Things to Do in Europe

Stockholm’s ABBA: The Museum is an interactive space for ABBA fans to learn about the legendary Swedish band’s history and trivia. Housing plenty of the band’s costumes, gold records, and memorabilia, the museum invites visitors to experience the feeling of being “the fifth member of ABBA.”

 

Fully dedicated to the biggest pop group ever to come out of Sweden, the ABBA Museum allows visitors to try on some of the band’s stage costumes, sing with them in the recording studio, interact with holograms, and even go on stage with the band. Interactive exhibits include Waterloo, where you’ll be transported back to 1974 Brighton; the Polar Studio, where you can get hands-on with the mixing board; and Benny’s Piano, the self-playing piano that has some special tricks in store for you. The original members of ABBA speak directly to you through the audio guide, sharing stories and memories from their careers. The audio guide was specially written for the museum by the screenwriter for Mamma Mia! 

 

Most hop-on hop-off bus or boat tours of Stockholm stop at the ABBA Museum, which allows unlimited time to explore the museum at your leisure.

 

To get to the ABBA Museum by public transit, take either tram nr 7 and stop at Liljevalchs/Gröna Lund or take bus nr 67 and stop at Liljevalchs/Gröna Lund. A ferry also runs to Djurgården; stop at Allmänna Gränd. Parking on Djurgården is limited, so driving is not recommended. 

 

The ABBA Museum is open daily, with later hours in the summer when travelers flock to Stockholm to explore during the longer daylight hours.

 

The island of Djurgården is also home to several other popular attractions, such as the maritime Vasa Museum, Skansen (open-air museum and zoo), Gröna Lund theme park, and Junibacken children’s park. Just a short hop from the city center and Old Town (Gamla Stan), you could easily spend an entire day exploring the island.

The lovely Neoclassical Academy of Athens was built in the mid 19th century during the post-independence re-flowering of Greek culture and is home to the national institutes for sciences, philosophy, fine arts and humanities, following in a tradition first established by Plato in around 387 BC. It is part of a triumvirate of neighboring buildings known as the ‘Neoclassical Trilogy’ designed by Danish architects Theophil and Christian Hansen and encompassing the National Library and the University of Athens. With a marble façade, the main entrance is through an ornamental colonnaded portico topped with sculptures on the carved pediment representing the birth of Athena and flanked by statues of Athena and Apollo standing on slender columns – all are the work of sculptor Leonidas Drossis in the 1870s and are guarded by two philosophical-looking sculptures of Plato and Socrates.

The Academy’s imposing marble assembly hall is decorated with murals of the Prometheus legend, painted by German artist Christian Griepenkerl. Alongside its 23 research departments, it also houses the Ioannis Sykoutris Library, where rare editions and manuscripts are preserved. Members of the Academy are elected for life and part of its work is to award intellectual works as well as publishing books and journals. It is not open to the public.

The Academy of Fine Arts still functions as an art school, so don't be surprised if you smell fresh paint. It has the distinction of being the school that rejected Adolf Hitler twice. 

This massive suspension bridge is an icon of Lisbon, connecting the city to the Almada area over the narrowest section of the River Tagus. Its color, size and structure draw close comparison to the Golden Gate Bridge of San Francisco, California, but the bridge was actually more structurally modeled to the Bay Bridge, also in the San Francisco Bay Area.

The 25th of April Bridge was completed in 1966 and was at the time named for the dictator Salazar. It was renamed following his displacement, with its new name given by the revolution that began on April 25. There are levels for both cars and trains, but unlike the Golden Gate Bridge, there is no passage for pedestrians. The bridge has the longest main span in Continental Europe and the world’s deepest bridge foundation.  Riding across presents one of the best aerial views of Lisbon.

Chef Alain Soulard serves up French cuisine on the first level of the Eiffel Tower at 58 Tour Eiffel, a name that references the height in meters of the restaurant's kitchen range from the ground. The2-story eatery features a modern interior design and is surrounded by glass windows so you can take in views of Paris and the tower's intricate metal architecture while you dine.

Eating at 58 Tour Eiffel is one of the best ways to escape the tower's crowds and get more out of your visit. You can sit down and relax before or after heading up to the Eiffel Tower's second level or summit for the requisite look down on the city (which may require an additional ticket purchase). Make your lunch or dinner reservation directly with 58 Tour Eiffel, or take a tour that combines your meal with other Parisian experiences such as a Seine River cruise, a city tour, a show at the Moulin Rouge, or a trip to Versailles.

Walking, taxi, and public transit are the best ways to reach the Eiffel Tower, located in the 7th arrondissement on the banks of the Seine. By public transport, head to the Bir-Hakeim, Trocadéro, or Ecole Militaire metro station or the Champ de Mars–Tour Eiffel RER station. Upon arrival, if you have a booking, go to the restaurant welcome desk on the esplanade to receive a priority-access ticket for the elevator.

The restaurant is open daily for lunch and dinner. You may want to select one or the other based on the environment you're looking for—lunch is more casual and kid-friendly with light meals served in a picnic-style basket, known as a chic picnic, while dinner features a more sophisticated atmosphere and dishes.

It may seem that visiting the Eiffel Tower consists simply of riding up to the viewing platforms, taking photos, and heading back down. But this is far from the truth. In addition to 58 Tour Eiffel, on the first level is an immersive show and interactive exhibits. The second level features shops and Le Jules Verne by Alain Ducasse, and the summit is home to Gustave Eiffel's restored office and the Champagne Bar. Perhaps most interesting is the backstage tour, during which you can get a look at the 1889 machinery used to operate the tower’s lifts.

The Abbaye de Saint Étienne (Saint Stephen's Abbey) in Caen is also known as the Abbaye aux Hommes (Men's Abbey), to distinguish it from the Women's Abbey close by. If it looks a bit like an English cathedral, you're on the right track – this stunning example of Norman Romanesque architecture indeed served as the inspiration for so many churches on the other side of the Channel. (Although keen-eyed visitors will notice the Gothic apse, a sign of the church's architectural evolution.)

There are two highlights of the Men's Abbey; the first is the tomb of William the Conqueror, whose mark on Normandy has never been forgotten. The second is a bit of a hidden gem – the cloistered gardens, accessible by going through the town hall. It's another world inside there, and a favorite with photographers.

For many, the 6th Arrondissement is the quintessential Parisian neighborhood, complete with cafes, wine shops, patisseries, small art museums and shops lining its streets. Situated on the left bank of the Seine, the walkable neighborhood is home to the Latin Quarter, Saint-Germain-des-Pres, Medici Fountain and the beautifully manicured Luxembourg Gardens.

Saint-Germain-des-Pres has long served as the literary and intellectual heart of the city, and some of Paris’s most iconic cafes are here, including Les Deux Magots, Cafe de Flore, Brasserie Lipp and Le Precope. Each make for a perfect people watching perch.

Paris is made up of 20 arrondissements or neighborhoods, which are arranged in a clockwise spiral of ascending numbers from the 1st arrondissement in the center. Southeast of the city center along the left bank of the River Seine, the 13th arrondissement is best known as the home of Paris’s booming Asian Quarter or Quartier Asiatique. 

Less touristy than other parts of Paris, the 13th arrondissement has a rich Chinese, Cambodian, and Vietnamese community and is a great place to find Asian restaurants and shops as well as one of the largest Chinese New Year Celebrations in Europe. The 13th district has also become something of an open-air museum, with dozens of massive works of street art, and several walking tours of the district highlight these urban pieces.   

The 13th arrondissement is easily accessible by public transportation. Metro lines 6, 7, and 14 make numerous stops throughout the neighborhood. Not far from the Latin Quarter, it’s a nice walk from central Paris along the River Seine to the 13th arrondissement.

The less-visited 13th arrondissement is wonderful to explore any time of year. The neighborhood is particularly lively during the Chinese New Year, in January or February, when the streets fill with brightly lit lanterns and colorful costume parades. The festival features plenty of children’s activities, traditional music performances, and authentic food. 

The 13th arrondissement is also home to the massive French National Library. Comprised of four 25-story glass towers, the library houses one of the largest collections of books in the world with well over 10 million titles. The library also contains numerous historical texts including thousands of ancient Greek manuscripts, as well as antique ceramics, coins, sculptures, and King Louis XIV’s globes. 

The 8th arrondissement (neighborhood), one of Paris’ 20 districts, is probably best known for the famous boulevard Champs-Élysées. With sidewalks lined by trees, high-end shops, and fashion boutiques, the boulevard is also home to the Arc de Triomphe and the Place de la Concorde, as well as the Élysée Palace (the official residence of the President of France). On one end of the Champs-Élysées is the Arc de Triomphe, which offers sweeping views of the city from its top. On the other end of the Champs-Élysées is the Grand Palais, an historic building dedicated “to the glory of French art.” The Grand Palais is now a museum and an exhibition hall that is home to an impressive art collection. The 8th arrondissement is probably best known as a retail district, where posh shoppers come to sip a beverage at one of the area’s numerous cafes or restaurants, then browse name-brand boutiques like Chanel, Christian Dior, and Louis Vuitton.

Pop pilgrims flock to this black-and-white-striped crosswalk in north London for the ultimate photo opportunity. Day in, day out, Beatles fans can be seen trying to recreate the iconic 1969 Abbey Road album cover at this pedestrian crossing—their movements broadcast to the world via live webcam. Nearby lies Abbey Road Studios, where the Beatles recorded many of their hits. 

Having been at the center of the 1960s British Invasion and the Brit-pop explosion of the 1990s, London is a city steeped in 20th-century rock and pop history. Visitors can tap into Beatlemania during guided tours by bus and black cab. These tours make the rounds of London locales associated with the group, from Abbey Road to the site of their famous 1969 rooftop concert.

Alternatively, opt for a broader half- or full-day music history tour that goes to neighborhoods including Soho, Camden, and Notting Hill, and covers sites connected not only with the Beatles but also with other British musical legends, such as the Rolling Stones, Jimmy Page, Jimi Hendrix, The Clash, Queen, David Bowie, and Pink Floyd. Most music-themed tours focus on England’s capital, but it is possible to do a music-themed day tour of London and nearby Cambridgeshire. 

Abbey Road is in Saint John’s Wood, north London. To get there, take the tube to Saint John’s Wood (Jubilee line) or Maida Vale (Bakerloo line). Note that the Abbey Road DLR station in West Ham, east London, refers to a different Abbey Road and is nowhere near the crosswalk. 

If you want to get a photograph at the crossing, avoid congested weekday rush hours (around 7:30–9:30am, and 4:30–7pm). For those determined to get the perfect shot, try coming at 7am on a Sunday when traffic is quiet. 

The Abbey Road zebra crossing is located in a heavily trafficked part of London, which can make getting the perfect shot difficult. Cars won’t hesitate to honk the horn at tourists taking too long to stage their shot. To speed up the process, make sure you have all your equipment set up and ready to go.

During the endless days of summer, the reserve is a paradise for hikers and cyclists, carpeted with rare orchids and Alpine flowers; in winter there’s a permanent mantle of snow and the chance to ski or try out dog sledding and ice fishing adventures at the STF Abisko Mountain Station, which is 250 km (156.25 miles) north of the Arctic Circle. High above sea level on Mount Nuolja, the Aurora Sky Station is considered the best place in the world to view the elusive Northern Lights, thanks to the clarity of the air and lack of light pollution. The awesome cable-car journey up to the Sky Station provides amazing views over the wild landscape of the national park. Visit between June and mid-July to witness the midnight sun and from November through March to catch the Northern Lights.

The Abbaye aux Dames in Caen is also known as the Abbey of Sainte-Trinité, or the Holy Trinity Abbey. As one could guess, “Abbaye aux Dames” translates to Women's Abbey, and that's just what it was – a Benedictine convent. It's almost a thousand years old, and one of the must-see sites for any visitor to Caen.

If the facade of the abbey looks a little worse for wear, it's because of its history; it was the site of a battle during the Hundred Years War, during which it lost its original spires. The larger convent today is home to the Regional offices for Lower Normandy, but the abbey, restored in 1983, is open to visitors. William the Conqueror's wife Matilda is buried there, and its interior is a treasure trove of architectural details.

Believed to be the oldest standing castle in Scotland, austere Aberdour overlooks the Firth of Forth and has its origins in the 12th century. Built of stone and starting life as a narrow, tall ‘hall-house’, it was the work of the aristocratic De Mortimer family and was later fortified and repeatedly extended until the 17th century.

Today sections of the castle’s gently crumbling ruins are open to the public and visitors can wander around at will. The roof has caved in on the older part of the construction but the later additions are better preserved; the chapel retains some of its original stained glass and there’s a quasi-preserved ceiling painting depicting fruit and trees on the first floor of the eastern wing. Adjacent is a fragrant 17th-century walled garden with formal plantings of flowers and a round hive-shaped dovecote to admire.

Recently the castle has reached a brand-new audience as the stand in for Sainte Anne de Beaupré’s monastery in France from the hit television series ‘Outlander’, written by US writer Diana Gabaldon.

The ancient church of St Fillan’s stands right next to the castle and is also worth stopping by; it dates from 1123. Aberdour Castle is included on private ‘Outlander’ tours and royal tours of the palaces of central Scotland, both of which depart from Edinburgh.

One of Tuscany’s most beautiful sights, the Abbey of Sant'Antimo (Abbazia di Sant'Antimo) is a 12th-century Romanesque church and monastery set deep in the rolling olive groves outside the hilltown of Montalcino in the Val d'Orcia. The abbey is a popular stop during wine tours or day trips through the Tuscan countryside.

Constructed of cream-colored travertine, the oldest of the abbey’s chapels is believed to have been founded by the Holy Roman Emperor Charlemagne, though its apse, frescoed radial chapels, and cloisters were completed centuries later. The Romanesque facade is carved with figures of the Apostles, while the stately bell tower is decorated in Lombard style. Thanks to its proximity to the Via Francigena pilgrimage route between France and Rome, Sant'Antimo was one of the most powerful Benedictine abbeys in Tuscany before Pope Pius II closed it in 1462. During its deconsecrated years, the church was used as a wine cellar and a cow shed, becoming an active place of worship again only in 1992.

The Sant'Antimo Abbey is a popular stop on day trips to Tuscany from Rome, Florence, and Siena that explore the countryside surrounding Montalcino, Montepulciano, Pienza, and San Quirico d'Orcia. One-day sightseeing tours generally include lunch with a tasting of local Brunello di Montalcino wine. 

The abbey is near Castelnuovo dell’Abate, 5.5 miles (9 kilometers) south of Montalcino. There is no public transportation directly to the abbey, so the most convenient way to visit is by joining a small-group or private tour that includes transportation.

The abbey is open for visits daily year-round. The Val d'Orcia is particularly beautiful in the late spring and early fall, when the countryside is lush and green. 

The Abbey of Sant'Antimo was once famous for the daily Mass sung in Gregorian chant by the resident Benedictines, but the monks have left the complex and now Mass is exclusively spoken.

Provence’s oldest abbey was founded in the 10th century by Benedictine monks and built on what was then a swampy island in the middle of the River Rhône north-east of the UNESCO-listed city of Arles.

The monks of Montmajour enjoyed several centuries of wealth, with the abbey thriving thanks to pilgrims who visited to see a fragment of the True Cross displayed in the Chapel of the Holy Cross. By the end of the 14th century, plague and the Hundred Years War affected the fortunes of the monastery; a defensive watchtower and fortified walls were added but it fell into disrepute. In 1639 its fortunes were briefly revived by an influx of new monks but the French Revolution in the 1790s saw Montmajour abandoned and derelict.  

Today the restored ruins include the medieval monastery and its neo-classical counterpart, built in the 17th century; art exhibitions are occasionally held in the enormous, barn-like church. St Peter’s Chapel is flanked by the monk’s cemetery, where medieval graves were carved directly into the rock. The 12th-century Chapel of the Holy Cross stands in a field just outside the monastery walls and there are panoramic views across the rolling Provençal countryside from the top of the defence tower; at 30 m (98.5 ft) high, it is possible to see the foothills of the Alps – sometime Arles resident Vincent van Gogh visited Montmajour often to enjoy this view.

The Aare Gorge is a popular tourist attraction near the town of Meiringen in the Bernese Oberland region of Switzerland. Created by glacier runoff 10,000 years ago, the limestone gorge is a mile long and ranges from just 3 feet, 3 inches wide to nearly 100 feet wide and different points. The surrounding cliffs are as much as 165 feet high. A walkway through the gorge has been open to the public since 1889 and is accessible from either the east or west side. Most of it consists of wooden planks on a metal frame jutting out from the wall of the gorge, with small sections in a tunnel or along gravel or asphalt paths. The most beautiful parts of the gorge are on closer to the West entrance.

Not far from the gorge are the Reichenbach Falls, possibly best known as the place where Sir Arthur Conan Doyle set Sherlock Holmes’ murder.

The 7th arrondissement of Paris is home to some of the city’s most famous attractions, including the Eiffel Tower, the Musée d’Orsay, and Napoleon’s tomb. Situated on the left bank of the River Seine, the 7th arrondissement is a charming mix of narrow cobblestone streets, bustling street markets, quaint cafés, and local shops. 

For first-time visitors, the 7th arrondissement is the perfect place to begin an exploration of Paris. Take a sightseeing tour to see the district’s highlights and enjoy a great introduction to Paris culture, history, and architecture. You’ll admire views of the Eiffel Tower, wander the Musée Rodin Sculpture Garden, discover quaint cobbled side streets, and sample traditional French foods. 

It is easy to get to the 7th arrondissement using public transportation from anywhere in Paris. Metro lines 6, 8, 10, 12, and 13 service the arrondissement with stops including Bir-Hakeim (for the Eiffel Tower), Musée d'Orsay, and Varenne (for Les Invalides and Musée Rodin). 

The 7th arrondissement is worth exploring any time of year. If visiting during the summer months, consider booking tours and museum admission tickets ahead of time to avoid long lines. If you’re on a budget, you’ll find the best deals visiting November through February and also enjoy less tourist crowds, though with fewer services. 

The 7th arrondissement boasts a vast array of shops, from small speciality stores and consignment shops to high-end boutiques and large department stores. Fashion enthusiasts must visit Le Bon Marché, Paris’s oldest and most prestigious department store. Showcasing the finest designer brands and gorgeous window displays, Le Bon Marché is like an art gallery for fashion lovers.  

Abbaye Saint Victor in Marseille may not be at the top of everyone's to-see list, especially when the nearby, picturesque Notre Dame Basilica and its bird's-eye view are such a big draw. But there are two reasons this abbey should be added: First, it's a convenient stop on the way to Notre Dame, and secondly, it is commonly considered the oldest church in France–which is quite a claim, considering that thousand-year-old churches seem to be a dime a dozen here.

In fact, the abbey's history dates back to the fifth century, was in ruins by the ninth century and by the 13th century, when other world-famous churches were first being built, Abbaye Saint Victor was being renovated. Martyrs died here, the library was dismantled simply to please a de Medici family member, and in the late 18th century, the site was stripped of all of its finery. In short, it's had quite a history.

The 9th Arrondissement is located on the Right Bank in Paris and is home to a number of places of cultural, historical and architectural interest. It also boasts more hotels than any other arrondissement in Paris, so it can be a great area to base yourself to explore the city. Here you will find the Palais Garnier, which is home to the Paris Opera, as well as the Musee Grevin, a waxwork museum featuring more than 500 characters from French history. As you walk around the arrondissement, look for commemorative plaques outside of homes indicating notable landmarks. Be sure to check out the covered passageways near Boulevard Haussmann and rue Vivienne. Dating to the 19th century, these were precursors to the modern shopping mall.

The 9th Arrondissement is also home to several major department stores, including Printemps and Galeries Lafayette, both of which offer good skyline views of the city. In the young and vibrant South of Pigalle district, you can find a variety of restaurants, bars and cafes, and in Little Tokyo you can discover some of the best Japanese food in Paris.