Old world, new trips

1. Denmark | Aalborg

The Danes continue to get high on Aalborg (with a little help from the locally brewed akvavit). But this handsome university town by the shallow waters of the Limfjord is no longer Denmark’s best kept secret. A pint-sized metropolis that packs in enough culture, gourmet restaurants, sparkling bars, shopping hubs and architectural marvels to put some of Europe’s more celebrated cities to shame, Aalborg blends the historical and the post-industrial with great felicity. Once a thriving port, thanks to a rich haul of herring, spice, tobacco and glass-making, today it has an arty, boutiquey air about it. Think half-timbered Renaissance structures, 400-year-old castle-restaurants, quirky spaces for alternative art and cinema. Aalborg (visitaalborg.com) spells small-town charm in large, cursive letters. KLM flies via Amsterdam from Delhi and Mumbai for approx. Rs 42,000 (return).

2. France | Pays Basque

The Basque Country is an autonomous region in the western Pyrenees with its own language and culture, straddling the Franco-Spanish border. While the Spanish side is on a well-trodden tourist trail (think Bilbao and Pamplona), the Pays Basque in France doesn’t see quite so many footfalls. Travellers will be rewarded with cosy hamlets in the mountainous interior and resorts like Biarritz and St Jean-de-Luz along the Bay of Biscay. Basque cuisine, too, rooted in France but touched by the warmth of Spain, features cured meats in the interiors but relies on seafood along the coast. The Basques themselves are a lively people, with a penchant for singing and indigenous sports like pelote (which is not unlike squash). Fly from Delhi to Biarritz via Paris for approx. Rs 50,000 return or take the TGV from Paris (5hrs).

3. Iceland | Reykjavik

While every backpacker’s fantasy of Iceland becoming dirt cheap with the collapse of the króna is just a lot of volcanic ash, it’s certainly true that one of Europe’s most expensive destinations has become more affordable in the past few years. And Reykjavik at cut-price is a thing of beauty — just like the pony-sized Icelandic horses ridden at a tölt. A thriving nightlife, smart shopping districts, museums, cafés and geo-thermal pools make Iceland’s capital the capital of cool. Flying to Reykjavik (multiple carriers) from Delhi costs approx. Rs 55,000 return and from Mumbai approx. Rs 70,000.

4. Albania | The Riviera

You don’t want to go to Albania simply because it’s being touted as one of Europe’s hottest budget destinations. You want to go because the Albanian Riviera is one of the most beautiful, least explored stretches of beach going in Europe. Your Albanian holiday will begin at the capital, Tirana. But quickly head seawards for a journey along Albania’s 400km-odd Adriatic coastline, from Vlore down to Butrint. Highlights include: Orikumi, the site of a village dating back to 600BC; the Cika Mountains; the newly happening beach at Drymades; the charming coastal town of Saranda; and Butrint, a Unesco World Heritage Site. Turkish Airlines connects Delhi to Tirana via Istanbul for approx. Rs 42,000 return.

5. Germany | The Ruhr

Once upon a time, the Ruhr region was the world’s industrial capital. Today, the Ruhr could vie for the position of world industrial design capital. Its erstwhile factories and collieries now host thrilling cultural spaces: the Zollverein Coalmine Industrial Complex — declared a World Heritage Site in 2001 — houses museums, an art gallery, a fine-dining restaurant, even an ice-skating rink. There’s an ‘industrial heritage trail’ (route-industriekultur.de) that’ll take you to the Zollverein and other sites, including a blast-furnace gas tank that’s now an exhibition hall and a coking plant that has an ‘adventure trail’. Düsseldorf is the closest airport, connected to Delhi on Aeroflot (from Rs 34,000 return) and KLM (Rs 37,000).

6. Malta | Valetta

The well-travelled might find this a cheeky inclusion in a list of unexplored European destinations. Because this three-island nation off the coast of Italy has been thoroughly explored over its 7,000-year history. Malta has been called a ‘microcosm of the Mediterranean’, offering everything from opulent 16th-century churches (the St John’s Co-Cathedral in capital Valletta features a magnificent Caravaggio) to an underground necropolis (the Hal Saflieni Hypogeum, dating to 3600 BC) to one of Europe’s oldest theatres (the Manoel Theatre, built 1731). Then, of course, there’s the glorious Mediterranean itself. For a country this tiny, there’s a lot to do here. Not least, enjoy yourself at one of its innumerable festivals (the annual Mediterranean Food Festival sounds great). European carriers such as Lufthansa, Swiss and Austrian can give you connections via their hubs to Malta (Delhi/Mumbai flights start from approx. Rs 55,000 return).

7. Spain | El Transcantábrico

If you’re thinking off-beat Europe, we’re betting Spain won’t even be the last place on your list. And here’s why you’ll be wrong: in a tiny, forgotten corner of northern Spain, sandwiched between the mountains and the sea, is the spectacularly luxuriant landscape of Cantabria. And the nicest way to experience it is aboard the El Transcantábrico, a luxury train that takes you along the Bay of Biscay from Santiago de Compostela and Asturias to Cantabria and Leon. The week-long trip includes plush suite accommodation, all meals and several excursions (from €2,200; eltranscantabricogranlujo.com). Discover bucolic villages and fishing towns, cathedrals and museums and some truly jaw-dropping scenery… it’s a world you probably didn’t know existed. There are no direct flights between India and Leon, which is the starting point of the train journey, but Emirates takes you there from Delhi via Dubai and Madrid from approx. Rs 57,000 return.

8. Greece | Thessaloniki

If you were a tourist from Western Europe, you’d be totally done with Greece and its splendid islands. Since you’re likely not, the country’s capital and those splendid islands will still hold their charms for you. But you can do even better: by heading purposefully north to Greece’s ‘second city’, Thessaloniki. Long overshadowed by Athens and the south, Thessaloniki has come into its own, with a series of renovations and restorations resulting in an explosion of cafés and restaurants, museums and galleries — not so long ago, it was even named European City of Culture. The city’s fabulous Byzantine churches will give you your history fix, and its vibrant avant garde music scene throbs all night. There are also exciting side trips to be made: to Volos, a charming seaside town that puts you in reach of four ancient sites. Austrian Airlines connects both Delhi and Mumbai with Thessaloniki via Vienna (for approx. Rs 45,000 and Rs 32,000 return, respectively).

9. Liechtenstein | Vaduz

Tucked inconspicuously among the great slopes of the Alps and perpetually overshadowed by its neighbours, Switzerland and Austria, is a tiny jewel of a country begging to be rediscovered. Liechtenstein manages to pack a lot into its 160-odd square kilometres. You’ll encounter fairytale castles — one that’s home to a real prince — gorgeously scenic villages and alpine meadows. You could visit the Prince’s personal wine cellar to sample his collection or go sightseeing through the capital, Vaduz, on an imitation toy train. There’s also paragliding, ice-skating and even dog-sledding with huskies. Zürich is the closest airport. Both Swiss and Air India offer direct flights from Delhi for approx. Rs 40,000 return. Buses and trains do the 70km run between Zürich and Liechtenstein.

10 Slovenia | Ljubljana

It’ll be unlike any capital city you’ve been to. For starters, it’s small enough to walk across. Keep walking and you’ll have taken in the big attractions — the Triple Bridge, Dragon Bridge, the Ljubljana Castle and the Square of the Republic. Take a day trip to the stunning Škocjan Caves, a 5.8km system of underground karst caves, now on the Unesco World Heritage List. The 27km Postojna Caves system, also a day trip away, has a cave train to take you on a ride around it. And then there are Bled and Bohinj, beautiful Alpine lake resorts that few people visit. Turkish Airlines flies to Ljubljana via Istanbul (Rs 44,500 return ex-Delhi and Mumbai).

11. Ukraine | Kiev

If all you know about Kiev relates to a certain chicken dish, think again. Among the oldest European metropolises, Kiev today is an exciting mix of museums and theatres, lilac-filled gardens and parks, cafés and ritzy nightclubs, cathedrals and opera houses. The river Dnieper slices the city into two distinct areas: the right bank with a breathtaking topography of forested slopes, ravines and rivulets and the left bank, which is mostly residential. Notable attractions include St Sophia’s Cathedral and Kiev Pechersk Lavra (both Unesco World Heritage Sites), the historic Andriyivskyy Street, the National Museum of the Great Patriotic War and Besarabsky Market (the best-known farmer’s market). Aerosvit flies direct from Delhi for approx. Rs 31,000 return.

12. Slovakia | StuÂ?ica

The Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians are a transnational Unesco World Heritage Site located along a 185km axis which stretches from the Rakhiv mountains in Ukraine all the way to the Vihorlat mountains in Slovakia. The Unesco citation, which only came in 2007, states that they are “an outstanding example of undisturbed, complex temperate forests” and that “they contain an invaluable genetic reservoir of beech and many species associated with it”. Frankly, they just look ravishing. Given the unique value of these ancient forests, Slovakia has opened up only one of them to the public: the beech forest of StuÂ?ica. It lies deep within the Poloniny National Park , which boasts the highest concentration of old growth forest in Slovakia. The park, in northeast Slovakia, can be easily approached from the town of Snina. Hiking trails starting from the village of Nová Sedlica lead into StuÂ?ica. Aeroflot can fly you to Bratislava (the capital) via Moscow and Prague for approx. Rs 36,000 return. You could also fly Ryanair from a number of destinations in Europe. From Bratislava, just hop on to Slovakia’s well-developed train network.

13. Croatia | Zadar

Croatia is one of Eastern Europe’s tourism successes. After all, who can resist a tagline that reads: ‘The Mediterranean As It Once Was’? There are charming stops all along the Dalmatian coast, some well trodden and others — like Zadar — which are just coming into their own. The town’s historic centre dates from Roman times. But what has everyone agog is an art installation on the waterfront. The series of steps is actually a ‘sea organ’, designed by Nikola Basic in 2005. The tide flows in and out of tunnels underneath to create a haunting drone. Hitchcock, who visited in 1964, said that “the most beautiful sunset in the world can be seen in Zadar”. With music to boot, we’re willing to believe the man who knew too much. Fly from Delhi to Zadar via Munich on Lufthansa for approx. Rs 50,000 return.

14 Norway | Traena Archipelago

Traena hosts the world’s ‘remotest music festival’, the Traena Festivalen (trena.net), during which the sun (almost) never sets and the drunken revelry (really) never stops. But you might appreciate Traena’s remoteness and overwhelming beauty better when there aren’t 2,000 revellers swarming all over it. The municipality of Traena is an archipelago of over a thousand small islands, of which four are populated (just). Mountainous Sanna is exciting for its caves, the most imposing of which is Kirkhelleren. At Husøy, there’s the Petter Dass Chapel, with its beautiful murals and an art gallery. From Delhi or Mumbai, fly to Oslo (Turkish Airways, Rs 35,000 return). Then, take Norwegian Air Shuttle to Bodø. From Bodø, ferries take 4–5 hours to reach the islands.

15. Romania | Maramureç