Coast & island escapes.
Small coastlines and smaller islands, before the cruise schedule.
Polperro
This particularly photogenic fishing village on the south Cornwall coast, Polperro is built around a compact harbour with tightly-packed historic fishermen's…
Scilla
A particularly photogenic pocket-sized town on a promontory at the northern entrance to the Strait of Messina, Scilla has a café and restaurant scene that pu…
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…
Mount Maunganui
A photogenic seaside suburb of Tauranga on New Zealand's North Island, Mount Maunganui takes its name from the large lava dome — known in Māori as Mauao, mea…
Monaco-Ville
Set on a Mediterranean headland known as The Rock, Monaco-Ville is the historic core of the Principality of Monaco — a compact, photogenic village dense with…
Peniche
This photogenic Atlantic-facing town on the Portuguese coast in the Oeste region, Peniche has a walkable centre with a real food-and-drink scene and water vi…
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…
Lamego
This compact city in Portugal's Douro wine country, Lamego sits on the Balsemão River with an unusual concentration of churches for its size, a real café and…
Conwy
Conwy Castle and the medieval town walls — both on the UNESCO World Heritage List — anchor this small walled town on the River Conwy in North Wales, where mo…
Narni
An ancient hill town in Umbria that claims to sit at the geographical centre of Italy — a spot marked by a stone — Narni overhangs a narrow gorge of the Rive…
Alanya
A Mediterranean resort city on Turkey's southern coast where a Seljuk-era citadel dominates a modest peninsula backed by the Taurus Mountains, Alanya combine…
Aberdyfi
A photogenic Welsh village on the Dyfi estuary, Aberdyfi sits within Snowdonia National Park and draws golfers, sailors, and watersports enthusiasts to its w…
Alexandra
Sitting at the confluence of the Clutha and Manuherikia rivers in Central Otago, Alexandra is a photogenic little town on New Zealand's South Island, set aga…
Bagnara Calabra
This small Tyrrhenian coast town in Calabria's southernmost stretch, Bagnara Calabra sits directly on the water with vineyards in the surrounding hills and v…
Bastia
Corsica's principal port and commercial hub, Bastia sits at the base of Cap Corse on the island's northeast coast, where a walkable harbour front, small fort…
Ilfracombe
A photogenic harbour town on the North Devon coast, Ilfracombe sits among cliffs and hills with scenic views in multiple directions.
Ferndale
A pocket-sized California village known for its dozens of well-preserved Victorian storefronts and homes, Ferndale sits on the edge of a wide plain near the…
Lake City
A compact Florida county seat where a domed courthouse, moss-draped lakeshores, lily-pad-covered water, and a streetscape of historic brick storefronts and V…
Bonbeach
Bayside suburb on Port Phillip, Bonbeach sits on the water's edge south-east of Melbourne with mountain views across the bay and a small café and restaurant…
Lower Hutt
A walkable waterfront city in New Zealand's Wellington region, Lower Hutt sits along the eastern shores of Wellington Harbour at the southern end of the Hutt…
Fortuneswell
A small conservation-area town on the steep northern slopes of the Isle of Portland in Dorset, Fortuneswell sits where Chesil Beach connects the island to th…
Viana do Castelo
Photogenic port town at the mouth of the Lima river in northern Portugal, Viana do Castelo has a walkable centre dense with historic churches and a strong fo…
Llangrannog
This small coastal village on the Wales Coast Path in Ceredigion, Llangrannog sits where the River Hawen meets the sea, dropping as a waterfall through the v…
Hobart
Sitting on the Derwent River estuary beneath the peak of kunanyi / Mount Wellington, Hobart is a photogenic waterfront city and Australia's second-oldest cap…
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…
Marbella
This Mediterranean city on Spain's Costa del Sol with a dense café and restaurant scene, a photogenic old quarter, and a seafront backed by the Sierra Blanca…
Vietri sul Mare
Polychrome ceramics have been made in Vietri sul Mare since at least the 15th century, and the tradition remains central to this little Campanian town at the…
Salcombe
Photogenic little resort town on Devon's south coast, Salcombe sits along the steep western bank of the Kingsbridge Estuary — a sheltered ria that historical…
Noto
Rebuilt in the early 18th century after a devastating earthquake, Noto is one of eight Late Baroque towns in Sicily's Val di Noto declared a UNESCO World Her…
Cumberland
A compact Vancouver Island village with a well-preserved early-20th-century downtown streetscape of painted timber storefronts, set among forested hills with…
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…
Carrara
Marble has defined Carrara since ancient times — the white and blue-grey stone quarried from the Apuan Alps above this Tuscan town has supplied sculptors and…
Sant'Agnello
A pocket-sized town on the Sorrentine Coast between Piano di Sorrento and Sorrento, Sant'Agnello sits right at the water with scenic viewpoints nearby and a…
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…
Sinop
Sinop sits on a narrow isthmus at the northernmost point of Turkey's Black Sea coast, giving the town water on nearly every side and a compact centre with a…
Oamaru
Victorian buildings cut from fine white local limestone give Oamaru a distinctive streetscape, and the town also sits beside penguin colonies on the South Is…
Llastres
Modest fishing village on the Asturian coast of northern Spain, Llastres sits directly on the water with scenic viewpoints in the surrounding area and a café…
Pauanui
This white-sand Pacific beach, forested hills with scenic viewpoints, and a harbour-side setting make this little holiday village on the Coromandel Peninsula…
Gytheio
The ancient seaport of Sparta, Gytheio sits on the eastern shore of the Mani Peninsula in the southern Peloponnese, its waterfront lined with cafés and resta…
Cetara
Colatura di alici — a pungent, amber fish sauce pressed from anchovies — has been produced in this little Amalfi Coast village in Campania for centuries, and…
Faja Grande
The westernmost settlement in Europe, this modest Azorean hamlet on the western coast of Flores island sits directly at the water with mountain terrain close…
Paekakariki
This compact beachside village on New Zealand's North Island, Paekākāriki sits where the Tasman Sea meets the foot of the Akatarawa Ranges on the Kāpiti Coast.
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…
Collioure
A Mediterranean fishing village on the French Catalan coast where the last ridges of the Pyrenees meet the sea, Collioure has long drawn artists to its water…
Clermont-l'Hérault
A modest wine-country town in the Hérault department of southern France, Clermont-l'Hérault sits alongside the Lergue and Salagou rivers and carries a café a…
Castletown
This compact Isle of Man harbour town where sailboats rest on tidal mud flats at low water, overlooked by a substantial medieval stone castle with battlement…
Carbis Bay
A sandy beach village on the Atlantic coast of Cornwall, Carbis Bay sits just south of St Ives on the western edge of St Ives Bay, with the South West Coast…
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…
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…
Bosa
Sitting on the north bank of the Temo River — the only river-built town on Sardinia — Bosa is a little Sardinian settlement with a strong café and restaurant…
Pasaia
A working port town on the Bay of Pasaia in Spain's Basque Country, spread across four distinct districts around a natural harbour where the Oyarzun river me…
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…
Veere
This little historic town on the former island of Walcheren in Zeeland sits along the Kanaal door Walcheren and the Veerse Meer, with a waterfront setting, a…
Oviedo City
Oviedo, the capital of Asturias in northern Spain, has a dense café and restaurant scene in its historic centre, which holds a concentration of old churches…
Sesimbra
This fishing town on Portugal's Setúbal coast where the Serra da Arrábida mountains meet the sea, Sesimbra has a walkable centre with a dense food-and-drink…
Litochoro
The main gateway to climbing Mount Olympus, Litochoro sits at the base of Greece's highest mountain on the western shore of the Thermaic Gulf, with nearly al…
Leiria
A dense sea of terracotta rooftops spreads across this mid-sized Portuguese city, with a walkable historic centre, an exceptionally lively café and restauran…
Calvi
This small Corsican town on the northwest coast with a waterfront setting, a café and restaurant scene that outpaces the town's size, and scenic viewpoints a…
Lodève
This small town in the Hérault department of southern France's Occitania region, Lodève sits at the confluence of several rivers and offers a compact central…