Northern Europe
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Exploring Riga, Latvia
Our hearts sank as we drew back the curtains to see torrential rain beating against the windows, causing us to rethink our plans for the day! First though, it was off to breakfast which is served in the basement of the hotel. The cellars have been tastefully converted into two eating areas with a third…
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Riga City Break
Having enjoyed visiting Tallinn in Estonia on numerous occasions, we decided to explore its neighbour Latvia for the first time. We booked flights with the low cost carrier Ryanair from Leeds Bradford airport which were very reasonably priced. It was an early start to the day as we needed to get up at…
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Exploring the Royal Castle Warsaw
A bright, sunny morning to start the final day of our short break in Warsaw so after breakfast we took the bus to the old town which was looking so much nicer than on our earlier visit. We started our tour in the old town market place with its Dutch inspired houses. The pedestrianised cobbled…
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A walk to Lazienki Park, Warsaw
We woke to heavy overnight snow which was surprising for late March, leaving the city looking beautiful in the sun. We started the day with a visit to the Museum of Life Under Communism located on the left bank of the river in the Praga district. To get there, we took Tram 22 from Centrum.…
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Guide to visiting Wilanow Palace, Warsaw
After enjoying the Ibis Hotel Warsaw Centrum buffet breakfast, we were ready for a busy day exploring more of Warsaw’s attractions. Our first stop was at the Royal Lazienki Park which was only a 15 minute walk from the hotel. It’s the largest park in Warsaw and was designed in 17th century Baroque style. Just…
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A Weekend in Warsaw
We arrived in Warsaw the previous evening on a Ryanair flight from Leeds-Bradford Airport. Our flight departed promptly at 16.10 arriving into Modlin, Warsaw’s second airport. Transferring into the city centre was very easy with tickets costing 19zl (£3.95) per person, available from a machine in the baggage hall. A regular shuttle bus service then…
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A weekend in Gdansk, Poland
A few weeks ago we noticed that Ryanair was offering bargain priced flights to Gdansk, and as we’d enjoyed our previous visit to Krakow, the opportunity to visit a second Polish destination seemed irresistible. Our flight departed Leeds-Bradford airport promptly at 9.30 a.m. taking just two hours over to Lech Walesa airport. The airport is…
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Gdansk: City centre highlights
After a leisurely breakfast in our hotel we strolled along the riverside promenade known as Long Bridge admiring its historical granaries and huge crane gate. The Żuraw Crane is one of the finest intact medieval cranes in Europe and, interestingly, it also acted as a city gate and defensive fortification. It was built to hoist…
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Visiting Sopot and Gdynia from Gdańsk: The Perfect Day Trips on Poland’s Baltic Coast
Gdansk and it’s nearby sister cities of Sopot and Gdynia are collectively known as Tricity, so after breakfast we set off to Gdansk Glowny station to embark on our journey. Trains in Tricity are operated by SKM and have a distinctive blue and yellow livery. Tickets need to be bought either from the SKM desks…
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Malbork Castle from Gdańsk: How to Visit the World’s Largest Castle
I’d read about Malbork Castle and was eager to visit whilst staying in Gdansk. It is the largest brick built castle in the world and was constructed in the thirteenth century. Malbork lies 69km from Gdansk and is easily accessible by train with numerous services daily. It’s on the main line to Warsaw, so tickets…
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Day Trip from Gdańsk to Oliwa: What to See & Do
On our final morning in Gdansk we took the SKM train to the suburb of Oliwa, located 5 km to the north of the city centre. Single tickets cost 3.8 zl (80p) for the short journey to this prosperous neighbourhood. Leaving the station, we headed to the main road from where it was only a…
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My journey to Tampere, Finland
Those of you who are regular readers of my blog may already be aware that recently I won an international blog contest organised by Talent Tampere a division of Business Tampere which links companies with internationals and their networks. My prize was a four day visit to Tampere, Finland’s third largest city to explore the international…
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Visiting the Moomin Museum and Experiencing Tampere’s Winter Nature
I wish all mornings could start like this, waking in my luxurious suite at the Lapland Hotels Tampere and then enjoying a delicious breakfast in the hotel’s Dabbal restaurant. The dining area oozes Nordic charm having Lapland styled furnishings such as reindeer rugs and antler horns. The buffet breakfast included several Lapland delicacies such as…
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Crazy Town, Tampere
After sampling more Lapland delicacies at breakfast, I donned my boots and warm coat and walked across town with Maiju, my host from Talent Tampere. The conditions were perfect for walking, the snow being crisp underfoot with no dangerous icy patches to contend with. Our first destination of the day was at Crazy Town which…
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Vaprikki Museum, Tampere: a guide
My visit to the beautiful Finnish city of Tampere was coming to an end but there was still enough time for me to visit the Vapriikki Museum located by the Tammerkoski rapids in the centre of town. Vapriikki is located in the old factory building of the Tampella engineering company who produced locomotives, turbines and…
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Our Moscow adventure
The thought of standing in a snow carpeted Red Square on a cold winter’s day seemed appealing, so we booked a few days in Moscow. It’s necessary to obtain a visa before arriving in Russia and this can dissuade potential visitors from travelling. To help demystify the process I’ll explain how we went about it.…
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The Kremlin, Moscow
Another surprise awaited us when we went downstairs for breakfast, as on giving our room number we were diverted to the Executive Lounge which was a raised area along one side of the restaurant. Here we found lots to tempt us, setting us up for the day ahead. Using the coffee machine initially appeared problematic…
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Exploring Moscow
We opened the curtains to find that there had been heavy snow overnight, covering all the surrounding roof tops with a fluffy white blanket. After a leisurely breakfast we took the metro to Komsomolskaya station which was absolutely beautiful with its painted yellow ceilings and its platforms lit by chandeliers. The station was designed in…
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Sightseeing in Moscow
There had been more snow overnight but it was a reasonably bright morning. Our first stop after breakfast was Lubyanka, which is the next station on Line 1 from Red Square. Climbing the steps from the metro station we could see the former headquarters of the KGB across the square. Lubyanka was once a name…
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Exploring more of Moscow
After breakfast, we took the metro to the new central business district, known as Moscow City. Located at the Delovoy Tsentr metro stop, the station has a modern ‘high-tech’ feel to blend in with the skyscraper landscape above ground. Moscow City consists of several towers built in futuristic styles, each tower having its own distinctive…
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Sokolniki Park, Moscow
We woke to more heavy overnight snow, creating a winter wonderland panorama from our 23rd floor bedroom window. As it was our final day, we over-indulged with a large breakfast and then bid our farewells to the lovely restaurant staff who had looked after us all week. After packing our belongings together we set off…
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The Cotton Mills of Tampere and Manchester
My travels in Finland took me to Tampere, located 100 miles north east of the capital Helsinki. It’s Finland’s third largest city and takes just 90 minutes to reach by inter-city train from the capital. I’d wanted to visit Tampere for sometime because it’s often referred to as the ‘Manchester of Finland’ due to its…
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Tervesaari Island, Helsinki – A Perfect Spot for a Scenic Walk
With Finland celebrating its centenary this year and the country being a firm favourite of ours, it seemed only natural that we should make a return visit this summer. On arriving into Helsinki airport late the previous evening, we spent our first day enjoying a walk around the market square which is always a beautiful…
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Helsinki Travel Guide: National Library of Finland and Bank of Finland Museum
Dominating Senate Square is Helsinki Cathedral, built in the neo-classical style this landmark building was completed in 1852 and its tall green dome can be seen from many parts of the city. Senate Square was designed by Carl Ludvig Engel in 1852 and the cathedral was his masterpiece, majestically dominating the surrounding buildings. The large…
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