In the peace and quiet of this little country of Denmark, it’s difficult to imagine barbaric Vikings strutting around with their swords and spears. Tourists of all kinds will find Denmark a great destination with everything from sandy beaches, fjords and coves to scenic country side with ring forts and castles and centuries old monuments to savor. Denmark is best visited during August but April to October is quite acceptable as the weather is hospitable during this time.
Copenhagen is the capital city of Denmark and this city is on the islands Amager and Zealand. Copenhagen is famous for houses with spires and copper roofs and this city has even received the nickname as the city of copper roofs. Copnhagen enchants tourists with its cobbled streets and the Little mermaid that can be found at the entrance to the harbor among other things.
The city of Copenhagen is one of the most tourist friendly cities in the world and offers a lot of sights that are of aesthetic or historical value such as parks, monuments, gardens and old build buildings and as every other city famous among tourists does, Copenhagen also has its own amusement park called the Tivoli. The city has a wide network of rail links that are quite inexpensive and provide for an excellent mode of public transport for the tourist as well as the locals.
There are many tours one can take in the city of Copenhagen that includes Vikingland tour which will take you to a Viking ship Museum where samples of ships built by the Vikings are kept. The royal tour takes one to the Kristianborg palace and there is also a tour of the well known Carlsberg brewery.
Tourism in Denmark is not just restricted to the city of Copenhagen as there are a plethora of other destinations that Denmark offers. Aalborg finds itself as home to a large burial ground for Vikings in addition to an old renaissance building. There are a group of over 60 buildings here in this city that are of historical or architectural interest that have been moved in their entirety to this spot from all over Denmark.
Funen is another place that should be included on every itinerary. This place is referred to as the ‘Garden of Denmark’ as its country sides are just beautiful with ancient parks and gardens which house mansions and castles and everything else that you can relate to the times of royalty and mysticism. The main city of Funen is Odense and is named after Oden, a Norse god. This city is referred to as the ‘City of fairytales’, it’s interesting how every place in Denmark seems to have a title bestowed upon it. Hans Christian Robertson was born here in the city of Odense and the city celebrates a festival commemorating him and his works every July and August.
Kunthenborg park which is in the Lolland region of Demark is the largest park in Denmark with many species of flora and Fauna to be found here. Hammershus in Bornholm is a castle in ruins and is a tourist’s delight along with Elsinore which is the site of a great fortress called Kronborg.

Norway is Europe’s northernmost country. It is one of the most loved vacation destinations in the world. Matter of fact, a vacation in Norway has so much to offer and compete with amidst the magnificence of its neighbors. However, the dramatic landscape and northern chill provides an opportunity to engage in certain Arctic activities such as spotting whales, walruses, polar bears and meandering the fjords as well as alpine or cross country skiing.
There are lots of things to do when opting for a vacation in Norway. You can get a chance to see the Northern Lights, to stroll the streets of Bergen, to tour Urnes, Heddal and Borgund. You can also settle inside the Oslo Opera House or enjoy other cultural and traditional festivities the country can offer.
Aside from the Northern lights and midnight sun, Alpine skiing is another favorite activity in Norway. Moreover, a vacation in Norway would mean visiting places like Oslo (southeastern part of Norway; the oldest part of the city; near Akershus Castle); Narvik (Norway’s most vital iron-ore harbor; popular for its mountainous surroundings during the winter time); Tromso (the starting point of Polar Expeditions; popular for its large-sized herring fisheries, seal hunting, shipping and as the northernmost brewery in the world); and the North Cape (the known highlight of the Baltic Sea). Other known destinations include Honningsyag, Campground at Otta and more.
Then again, a vacation in Norway won’t be complete without a place to stay. One of the most noted Songsfjord Gjestehus. It is the most highly appreciated accommodation along the Varanger Peninsula. The owner actually rebuilt a small fishing village in this place. It is easy to spot due to its brightly colored houses within a snowy landscape. The place is furnished with antiques and they have an excellent chef with its unique menu of Norwegian dishes. Towns near the facility include Tana Bru and Berlevag.
A vacation in Norway offers enjoyment, relaxation and a lot of learning about their traditions and heritage. It is loved by many tourists because of the hospitality and friendly nature of the locals. Norway is definitely one country worth visiting.

What comes to mind when we think about Sweden? It has been widely known as the land of the Vikings. It was the land of the Vikings as a matter of history but now, it is a place of wide stretches of breathtaking landscapes and cosmopolitan cities on the other end. Here is something that you can use as your Stockholm guide when you decide to go on a vacation in this magical place.
The Swedes have a high standard of living; they have fascinating architecture, a panoramic coastline and are blessed with amazing islands. These are just some of the things that Sweden has to offers its visitors. The ultimate Stockholm accommodation I must say! Despite the fact that it is a fairly expensive country, Sweden offers more than just travel no matter what your budget or travel style is.
There are a lot of luxury and budget Stockholm accommodation available for you to choose from. If you are worried about not knowing what to do or where to go when you get there, worry no more! Sweden is a country that has a lot of fun things to get you busy with such as going on day trips, indulging in a spa experience and you would love the nightlife here as well.
If you are in Stockholm and you adore going on day trips and excursions, I would recommend that you check out Vaxholm which is a really beautiful city and is only 40 minutes away by car. It is an enchanting small city by the sea with an old fortress to visit. You should also see Smådalarö and Dalarö. It would take you approximately 50 minutes to get there by car. A simple guide that I believe you would enjoy.
These two small and ancient towns in the archipelago are located very close to each other and are still located in mainland Sweden. Dalarö would be a very good jump-off point to take a boat trip out to the fascinating island of Huvudskär. It would take you the whole day to get there but I guarantee that it is sure worth every minute and every dime you spend.
Another Stockholm guide that everybody should consider is the nightlife. It is quite good and you would be surprised to see so many beautiful and friendly people. Make sure you dress up and look trendy and come early if you want to get in the trendiest places. In Sweden, you would have a better chance by coming early or you could call the nightclub in advance to make your reservations. Their bouncers are known to be very picky. They will not let you in if you come after midnight if your name is not on the guest list. Be sure to take the necessary precautions so your otherwise wonderful evening would not be spoiled by not being admitted at the entrance.
After a long night of partying, you would enjoy treating yourself to a relaxing spa experience. There are a number of spas in Stockholm that you could choose from. Most visitors would choose the spa accommodation and packages in their hotels or in the city malls. These spas are excessively beautiful but the prices could be too much because of their location.
There are a couple of Japanese spas which would take a 15- minute cab ride if you are looking to enjoy a relaxing environment and see a bit of Stockholm. They offer a wide range of treatments from facials, to hand and foot massages, pedicures as well as a variety of body scrubs, masks, baths, slimming body treatments. These places even have restaurants for your convenience. Sweden and great Stockholm accommodation is definitely a place for travel and beyond.

Being located at the Arctic Circle, the winters are quite long and snowy while the summer days come for a brief period say two and half months or more wherein the sun simply does not set. Both the winter and the summer seasons in Finland have an idyllic charm of their own with a special set of adventures and activities to enjoy.
Traveling to Finland during summer means you are visiting in the months of June, July and August. Long and warm sunshine filled days beckon you to enjoy all day long. You could spend an entire holiday week in Karelia in Eastern Finland and try out fishing in the Lake Pielinen, quad safari biking in the wetlands of Karelian wilderness, try your hand in cooking Karelian pasties and lots more. Most rejuvenating of them all could be the opportunity to use the spa and sauna almost free or a golf session, a canoeing trip in the lake and lots more. You could spend a few relaxed days at Lapland watching the reindeer graze across or try your hand at motoring. Embark upon a fishing trip or a hiking trip and enjoy your days in complete leisure.
If you travel to Finland in winter, you could experience a brief stay in a snow hotel which is built each year with snow. Each of the snow suites and rooms are well decorated with snow sculptures. Experience a ride in kick sledge or sauna as much as you wish and make it a point to visit the traditional villages with their rustic charm intact as well. Do make a sure shot trip to view the very famous Northern Lights which are visible in the Finnish Lapland. These lights move east to west in the form of ray or fast moving pulsing shapes. Well, if the nights are cloudless, you surely going to enjoy witnessing the best of this natural phenomenon which sets you amazed and spell bounded to no limits. Also called as the Aurora Borealis, they are most visible in the months of September, October, February and March while they appear in bright colours of green, blue, yellow, violet and even red.
As you travel to Finland and its interiors, you will find traditional villages with their marketplace, stores, churches and even farms modernized yet simple and traditional. Browsing and shopping through each of them brings in great pleasure and enjoyment as you get to know lost of information about the Sami culture and their lifestyle.
Though Finland has modernized and most of the people live in cities and towns, give them an option they would rush back to their countryside homes and cottages for a few days of idyllic peace and relaxation. Hence with no dearth of activities and places to see, Finland does prove to be a popular tourist destination.

The Russian Federation spreads across eleven time zones and two continents. It’s home to nearly 143 million people. It covers approximately 6.6 million square miles. When you’re traveling, sometimes time and money only allow for a taste, a nibble. So, on arriving in Russia, we make like nearly a quarter of the federation’s population, and head for the city. In this case, Moscow.
Let’s start below ground, deep within the earth under the city of Moscow, where more than 9,000 Metro trains run along 12 lines that connect some 170 stations.
It’s a Monday, and we’re standing on the platform at the Komsomolskaya station on the Kol’tsevaya line. We’ve hustled down the escalators and joined the Muscovites on their daily commute. There are as many as 10.4 million people living in the city above us (compare this to 8.3 million in New York City), and more than 7 million of them ride the Metro during the week.
During rush hour, we can expect to wait no longer than two or three minutes for a train. But we won’t get on just yet. We’ll wait for the next car, or the one after that. We’ll wander around the station for a bit, which, for the cost of our subway tickets (22 rubles each, or about 75 cents), will turn out to be an inexpensive museum. We’ll breathe out and in. Each city’s subway has its own unique smells, and this one has undertones of robust men’s cologne and exhaled smoke from cigarettes puffed above ground. If we’re lucky, we’ll catch sight of a painted train.
The Metro was first named in honor of Lazar Kaganovich, one of Josef Stalin’s key advisers who turned out to be an important figure in the construction project (it was subsequently renamed in honor of Lenin). Stalin wanted to build a “people’s palace”, a living art museum accessible to every citizen.
And when we glance upward, it does feel palatial. Corinthian marble columns marble reach to the ceiling. Between the elegant chandeliers, a series of mosaics consisting of colored glass, marble, and granite present a pictorial timeline of Russia’s fight for freedom and independence. As the series progresses, Jesus becomes progressively smaller and Lenin bigger.
It’s time to board one of the trains. We’ll hop off at the Novoslobodskaya station, also on the Kolt’sevaya line, where we’ll find 32 stained glass panels, each framed in brass. They are at eye level, but they are unscathed and intact. We’ll consider that a moment. Thousands of commuters and no broken glass. No graffiti.
As with most architectural wonders, we must consider the labor and effort that went into it. Just as the Egyptian pyramids, the Great Wall, the Taj Mahal, and our own transcontinental railroad were built on the backs of unpaid and/or severely underpaid workers, there are reports that this transportation system was built in part by German POWs and by youth brigades that may or may not have been voluntary. So as we admire what surrounds us, we pay silent tribute to those who built it.
We can’t leave the Metro without seeing the Ploshchad Revolyutsii station at Revolution Square. There we will be greeted by 72 bronze sculptures depicting the people of the Soviet Union. Soldiers, aviators, farmers, athletes, writers, industrial workers, and school children. We’ll spot commuters rubbing the nose of the statue of a hunter and his dog, hoping for riches.
In search of fresh air, we’ll take the Arbatkso-Pokrovskaya Line to the Izmailovskaya station. Before we exit, we’ll pause upstairs. Passengers hurry and hustle, intent on making it to their destinations. It can seem impersonal and cold. But we’ll stand still and observe for a few moments. Among the throngs of people, we’ll see an older lady with a large rollie piece of luggage picking her way up the staircase, one step at a time. We’ll vow to go back through the turnstile and help her if no one else does. And then, as we consider how to do this with our nonexistent handle on the Russian language, a twenty-something male will run up the staircase, see her struggling, and stop. He’ll lift the luggage, heft it up the steps, and deposit it at the foot of the staircase. He’ll look back at her, and motion toward the luggage with one hand, as if to say, Done.
And in that brief interchange, we’ll bear witness to a lovely moment of humanity.
We emerge from the station at Izmailovo Park, one of the largest urban parks in the eastern pocket of Moscow. It’s fall, and the air is crisp and cold. The birch trees offer up a contrast of skinny, white trunks and orange, yellow, and green leaves. Walking paths snake through the pine and birch groves. Mothers pad along behind toddlers who bumble along the paved paths in several layers of clothing. Businessmen take pensive strolls. Bikers pedal down the trails.
In the early 1600s, Tsar Aleksei Mikhailovich built a model economy at Izmailovo. Over the course of a summer, hundreds of peasant families were relocated to the site. Its parks and gardens boasted such exotic crops as watermelons, cotton, and grapes. Tsar Peter the Great also spent time here during his youth, sailing around the park’s water reservoir.
Only some of the amusement park attractions are open in the colder months of fall and winter. Even though the ride on the Ferris wheel costs about three times more than the Metro ticket we bought earlier (about $2.50) it does afford a beautiful panoramic of the city.
Just before we head back to our room at the Hotel Izmaylovo Vega, we’ll dip into the nearby Izmailovo Market, where we can buy anything from leather pants to matryoshka nesting dolls to piroshki and beer to go.
Tomorrow we’ll go on a guided tour and stand humbled before the Red Square and the Kremlin. Today’s excursions above and below ground were just a taste of what the city has to offer.