Western European Russia
Founded in 1473, this monastery sits in a ravine full of hermits’ grottoes. With all the high ground outside, it’s an improbable stronghold, but several…
Must-see attractions in Eastern Europe
Belgrade
This tiny church was erected by refugees who fled the October Revolution. It's the only Russian church in Belgrade, and houses a priceless collection of…
Northern Dalmatia
In the outer reaches of the archipelago that stutters out into the Adriatic from the Northern Dalmatian coast, Silba Island is a pretty detour if you're…
The Albanian Riviera
One of the more attractive beaches on the Albanian Riviera is Drymades. It's a long, shingle white beach backed by olive groves and the first stirrings of…
Estonia
Originally a Danish stronghold of the 13th century, Rakvere’s star attraction is a hulking, atmospheric semi-ruin that now aims to transport visitors back…
Bucharest
This pretty monastery, surrounded by a lush walled garden, dates from the mid-19th century and was once the property of the private Dârvari family.
Moscow
This grandiose complex was founded in 1656 near the picturesque Istra River (renamed the ‘Jordan’ by Patriarch Nikon). Unlike other Moscow monasteries,…
Bucharest
This beautiful walled complex was built in 1715 by the metropolitan bishop Antim Ivireanu. Today it's hidden by communist-era housing blocks.
Lake Skadar National Park
For a brief time in the 15th century, between the fall of Skadar (now Shkodra in Albania) and the founding of Cetinje, this was the capital of Zetan ruler…
Mljet Island
Tiny St Mary's Island lies on Veliko Jezero, not far from its southern shore. Boats (included in the park admission price) head here at least hourly…
Mid-Dnipro Museum of Folk Architecture and Life
Kyiv
This brilliant outdoor museum in Pereyaslav-Khmelnytsky, 90km southeast of Kyiv, has around 70 heritage wooden buildings brought here from nearby villages…
Museum of the Krapina Neanderthal
Zagorje
Those with kids should make a beeline to this brilliant museum which explores the history of the universe, earth and humanity, as well as highlighting the…
Sarajevo
Bosnia's biggest and best-endowed museum of ancient and natural history is housed in an impressive, purpose-built quadrangle of neoclassical 1913…
Pirin Mountains
Standing serenely in the hills 7km north of Melnik, this working monastery has admirable 16th-century frescoes and a holy icon of the Virgin Mary. Its…
Lithuania
This small museum is densely packed with details about the atrocities committed in Paneriai's forests. Between 1941 and 1944, around 100,000 people …
Moscow
Built for Patriarch Nikon mostly in the mid-17th century, the highlight of the Patriarch’s Palace is perhaps the ceremonial Cross Hall (Крестовая палата),…
Opatija
Spread between three historic buildings, this excellent museum houses a permanent collection of old photographs, postcards, brochures and posters tracing…
Mavrovo National Park
Just a blip on the map, the small village of Janče is one of the few places in Mavrovo (besides the ski resort) where it's possible to get decent…
Northern European Russia
One of the few parts of the island that's easily accessible on foot from the monastery is the forested Nikonovskaya area, dotted with chapels and sketes.
Bulgaria
The broken remains of a Roman 'victory city', built in AD 110, cover this isolated site, 20km north of Veliko Târnovo. Nikopolis-ad-Istrum's foundations…
Lahemaa National Park
The photogenically tumbledown, neoclassical manor house at Kolga dates from 1642, but was largely rebuilt between 1768 and 1820 by the wealthy Stenbock…
Latvia
Photogenically set on an islet in the middle of Āraiši Lake, Āraiši Archaeological Park is a reconstruction of a fortified settlement inhabited by…
Rijeka
According to legend, the angels carrying the house of Jesus' mother from Nazareth rested here in the late 13th century before moving it to Loreto across…
Latvia
More than 300 years ago, a group of wandering Dominican monks discovered a healing source hidden among a thicket of spruce trees (‘Aglona’ means ‘spruce…
Russian Far East
Tynda’s pride and joy has four rooms of BAM relics and photos – sadly all devoid of English labelling – as well as exhibits on native Evenki culture, WWII…
Lake Skadar National Park
This tiny town, gathered around a square and a river blanketed with water lilies, serves as the main gateway to Lake Skadar National Park. If you're…
Transylvania
The manicured gardens and orchards of this 17th-century fortress once gave it the nickname ‘Transylvania’s Versailles’. The aristocratic Bánffy family…
Transylvania
Deva's crumbling citadel looms from a rocky hilltop 300m above town. A steep climb leads up behind Parcul Cetăţii at the west end of B-dul 1 Decembrie…
Museum of Folk Architecture & Rural Lifestyle
Minsk
Several dozen traditional wood houses, a school, a church and an old windmill have been transplanted to this open-air folk museum in Azyartso, 15km…
St Petersburg
Immortalised by Dostoevsky, who lived all over the neighbourhood and set Crime and Punishment here, St Petersburg’s Haymarket was once the city’s filthy…
Transylvania
From the outside, Hărman’s fortified church resembles a bright white layer cake. Enclosed by its mighty walls is a triple-naved basilica, the Church of St…
Moscow
Named for its Italian Renaissance stone facing, the Hall of Facets was designed and built by Marco Ruffo and Pietro Solario between 1487 and 1491, during…
Moscow
Viktor Vasnetsov was a Russian-revivalist painter, who drew inspiration from fairy tales and village mysticism. In 1894 he designed his own house in…
Bulgaria
The carved figure of a horseback warrior, spearing a lion while his dog trots behind, is this archaeological reserve's highlight. The Madara Horseman …
Black Sea Coast
This 687-hectare reserve covers nearly the whole of Kaliakra Cape, a 2km-long headland that juts into the Black Sea 13km southeast of Kavarna. Visitors…
Central Montenegro
High up in the hills midway between Budva and Cetinje, this artfully abandoned 19th century fortress looms over some spectacular high-altitude scenery…
Vis Island
Reaching a height of 587m, this mountain dominates the western end of Vis. The very top is off limits, but you can drive up and park a little before the…
North Macedonia
Natural erosion and its varying effects on the area's volcanic rocks are behind the formation of these bizarre 'rock dolls', which are estimated to be…
Lahemaa National Park
It's extraordinary that an obscure, remote village near the top of the Pärispea peninsula should be home to one of the country's best galleries, yet…
Skopje
Sitting inside a concrete brutalist structure – awful to some, fascinating to others – the museum's solid historical and ethnological displays are housed…
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