Eastern Europe

Trogir is wedged between Croatia’s Dalmatian coast (connected to the mainland via a bridge with the nearest city being Split), and the sprawling island of Ciovo, yet its medieval Old Town is as hidden as it gets. It even takes a few moments to realise it’s sat on an island all of its own, but […]

Rounding off my Slovenia posts (other than an incoming hotel review), another beautiful little place I visited for the day was Škofja Loka, a mountain town around 45 minutes from the centre of Ljubljana. There’s easily enough to fill a day in the town with a historic town centre, beautiful walking routes and an interesting castle. […]

Lake Bled is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever visited. Lying in the Julian Alps region of northern Slovenia, it’s framed with picturesque mountain peaks covered in snow, not far from the Austrian border. The lake is like a fairytale, with an island housing a church sitting in the middle of it, […]

Wow, wow, wow. This was one of my favourite European day trips ever! Whilst on a visit to Ljubljana in Slovenia, I was looking for things to do in the area and came across Postojna Caves and Predjama Castle about 5km apart. They looked beautiful, but I assumed they’d be heaving with people and the photos would […]

Slovenia is SO beautiful. It’s such an underrated destination, and I absolutely loved visiting this off the beaten track country. I was honestly blown away by its mountains, lakes, and gorgeous towns – and none more so than the capital city, Ljubljana. We spent 3 nights here in April and despite incredibly variable weather, we […]

I concluded writing about my Baltics road trip last year, and then realised I’d completely forgotten to write a review of one of the best hotels I’ve ever stayed at during the trip. So to right that wrong, I’m back in Vilnius again! Better later than never. Anyone who follows this blog knows I’m quite […]

Istanbul. It hits you like a train. There’s chaos everywhere, it’s busy everywhere, there are noises and smells and music everywhere. There are people talking, and shouting and gesticulating round every corner. There are car horns and calls to prayers and street vendors echoing in to the streets. This city is amazing, unlike anywhere I’ve […]

You have one day. You land in Tallinn, grab a rental car, and drive east. Forty minutes later, you hit the edge of Lahemaa National Park — Estonia’s oldest and largest national park, established in 1971. The question isn’t whether you’ll see something beautiful. It’s whether you’ll waste time on the wrong trails or miss […]

Tallinn’s Old Town gets 4.5 million visitors a year. Most of them walk the same three streets, eat at the same overpriced restaurants, and leave wondering what the fuss was about. That’s a failure of planning, not of the city. The Old Town is a compact 1.9 square kilometers of genuinely preserved medieval fabric — […]

You’ve booked a flight to Tallinn. Someone mentioned Tartu is “cute” and “worth a day trip.” But is it actually fun? Or just another small university town with a few old buildings and overpriced cafes? I spent a week in Tartu specifically to answer that question. I walked every street. I ate the weird fermented […]