Rick Steves' Europe

The heartland of England has sights that put the "Great" in Britain — its venerable universities, its royal heritage, and reminders of its industrial might. At Oxford and Cambridge, we'll see where kings and prime ministers studied. At Blenheim Palace — Winston Churchill's birthplace — we'll connect with English aristocracy. At Ironbridge Gorge, we fire up memories of the Industrial Revolution. And all along the way, we'll be driving on the left and polishing our pub etiquette.

Lisbon, built with the riches of Portugal's New World discoveries, has a rustic charm. We'll remember great navigators, eat lots of cod, enjoy pastries hot out of the oven, stroll the city's back lanes and its reinvigorated waterfront, marvel at an exquisite church built with spice taxes, and enjoy some soulful fado music. Then we'll side-trip to Sintra to explore the fanciful castles of Portuguese royalty and climb hilltop ramparts with grand views.

Portugal has an oversized history, fascinating culture, and boatloads of sardines. Saving the capital city of Lisbon for another episode, we'll dance on the beach at Nazaré, marvel at a medieval abbey in Batalha, visit a royal library and revel with university students in Coimbra, savor port wine with the people who made it along the Douro River, and get to know Portugal's gritty and fascinating second city, Porto.

Setting sail on the Mediterranean, we'll explore the ins and outs and pros and cons of cruising. We'll learn how to get the most out of a cruise and exercise our independence to make smart use of limited time on shore by planning well, avoiding lines, and eating quick-but-local meals on the go. Along with the joys and efficiencies of cruising, we'll consider the downsides, including the inevitable congestion and commercialism that comes with mass tourism.

We'll island-hop through the Aegean, sampling three classic Greek getaways — Santorini, Mykonos, and Rhodes — and basking in their dramatic beauty. We'll tour ancient ruins, trace the vestiges of the Crusaders, sample rustic cuisine, savor classic Greek-island views, and compare beaches — from the ultimate party beach to idyllic quiet hideaways. And we'll see how a cruise ship can be an efficient way to link up great island stopovers.

In this first of two episodes on Europe's greatest festivals, we'll cheer with the masses at Siena's crazy Palio horse race, toss a caber at a Scottish Highland Games, don a mask for Carnevale in Venice, and celebrate Easter in Greece. Dropping in on some of the Continent's top parties, we discover that each one is a celebration of traditional culture, and all of them are full of opportunities to sing and dance, feast on traditional food, and party with locals.

In this second of two episodes on Europe's greatest festivals, we'll dance with Spaniards at Sevilla's April Fair, celebrate Bastille Day in Paris, run with the bulls at Pamplona, and hoist a frothy stein at Munich's Oktoberfest. And we'll celebrate a traditional family Christmas, browsing the holiday market in Nürnberg and sledding down alpine slopes by torchlight in Switzerland. With the entire Continent as our playground, fun is our mission.

This tour of Sicilian highlights starts in Palermo, where we'll sing with the merchants in the markets, join locals in their passeggiata, drop in on a contessa, and marvel at the Romanesque cathedral of Monreale. Then we'll sip wine on the slopes of Mount Etna, munch cannoli, ponder Greek temples at Agrigento, admire Roman mosaics at the Villa of Casale, and marvel at the view from the Greek theater in Taormina.

Sicily serves up a full-bodied and tasty travel experience. We'll dine on fresh seafood at the fisherman's harbor in Cefalù, ponder ancient Greek greatness in Siracusa, commune with monks — alive and departed — in a Capuchin crypt, sleep in an olive orchard at an agriturismo, and eat our way through a classic Sicilian banquet with a famous chef.

The Highlands stoke kilted dreams of Scotland…where legends of Bonnie Prince Charlie swirl around lonely castles. We visit the "Weeping Glen" of Glencoe, bustling Inverness, and the battlefield at Culloden. Then we'll make a pilgrimage to the spiritual capital of a major clan, and go prehistoric at Stone Age burial grounds and Iron Age island forts. Venturing along the Caledonian Canal and watching for Nessie at Loch Ness, we work up an appetite for modern Scottish cuisine and enjoy traditional folk music.

We'll begin on the tranquil Isle of Iona, where Christianity first reached the shores of Scotland. Then we'll visit another of the Inner Hebrides, road-tripping across the Isle of Skye, where we'll explore Iron Age forts, peat fields, a venerable distillery, thatched crofter huts, and the dramatic Trotternish Peninsula. Finally, we'll sail to Orkney — more Nordic than Celtic — with its stony remnants of a thriving Iron Age civilization and evocative reminders of the 20th-century wartime harbor at Scapa Flow.

Glasgow, once an industrial powerhouse, offers a fun look at Scotland's vibrantly gritty urban side — full of edgy street art, trendy dining, and the striking architecture of Charles Rennie Mackintosh. Leaving town, we'll tap into Scottish passions as we tour historic Stirling Castle and nearby battlefields, sample a dram at the land's most beloved distilleries on the Speyside Whisky Trail, watch a sheepdog demonstration, and struggle to lift the Manhood Stone at a Highland Games.