Relaxing family getaways.
Quiet days, short walks, an early dinner.
Castelmezzano
Above the jagged rock formations of the Dolomiti Lucane, Castelmezzano is a particularly photogenic village in Basilicata's Potenza province, recognised in I…
Vogogna
This photogenic village in the Val d'Ossola, Piedmont, sits at the water's edge with mountain terrain rising behind it, partly within the Val Grande National…
Arona
Photogenic small town on the shore of Lake Maggiore in northern Italy, Arona has a café and restaurant scene that punches well above its size, along with an…
New Quay
A modest seaside resort on Cardigan Bay in Ceredigion, Wales, with a harbour, sandy beaches, and a coastline on both the Ceredigion Coast Path and the Wales…
Weilburg
A photogenic pocket-sized town in Hesse set on the Lahn river between the Westerwald and Taunus uplands, Weilburg was for centuries the residence of the Nass…
Kaslo
Photogenic village on the west shore of Kootenay Lake in southeastern British Columbia, Kaslo has a small but real café and restaurant scene for its size.
Viareggio
Viareggio's Carnival, running since 1873, is one of Italy's most celebrated, with papier-mâché floats parading along the seafront promenade — the Passeggiata…
Revelstoke
This compact city in southeastern British Columbia where the Columbia River meets the Illecillewaet, Revelstoke sits at the foot of the Selkirk Mountains wit…
Modane
Compact town in the Maurienne Valley of Savoie, Modane sits within the Vanoise National Park close to the Italian border, with mountain scenery on all sides…
Nyon
This lakeside town on the western shore of Lake Geneva, Nyon sits in the heart of Swiss wine country with a walkable centre, a solid food-and-drink scene, an…
Rocamadour
Medieval pilgrimage village in the Lot département of southwestern France, Rocamadour clings to a cliff face rising steeply above the Alzou valley, with a co…
Cauterets
This spa town and ski resort in the French Pyrenees, Cauterets sits along the Gave de Pau river within the Pyrénées National Park, surrounded by mountain sce…
Cannero Riviera
A particularly photogenic village on the western shore of Lago Maggiore in Piedmont, with an unusual concentration of cafés, restaurants, and churches for it…
Lovere
At the northwest tip of Lake Iseo in Lombardy, Lovere is a particularly photogenic small town whose streetscape blends overhanging wooden roofs with heavy st…
Kastelruth
Photogenic village in the South Tyrolean Dolomites, Kastelruth sits at around 1,000 metres elevation near the Seiser Alm alpine meadow and is a recognised me…
Belluno
A walkable town in the Veneto where the Ardo stream meets the Piave river, Belluno sits at the gateway to the Eastern Dolomites — a UNESCO-listed landscape s…
Cannobio
This photogenic small town on the north-western shore of Lake Maggiore in Piedmont, Cannobio sits where the Cannobina Valley meets the lake and has repeatedl…
Minusio
This compact Swiss-Italian lakeside town on Lago Maggiore, Minusio spreads along the water's edge beneath snow-capped Alpine peaks, offering a lively café an…
Ontinyent
This walkable town on the banks of the Clarià River in Valencia's Vall d'Albaida comarca, Ontinyent has a centre with cafés and restaurants alongside baroque…
Cumberland
A photogenic city on the Potomac River in Western Maryland, Cumberland has a compact centre with a concentration of cafés, restaurants, and historic churches.
Grazalema
A particularly photogenic Andalusian village in the Sierra de Grazalema Natural Park, known as one of the classic *pueblos blancos* — the whitewashed hill to…
Nesso
A particularly photogenic village on the eastern shore of Lake Como, roughly halfway between the towns of Como and Bellagio, with a little but real café and…
Niort
Walkable town in western France's Deux-Sèvres department, Niort sits on the Sèvre Niortaise river and serves as the eastern gateway to the Marais Poitevin re…
Nelson
This photogenic little city on the western arm of Kootenay Lake in British Columbia's Selkirk Mountains, Nelson has a café and restaurant scene that punches…
Schönau am Königssee
This photogenic tiny town in the Bavarian Alps at the northern end of the Königssee, a fjord-like lake reaching depths of up to 190 metres and home to the ch…
Omegna
At the northernmost tip of Lago d'Orta in Piedmont, Omegna sits directly on the water with a lakeside boulevard where a street market runs every Thursday mor…
Chaniotis
Waterfront village on the Kassandra peninsula in Chalkidiki, Greece, with a café and restaurant scene that outpunches its modest size and a coastline of beac…
Mondsee
A modest lakeside town in Upper Austria's Salzkammergut region, Mondsee is best known for the medieval Mondsee Abbey, whose church served as the wedding loca…
Zahara de la Sierra
A white-walled Andalusian village in the Sierra de Grazalema natural park, Zahara de la Sierra sits above the Embalse de Zahara reservoir with panoramic view…
Brissago
This small lakeside village on the western shore of Lake Maggiore in Switzerland's Italian-speaking canton of Ticino, Brissago sits right at the water with v…
Bezzecca
A compact Alpine village in Trentino's Valle di Ledro, where terracotta-roofed houses cluster around a yellow-façaded church, forested peaks rise on all side…
Quesada
This modest Andalusian town in Jaén where the Guadalquivir River has its source, set within mountain country on the edge of the Sierras de Cazorla, Segura y…
Neuchâtel
A lakeside town in French-speaking western Switzerland, Neuchâtel sits directly on Lake Neuchâtel with vineyards in the surrounding hills and a walkable cent…
Mission Beach
This compact tropical village on Queensland's Cassowary Coast where dense rainforest meets a long arc of sandy beach, with island-dotted blue water stretchin…
Morcote
This photogenic village on the shore of Lake Lugano in Switzerland's Ticino canton, Morcote pairs its waterfront arcades and Renaissance church with a monume…
Banyuls-sur-Mer
Banyuls-sur-Mer gives its name to the surrounding wine region and sits on a bay at the southern end of France's Mediterranean coast, making it the country's…
Varenna
Sitting directly on the eastern shore of Lake Como in Lombardy, Varenna is a modest lakeside village with a heritage-dense centre of medieval churches, histo…
Moustiers-Sainte-Marie
Village in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence with an unusual density of cafés and restaurants for its size, Moustiers-Sainte-Marie sits against a rocky escarpment…
Palmi
Palmi looks out over the Strait of Messina from the Tyrrhenian coast of Calabria, with beaches at Marina di Palmi and Lido di Palmi drawing visitors to what…
Pomorie
This compact seaside town on a narrow rocky peninsula in Burgas Bay, Pomorie sits right on the Black Sea and is known for its deposits of healing mud and anc…
Porthmadog
This pocket-sized coastal town in Gwynedd, Wales, Porthmadog grew in the 19th century as a slate port on the Glaslyn estuary, and its surviving wharves now s…
Gérardmer
Sitting directly on its own lake in the Vosges mountains of northeastern France, Gérardmer is a compact town with a café and restaurant scene that would suit…
Mergozzo
This small Piedmontese village sits directly on its own lake, with scenic viewpoints in the surrounding hills and a striking number of churches for a settlem…
Thun
A walkable Swiss town where the Aare flows out of Lake Thun, with a food-and-drink scene packed into the centre, historic churches, and scenic viewpoints ove…
Moltrasio
Pocket-sized village on the western shore of Lake Como, Moltrasio draws on a heritage-dense streetscape, scenic lake views, and a concentration of churches a…
Pella
Sitting on the western shore of Lake Orta in Piedmont, this compact village in the Province of Novara offers waterfront views, mountain country close by, and…
Leggiuno
The Eremo di Santa Caterina del Sasso, a hermitage built into a rocky cliff face on the shore of Lake Maggiore, is the landmark that defines this modest Lomb…
Brunate
Known as the "Balcony on the Alps," this compact village above Lake Como offers panoramic views stretching across the western Alpine arc, the Po Plain, and t…
Catemaco
A town on the shores of Lake Catemaco in southern Veracruz, known across Mexico for a pre-colonial tradition of sorcery and witchcraft — practiced largely by…
Gruyères
This medieval Swiss village on a hill above the Saane Valley and the Lake of Gruyère lends its name to Gruyère cheese and is anchored by a castle that draws…
Saint-Lary-Soulan
This dual-season mountain resort village in the Hautes-Pyrénées, Saint-Lary-Soulan draws skiers in winter to its slopes at Pla d'Adet and Espiaube, and hiker…
Blanes
A beach town on the Costa Brava marking the southern gateway to that stretch of Catalan coastline, Blanes sits where mountains meet the Mediterranean, with c…
Tywyn
Home to the Talyllyn Railway and the Cadfan Stone — an early medieval cross bearing the oldest known written Welsh — this small seaside town sits on the Card…
Argegno
This tiny Lake Como village on the western shore sits where the River Telo meets the lake, and the waters just offshore mark the deepest point of any lake in…
Rieti
Traditionally called the "umbilicus Italiae" — the navel of Italy — Rieti is a walkable hilltop town in Lazio whose centre is dense with historic churches an…
Josselin
A multi-turreted medieval castle rises directly from the riverbank in this tiny Breton village, its grey stone towers reflected in the calm water below, with…
Wimereux
Seafront resort town on the Opal Coast in Pas-de-Calais, Wimereux sits where the river of the same name meets the English Channel, just north of Boulogne-sur…
Bad Neustadt an der Saale
This walkable Bavarian spa town where the Franconian Saale and Brend rivers meet, Bad Neustadt an der Saale has a centre with several historic churches, café…
Varazze
Small Ligurian town on the Riviera di Ponente with a seafront position, a strong café and restaurant scene, and an unusual concentration of churches for its…
Küssnacht
Sitting on the north shore of Lake Lucerne at the foot of Mount Rigi, Küssnacht is a pocket-sized Swiss town with a café and restaurant scene that outpaces t…