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Barcelona, the capital city of the Spanish province of Catalonia and the second largest city in Spain, sits along the Mediterranean coastline. The city is known for its lively atmosphere, Art Deco architecture, and wonderful assortment of restaurants. Barcelona is a popular cruise port and a great starting point for a train journey along the southern coast of Europe. It also offers a surprising number of free attractions.

• Gaudi’s La Sagrada Familia: The most famous building in Barcelona, this unique church was commissioned of Antoni Gaudi over 120 years ago and still isn’t finished, although about 90 percent of it is completed. The famous architect died before completion and the city has been struggling to raise the funds for the building ever since. Inside is a museum–or a fee–but the singular structure may be viewed for free from across the street.
• Picasso Museum: Another of Barcelona’s native artists, Picasso always kept Spain foremost in his work and in his heart. The Picasso Museum in Barcelona displays over 3,500 of his works, the largest collection in the world. Admission to the museum is free on the first Sunday of each month.
• Parc Guell: Another Gaudi work, this park was designed to be a residential area for Barcleona’s well-healed citizens, but never sold. Today, the spacious park is dotted with interesting statues, fanciful houses, mosaic murals, and fountains. Admission to the park is free.

(Photo via flickr cc)

Ireland is one of the loveliest and friendliest destinations in Europe. It’s also generally more affordable than most Northern European countries. Ireland also offers a number of free attractions to help conserve your traveling dollars.

Ireland’s National Parks: Ireland’s national parks are all free to the public, although a few charge a small fee for special attractions. Explore Kilarney National Park in the southeast side of Ireland or the wild and rugged Connemara on the northwest coast. Up north, the woodland park of Glenariff is popular with visitors.

Glendalough: Glendalough Monastic Site is one of the earliest Christian sites in Ireland. Located south of Dublin, Glendalough offers church and monastery ruins to explore, hiking trails, and meadows for picnics.

St. Patrick’s Footsteps: Seemingly every place in Ireland claims some association with the country’s patron saint. However, some attractions are closely connected than others. Visit St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Dublin, the two cathedrals of Armaugh, and Croagh Patrick, Ireland’s sacred mountain. All are free.

Kells: Located about an hour outside of Dublin, the Medieval town of Kells is a living museum. The town sports dozens of historic buildings, monuments, and a replica of the “Book of Kells,” the 9th Century illustrated manuscript for which the town is famous.

(Photo via flickr cc)

There are plenty of good reasons to visit Berlin: 175 museums and 400 galleries, or the 1,500 unique events held every day to welcome travelers. If you can’t find something you want to do in Berlin, you’re just not looking hard enough.

Berlin is a relatively cheap city, compared to other European capitals, and in the last few years it has become extremely accessible. More than a dozen budget airlines now operate flights in and out of Berlin, so no matter which other parts of Europe you’re planning to visit, it’s cheap and easy to fit in a stop in Berlin, too. On average, visitors stay 2.2 nights; I recommend at least three nights to just scratch the surface of everything that Berlin has to offer.

And when you’re fed up with sightseeing, there’s still plenty of entertainment in Berlin. The nightlife is excellent; Berlin won the title of Top Summer Party Spot for 2006. With more than 200 clubs or bars, you’ll find plenty to choose from –and many are open 24 hours a day.

(Photo via flickr cc)

Are you planning a ski vacation? If you want to visit a beautiful area of the world with wonderful skiing, consider visiting Chamonix. Read the full story

Have you always wanted to tour the countryside of Normandy and Brittany, but have never been able to tear yourself away from the sights, shops, and restaurants of Paris? Get a sample of this rugged part of France, two regions as different as you can get from the cosmopolitan flair of the “City of Lights.”

Avanti Destinations has just released three excellent videos that you can view right from your desktop. View the ancient monastery just offshore between Normandy and Brittany at Mt. St. Michel; view the WWII graveyards and famous beaches on the Norman coast; see the picturesque harbors; and witness the landscapes that inspired the Impressionist art movement.

1. A Virtual Tour of Normandy
2. A Virtual Tour of Brittany
3. A Walk through the Memorial at Caen

Avanti Destinations specializes in individual travel modules that allow vacationers traveling by themselves to take advantage of group travel rates at hotels and attractions. They also include an array of extra items, such as a tour of a lesser known winery, in their packages—things of which the average traveler might not be aware. In France, Avanti offers packages to the Loire Valley in addition to those to Brittany and Normandy.

(Photo via flickr cc)

According to the Lonely Planet’s 2008 Bluelist:

After topping the poll, Lonely Planet said visitors to the Emerald Isle, north and south, are “in for a treat” as the Irish have “a welcoming attitude towards strangers”.

The guide’s Bluelist 2008 said that with the end of The Troubles’ “a cautious optimism reigns supreme, infecting the land once again with the sense that anything’s possible.”

And the second friendliest people on the planet? The citizens of the US. Malawi came in third. Scotland, Vietnam, Thailand, Turkey and Samoa were all in the top 10.

(Photo by flickr cc)

After days traveling around Europe looking at cathedrals, you might start to think that they all look the same. Until you hit Barcelona and see La Sagrada Familia.

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If you’re thinking about a scuba diving vacation then think about the land of the Irish. Situated on the continental shelf and off the western edge of Europe, Ireland is perfect for scuba divers. The Maharees Islands, The Brandon Cliff face and the Blasket Islands are listed as the best places to dive in Ireland and Jacques Cousteau himself listed the northern side of the Dingle Peninsula as one of the best diving spots in the world. Ireland’s dive season generally reaches from March to October with water temperatures during that period ranging from 45 – 59 degrees Fahrenheit. Dry suits are recommended but semi-dry suits work well also. And if you’re looking for variety and some amazing sites then you’re in for a treat. Variety is truly the spice of life in Ireland’s diving scene, you can explore wrecks, gullies, caverns, drifts and shore dives. The floor topography off of Ireland’s shores is as amazing as the above sea landscapes with inlets, pinnacles, and rock formations to thrill even the most experienced divers. If you hit a day with optimum conditions visibility can stretch to 100 feet and sometimes even deeper. The clear water draw schools of bright flashes as multitudes of wrasse, mackerel, pollack, and sunfish flit in and out of view. Crustaceans and kelp forests round out the live experience and fill your dive with a serenity that can only be discovered in the most beautiful waters of the world. If you’re in the Maharees you may even be lucky enough to enjoy a dive with the local dolphin pod. .

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