TRavel Blog

  Canyon Village Grand Canyon Village, located on the South Rim of Grand Canyon National Park in Northern Arizona, holds some of the best scenic overlooks in the park, including Yavapai Point. Begin your Grand Canyon tour at the visitor centre. Here you can pick up a copy of the self-guided walking tour brochure for in-depth information on the canyon and its history. Highlights of the tour include Bright Angel Lodge, El Tovar Hotel Buckey O’Neill Cabin, Hopi House, Lookout Studio, and Kolb Studio. You’ll also learn how Grand Canyon Village grew up around the Santa Fe Railroad starting in 1901. Stop by the rustic Grand Canyon Railway Depot, which welcomes Grand Canyon Railway passengers to the village. There are many activities in the area, including helicopter tours, horseback rides, scenic train rides, and mule trips. And, of course, the hiking can’t be beaten. Some of the best hikes include Bright Angel Trail, South Kaibab Trail, Rim Trail, and Hermi...

  Chillon Castle  ( French :  Château de Chillon ) is an island  castle  located on  Lake Geneva  (Lac Léman), south of  Veytaux  in the canton of  Vaud . It is situated at the eastern end of the lake, on the narrow shore between  Montreux  and  Villeneuve , which gives access to the  Alpine  valley of the  Rhône . Chillon is amongst the most visited medieval castles in  Switzerland  and Europe.   Successively occupied by the house of Savoy then by the Bernese from 1536 until 1798, it now belongs to the State of Vaud and is classified as a  Swiss Cultural Property of National Significance .  The  Fort de Chillon , its modern counterpart, is hidden on the steep side of the mountain. According to the Swiss ethnologist  Albert Samuel Gatschet , the name  Chillon  derives from the Waldensian dialect and means "flat stone, slab, platform". The name  Castrum Quilon...

     Mauritania Mauritania takes its name from the ancient Berber kingdom that flourished beginning in the third century BC and later became the Roman province of Mauretania, which flourished into the seventh century AD. However, the two territories do not overlap: historical Mauretania was considerably further north than modern Mauritania, as it was spread out along the entire western half of the Mediterranean coast of Africa. The term  Mauretania , in turn, derives from the Greek and Roman exonym for the Berber peoples of the region: the Mauri people. The word  Mauri  is also the root of the name for the Moors. The original inhabitants of Mauritania were the Bafour, presumably a Mande ethnic group, connected to the contemporary Arabized minor social group of  Imraguen  ("fishermen") on the Atlantic coast. The territory of Mauritania was on the fringe of geographical ...

Salzburg, Austria The beautiful city of Salzburg in Austria may be best known as the birthplace of the 18th-century composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, but it’s got more to offer than classical music history. The Old Town part of the city survived World War II bombings intact. As a result, the medieval-era Romanesque and Gothic cathedrals and monasteries are still standing. Alongside these are many Baroque and Renaissance churches, the result of a 17th-century effort to give Salzburg a serious upgrade. In this image, we're approaching the city centre via the Salzach river during a sublime winter twilight.          

  Trentino, officially the  Autonomous Province of Trento , is an autonomous province of Italy, in the country's far north. Trento and South Tyrol constitute the region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, an autonomous region under the constitution. The province is divided into 177 comuni (municipalities). Its capital is the city of Trento. To the north of Trentino-Alto Adige is Austria. A small section of Switzerland abuts the region's northwest corner. To the east is the Veneto region, and to the west is Lombardy and the Lakes region. The Trentino-Alto Adige region is broken into two provinces. In English, the region is known as Trentino-South Tyrol or by its Italian name Trentino-Alto Adige. The region was conquered by the Romans in 15 BC. The cuisine in the Trentino-Alto Adige is a cross between Italian and Austrian so you'll find dumplings, canederli, as well as meat-filled ravioli. Speck, a smoked ham, comes from this region. Beef, pork, hare, and venison frequent the me...

  Lake Garda - the largest lake in Italy Lago di Garda, as it is known in Italian, is one of northern Italy's most popular tourist destinations. Tyroleans and Bavarians regard it as a home away from home only a few hours' drive to the south, while the advent of cheaper flights to the many nearby airports has increased the attraction of Italy's largest lake for those hailing from the north of Europe. The villages and towns around the lakeshore have a different character, depending on where visitors decide to stay for their Lake Garda holiday. The Scaliger fortress at Sirmione In the south with the towns of Peschiera del Garda, Sirmione and Desenzano del Garda, Lago di Garda is at its widest, with a mainly flat landscape behind the shoreline with some interesting history and lovely wine-producing areas. The motorway which runs from Milan past Verona and on to Venice is very accessible and Peschiera del Garda and Desenzano del Garda are the only resorts which can b...