rainy Autumn day, which made for a nice walk in the cool (but not too cold!) air. I hope these pictures capture a little bit of the city atmosphere, like here below, at the head of Panfilov Street, one of the main pedestrianised avenues in Almaty.
A ride in the Almaty metro
Let’s start by saying that the metro (subway) in Almaty is rather limited, in fact it is not, properly speaking, a transport network, because, as of 2024, it has just one line.
What’s interesting here is that, while it was inaugurated in 2011 and part of it has been built even later, the style is unmistakably Soviet. This is not because its engineers suffered from some sort of nostalgia, but because the design and construction of the Almaty metro project actually started in the 1980s.
Apparently, every Soviet city qualified to get a metro system from the moment it reached a population of 1M. Almaty got to that magical figure (after some gerrymandering with the city limits, we were told during the excursion) only as the Soviet Union was starting to crumble. Plans were laid out, but the Soviet collapse and the chaotic years that ensued meant that the project was put on a very slow track, until it was restarted in the early 2000s. So, when it was time to get back to work on the metro, the same blueprints were used (why not?).
It is well worth taking a ride on the Almaty metro just to have a peek at the different mosaics and decor elements you find at several points.
But let’s first have a look at the metro map to get an idea of the extension of the system and, one thing of note: see the line of mountains on a blue background at the top of the map? This shows the Tian Shan mountain range, which Almaty citizens use always as a reference point when navigating their city. The mountains here help with orientation, the same way that the sea or rivers play in other cities as an geographical anchor element.
The other interesting element are the mosaics and mural art that you find all over the metro. These depict mostly Kazakh themes. Here above you can see a glass mural dedicated to Aport apple, which is a local apple variety which has become a source of local pride and a sort of symbol of Almaty.
But what I found most interesting are the many mosaics throughout the metro system that allude to local Kazakh culture (again those tile patterns!) as well as the history of Central Asia and the Silk Road.
See for example these depictions of ancient cities at Zhibek Zholy (Жібек Жолы) station. How many monuments and places are you able to recongize in this map of the Silk Road?
The city baths
Bath houses play an important role in Turkic culture (Kazakhs are a people of Turkic origin), so it’s not a surprise that another building of reference in Almaty is the Arasan public bath (today known as the “Arasan Wellness & SPA”).
It was built in the 1980s in response to Tashkent, in neighbouring Uzbekistan (and a rival for urban primacy in Central Asia) having built earlier its own bath complex.
It’s a rather modern interpretation of the traditional public bath concept with plenty of interesting decorative details built in.
Panfilov Park, Ascension Cathedral and Memorial of Glory
This is sort of Almaty’s “central park”. Although it is not huge, it has several of the city’s landmarks in it, such as the Orthodox cathedral of the Ascension, which was built in wood and using a rather innovative (for the time) earthquake-resistant approach that has allowed to survive undamaged several episodes of seismic activity.
The park is named after Panfilov’s “28 Guardsmen”, a mostly-Kazakh unit in the Soviet army that suffered very high losses while defending Moscow in 1941.
Like every city in the former Soviet Union, Almaty has here, as well, its WW2 memorial with its eternal flame. There is also a military history museum next to the park, although there was no time to visit it.
The Green Bazaar
The Green Bazaar is located less than five minutes walk away from Panfilov Park and it is one of the must-see places in Almaty, if only to relish in the broad diversity of flavours and smells here. It is also a good spot to taste and buy traditional Kazakh produce, such as the famous Aport apples or Irimshik, a sort of brownish soft cheese.
The bazaar is very well organized by product category (dried fruit, pickled food, dairy, meat…) and by ethnicity. So, it seems that every national group specializes in one type of produce. For example, we were told dried food vendors are mostly Uzbek, while the dairy section is mostly taken care of by Turkish women.
There is also a Korean section (see below). Many ethnic Koreans were deported to Kazakhstan from the Far Eastern territories of Russia on Stalin’s orders around the time of WW2 and they are now a sizeable minority in Kazakhstan. Because of the lack of the original ingredients in their new homeland, Koreans adapted some of their dishes to the local produce and tastes.
Aport apples
Irimshik cheese
An evening walk through Almaty
Days are short in Autumn, so part of the walking tour took place in the evening, which is something that has its own appeal.
Here is a view of two landmarks of 1970s brutalist architecture in Kazakhstan. On the right is the building that used to house the Ministry of Geology, a pretty important institution in a country that derives much of its wealth from natural resources!
The building with the crown-like top to the left is the Kazakhstan Hotel. Arguably the top hotel in town for many years and, still today, one of the city’s main hospitality establishments.
At just over 100m high, the Kazakhstan Hotel was also, at the time of its construction, the tallest building in the country. It was also built with seismic activity in mind and its structure is said to be able to stand earthquakes of up to 9.0 in the Richter scale. In fact, the structure was successfully tested during its construction with a special machine that shook it up simulating a strong earthquake, with the chief architect and engineers on top (skin in the game!).
During our walk we were also able to see several of the statues scattered around central Almaty, with very different themes. For example, here on top you can see a fountain that represents the Kazakh horoscope (similar to the Chinese one) and, below, a statue dedicated to Soviet-era rock star Victor Tsoi.
Another iconic hotel in town is the Almaty Hotel, which was has a surprisingly modern-looking design despite having been built in the 1960s (the interior has been renovated but the structure remains the same).
Curious historical fact: the first director of the hotel, Rakhimzhan Koshkarbayev, was the Soviet soldier that hoisted the red flag over the Reichstag during the Battle of Berlin, in 1945 (the iconic photo was a later reenactment, though).
The entrance of the Almaty Hotel is also decorated with these beautiful mosaic depicting scenes from Kazakh traditional tales.
More street art, here in an underground passage. Note, again, the Aport apple theme!
And, here, with this picture of the Kazakh Academy of Sciences, that we conclude our tour of the city centre. Before turning to the outdoor experience in the mountains, though, a word about the excellent tour guide, provided by Walking Almaty.
Shymbulak ski resort
Almaty is surrounded by great outdoors, including some world-class natural parks. You don’t even need to go as far as Altyn-Emel or Charyn Canyon (two truly unique national parks which are within driving range of Almaty, but which are, perhaps, best visited with an overnight stay), truly Alpine nature is a short taxi and cable-car ride away from the city center!
Shymbulak, is a suburban ski resort. The base station of the Shymbulak cable car is barely a 15min drive from Almaty city center (provided there is no traffic!).
The cable car will take you in a few minutes to a height of more than 2,200 meters of altitude. In Winter this is where the skiing area starts, but you can visit year round for the mountain sights, trekking (it was rainy and cloudy when we visited though) or to enjoy the restaurants and services (more on this in the food section further down).
These mountains are very popular with Almaty residents, who come here for a bit of outdoors sports and to breathe the fresh mountain air.
It is in this valley, half way up the mountain, that you find the Medeu skating ring, the highest in the world of its type. This sports facility became famous during Soviet times, because local conditions of altitude and prevailing low winds enabled many ice skating world records to be set here!
We arrived just in time to experience the first snow of the season!
Where to stay in Almaty
Intercontinental Almaty by IHG
This is a nice, modern hotel located in a high rise building.
Its rooms are modern, perhaps not up to the very latest contemporary design trends, but solidly comfortable, clean and big.
The members of staff were also very friendly and helpful throughout.
By the way, on the culinary front, I enjoyed room service, which offers an eclectic mix of international and Asian food options.
Breakfast and lunch buffet are also worth mentioning, since they include a broad variety of sweet and salty foods as well as international and Kazakh specialities, including different types of local cheese as well as camel and horse milk and dairy. Local Kazakh specialities are presented in a cute yurt-like arrangement!
Where to eat in Almaty
Here are some nice options to eat out in Almaty and Shymbulak. It is mostly international cuisine (Italian and Turkish mostly), so don’t expect super typical Kazakh dishes here (you will have to wait to my upcoming post about Astana for this!), but all of them were pretty good and you can’t go wrong with them.
Monte Bambini, Shymbulak
This is a cozy mountain restaurant next to the base station of the Shymbulak cable car. Here you can find a mix of European and Central Asian specialities.
Big Chefs, Shymbulak
Big Chefs is also in Shymbulak but at the other end of the cable car, up in the mountain.
Turkish cuisine is the main focus here. The mezze, for example, were really good and the portions quite generous. There is also a nice dessert selection.
Aurora Café, Almaty
This is an upmarket Italian restaurant in central Almaty (with a nice aeronautical touch by the entrance!).
It’s got a pretty good selection of dishes, which include also some Central Asian shashlik, of course, besides more international fare.
And last, but not least, big thanks to the team at Air Astana, the main airline of Kazakhstan, which worked hard to make sure we experienced the best of Almaty during our short but intense stay!
Café Karlygash (“Кафе Карлыгаш”)
Karlygash, which means “swallow” in Kazakh language, is an iconic place in central Almaty with a history dating back to the Soviet era.
It opened in 1967 as an ice-cream shop and, in 2025, it was relaunched as a high-end restaurant.
The new owners preserved the outside of the building and totally refurbished the interior to reflect this new market positioning with a decor that looks modern and refreshed, but with a touch of classical elegance throughout.
On the culinary front, Karlygash offers a broad range of local and international specialities, from pizza to Beshbarmak, the traditional Kazakh dish which consist of horse meat round slices served over sheets of boiled dough accompanied of onion broth (see below).
24 hours in Astana, what to do and what to see (updated 2026)
This is the second instalment of my Kazakhstan series: after a couple of intense days in Almaty, the country’s largest city and former capital, I flew to the northern steppes to visit Astana, the city, which since 1997 has been Kazakhstan’s capital.
Astana was a really interesting place to visit, because while it is not an entirely new settlement, it has been fully transformed since its designation as a capital, with most of it having been built pretty much from scratch as a planned city.
In fact, Astana is still pretty much a work in progress and, was it not for the freezing temperatures, you would be forgiven for thinking you are at some of the fast-growing cities on the shores of the Persian Gulf.
Upon arrival at the airport you get a first taste of the type of architecture that you find throughout the city: essentially newly built structures, but often with a touch of tradition in them, which give them singularity.
Also at the airport, this mural which depicts some of the main landmarks that I visited during my 48 hiours in Astana and that we will soon see as we move further down this post.
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Thank you for your support.
Covered in this piece:
Astana’s changing names
Moving around Astana
Key sights and landmarks
The Baiterek
The National Museum of Kazakhstan
Astana’s Palace of Peace and Reconciliation
Where to eat in Astana
Where to stay in Astana
Did you know that Astana has changed names thrice in as many decades?
The city was called Akmola in Soviet times. Then in 1997 it changed its name to Astana, which means “capital” in Kazakh languages. Then, again, in 2019 its name was changed to Nur-Sultan, in hounour to the then president Nursultan Nazarbayev. This latest change was shortlived, though, since following a wave of political protests in 2021, the name reverted to Astana once more!
Moving around Astana
Let’s start by saying that Astana is not really a walkable city.
It is not just the fact that it can get really hot in summer and freezing cold (like really, really cold, on the order of -40 C) in winter, but also that the urban design is not designed for pedestrians: there are large, broad avenues and big distances between the different landmarks, even within the city center.
In this regard, it has more in common with Dubai, Riyadh or certain American cities than with Almaty. If you like contemporary architecture and urban planning, though, it can be a really interesting city to visit.
Astana’s new light rail metro
The good news is that Astana’s light rail system (LRT) opened in May 2026!
The network is not super extensive (just one line at the time of writing these lines), but it covers several different key landmarks in the city center and it is also possible to travel this way between the airport and downtown.
Astana’s light rail system (LRT) is fully automated and runs on elevated platforms (which makes it also a practical way to get views of the city).
The alternative is to use the ride hailing app Yandex Taxi (this is the Russian tech company that in 2018 acquired Uber’s operations in Russia, Kazakhstan and some other neighbouring countries). I didn’t use it on this occasion, but my understanding is that prices are usually quite reasonable.
Key sights and landmarks in Astana
Let’s see what is there to do and to see, where to eat and where to stay in Astana if your schedule is limited to a couple of days only.
Here you can see some sights from the restaurant Vechnoy Nebo (reviewed further below), which is located at the so-called “Moscow Tower”, one of the tallest buildings in downtown Astana.
Astana will soon have the tallest building in Central Asia, the 320m, 78 storey-high Abu Dhabi Plaza (below), the construction of which has been funded by the eponymous UAE Emirate.
When I visited Astana, the city had just held the Nomadic Games, which, as the name implies, is a sort of Olympics, but of sports and other physical activities that were (some still are!) practiced by nomadic peoples, of which Kazakhs used to be one. Think different styles of horse riding, archery and different modalities of fighting, among others.
Astana is also home to the largest mosque in Central Asia, and one of the largest in the world for that matter. Astana’s Grand Mosque is, in fact, so big that it is able to host up to 235,000 people inside! Here you can see it at dusk.
Another iconic building in Astana is the Khan Shatyr mall, which is shaped like a yurt, the traditional tent of Kazakhs and other nomadic peoples of Cental Asia. Inside it is just a normal mall, but it is quite an interesting building to see from outside, particularly in the evening, when it changes colours every few minutes.
Astana is full of contemporary monumental architecture, with long, broad avenues designed to create impressive perspectives.
The Baiterek monument
This egg-shaped 105m-tall structure is, perhaps, the most iconic sights in Astana. It was built to mark the transfer of the capital from Almaty to Astana, in 1997.
It is possible to get to the top of the egg, from where there are 360º views of Astana.
The National Museum of Kazakhstan
This museum covers the whole history of the lands that are now Kazakhstan, from the ancient times all the way to the present.
It is built on a grand, monumental scale and it is way more than an architectural shell, it does have some truly interesting collections inside.
As someone interested in ancient history, I found totally fascinating the rooms dedicated to the Scythians and other ancient nomadic peoples that once roamed the steppes of Kazakhstan and greater Central Asia.
These are cultures that are not very well known in the West despite having been quite influential in shaping settled empires from Europe to China. The clothing, jewellery and other arctifacts they produced were also absolutely stunning!
The museum offers also a glimpse into the life of the traditional way of life of the Kazakh people, which carried on pretty much undisturbed until the relatively late arrival of Russian and later Soviet rule.
And, while Nursultan Nazarbayev, last president of the Kazakh SSR and first president of independent Kazakhstan, fell somehow from grace in 2022 (when he was stripped of many of the official roles he held after resigning as president in 2019), he still has its place of honour at the museum.
Btw, did you notice this pyramid in the background? This is the next Astana landmarks, which we will visit!
Astana’s Palace of Peace and Reconciliation
This pyramid-shaped building is one of the most unique in Astana and definitely a must. Designed by the studio of renowned British architect Norman Foster, the Palace of Peace and Reconciliation is meant to be a sort of ecumenical center that brings together all religions and faiths of Kazakhstan (and, by extension, the whole world)
Like many other contemporary buildings in Astana, the pyramid is full of symbolic elements. Besides its architectural value, the Palace of Peace and Reconciliation is also a conference and event venue. Featuring an auditorium and several spaces designed to hold high level meetings.
It is possible to get to the very top level of the pyramid through a rather unique elevator that follows the outer contour of the building at roughly a 45º angle. At the lower floors you find be able to enjoy, yet, more views of the city (through the painted that highlight the overall peace theme of the building) as well as some rather interesting spaces that have an almost James-bondesque feel.
Where to eat in Astana
Sandyq
Sarayshyq St 34/3, Astana 010000
This restaurant, specializing in Kazakh cuisine is named after the wooden box (“sandyq”) in which nomadic Kazakh people used to keep their belongings when moving around the steppe.
It occupies several floors of a modern building in the center of Astana and it is decorated throughout to provide a proper “Kazakh” experience.
Sandyq is a great place to taste a mix of Kazakh specialities, such as the different varieties of cheese (which can be quite pungent and salty), soup (which is mixed also with cheese).
…and, of course, the quintessential Kazakh meat dish: horse meat!
There are also a number of rooms for group meals and, I must highlight that, while Sandiq’s set up and menu will certainly appeal to tourists, there were plenty of locals eating there too, including some birthday parties that at some point started singing Kazakh songs!
This was in addition to the repertoire of Kazakh music courtesy of the restaurant.
Restaurant Vechnoye Nebo
This is a restaurant specializing in the cuisine of the Turkic peoples, as represented by traditional female dresses, from all over Central Asia and all the way to the edges of Europe.
But besides the food and the ambience, one of the highlights of this restaurant (and perhaps its name, which in Russian means “eternal sky (heaven?)” is the 360º views it has over downtown Astana.
This is because it is located on one of the top floors of “Moscow Tower” one of the tallest buildings in Astana.
Restaurant Vechnoye Nebo (“Вечное небо”)
18, Dostyk Street BC “Moscow”, Floor 25, Astana
http://www.vechnoenebo-dostyq.kz
Here you will find a broad array of specialities from the Turkic culinary traditions (together with some international ones as well).
Restaurant Marcello
Turkistan Street 28, Astana 020000
https://www.instagram.com/marcello.restaurant
This is an Italian-style restaurant managed by a local restaurateur offering a cozy atmosphere in downtown Astana.
Besides the large and tasty pizzas it also offers a broad array of other dishes, including some touches of local Kazakh and Central Asian cuisine.
La Crème
Dostyq St 1А, Astana 020000
This is a network of modern, upmarket bakeries-cafés-restaurants (three in one). The one is reference here is the most central one.
The first thing that greets you when you come in is the exuberant display of super-sized croissants in all sorts of flavours, but La Crème has actually an upper floor which is a restaurant serving mostly international cuisine dishes.
Since I visited as part of a group and we sampled several items on the menu, I show here some of the things we got. As you can see it is quite an eclectic mix, ranging from Asian to Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cuisine. Rations were generous and quality pretty good, in my opinion.
If there is one thing that La Crème stands out for, though, is its dessert selection, which has some really cool items such as this sweet, round bunny!
Koktem Café Astana
Dinmukhamed Qonayev St 12/1, Astana 020000
This is a very central place, located right opposite the Baiterek. It has a youthful, causal atmosphere which aims to evoke a street food court.
It offers a very broad selection of culinary specialities, both local and international, but the Indian food section stands out in particular. Portions are big and tasty!
Where to stay in Astana
Sheraton Astana Hotel
Abu Dhabi Plaza Adreça: Syganak St 60/1
Astana 010000
This is a modern hotel operated by the famous international chain. It is located within the grounds of Abu Dhabi Plaza, which includes, adjacent, the aforementioned tallest skyscraper in Astana.
The rooms are rather spacious and the bed is comfortably, although I would suggest caution when opening the cupboard doors: one of the compartments next to where the coffee machine is located opens upwards rather than sideways and activated with a mechanism that makes it bounce unexpectedly, so you can get easily hit in the face if too close to it (don’t ask me how I found about it!).
Tasting Kazakh cheese in Astana
Breakfast at the Sheraton Astana is a good opportunity to try different Kazakh specialities, particularly the cheeses, such as the ubiqutuous “kurt” (the tiny balls of salty cheese) and zhent (which has the look and texture of a sponge). If you like them, there is a supermarket right next to the hote, where you will find many of these traditional cheese types, well packed in an easy to transport way and at a good price!
Last but not least, a word of thanks to Air Astana, Kazakhstan’s national airline, which made this trip to Astana possible.
You can also check my flight reviews of Air Astana’s Economy and Business Class.
Karpacz and Śnieżka: hiking along the Polish–Czech Border
In this site we have covered some of Poland’s most beautiful cities, such as Gdansk and Wroclaw. There are, indeed, some very good reasons for the amount of attention these get from the travel content community. And yet, I was longing to see a bit more of the country outside of the fairytale-like medieval urban centers and Cold War architectural legacy that you often find in those urban centers.
An invitation to the 35th Economic Forum, an economic, cultural and political event which takes place every year in Karpacz offered such opportunity.
The Forum is often described as the “Central and Eastern European Davos”, in a reference to the renowned World Economic Forum, which takes place every year in that Swiss resort. The comparison is not misplaced, since Karpacz is also held at a resort town at the foot of the Karkonosze mountains (the highest part of the Sudetes range).
Besides the opportunity to enjoy the sights and the fresh air, Karpacz is also a place of interest for those interested in the topic of international borders, since the town is also the gateway to Śnieżka (Sněžka in Czech), the highest peak in the Sudetes, which separate Poland from the Czech Republic.
So, let’s have a look at what are the top things to do and to see in Karpacz and around!
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. My visit to Karpacz was courtesy of the Economic Forum and the Warsaw Enterprise Institute.
Getting to Karpacz
Karpacz is located a couple of hours drive from Wroclaw, which is the closest major city and airport. There is not train service, so the only other public transportation option is the bus.
Prague is also relatively close as the crow flies, but there are the Karkonosze mountain ridge is right in between, so I’d say that, it is best to take the bus from Wroclaw or rent a car. A small part of the way from Wroclaw is motorway, but for the most part the route runs through smaller countryside roads.
Home of the “Eastern Davos”
Although it is not the main object of this post, it is inevitable to write about Karpacz without mentioning the Economic Forum and the venue where it takes place: the Hotel Gołębiewski Karpacz.
This 880-room hotel is easily the largest piece of infrastructure in Karpacz. Since I was at Hotel Gołębiewski only for the Forum meetings, I can’t comment on how is it like to stay there as a guest, although you can check how it is like here (I actually stayed at Lake Hill, a much more modern establishment a few kilometres out of town, which I review further down this post), but it is certainly a landmark and a point of reference in what otherwise is a rather spread-out town.
The fact that the town is literally on the slope of the mountain, with little flat ground around also contributes to this lack of a compact urban center, although there is a main street where most shops and businesses are. The two main attractions I describe in this post are both located near the Hotel Gołębiewski, though, in the upper part of town: the lift to Śnieżka, at the Karpacz ski arena and the Wang stave Church
Climbing to Śnieżka, highest peak in the Sudetes (& in the Czech Republic)
This excursion, which for me is the highlight of the Karpacz outdoor experience and it acutally takes you to the highest point in another country, the Czech Republic.
This is because the Śnieżka/Sněžka peak is shared by Poland and the Czech Republic. In fact, when you hike to the summit, you are following the border line all along.
By the way, for the rest of this post I will use the Polish name for the mountain (“Śnieżka”) since I describe here how to get to the peak from the Polish side.
In the map below I have tried to highlight the main points of interest mentioned on this post. See, for example, the lift from Karpacz to the Kopa station (in red) and the green arrows indicating the rough itinerary of the walk along the Polish-Czech border up to Śnieżka and back to Kopa. Also marked with green circles are two other landmarks I reference: the Hotel Gołębiewski and the Wang Church.
So, how to get to Śnieżka? Unless you want to spend several hours trekking, the fastest and most convenient way is to take the lift!
The base station of the lift is located at the Karpacz Ski Arena (yes, Karpacz has some ski slopes!) which is located some 10-15 minute walk uphill from Hotel Gołębiewski. You can also take a Bolt ride (the European equivalent of Uber), since they are plentiful in Karpacz and not too expensive.
A return ticket costs around 100 Zloty (€22 / $25), so not cheap, but definitely worth it!
There is quite a bit off forest in the area the the lift goes through. This is the Karkonosze National Park, which looks inviting enough if you are into trekking, but you need to get a ticket first!
Taking the lift to Śnieżka
It is important to note that the lift doesn’t take you all the way to the summit of Śnieżka, but to Kopa, which is on a ridge from where you would need to walk a couple of additional kilometers.
The first one of these is on flat ground along the ridge and on a paved trail. The second part is the ascent to the peak of Śnieżka and it is way more uphill.
There are actually two branches of that trail, one that goes through the most direct and rocky trail and one that goes around the back of the mountain and it is a bit longer but more gentle.
By the way, the lift up is also an experience in itself, since it offers great views of Karpacz (note how prominent Hotel Gołębiewski is in the surroundings!) as well as of the Silesian plains beyond.
As mentioned earlier, the lift leaves you at Kopa, which is a spot at the top of a ridge and from there you still need to make your way to Śnieżka on foot. The path follows a short of plateau which is right at the edge of the tree line. In fact, it is quite an interesting landscape because you can see that conditions here are such that fir trees don’t grow very tall, possibly because of the wind, so it really looks like a bonsai forest from some angles. I later read that all along the ridge there are some very ecologically valuable peat bogs.
The next point of reference is Dom Śląski (Silesian House), which is the yellow building with a slate roof that you can see in the picture below. It is located roughly half way between the Kopa lift station and the peak.
This building which serves now as a mountain refuge and restaurant has quite an interesting story. There had been a mountain refuge at this spot for centuries, but in the mid-19th C. a proper building was erected in the Silesian style. That refuge was reconstructed twice until getting to the current building, of 1921. Quite remarkably, in 1924 it hosted an experimental wind turbine to produce electricity! But that early attempt at having an aero generator was short-live since the windmill collapsed a year later under the weight of the snow. Nice try, though!
This is also where things get interesting for border chasers, since the international divide runs just a couple of meters to the right of the path. Dom Śląski is entirely on the Polish side, however, I read that until the 1970s there was another “twin” refuge just opposite on the Czech side, which ended up in disrepair and was later demolished.
This area is quite a treat for border-chasers, since you can easily trace the many border markets that dot the ridge in a truly stunning natural setting. You can see one of the markers below: they are white with a red top and they are marked with the letters P (“Polska”) or C (Česká Republika) depending on which side you are.
Worth noting that this has not always been like this. For quite a long time this was a border between Germany and the Habsburg Empire, but during the 20th C. sovereignty shifted several times, with the creation of Czechoslovakia first, then annexation of the whole Sudetes area and later of the rest of Bohemia as well, by Germany, and after WW2 the return of Czechoslovakia, the transfer of Lower Silesia to Poland and later the independence of the Czech republic.
I would recommend wearing appropriate shoes for a hike. While there is a paved and regular path on the flat section along the ridge, the ground gets more irregular and rocky as you start to climb.
When I climbed, weather conditions were pretty good and I was wearing regular street shoes (because I didn’t have any other pair of shoes with me on this trip!) and could complete the route without much problem. Having said that, it would have been better to wear something more sportish to be on the safe side.
In terms of difficulty, I would say that, with good weather conditions and provided you are reasonably fit, it is not particularly challenging. I saw elderly people, children and even a lady carrying a small dog on her back. However, it is quite a steep walk and shouldn’t be taken lightly, particularly if weather conditions are not optimal (there is actually a plate along the trail that remembers two Czech mountain guides which died attempting to rescue a couple on icy conditions in the early 1970s).
The view onto the two countries (Czech Republic above, Poland, below right) is really magnificent and there are several viewing platforms along the way, which is great. You are never far from a border marker here and, at times is difficult to tell in which country you are, since the border doesn’t follow an exactly straight line (although the trail is mostly on Polish soil).
Getting to the summit of Śnieżka
So, after around 45 minutes of climbing up the mountain path, I got to the peak of Śnieżka. And what do you find here?
There are basically three man-made structures, two of them are on the Polish side: St Lawrence's Chapel and a UFO-shaped metereological station. On the Czech side there is a modern metal building which serves as a post office and shop.
The church is actually the oldest building of all by far, since its foundations date back to the 17th C.!
As per the meteorological station, there had been one in Śnieżka since the end of the 19th C., but the current one was built in the late 1960s. At the time of my visit it appeared to be closed and in a bad state of conservation, though.
The other structure of interest at the summit of Śnieżka is the Czech post office, which is located a couple of meters inside Czech territory.
There has been a post office at highest point of Śnieżka since the 19th C. Back then it was the Habsburg post, though. The old wooden post office was dismanteled in the early 2000s and moved to another location in the Czech Republic. In its place they installed a container-like elongated pre-fabricated building (I guess it’s a type of structure that is efficient to build and maintain this high up).
So, one of the cool things you can do at the summit of Śnieżka is send a postcard through the Czech post office! They even let you use the ink marker yourself, even if today the stamps are one-use adhesives so this is not really needed. The establishment also sells snacks, drinks and souvenirs, so it is more like a corner shop than a proper post office.
By the way, from the top of Śnieżka (or perhaps I should Sněžka in this case) you can also descend onto the Czech side with another lift. Beware that if, for whatever reason, weather conditions for example, the lift was interrupted, the drive around the mountains back to Poland can be quite lengthy. I didn’t check the cost of the Czech lift or its times.
Talking about the weather, here is proof of how fast changing it can be here. The picture below was taken less than one hour after the sunny ones posted above. As you can see, there is a longer, paved trail to go up and down the summit. The views are not as good as on the other, more direct one, but this one is more gentle on the legs!
What else to see in Karpacz:
Wang Temple, a real Norwegian stave church in Poland!
The other major landmark in Karpacz is the Wang Temple, a real Norwegian medieval stave church.
Sounds like a bit out of place, isn’t it?
In fact, it was built in Vang, Norway, sometime around the late 12th or early 13th C. but by the mid-19th C. it had become too small for the local needs and in 1841 it was decided to sell it.
To whom? Apparently, a Norwegian artist, Johan Christian Dahl, lived in Germany at the time and had an interest in stave churches, and he convinced King Frederick William IV of Prussia to buy it and have it shipped to Berlin. However, a local Silesian aristocrat at the Berlin court managed to get the king to gift it to the local Lutheran community.
So the church was dismantled piece by piece, shipped to Silesia and reassembled at its current location between 1842 and 1844. Apparently some elements had to be modified to better fit into the current emplacement. For example, the bell tower, made in stone, was a “local” addition.
At the time of my visit, the Wang Church was closed, so I could not see the interior. The church is within walking distance (if a bit uphill) from, again, Hotel Gołębiewski!
By the way, coincidentally, this is not the first Norwegian stave church to feature on this site! You can also check how this architectural style looks like in its traditional setting in this piece about what to see and what to do around the Sognefjord, which is very close to Vang, actually, the place of origin of the Karpacz stave church!
A nice hotel near Karpacz
Lake Hill Resort & Spa
Tyrolska 2 G, 58-564 Sosnówka
You can book it here.
This is a nice and very modern hotel and apartment complex which lies, as the name implies, next to a lake.
It is located just a few kilometers west of downtown Karpacz, in the village of Sosnówka. It takes some 20 minutes by car to drive from here to Hotel Gołębiewski and the places I described earlier.
The resort has quite an interesting structure, since it is seems to be quite decentralized, with the rooms and apartments distributed among several buildings on both sides of a local road.
My apartment was in one of the buildings on the north side of the road. As you can see below, it was pretty spacious, with views of the lake (even if a bit far) and very modern throughout.
The reception and most of the hotel’s common services, such as the restaurant (where breakfast is served), are on one of the buildings lake-side, so you need to walk around 5 minutes and across the road to get there.
The whole complex is built along very modern lines, as I noticed and expressed in my post about Wroclaw, there seems to be a boom in new hotel development and construction in Poland. And, to be honest, the results are pretty good for the traveler, since there is availability of very nice, modern hotels at reasonable prices.
In this particular case, I didn’t have enough time to try all of the hotel services, such as the spa, but you can get an idea in the pictures here of the sort of relaxed atmosphere you can find here!
If you are planning a trip to Poland, you may find the following posts of interest:
What to do and what to see around Lake Balaton, the sea of Hungary
Lake Balaton is not only Central Europe’s largest lake, but it can also be called “the sea of Hungary”, since it is by far the largest body of water in this landlocked country.
Balaton has also been, for many generations, a major holiday destination not just for Hungarians but also for people from all over Central Europe. During the Cold War, citizens of East Germany came in droves to Balaton on holiday and it was actually through Hungary that the first cracks in the Iron Curtain started to appear.
The lake is actually a pretty nice day trip from Budapest. In addition to its scenic and recreational qualities, Lake Balaton has also quite a few interesting sightseeing spots along its shores and the distances involved are such that it is possible to see most of them in a single day. Having said that, if you have the chance I would definitely recommend doing it in two days in order to avoid fatigue and do it all at a more leisurely pace.
So, what are the top things to do and to see around Lake Balaton? Let’s have a look!
Covered in this post:
How to get to Lake Balaton
Driving in Hungary
The Tihany Peninsula
Taking the ferry from the south shore (Szántód)
Badacsony and its wineyards
Szigliget Castle
Héviz and its thermal lake
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.
How to get to Lake Balaton
Getting from Lake Balaton. To be clear, this post will mostly be useful if you are travelling by car, but there are trains running along both shores of the lake, so this is an option that may be worth checking if you feel inclined to travel that way and there are even boats that will give you the views from the water side.
From Budapest, which is the itinerary I followed, it is about one and a half hours drive to Tihany, which was my first stop along this route. Almost the entire itinerary is based on the north shore of the Lake. This is not to say that there aren’t interesting sights on the south shore. The whole itinerary totalled 450km, which is quite a stretch, but doable in a day if you don’t mind the driving.
From what I have read, there are plenty of beaches and holiday infrastructure on the south side, but I got the impression that most of the sites of interest from a purely sightseeing point of view are on the north shore (if I am wrong, happy to take suggestions for my next trip to the area!).
Roads were of very good quality throughout, including motorway M7/E71, which is the main road axis linking Budapest to the Lake. Directions are well indicated all the way from Budapest.
Just before reaching the eastern end of the lake, I left the motorway to take Road 710 northwards and then most of the itinerary followed Road 71, which runs all along the north side of the lake. On the return trip I chose to join again M7/E71 and drive it all the way to Budapest, aside from a short stopover at Szántód to check the cross-lake ferry terminal.
Important!
Hungarian motorways are not free. You need to get a “vignette” or road pass, otherwise you will be restricted to local roads.
Roads requiring vignette are usually indicated with an “M”. The process to purchase the vignette is 100% digital (and pretty straightforward from the user point of view). You just need to go to the Hungarian vignette website, enter your car’s registration number and select the dates you need the vignette for (for short term travel you can purchase either a one day or ten day pass, although there are also monthly and yearly options). The whole purchase process takes less than two minutes.
Everything is automated and your car is electronically checked at certain points along the motorway.
The Tihany Peninsula
The first stop coming from Budapest and, perhaps, the most scenic place on the shores of Lake Balaton is the peninsula of Tihany.
This little peninsula protrudes into the lake, almost cutting it in two parts (it is little more than 1 Km from its southern tip to the south shore).
Unlike most of the surrounding countryside, it has also some elevation (the little hills that dot the area around Lake Balaton are mostly ancient volcanos!), which gives you a great point of view over the lake. In fact, the peninsula contains two other smaller lakes (not connected to Balaton), which are, in fact, old volcanic craters.
Besides the village of Tihany, which we’ll soon see, Tihany is a place of natural interest, as well, since there some marshes around the lakes and several tracks to trekk in the nature around it.
There is even a pagoda-shape observation tower, known as “Őrtorony-kilátó”, although you have walk a bit to get there. It was tempting, but I skipped in order to allocate time also to other points of interest further west on the lake shore.
Parking in Tihany
Parking around Tihany is metered. As you can see here, at 500 Forints per hour (€1.3), it is not particularly expensive, but parking spots are a bit limited in the village itself (to be fair, the “urban” part of Tihany is really, really small).
So, if you are visiting during the summer or weekends, the most likely is that you will end up in the outskirts of the village, near the volcanic lake, where space is more plentiful (it is a 10-15min walk from there, although it is a bit uphill).
The payment machines take both cash and cards, but found the interface not to be particularly user friendly, quite clunky and slow, difficult to read (not a language issue, since it is multi-lingual) and, at least, at one spot, not working at all.
Tihany’s Benedictine Abbey
The main landmark in Tihany is, without a hint of doubt, the Benedictine Abbey, which overlooks both the village and the lake from its elevated hilltop position.
Although the current building is in the Central European Baroque style, with two bell towers ending in onion-shaped spires, Tihany’s abbey traces its roots back to the 11th C., just decades after the christianization of the Magyars and at a time when the religious question was not yet fully settled in Hungary. So, the foundation of this abbey was, at the time, an important development that helped consolidate the Christian faith in this part of Europe.
To access the abbey there is a flight of stairs that wouldn’t be out of place in, let’s say, Rome.
To visit the Abbey and its crypt you would need a ticket, which can be bought at the visitor’s center right next to the church entrance. The standard fee is 3,400 Forint (€9.2/$10.5).
Once at the top, you get to a little park with magnificent views of the eastern part of Lake Balaton, which in sunny days takes a beautiful turquoise colour. From here you can get a grasp of what they mean when they call Balaton “the sea of Hungary”!
Thatched Roof Houses & Lavender Fields in Tihany
All around the Abbey is the village of Tihany, which, to be honest, has become a bit of a tourist trap. The main road into the village is completely devoted to catering to visitors with the usual souvenir shops and the like. The same can be said of the main pedestrian lane on the crest of Tihany hill, leading into the abbey.
There are, however, some residential homes that have kept the traditional thatched roofs of the area.
The other major thing in Tihany is lavender, which has been grown in the peninsula since the 1920s, when a Hungarian entrepreneur brought seeds from southern France.
There are lavender fields all over the peninsula and several local businesses make all sort of products with this harvest. You can find lavender products at all souvenir shops and there is even a “Lavender House” (The Levendula Ház), which is a sort of visitor’s center focused on the topic of lavender.
By the way, the blooming season is usually from late June to mid-July.
Avoid this restaurant in Tihany!
I would have liked to provide a restaurant recommendation for Tihany and, in fact, I will recommend where NOT to stop for a meal: avoid the Csárdás Vendéglő restaurant by all means!
It is located on the main street, close to the stairs that lead to the Abbey and it has a large terrace with shadow, which is kind of inviting at first, but there were two major issues:
First is that they are super slow, even with the terrace practically empty, it took ages to get the order.
Secondly, and this is the worst part, is that they do not take cards, none at all! They do not warn you about this anywhere, which would be the minimum they could do and the surprise comes when you have to pay. This may have been understandable perhaps in 1990, but in 2026 it is inexcusable. The result is that if you don’t carry enough forint in your pocket, you will have to run 500m to one of two ATMs in the village, which charge extortionate rates for local currency withdrawals.
I was not surprised to find out on Tripadvisor that this happen quite often, which makes it even more inexcusable.
Beaches around Tihany
After visiting the Abbey and the village, I recommend driving down to the lake shore. Right underneath the cliff on which the abbey stands is a long shore promenade with several beaches and recreational areas. This is a good spot to get close to the water.
I was surprised to learn how shallow Lake Balaton is in this area: you can see people walking hundreds of meters into the lake with water barely reaching their knees!
The water has also an interesting colour, with the turquoise green that you can see from a distance turning into more brownish hues, due, I guess, to the many sediments it carries. Also, surprisingly (or pehaps not so much, given its shallowness), the water was not cold at all.
Badacsony: vineyards and viewpoints
A few kilometers west from Tihany is another great spot to admire the beauty of Lake Balaton.
The village of Badacsony is at the foot of yet another hill of volcanic origin. In fact, there are several of these hills along this part of the lake standing more of less in isolation from each other, rather than forming ridges.
Quite a few visitors comes here to trek to an observation point, yet another tower called “Kisfaludy-kilátó”, which is somewhere mid-mountain. To get into the trekking paths you can drive uphill through a narrow road which takes you to the start of the forest line, past the vineyards. Space to park here is limited (it costs 600 Forint, €1.6, per hour), but it is worth stopping by for the views.
You don’t need to get all the way to the tower or other higher viewpoints to get nice views of the lake and vineyards. You can just walk some 100m up from the parking and you have already some great viewpoints.
But what gives this part of Balaton its most scenic quality is its vineyards. This is wine country and what you find here is a landscape that is a bit reminiscent of the vineyards of Lake Leman, in Switzerland, with the vines sloping down gently towards the water edge.
Szigliget Castle
A couple of kilometers further west from Badacsony is another must-see: Szigliget castle.
This fortress is located on top of another isolated hill in what it used to be an island.
The castle is quite steep in its shape, because its structure was built following the shape of the hill with a significant incline from its base all the way to its upper parts.
Next to the entrance there are several service buildings as well as plenty of space for parking, which is free.
To get to the castle you need to walk some 200m uphill, but this leaves you just at the entrance (btw, standard adult tickets are 2,000 Forint, or €5.5/$6, half this amount for children).
There are then different paths to explore the castle, but if you wish to enjoy it best, you will have to climb a bit.
The views from the upper reaches of the castle are pretty amazing, though, and they cover 360º around.
Historical context of Szigliget Castle
The castle is also a museum, with lots of information presented throughout its multiple chambers, explaining its historical context.
Szigliget Castle was one of many castles built in the area after the Mongol invasion of 1241 (a traumatic event which had also a big impact in other parts of Central Europe, such as the city of Wroclaw, as we commented in a recent post!) and from the 16th C. onwards it was a major stronghold in the fight between the Hungarians and the Turks.
Between the mid-15th and late 17th centuries, this was the front line between Hungary and the Ottoman Empire and the area lived in a state of almost permanent warfare. A line of fortresses, of which Szigliget was an important node, run from the southwest to the northeast along the northern shore of Lake Balaton and towards what is now Slovakia.
The exhibitions at the castle explain this period in great detail, covering both the military side and the more mundane aspects of everyday life. There are also several dioramas and maps that help you picture what the castle would have looked like in its heyday.
Lake Héviz
This being Hungary, this post would not be complete without some reference to baths and thermal water. And it you are in the Balaton area, the place for this is Lake Héviz, at the western edge of Lake Balaton.
Lake Héviz is the largest swimmable natural thermal lake in the world, covering 4.4 hectares. It is fed by a natural spring which comes out of an underground cave, with its mineral-rich water staying warm throughout the year (23–26°C in winter and 33–36°C in summer).
In 1795 a bath house was built next to the lake and, since then, Lake Héviz has grown into a major spa destination and a medical center, with a rheumatology hospital and also several hotels adjacent to it.
At the time of writing these lines, in September 2026, the main spa building, with its above-water structure in the center of the lake, is closed while it awaits a major renovation. It is still possible to bathe in the lake, although there is an entrance fee (standard rate for 3-hour admission is 4500 Forint or €12/$14 approximately).
Apparently, the whole spa area is going to be renovated, but the time-frame for this and the final design are not yet clear.
In any case, if passing by Lake Hévitz on your Balaton trip, a bathing stop could be a nice experience!
By the way, a practical tip: there is a large parking lot opposite the baths on the other side of the main road.
Balaton’s southern shore
My drive along the southern side of Lake Balaton was done at lightning speed, since it was getting late. Nevertheless, I didn’t pass the opportunity of looking across the lake to the Tihany Peninsula, which have seen earlier.
If you don’t wish to drive all around the lake, there is a car-carrying ferry service which runs between Tihany and Szántód, right at the point in which the lake is at its narrowest.
Here are the views from the south side. I must say, I was expecting the Tihany Abbey to be more clearly visible from the other shore! In any case, it was interesting to see the lake from the other shore before returning to Budapest!
48 hours in Wroclaw: what to do and what to see
What you will find in this article:
Historical introduction to Wroclaw
What to see in Wroclaw’s historical center
Rynek
Plac Solny
St. Elizabeth’s Basilica
Jatki Street
University of Wroclaw
St. Matthias Church and Ossolineum
What to see around Plac Wolności
Ostrow Tumski
Wroclaw’s dwarf statues
Hala Targowa (Market Hall)
Racławice Panorama
Hydropolis
Centennial Park
Wroclaw at night: Neon Gallery
How to move around Wroclaw
Three great restaurants in Wroclaw
Three recommended hotels in Wroclaw
A bit of history before visiting Wroclaw
Saying Wrocław has had a complicated history is an understatement.
Today, Wroclaw is Poland's third-largest city as well as the capital of Lower Silesia, part of a historical region that has changed hands many times over the centuries.
Originally a Polish settlement, in the Middle Ages, the city later passed to Bohemian (Czech) hands , then was part of the Habsburg Empire, until Prussia (the kernel of what later became Germany) took it over in 1741. For a large part of its history, Wroclaw was actually a majority German-speaking city and was known as Breslau.
By the way, about this particularly point and for the sake of clarity and consistency, I'll use the city's Polish name throughout this piece, even when referring to events or sites that are linked to the city’s German period.
Wroclaw eventually became again a Polish city after the end of the Second World War, as the Allies assigned it to Poland in compensation for the transfer of other territories in the east of Poland to the Soviet Union. So, in 1945, the city’s German population was either expelled or left, to be replaced by Poles, which in great part been themselves also displaced from the former eastern territories.
But since most of what visitor’s come to see in Wroclaw’s historical center today dates back from a few centuries earlier, it may be best to start with a brief summary of the origins of the city.
Wrocław grew up on the banks of the Odra (Oder) river, at a very strategic crossroad which linked an Ancient route linking the Baltic to the Mediterranean to what came to be known as “Via Regia”, which was another major axis of communication going linking west to east, the Germanic and Slavic parts of Europe.
The first settlement in what is now Wroclaw started on Ostrów Tumski, an island at the time (not anymore) located next to a river crossing. From there it spilt over to the south bank of the Odra, where most of the historical center of Wroclaw is now. Later, in the early modern times, the city was given a fortified enceinte, complete with bastions and a moat (this is now a boulevard which runs all along the historical center as a garden ring).
It would be a mistake to leave it at that, though, because some of the most interesting periods in Wroclaw’s history have been in the last couple of centuries. With the advent of the industrial era, Wrocław and the wider Silesia region, became one of the major manufacturing centers of the German-speaking world and left also a notable cultural and architectural legacy.
Perhaps the most traumatic chapter in the city's history, at least since the Mongol invasion of 1241, was the Second World War. In August 1944, with the Red Army advancing, Hitler declared the city a fortress. “Festung Breslau” was to be defended to the last man. And it very nearly was: even if it ended up completely encircled by Soviet troops, the German garrison held out until May 6, 1945, several days after the fall of Berlin.
Fortunately, while the destruction was extensive, part of city’s heritage miraculously survived the war (much of what didn’t was later reconstructed after the war, as it happened also in Gdansk, for example).
After the four decades of communist rule that followed, Wrocław has found new energy and emerged as one of the growth hubs of a booming Poland. This post focuses on the city's top sights, but on this trip I also met with several companies and people from the local business community, and the optimism was palpable. That youthful, energetic mood is just as easy to feel walking through the streets. So, let's look at the best things to see in Wrocław!
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.
This post was written after a visit to Poland supported by the Warsaw Enterprise Institute with the collaboration of the city of Wroclaw. Many thanks also to Wojtek for guiding me through parts of the city!
What to see in the historical center of Wroclaw
Rynek
Dating back to 13th C., Rynek is the neuralgic center of Wroclaw’s historical town and the one place that many visitors head to first. Rynek is a large square, so large in fact, that it has a whole set of buildings at its center, the old and new town halls.
You maybe forgiven for mistaking Wroclaw’s Old Town Hall for a church. However, not only it’s not a religious building, but it also has one of Europe’s oldest artisan breweries (“Piwnica Świdnicka”, dating back to the 1273 AD) in its basement!
When at Rynek, take your time to walk all around the square, since all four sides are lined with colourful houses built in the traditional Central European style (as previously mentioned, many of them were reconstructed or restored after the war, but still…!)
Rynek is buzzing with activity at all times, since, besides being a beautiful and harmonious architectural this is a very commercial area, with plenty of shops, bars and restaurants. In Winter, one of Europe’s largest Christmas Markets takes over the four sides of the square.
Btw, it is hard to imagine nowadays, but until 1997, Rynek was opened to tram and road traffic and cars parked all over the place.
From Rynek you can also see the church of Mary Magdalene, which has, in its Bridge of Penitents (picture below right) one of the best viewpoints of the old town (I didn’t climb to it, though!)
What else to see around Rynek:
Plac Solny (Salt Square)
This is another beautiful square with located just some meters away from Rynek. It’s name derives from the fact that for a long time this was a place where merchants came to sell salt from the mines of southern Poland.
Besides its beautiful mosaic-like pavement and historical buildings, Plac Solny has hosts also a flower market that is open 24 hours!
Saint Elizabeth’s Basilica
This is one of Wroclaw’s main churches and, as its belfry towers over Rynek, it is easy to think this is actually the city’s cathedral (which is actually located on Ostrow Tumski).
Saint Elizabeth’s Basilica tower is open to visitors and provides another magnificent view point over Wroclaw’s old town, but I will have to leave that part to your imagination, because unfortunately I didn’t have Zlotys in my pocket when I showed up right before its closing time at 6pm (It costs around €10 but they only take cash, no cards accepted!).
Even if you don’t climb up its tower, Saint Elizabeth’s Basilica has a very interesting story and plenty of interesting details to check.
In fact, the story of this church mimics in some way that of the city itself when it comes to the different changes it has gone through. It was originally a Catholic church, then it became Lutheran after the Reformation, and after WW2 it became Catholic again.
The original spire collapsed in 1529, just four years after it had switch its allegiance to the Reformation. Catholics used that event to suggest it may have been a Divine signal. In response, Protestants alleged that the spire had been carried by angels and, when the spire was rebuilt in the mid-1530s, they put a bass-relief depicting the alleged scene.
The church was thoroughly destroyed in the 20th C., not in the war, but in a fire that broke out in 1976. That fire also destroyed an artistic treasure, a magnificent 18th C. organ, known as the “Engler organ”. This was rebuilt according to the original specifications, between 2011 and 2022, and today it can be seen at one end of the nave.
Wroclaw had traditionally had a stained glass industry and while this is today a rather niche activity, there is still a school in the city for those that wish to train in this art. Saint Elizabeth’s Basilica has got its fair share of stained glass, including this one shown here, which depicts the late Pope John Paul II, who visited the church during his pontificate.
Jatki Street
This is a narrow street just north of Rynek, where butchers used to have their stalls and sell their produce. Today you will find artisan shops instead, at this spot.
However, a set of sculptures which depict the different animals man the meat of which man eats, act as a reminder of the street’s past role. And from what I could see, they are also a magnet for tourists, particularly children, who like to take pictures with them.
University of Wrocław
The University of Wroclaw is one of the city’s most majestic buildings and a recommended stop in any itinerary through the city. Besides its grand facades, both facing the inner town and the river, it has also a couple of interesting sites indoors within its grounds.
One of them is the heavily ornate Aula Leopoldina. I didn’t have time to see it for myself, but you can check here how it looks like. Btw, you can also book entry tickets with audioguide included online.
The other is the Oratorium Marianum, which is used as a concert hall, you can see it here.
In front of the university building stands the 1904 statue of a naked fencer. A, possibly apocryphal story says that the man in the statue is none other than the artist who made it, Hugo Lederer. According to this story, the monument alludes to an episode from the time when he was a student at the university and gambled away all his clothes after a night of heavy drinking.
Near the university you can also find some of the bullet marks from the WW2 battles.
St. Matthias Church and Ossolineum
If you walk between Wroclaw University and Ostrow Tumski there are a couple of other sites worth stopping at. One of them is the red-brick church of Saint Mathias, which has some very old foundations, even if the current building was heavily restored after the war. It has some remarkable stained glass windows that you can admire from inside.
The other one is the Ossolineum, which hosts the Ossolinsky Institute, an institution set up in 1817 by a Polish aristocrat, Józef Maksymilian Ossoliński, with the aim of preserving Polish culture at a time when Poland had lost its statehood. Part of the library and archives were transferred from Lwow (Lviv) at the end of WW2. A new museum is planned to open to the public at the Ossolineum, in the meantime you can relax a bit in the gardens.
Continuing towards Ostrow Tumski I would suggest walking on Plac Nantiera. On this street you can retrace, literally step by step, the history of Wroclaw by checking the different metal plaques laid down on the ground in chronological order.
These evoke the most important events in the history of the city, since its the foundation more than 1,000 years ago, to its designation as the 2016 European capital of Culture.
So far we have explored the sites that lie to the north of Rynek, but if you head south, there are also some interesting things to see.
Wroclaw’s Royal Palace
When Prussia took over Silesia, the city became, together with Berlin and Königsberg (present day Kaliningrad) one of the three cities which regularly hosted the king. Therefore, it was endowed with a Royal Palace. The palace was badly damaged during the war, and while one of its former wings is missing, what remains of it has been restored to its former glory and today it houses the Wrocław City Museum.
National Forum of Music of Wroclaw and Plac Wolności
Just south of the Royal Palace is Plac Wolności, a large open space which once upon a time was a parade ground for the Prussian army. Since 2015 it hosts the National Forum of Music, a large contemporary concert hall.
Plac Wolności is also a good place to check the architectural evolution of Wroclaw, since it provides an open, unimpeded view of the area around. From here you can also enter the garden boulevard that follows the path of the former city walls.
Wroclaw’s Opera
Not far from Plac Wolności stands one of the jewels of the city’s 19th architecture that survived WW2, the Opera building, which still fulfills its original purpose.
And right next to the opera, another remarkable establishment: the Hotel Monopol, which has hosted a large number of historically prominent visitors to the city, ranging from Adolph Hitler to Pablo Picasso, to name just two very different characters on totally opposite ends of the ideological spectrum. Today, the Monopol remains Wroclaw’s grand classic hotel.
Ostrow Tumski (Cathedral Island)
As mentioned earlier, Ostrow Tumski is the original kernel from which the city of Wroclaw sprung up. Today is no longer an island, but it remains almost like a religious enclave, since it hosts the city’s cathedral and most of its surrounding buildings belong to the Catholic church.
Wyspa Piasek (“Sand Island”)
But before getting to Ostrow Tumski, if you are coming from the historical center, you are likely to pass through another river island, “Sand Island”, which hosts two old monasteries, one male and the other female (one of them still active, the other is now part of the university).
Apparently, the monks controlled the only crossing point over the Odra river, which went over this island, so they collected significant revenue from tolls.
The most scenic way to get to Ostrow Tumski is through Most Tumski, a steel bridge which offers great perspectives of this rather timeless and evocative part of the city.
Ostrow Tumski translates into English as “Cathedral Island” and, of course, the cathedral of St. John the Baptists dominates the skyline with its two towers. But the whole island is peppered with religious buildings and it has also several other churches around which add to the monumental ensemble.
Btw, if you like viewpoints, here is another one you can climb up!
You can also get great panoramic views of Ostrow Tumski from the south bank of the river. Here you will have a riverside promenade with stalls facing the river. Besides being a place for temporary festivals and markets, it is also a nice place to get the views at sunset.
The lamp lighting tradition
Talking about visiting Ostrow Tumski at sunset, here is yet another reason to do so: every day when the sun sets, an old tradition comes into play, with the nearly 100 gas lamps from the 19th C. still left in Wroclaw, being lit by hand.
There is no set time for this, check the sunset times and head to Ostrow Tumski around that time. You will possibly spot the guy doing this job quite easily, because, besides his period costume, he is usually followed by a crowd of tourists taking pics (yes, I was one of them too!)
Will you be able to find all of Wroclaw’s dwarves?
Here is a thing that is quite unique of Wroclaw: the dwarves.
There are around 1,000 of them, possibly more because no one really knows, all over the city of Wroclaw. What’s more, these little bronze statutes tend to come from all walks of life, as each evokes the place or activity it is linked to. There are firemen dwarves, soldier dwarves, traveler dwarves, and so on.
It all started as an anti-communist protest in 1980s Wroclaw, as activists in the “Orange Movement” which criticized the Communist dictatorship started to paint small dwarves on some walls as the authorities tried to patch over anti-regime graffiti. The movement then evolved with protestors conducting ephemeral protests wearing dwarf hats to ridiculize the government repression. A large gathering in 1988 ended up with mass arrests, but that was the point!
So, to remember those events, the the first bronze dwarf, called Papa Krasnal (Papa Dwarf), was installed on one of the city’s main boulevards. Five other smaller ones followed shortly after. But, once they became entrenched in the city’s identity there was no stop and little dwarves started appearing pretty much everywhere, the result of both public and private initiaitive.
Today you can get a map at Wroclaw’s tourist office, which helps you track and “collect” the dwarves you come across while walking around the city! (and there are, of course, other initiatives to help you find all the dwarves, like these app-based dwarf tours). With more than 1,000 around, it can be quite a fun and absorbing challenge!
Hala Targowa - Wroclaw’s Historical Market Hall
This is another interesting architectural site. It was built in the first decade of the 20th C. with an approach that is quite unique for buildings of this site.
Regular readers of this site may have seen markets with iron structures like the Mercado Central in Montevideo, but this one is made of concrete and using parabollic arches which are somehow reminiscent of the work of Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí. The structure turned out to be resistant enough to survive the war!
There is currently a project to turn part of the market into a more upmarket gastronomic area, but, in the meantime you can get a taste of Cold War Poland by having some piroegi at “Teddy Bear” (don’t forget to bring your ration card!).
What to see outside Wroclaw’s historical center
So far we have focused our attention on a relatively small area around the historical center of Wroclaw, however, I would advise dedicating at least half a day to the district right to the east of it.
Here you will find the more modern extension of the city, as well as some gardened areas and some of the city’s most interesting museums, such as the Racławice Panorama, Hydropolis and Centennial Hall.
You can use the tram to get to the latte (more on trams and moving around Wroclaw below) but if you have the time and the inclination, they are also within reach on foot, particularly the Panorama, which is the closest to the historical center.
If you head in that direction, a good spot to replenish energies is “Pan Gruzin” a Georgian bakery located on Wita Stwosza.
Visiting the Racławice Panorama
You can’t miss this one if you are a fan of historical paintings. The Racławice Panorama is an epic large scale 360º immersive painting which takes you to the Spring of 1794, when Polish troops and peasants won a victory over the Russian army in an attempt to restore Polish independence.
The Racławice Panorama was first exhibited in 1894, to mark the centennial of the battle, and it was exhibited in Lwow (then part of the Austrian Empire and currently, Lviv, Ukraine) until 1946, when it was sent to Wroclaw by the Soviet authorities together with other elements of Polish cultural heritage. Since at that time Poland was under Soviet domination, the painting was not fully restored until the 1980s, when a special building was built for it.
The painting is truly impressive and it does a great job in getting you in the midst of the events. Access is done by groups every half hour and the ticket (which costs 50 PLN, around €10/$11) includes an audioguide with a very thorough explanation of the battle and what is depicted in each scene of the painting. Totally recommended!
Hydropolis, a water museum
This is a modern museum dedicated to the topic of water in a broad sense: rivers, lakes, oceans and so on.
It is located in the city’s former water treatment facility, with the exhibits occupying an underground Neo-Gothic reservoir which used to store the city's drinking water from the late 19th C. 1890s (it is in pieces of infrastructure like this, together with the aforementioned Market Hall and the soon to be explained Centennial Park, that you can see what a forward-looking place this city was at the time!)
One of the highlights of the exhibition is an interactive map showing the extent of the floods that Wroclaw suffered in 1997, with large portions of the city going under water. That event led to an upgrade of the city’s flood management and protection systems which withstood well another potential flooding event in 2024.
Hydropolis is not a huge museum, you can see it well in about one hour. To be honest, while I found it reasonably interesting , I got the feeling that it tries to cover too much ground (from the ocean depths all the way to Wroclaw’s water system) to do so effectively. If you have to prioritize, I would rather go to the Panorama and Centennial Hall first.
Tickets cost around 50 PLN (€10/$11). Most of the exhibition is inside, but you can also get to a garden roof from where you can see the old brick tower which used to act as a filtration tank for the city’s water supply.
By the way, the water tower has its own dwarf, which you are encouraged to located with the help of a telescope placed in the garden for this purpose!
Centennial Park - Wroclaw’s UNESCO World Heritage Site
Centennial Park is the only site of Wroclaw which has UNESCO World Heritage status and, interestingly, it is not from the Medieval or early Modern era, but was built in 1913 instead!
Centennial Hall was designed by German architect Max Berg, to mark the centenary of the 1813 Prussian rising against Napoleon. Its reinforced-concrete dome is reminiscent of the Pantheon, in Rome, although, at 65 metres across, it is way larger!
It is possible to visit the interior, although I was too late for that (last admission is at 5pm). I think the most visually interesting elements are on the outside, though.
It is actually quite amazing to think this type of futuristic, yet very elegant, architecture was a thing more than 100 years ago. And even more amazing to think it survived the destruction of WW2!
The circular hall and the spire are the most striking elements of Centennial Hall, but they are part of a much larger complex, which includes the lake and fountains, as well as the adjacent Japanese Garden.
While I didn’t have time to visit the Japanese garden, I heard good things about it and can be a nice addition to your itinerary if you go all the way to Centennial Hall. The garden, which is the third largest of its type in Europe, was set up also in 1913 and restored by Japanese specialists in 1995.
The fountain shows run hourly during the summer (May to October) and on some festive days and weekends there are special evening shows which attract large crowds. I didn’t have the chance to see any of these, but my advise is to check the schedules, because it can be a nice addition to your visit.
Wroclaw-la-nuit: Neon Gallery
Even if you are planning to skip Wroclaw’s nightlife (as it was my case!) it is worth having a peek at the Neon Gallery, since this is quite a unique and scenic spot and it is literally next to Rynek.
Well, in fact, it is located into what has been named the “Four faiths district”, an area of the historical center which is called this way because it hosts temples of as many religious denominations (Catholic, Lutheran, Orthodox and Jewish) and has become a sort of bohemian side of Wroclaw.
This is, indeed, the vibe of Neon Gallery, which is a large courtyard lined with bars and nightclubs. There are, actually, a couple more courtyards next door which serve the same function, but Neon Gallery is the most visually striking.
It had already a lively atmosphere at a relatively early hour. Of course, the warm weather helped (not sure whether is it the same in the middle of the Polish winter!).
As you can see below, the dwarves are not the only bronze statues you can come across when walking around Wroclaw!
How to move around Wroclaw
Wroclaw is not a huge city and most of the historical center and many of the sites mentioned in this post can be reached on foot from Rynek. However, you may still need some means of transportation to get to some of the more relatively peripheral places, such as Centennial Park or Hydropolis.
Trams provide a convenient and cheap way to move around the city. They pass frequently along the city’s main axis and you can pay straight away with your credit card at digital terminals inside the tram.
These have modern, touchscreens with a multilingual interface, so the whole process is pretty simple. A single ticket costs 4.5 PLN, which is around €1 (or $1).
I also used Bolt (the European alternative to Uber) a couple of times and it worked also well and was relatively cheap (a 10-15min urban journey costing me the equivalent of €5/$5).
Last but not least, if traveling to and from the airport, you can take Bus 106, which stops by the Renova building at the edge of the old town and runs every 30min or so. Ticketing works exactly the same as on the trams.
Three great places to eat in Wroclaw
1 - Restaurant Przystań & Marina
Księcia Witolda 2, 50-202 Wrocław
This is a modern and quite upmarket restaurant which serves Polish cuisine with European influences. It has got a Michelin guide mention and has also been listed by Forbes among the Top 50 restaurants in Poland.
The day I was visited our group got to try a degustation menu (see below), which provided quite a broad sampling of its offering. The presentation and the taste was impeccable throughout!
See the photo gallery below:
An added bonus if dining at Przystań & Marina is the view of the university building just across the river (the restaurant has a terrace actually).
The name of the restaurant “Przystań & Marina” means actually “harbour & marina” in a hint at its location near the water on one of the islands in the middle of the river Odra.
2- Vertigo Jazz Club & Restaurant
Oławska 13, 50-123 Wrocław
This is an iconic place in Wroclaw which acts, simultaneously as a restaurant and jazz bar. It is located in a basement right in the city center and is, apparently, the only jazz bar in town. It has shows pretty much every night and it serves pretty tasty food in a nice, relaxed atmosphere.
As can be expected from an place with such an artsy reputation, there are plenty of cool small details, such as, for example, the design of the menu, which looks like an old school newspaper. Or the the presentation of both the cocktails and the food.
A nice place for an evening out in Wroclaw!
3- Concordia Taste
wyspa Słodowa 7, 50-266 Wrocław, Poland
This is a very modern place (opened in 2022) located on one of the small islands on the Odra river (very close to Sand Island and Ostrow Tumski).
Its interior is decorated by a very large mural painting running across the whole restaurant. It is the work of Polish artist by Alicja Biała, who intended to celebrate closeness with nature and with other people you spend time with.
The restaurant is located within a building that serves as a creative arts space and business center and it has nice views of the river and Wroclaw University.
The menu is based on Polish cuisine and local ingredients, but with a somehow modern reinterpretation (as you can see, for example, with the pierogi depicted below).
It was super tasty, but light at the same time (despite its four courses), ideal for a business lunch!
Three great hotels to stay in Wroclaw
1 - Art Hotel Wroclaw
Kiełbaśnicza 20, 50-110 Wrocław
You can book this hotel here.
This hotel is a really excellent option is if you are looking for a place to stay right in the heart of the Wroclaw’s old town.
This is an independent hotel which occupies a historical building right by barely 2 minutes walk away from Rynek and literally around the corner from St.Elizabeth Basilica and Jatki Street, both sites that I have described earlier.
Part of the hotel is on a building that dates back to the 14th C. and in the 17th and 18th C. housed a printer’s shop.
It became a hotel in the 1990s and has since kept a connection to the city’s art scene. This is why its interior, both the common spaces and the rooms, are all decorated with works of art.
The hotel also has a restaurant and a small spa area.
Interestingly, my room was a mansard-style apartment, which, I guess is part of what gives the place its unique character.
The breakfast was pretty good, btw, and served in this very charming room!
2 - Tower Hotel Wroclaw
Szewska 3, 50-438 Wrocław
You can book it here.
This is a super modern hotel (I read that it had opened barely a few weeks before my arrival).
It is located also very central on the main boulevard ring, right at the edge of the old town.
I was even wondering whether the name derives from the emplacement of one of the city walls’ towers, which is not a far fetched possibility considering the site. In this regard, the faux-historical decor plays its part and mixes well with the remaining totally contemporary motifs.
As you can see, and as expected, the style is that of a four-star modern hotel. In the pictures below you can see how the standard double room looks like (this one I was assigned had two small beds instead of a large one, not ideal, but I guess for just one night is ok.
3 - Q Hotel Plus Wroclaw
Zaolziańska 2, 53-334 Wrocław
You can book it here.
This is another super new hotel (there seems to be a hotel boom in Poland right now!).
It is located a bit further from the historical center, although still a comfortable 10 min walk away (or 5 minutes ride from the tram stop located just opposite). It is also very close to Wroclaw’s central station, so if, as it was my case, you have to catch an early train, it’s perfectly located. I liked the fact that there are water fountains on each floor and you get a refillable bottle in the room (in addition to coffee and tea).
As in the previous hotel, the decor and style is contemporary throughout.
I didn’t really have enough time (just one night) to check all of the hotel’s services, but I really liked the lobby area, which is also adjacent to the hotel’s restaurant.
It had a really cozy atmosphere and received plenty of light from the street
If you are planning a trip to Poland, you may also find of interest our story about what to do and what to see when on a short trip to Gdansk.
What to do and what to see in Madeira, paradise island (2026 update)
A thorough exploration of the exuberant and diverse Portuguese island of Madeira. A proper Garden of Eden in the middle of the Ocean.
This article was first published in 2019 and updated in August 2026.
There is little doubt that Portugal has become one of the hottest tourist destinations in Europe.
A case in point is Lisbon’s comeback, from sleepy capital on the periphery of Europe to a must-visit place for any discerning traveller has been remarkable. But it is easy to forget that the wonders of Portugal are not limited to its mainland. One of Portugal’s most fascinating territories is the small island of Madeira (whose name means “wood” in Portuguese).
Once a stepping stone on Portugal’s long Oceanic routes, Madeira is just 57 km long and 22 km wide (at its widest point) but thanks to its orography and geographical position, it has an amazing diversity of landscapes and ecosystems that guarantee you won’t get bored anytime soon.
In this article:
What to see in Funchal, Madeira’s capital
Dolphin and whale spotting in Madeira
The Faja dos Padres seaside oasis and cable car
Pico Arrieiro, Madeira’s highest point
Madeira’s lush northern side
Where to get Madeira’s traditional embroidery
Where to taste Madeira wine - visiting the Blandy’s winery
Must to in Madeira: going downhill on a sledge
Where to stay on Madeira, some suggestions
Cristiano Ronaldo’s hotel in Funchal
Great places to eat out in Madeira
How to get to Madeira
The first impression you get upon landing on Madeira is that the island is incredibly mountainous. In fact, the island is but the emerged part of a large volcanic ridge that rises all the way from the ocean floor to a height of nearly 2,000m above sea level.
There is hardly a square mile of flat terrain on this island, and this is why even the island’s airport had to be built, partly, on a hill-side man-made structure sustained by pillars (resembling an aircraft carrier of sorts)
Madeira’s complex orography becomes evident on the drive from the airport to its capital, Funchal, through a brand new motorway with innumerable tunnels and bridges. Houses are perched on the what look like impossibly steep inclines right and left, with deep ravines and cliffs around them.
This is about as flat as it gets in Madeira!
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.
The trip was courtesy of TAP Air Portugal in collaboration with Turismo de Portugal and the Madeira Promotion Agency. All opinions are my own.
What to see in Funchal
Madeira’s capital and its administrative and services hub, Funchal, is on the south coast of the island.
Located in a rare opening of the vertical cliffs that line the island’s coast. Although Funchal’s neighbourhoods climb onto the surrounding hillsides, its historical centre is right by the sea.
Funchal feels like a rather sleepy provincial town and, although it is hard to pinpoint one major landmark or point of interest, its whole urban ensemble, particularly the streets on the old town, is not devoid of charm.
One place you can not miss if visiting Funchal is the fish and vegetables market. We were to late for the fish auction, but could get a first glimpse of the produce that results from Madeira’s mild sub-tropical climate.
The flower and fruit display at Funchal market can’t be described as anything else but a colour explosion, with passion fruit, which comes in different sorts and varieties, being the real star here!
Dolphin Spotting in Madeira
One of the most amazing things to do in Madeira is the whale and dolphin watching tour (there are several companies offering dolphin and whale watching tours on the island).
Even if you don’t get to spot any of these magnificent marine mammals, it is the perfect excuse to enjoy the clean, deep blue waters that surround the island and contemplate its magnificent orography from the sea.
There were a dozen of us on a fast boat as we moved out of Funchal’s harbour for a glorious morning at sea. It was bright and sunny but the constant breeze kept the temperature balmy and pleasant at all times.
It did not take long before we spot the first dolphins, we followed them for a while before they were gone…far from being a rare encounter, we soon got visual contact with another group…and then another…and another…
Lunch at Fajã dos Padres
A great continuation to the dolphin-spotting adventure, as traveling by boat is the best way to access this secluded oasis of calm nested between the sea and high vertical cliffs.
It would be fair to say that this narrow tongue of land at the foot of huge fully vertical cliffs, concentrates much of what makes of Madeira such a special place: crystalline waters, great food, exuberant vegetation and amazing weather set in a rough, rocky landscape.
There is a restaurant and terrace in Fajã dos Padres, the feel is rather vintage, but this is exactly what fits this place, that seems to move at its very own pace. In fact, the Fajã dos Padres offers some of the best produce that Madeira has to offer: fresh fish and seafood and succulent tropical fruit and this shows in the menu…By the way, one of the local specialities: limpets with a sprinkle of lemon!
How to get to Fajã dos Padres if you don’t have access to a boat? Some time ago, there used to be a lift that would take you all the way up to the island’s main road…
The lift is no longer in service and nowadays there is a modern cable car instead.
The ride uphill on the cable car gives you an idea of the rather precarious narrowness of this strip of land that Fajã dos Padres sits on (which you can see in the picture below). There’s enough land, though, for several tropical fruit plantations and orchards to be found all along the seaside.
Pico Arieiro: the highest point on Madeira
Our activity for the next day could not be more different, a sweater and raincoat were required.
In a matter of just a few miles we got from sea level to a height of over 1,800m. From the warm, subtropical temperatures to the rather fresher mountain air of Pico Arieiro, Madeira’s highest peak.
The summit of Pico Arieiro can, actually, be accessed by road, although the car struggled at times to keep going in the super steep ramps that lead to the highest point in the island. Once you are on top, though, the views are simply otherworldly.
The mountains at the centre of the island form deep canyons on the north side that are quickly filled with the thick clouds coming from the ocean. On the Eastern side, it is the blue ocean.
Would it be it possible to see the Africa coast from here? We tried…
Exploring Madeira’s lush Northern side
Once you start to descend towards the Northern side of Madeira, it starts to feel like you are in a totally different island. The contrast with the southern half of the island couldn’t be starker.
Everything of the western side is absolutely dripping wet. Here the rainforest is thick, green and lush. In a matter of a couple of miles we have been transported from the aridness of North Africa to a landscape that could well be that of the US Pacific Northwest.
But, one thing remains the same: flowers blooming everywhere.
It’s just different types of flowers than the ones on the dry south side. In some areas these white, round flowers, which are called hydrangeas, cluster in cotton-like bushes, so thick that at some points looks like they are about to block the road.
Upon arrival at the aptly named “Ribeiro Frio” (Cold River), we had the chance to do bits of a Levada Walk.
The “levadas” are old irrigation channels that, historically, had been built to bring water from the rainy Western side of the Madeira to the arid East, where most people live. Some of them run for many miles and tunnels and aqueducts were built along their path to sort out the complicated orography of the island.
Nowadays a network of trails follow the routes of these “levadas”.
Where to eat on the north side of Madeira
After the walk, time to eat something…
Restaurant Quinta do Furao
Estrada da Quinta do Furão Nº6, 9230-082
Santana, Portugal
This restaurant (which is also a hotel) is located among the vineyards at the North tip of the island. Besides the excellent food and the views, here in Santana there are also some houses built in the traditional architectural style of Madeira.
The coast on this part of the island is a sight to behold, almost devoid of vegetation and with an almost lunar aspect at some points. This is the predominant landscape until we get to Ponta San Lourenço, the Easternmost tip of the island. From here we follow the road along coast all the way back to Funchal.
What to bring back from Madeira? Traditional embroidery
One of the traditional economic activities in Madeira and one that still employs quite a lot of people in the island is embroidery.
We had the chance to visit Bordal, one of the firms in Funchal, that still work on this traditional craft, and to learn about the artisan process that results in these highly valued embroidered textiles.
This industry is structured in a very capillar way. A handful of houses in Funchal control de embroidery industry, they distribute work to a large network of women all over the rural parts of the island. They, then, at home, complete parts of the process, before taking the semi-finished fabrics to Funchal, where they are completed and dyed with different pigments.
It is still today an artisan process and the old sub-contracting work system continues in place.
With a renewed interest around the world for craftsmanship and artisan products, Madeira embroidery may be set for a revival and has even attracted the attention of some big names of the fashion industry.
Where to taste Madeira Wine
The other well known Madeiran export is its wine.
Madeira wine was highly appreciated by the British, whose ships often called at Funchal on their way to India and the Far East. In fact, in the 18th and 19th Centuries Madeira attracted quite a few British entrepreneurs that settled in the island and helped develop its wine industry. Some of those entrepreneurs gave rise to wine-making dynasties that continue to play a prominent role in the local economy and society.
This is the case of Blandy’s, the wine cellar we visited in central Funchal.
Madeira wine is indeed, quite unique, with a flavour similar to Port in some ways (note: I am not a wine expert, so forgive me if I am not technically accurate in my words, will try to transmit what they told us there!).
Blandy’s offers and didactic tour about the process of elaboration of Madeira wine (and interestingly, Blandy’s winery has its own on-premises hotel for wine lovers).
The most remarkable feature of the Madeira wine production process, and that that gives it its very distinctive taste, is the heat-aging process. As part of the production process, the wine is exposed for relatively long periods of time to high temperatures. The origin of this practice is in the fact that, centuries ago, someone figured out that Madeira wine that went on long transoceanic voyages in the hold of ships bound for the tropics, did actually taste better. Later, techniques were developed to replicate and accelerate this process on land.
Another feature of Madeira wine is that they can last very very long time and still be drinkable. In this regard, one of the most interesting moments of the visit to Blandy’s is when you get to the room where bottles containing many decades of vintages are displayed together and you can just but marvel at the dates that appear on the bottles.
In the 18th Century Madeira wine was extremely popular, particularly in the American Colonies. Not for nothing, the US Founding Fathers toasted to the Declaration of Independence with a glass of Madeira wine!
During the 20th Century, though, Madeira wine lost its hype and came to be regarded as unfashionable, a state of things that the current generation of Madeira producers are working hard to change.
Although not an expert myself, I quite like Madeira’s very unique taste and I hope it will eventually get back the recognition that it deserves!
Must do in Madeira: go downhill on a sledge
A truly unique thing to do in Madeira is go downhill on the Monte sledges.
Although nowadays is a tourist attraction, starting in the early 19th Century, sledge-descent used to be the a common way to commute between the uphill town of Monte and downtown Funchal.
The experience itself is getting into a basket-like sledge that, guided by two professional drivers, called “carreiros”, goes on a 2km downhill descent through a paved road. The ride takes some 10min and it is, definitely a thrill and it is amazing how those guys manage to keep it all the time under control.
There are several companies offering sledge descents in Monte, sometimes combined with other activities.
Recommended places to Stay in Madeira
Hotel Pestana Casino Park
Rùa Imperatriz D Amelia, 9004-513 Funchal
Possibly the hotel of reference in Funchal.
It was designed by Oscar Niemeyer, the famous Brazilian architect (who designed also Brazil’s capital, Brasilia) and this shows in the style. The hotel has also amazing views, particularly from the infinity pool area, that is also where you guests have their breakfast.
Hotel Pestana CR7 Funchal
Av. Sá Carneiro, 9000-017 Funchal
Football player Cristiano Ronaldo (also known as CR7) is, together with wine and embroidery, the other Madeira export with global reach.
In partnership with the Pestana Group (Portugal’s largest hotel operator), he has opened a number of CR7-themed hotels.
I did not stay at this hotel, but I had the chance to visit its facilities and be shown around by the managers.
While the CR7 hotel in Lisboa is rather more neutral in its decor, the Pestana CR7 hotel in Funchal is totally dedicated to Cristiano Ronaldo and his life as a football star.
The hotel occupies on a modern, two-storey, elongated building right by the port. It has some rather unique elements, such as this statue of Cristiano Ronaldo just outside the hotel.
The roof is a massive solarium and outdoor spa area, complete with pool, sauna and other amenities.
And while this hotel may not be for everyone (warning: if cult of personality is not you thing, you can skip the rest of this review), CR7’s global fan base may be big enough for this concept to work.
The hotel manager actually confirmed that some guests travel thousands of miles just to have the CR7 experience!
While the lobby and restaurant on the ground floor have a modern design where, little (besides some memorabilia here and there) indicates the connection to the footballer. It’s another story in the upper floors, where the rooms are located. Everything here is football and CR7-themed.
And below a couple of rather disturbing (imo) elements in the decor, that are intended to be a constant reminder of the sort of constant surveillance and public attention that football stars of the caliber of CR7 constantly get, 24/7.
As you can see room decor is contemporary and minimal. There is one element to highlight though…The paintings on top of the bed tell the story of the life of CR7, from his childhood in poverty to stardom…While aesthetically they fit in the overall theme, I found this a bit…mmmh…too much, maybe? But I guess this is a plus for his fans (disclosure: I am a FC Barcelona supporter)
Some more recommended places to eat in Madeira
Nini Design Centre Andrade Silva Restaurant - DC Atelier
Estrada da Pontinha
Forte de Nossa Senhora da Conceição, Funchal
http://www.ninidesigncentre.com
This stylish contemporary restaurant is located within the walls of an old fort at Funchal’s harbour. The DC Atelier restaurant of modern cuisine is, in fact, part of a larger design and cultural hub that serves as a setting for temporary art exhibitions and a number of fashion and design shops.
The place has magnificent views as its terraces open towards the port of Funchal, with the town and neighbouring mountains on one side and the open sea on the other side. The mix of contemporary decor and the old walls of the place also makes for an interesting contrast.
As it could not be otherwise in a house dedicated to design, the cuisine here is contemporary, with a degree of creativity, and, what’s more… rather generous portions.
Restaurante do Forte (Sao Tiago Fortress)
Tv. do Forte 3, 9060-123 Funchal
Located in a 17th Century fortress at the edge of the old town, this is another great place to eat while admiring one of the most prominent pieces of Funchal’s historical heritage.
As you can see, seafood and local Madeira wines features prominently in our meal here. Very tasty and great location by the sea, next to the historical centre of Funchal.
Believe it or not, this is not a painting, but and iPhone photo with some retouching on Instagram!
Restaurant Adega da Quinta
R. José Joaquim da Costa, 9325-034 Madeira
https://www.facebook.com/restauranteadegadaquinta
Located on a hilltop near Funchal, this restaurant has great views and lush gardens.
The speciality here is meat, that is cooked in the traditional “espetada” beef skewers. It has also a cellar where local Madeira wine is kept in oak barrels.
How to get to Madeira
Being an island, the obvious way to get here is by plane. Although there are also, at least seasonally, ferries to mainland Portugal and the Canady Islands, as well as to the nearby island of Porto Santo (that administratively depends of Madeira).
Funchal airport is named…you guess it!…Cristiano Ronaldo International Airport and it has the particularity, as we commented earlier, that part of the runway is supported by pillars as there was not enough space to build it entirely on firm ground.
TAP Air Portugal has several daily flights between Madeira and mainland Portugal and the island is also included in the airline’s “Portugal Stopover” programme.
The UK and Germany stand out when it comes to the number of year-round air links to Funchal (FNC) operated both by full service airlines such as British Airways and Lufthansa and leisure-focused operators such as Jet2, TUI or Condor.
Quite a few other European airlines fly to Madeira, including low cost airlines Ryanair and Easyjet.
Thinking about visiting Portugal?
Why don’t you also check our post about the Douro Valley and its wineries?
And our review of JAM Lisbon, one of Portugal’s most original hotels
nūn Ibiza, the beachside wood-fired restaurant you can’t miss
Could nūn ibiza be the next global brand to come out of the island?
By our lifestyle correspondent Katya Kvasova
The island of Ibiza (Eivissa in the local Catalan language) is undoubtedly one of Europe’s summer hotspots, its charms attract a diverse crowd from ever distant shores (to the point that United Airlines is even launching the first ever nonstop route between the island and New York in 2027).
Ibiza, often celebrated for its vibrant nightlife, offers a tapestry of experiences that cater to diverse tastes and preferences. Each visitor can discover a unique facet of the island. Ibiza ensures that there is truly something for everyone.
The magic and absolutely unique vibe of Ibiza have been making me come back every summer for over a decade now and a special feature about how best to discover the island with itineraries, logistics, hotels and recommended places to visit is definitely on the editorial calendar. However, I felt that nūn ibiza deserved a piece of its own, since this restaurant is one of the places that, in my opinion, best represent the soul of the island and make it feel like home.
This beautiful Cala Llonga seaside restaurant has elevated wood-fired cooking into something close to art, while keeping the whole experience light, deep, rich and natural throughout.
Follow me as I show you how is it like to eat at one of the most charming restaurants you can find on the entire island of Ibiza!
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The meal was courtesy of Nûn. All opinions are my own.
A very personal project
It’s impossible to write about nūn Ibiza without mentioning its founder. Because nūn Ibiza is the very personal project of French restaurateur Olivia Fleury (“nūn” is, in fact, her childhood nickname), whom we had the chance to meet in person during our visit to the restaurant.
Olivia has been in Ibiza for more than 20 years, 18 of which spent in the restaurant business. Prior to setting up nūn Ibiza, she was instrumental in setting up two other popular names of the Ibiza restaurant scene: El Chiringuito and Beachouse.
Those who have been coming to Ibiza for the last ten years or so, have likely seen lots of places come and go, unable to hold through more than a couple of seasons, not Olivia’s restaurants, though.
El Chiringuito, in particular, has made a name for itself on the south side of the island. That is a part of Ibiza, which has seen a lot of changes in the last few years, and even if Olivia is no longer running the place, El Chiringuito’s staying power says lots about Olivia’s capability to come up with the right formula for the right place.
In conversation during our visit, Olivia attributed this to two factors: attention to detail and the ability to pick the best possible team, one that will stick around for years and works its magic.
Picture: nūn ibiza
Started four years ago, nūn Ibiza is, in fact, the first restaurant project which Olivia has set up and led entirely on her own.
“I first came here [to Ibiza] at age 18 and thought “one day I will come back and live here. It was wild. I loved it”" she told us. “to me, nūn ibiza feels like El Chiringuito at its very beginning. I want to spend time talking to the guests, to be able to give this type of quality again. This is the first time i own my own restaurant and the season can get long and heavy but I really like it. This is what i call happiness and I enjoy creating happiness for other people!”
The setting: Cala Llonga
nūn ibiza
Carrer Monte Rosa, 12
07849 Cala Llonga, Eivissa
Before we get into the actual food side of things, it’s worth mentioning the setting, since it plays no small part in the overall experience.
This includes, of course, Cala Llonga, a long narrow cove of white sand nestled between rocky outcrops on the east side of the island.
nûn Ibiza is located right on the northern side of the cove, literally on the sand’s edge.
“The idea was to create kind of a home on the beach. Because not a lot of people have the opportunity to live like this, with their feet on the sand.” explained Olivia during our chat.
The restaurant has actually a nice terrace with views that offer an immersive experience.
Picture: nūn ibiza
The firewood cuisine at nūn ibiza
If there’s one thing that sets nūn Ibiza apart it’s the centrality of firewood to its cooking. In fact, pretty much everything at the restaurant is grilled over firewood, giving it the complexity of flavour and unique point of smokiness only this way of cooking can provide.
“I think one of the nicest things you can have is grilled food. It's an amazing product, very simple. We use only wood fire.” Olivia told us. “It took us a few days, even a few months, but we just realized that it brings some flavours that you don't usually get with the traditional way of cooking. Everything has a little bit of a smoky taste, but not too strong.”
This is a way of cooking which requires a certain know-how, including the sourcing of the right types of wood, as well as patience. Fortunately, Olivia has the right man for the task: chef Sebastián Nicoletti, who brought to nūn ibiza some of the cooking techniques from his native land of origin, Argentina, where firewood cooking is part of the culture.
But it’s not just the way food is cooked, the time and pace at which it is consumed matters too.
And on this front, nūn Ibiza again, distinguishes itself through its relaxed approach. The restaurant is open around the clock, morning to evening, catering to different tastes, all times of day.
There is no such thing as time or schedule on Ibiza for many of those holidaying on the island, mentioned Olivia, sharing the recent real story of a family with kids who showed up mid-morning for breakfast (the restaurant has also a pastry corner) and ended up leaving in the evening after having had lunch and dinner, as well.
Local DJs add another sensory element to the experience, with sound always a presence that makes you feel like you never want to leave. It’s a feeling of flow that you blend in the day, a slow life, a “dolce far niente”.
“The idea is to provide always this welcoming vibe, and let people feel free from breakfast to dinner.” stated Olivia.
The menu and the ingredients at nūn ibiza
When it comes to sourcing the food for its menu, nūn ibiza combines a principled approach with a dose of pragmatism. But perhaps is best to learn what this means directly through Olivia’s own words.
“What we've tried to do in the last few years, is to select as much organic produce as possible. There is all this romanticism about km.0 produce, but the reality of an island like ours is this is that if you need to have a lot of ingredients and products, you can source everything locally.” acknowledged Olivia.
“It’s a lot about the quality and also about the price, because if the prices are going crazy, and here we are trying to be focused on the value. So, you know, it's not just about some dishes going to have a high price point, like the vongole, for example, the clams, which are coming from Galicia. Once you try them, you understand why you're paying this. For me, it's about having a value point of view more than trying to get everything as cheap or as expensive as possible.”
“Because we've been working for many years together with the team in the kitchen, we kind of understand each other now. So, we're trying to respect the suppliers as much as we can to get the freshest produce. And sometimes we don't have this product, or we don't have that other one, because every day everything is coming fresh. that's the policy. If we were organic km-zero, I would need to change the menu every two weeks, and I would have 10 dishes at most, realistically.”
Our eating experience at nûn ibiza
We came to nūn Ibiza for lunch and were immediately confronted with what can only be described as a version of the so-called paradox of choice.
And while you may end up with a little bit of remorse for having selected, let’s say, skirt steak over one of nūn’s perfect burgers or the fish of the day, the good news is that you are very unlikely to choose wrongly, because everything was truly top notch.
To say we opened the meal with some starters would be an understatement, since among them was possibly the best Greek salad I've ever had: big chunks of warm cheese, generous handfuls of capers and olives, plump, juicy cherry tomatoes, all served alongside crusty round bread.
We also had some fish tacos, which are served in small corn tortilals and topped with guacamole, watercress and coriander
Oh, and did I mention the Padrón peppers? I am not sure where else you would be able to find better ones…
Trust me, it was all unforgettable.
nūn is also the place that will make you a lifelong fan of cooked carrots. After being cooked over fire, they are served on a bed of labneh, the Levantine yogurt-style cream, which has been sprinkled with chickpea crumble and cumin, drizzled with honey and covered in fresh coriander and herbs for good measure. This is what I would call a mouthful of Mediterranean flavours!
Skirt steak, served with a side of fries, was my final choice of main, and it turned out to be an excellent decision. It was on a whole other level, no surprises here!
Getting to Cala Llonga
Cala Llonga is in the municipality of Santa Eulària del Riu, on the eastern side of Ibiza. It takes around 20-25 minutes from downtown Ibiza to get there.
So, you will need to get a car or take a taxi to get there, because public transport is not really an option.
Worth mentioning that, since our visit took place pretty much at the peak of the summer season, we were, at first, a bit concerned about parking space availability in Cala Llonga, but I am happy to report this turned out not to be a problem at all! (we even managed to park for free)
Our Take
Few places in Ibiza, if any, encapsulate better the concept of barefoot sophistication that this island has come to represent than nūn iIbiza. It is also proof that sometimes what looks like a pretty straightforward culinary approach, cooking over firewood, can produce the most extraordinary multi-layered flavours.
But, most of all, nūn Ibiza is about the vibe that leads so many of its customers to lose track of time.
Ibiza, an island wrapped in prejudice and myths, is also a platform certain brands can leverage to become international references in their respective fields. I wouldn’t be surprised if this ends up being the case of nūn, an amazing and well deserved success story.
Turkey's Forgotten Inland Sea: Bafa Lake and Herakleia under Latmos
Many travellers head for Turkey’s Aegean coast every summer (and can’t really blame them for that!), but far, far fewer venture a few miles inland to explore what may be one of Western Anatolia’s best kept secrets: Bafa Lake (“Bafa Gölü” in Turkish) and the Ancient city of Herakleia under Latmos, a little known Ancient city which lies under the modern day village of Kapıkırı, roughly half way between Izmir and Bodrum. In fact this is a great thing to do if you are driving along the Turkish Riviera between these two cities.
If you were wondering why a major city flourished here, in Ancient times, in the arid hills of Western Anatolia, the answer is that, Heracleia was, at its height, a port city, since Bafa Lake was connected to the Aegean sea.
Sediments from the Büyük Menderes river ended up cutting Heracleia off from the sea in a process similar to that which led, as well, to the ruin of other prominent urban centers of Antiquity in this part of the Aegean, such as Ephesus and Miletus, which are now effectively inland.
In this case, Herakleia didn’t lose access to water, but what was a large sea bay, became, instead a lake of brackish waters.
How to get to Lake Bafa?
As mentioned earlier, Lake Bafa sits roughly halfway between Bodrum and Izmir and not far from the famous Ancient site of Ephesus.
And while the D525 motorway runs along much of the lake’s southern shore (offering some rather impressive views, as shown in the pic above), the main point of interest is the vilage of Kapıkırı, on its northeastern side.
To get there you will need a car, since this is really a rural area without much any meaningful public transportation options to speak of. The good news is that Kapıkırı is just 9 km off the D525 motorway and there is a decent, if rather local, paved road to get there.
The unique landscape of Mount Latmos
One of the main draws of Bafa Lake is that this is not just a place to see Ancient ruins, but a whole ensemble which combines nature and history.
There is the lake and its water landscapes, of course, but what is on dry land is also worth mentioning, because the Latmos mountains which run along the eastern and northern sides of Bafa Lake are quite spectacular, as well.
This is an area which reminded me of Montserrat, near Barcelona, with rather unusual rock formations and large boulders of many shapes scattered all over the place.
The olive groves you pass on the way to Kapıkırı are a constant reminder that this land has been cultivated literally since the dawn of civilization (some 10,000-year-old rock paintings have actually been found in the area).
The lost city of Herakleia under Latmos
Kapıkırı is a small, quiet hamlet overlooking Lake Bafa with little in it to suggest it sits atop the ruins of a major Hellenistic city.
Herakleia under Latmos was settled at least as early as the 8th C. BC, however, it reached its apogee a few centuries later, during the Hellenistic period (around 4th C. BC), when king Mausolus of Halicarnassus (modern day Bodrum) made it one of its major urban centres and gave it the name of Herakleia (since there were multiple cities with this name across the Ancient greek world, this one was known as “-under Latmos”, in a reference to the neighbouring mountains).
Mausolus also fortified the city of Herakleia, building an enceinter which run for more than 6 kilometres around its perimeter.
Part of these walls are still visible today, as are the ruins of several buildings, although not much is left over ground of the old city.
It seems that the decadence of Herakleia under Latmos started already in Antiquity as its access to the sea started to become silted up and it lost its function as a port and place of trade. It appears that the city was not abandoned outright, though, and with the advent of Christianity it became a monastic center until the arrival of the Turks in the middle ages.
Another point of interest is Kapıkırı Island (below), right in front of the village of the same name. The island still has its Hellenistic walls as well as the ruins of a Byzantine monastery and two smaller churches. It is located so close to the shore that it is actually possible to swim to it (I didn’t, but there were some bathers that were doing just that when I visited).
Lake Bafa’s firefighting plane
Adding to the scenery is an item from a much more recent time: a Canadair CL-215 amphibious firefighting aircraft is on permanent display by the shore of the lake.
The aircraft is painted in the colours of the Turkish Aeronautical Association (Türk Hava Kurumu, “THK”), which operates a fleet of Canadair firefighting seaplanes on behalf of the Turkish General Directorate of Forestry.
So, how did this aircraft end up there?
In June 2024, this aircraft was scooping water on Lake Bafa in order to fight a forest fire in a nearby area when it suffered an accident due to adverse winds and waves and it ended up with its forward fuselage submerged. No one was injured and the three crew members were rescued, but the aircraft was written off and left by the beach in Kapıkırı.
Besides being a very interesting sight by itself, the aircraft provides quite an interesting counterpoint to the historical and natural appeal of the place.
Where to eat by Lake Bafa: Agora Pansiyon
If you are visiting Lake Bafa, tasting the lake’s hot smoked eels is a must.
This is a true local speciality and, to try it, I would recommend heading to Agora Pansiyon, a restaurant in “downtown” Kapıkırı which boasts several Michelin guide mentions.
This is a nice family-owned establishment, which works both as a restaurant and hotel. It has its own parking space, which is relevant since I guess almost every visitor arrives to Kapıkırı by car. The restaurant has a nice outdoor, covered terrace which is rather pleasant.
It’s owner, Mithat, is fluent in English (which, surprinsingly is not that common in Turkey’s hospitality sector) and besides being also a talented amateur photographer (you can see some of his work on Instagram) he also works as a tourist guide, taking groups on tours all over this region, so he is very well versed on the unique history and geography of this region.
Agora Pansiyon is also a great place to try the local specialities, starting by the olives of the locally-harvested olives of the Memecik variety (they are recognized by the Milas Table Olives Protected Designation of Origin, btw), which are also used to make extra virgin olive oil.
Another surprising detail worth mentioning: our host, Mithat, told us that the bread they serve at Agora Pansiyon is also a piece of local heritage. Following an old Anatolian tradition, the sourdough starter used to make the restaurant’s bread comes from a living culture brought into the family generations ago as part of a bride's dowry.
The yeast has been fed and kept alive ever since, rather than made fresh. Apparently, in Turkish tradition this surdough starter is believed to carry a kind of omen for the household's fortune.
You can taste some other local foods at Agora Pansiyon, such as Milas Vekilharç, which is a sort of cylindrical dumpling which is open at the edges, and Milas Ekşili Köfte, which are meatballs simmered with tomato, pepper, and pomegranate molasses.
But what I would really recommend tasting is the hot smoked eels from Bafa Lake. Eels thrive in the brackish waters of Lake Bafa, but I was astonished to learn they actually spawn in the Gulf of Mexico and then migrate all the way to Lake Bafa, which is not entirely sealed off from the sea, since the Büyük Menderes river and adjacent marshy areas act as a conduit.
In any case, this was my first time trying eels and they didn’t disappoint!
Agora Pansiyon does the smoking in-house and they also offer them grilled. They are then presented to the waiting guests under a glass cloche which has retained the smoke and heat. Eels are suprinsingly meaty and tasy, a great discovery!
So, this is all for this time. To be honest, this was a rather quick stopover while traveling by road from Bodrum to Izmir to catch a plane, so it was really time constrained.
I left Bafa Lake with the feeling that there was still so much more to explore around this area and that a full day or two are not off the mark if you wish to experience the Turkish countryside in a different way.
Btw, if you are travelling in Western Anatolia and the broader Turkish Aegean region, you may want to check also the following stories:
Some of the top things to do and to see around Bodrum (2026 UPDATE)
Kaş to Kastellorizo: where Turkey's Lycian Way meets the most distant Greek island
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.
Covered in this post:
Bergamo’s Città Alta and Città Bassa, a tale of two cities
What to see in Bergamo’s Città Bassa
Nice places to have coffee in Bergamo’s Città Bassa
What to see in Bergamo’s historical center, the Città Alta
La Rocca (fortress) and museum of the ‘800
A recommended itinerary through Bergamo’s Città Alta
Tasting Bergamo’s Casoncelli
A great, small art museum in Bergamo: Accademia Carrara
Where to stay in Bergamo
A great day excursion near Bergamo: Lake Iseo
What to see around Lake Iseo
Visiting Monteisola on Lake Iseo
Wandering around Peschiera Maraglio
Other spots to bathe in Lake Iseo
More interesting places around Lake Iseo: Lovere
Bonus tip: visiting Clusone, in the Val Seriana
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!
Covered in this post:
Main areas to visit in Montevideo
What to see in Montevideo’s Ciudad Vieja
Mercado del Puerto
Where to eat in Montevideo’s Ciudad Vieja
Palacio Taranco
Museo del Gaucho y de la Moneda
Where to have coffee and breakfast in the Ciudad Vieja
Amazing boutique hotel in Montevideo
Exploring modern Montevideo
Mercado Agrícola de Montevideo: a walk through the northern neighbourhoods
The seaside neighbourhoods: Palermo, Punta Carretas, Pocitos, Carrasco
Where to eat in Carrasco
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!
Covered in this post:
How to get to and from Colonia Sacramento
The historical center of Colonia de Sacramento (UNESCO World Heritage Site)
Top things to see in historical Colonia de Sacramento
The bullfighting ring in Colonia de Sacramento
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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. They also offer several tours and experiences, which is better to book in advance, because they usually fill up quickly.
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.
Thinking about visiting Portugal? Why don’t you also check our posts about:
What to see in the fascinating island of Madeira
JAM Lisbon, a truly original hotel in the Portuguese capital
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.
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 a way to keep Places of Charm going. Thank you for your support.
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, Etihad and Air Astana 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).
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 a way to keep Places of Charm going. Thank you for your support.
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.