tttt

topper

Norway <BR>- Roros, the small mining society south-east of Trondheim (on the world heritage list)<BR>- the small towns along the southern coast; Kragero, Risor, Tvedestrand, Grimstad, Lillesand <BR><BR>France <BR>- the medeival part of Le Mans, south-west of Chartres<BR>- Cotignac, 20-30 km north-west of the Cote d'Azur (St Tropez)<BR><BR>Spain - Pedraza, 20 km north of Segovia, and Segovia<BR><BR>Italy - Fiesole, hillside town 6 km north-east of Florence<BR><BR>Bjorn, Oslo

Portovenere, Italy - we were the only Americans there and the food was fabulous.<BR><BR>Varenna, Italy - not the only Americans there, but still a very quiet and beautiful town with great food on Lake Como<BR><BR>Lynmouth, England - one of the most picturesque villages I have seen in England. The poet, Shelley, stayed here for several months with his bride and named the area, "Little Switzerland". Wordsworth and Coleridge are other literary figures who found the area amenable for writing. It is said Coleridge was inspired to write "The Ancient Mariner" after viewing Lynmouth's harbour. <BR> It's right on the ocean, it's tiny, it's remote and it's lovely

Vienden in Luxembourg. It's north of the city Luxembourg. <BR><BR>As you drive around a hill into the town the view opens up on a lovely castle perched over the town. In addition there is a ski lift that runs up the side of the hill above the castle. Ride it up then walk down to tour the castle.<BR><BR>It's nostalgic for me too. One of the first touristy things I did in Europe almost 15 years ago was ride a ski lift on a beautiful summer day. The views are gorgeous and it feels like you're floating through the trees.

About 2 hours SW of Vienna is the lovely town of Mariazell. It's a beautiful drive from Vienna in summer or winter. Would highly recommend a visit.

ttt

<BR>Neustadt-am-der-Weinstrasse in the Pfalz<BR>area of Germany; and all the beautiful<BR>little wine villages around it.<BR><BR>V.few tourists - but not for long, I'll<BR>bet!

Many, if not most, of the places mentioned in this string aren't very "out of the way" or "undiscovered" because they have been listed in guidebooks of one sort or the other. Anything that's been in any widely published guidebook is, in my interpretation of the expression, not hidden at all. That's why it's so great to hear from people on this board, like a few I have read about in this list of well over a hundred places, who have been somewhere and truly discovered something that isn't in any of the guidebooks---places none of us have ever heard of before. Those are the ones that make me want to keep going back to Europe. For me, it has to be Santa Maria Maggiore, a magical little village on the crest of a hill in the middle of nowhere in northern Italy, between the Simplon Pass and Locarno. Once you've been there, you want to keep it in your memory as the perfect place to visit.

I don't know how "hidden" these are, but<BR>nevertheless these towns/cities stand out from my travels.<BR>Heidleberg (Spelling?) Germany<BR>Lucern & Bern, Switzerland<BR>Amsterdam, (and all of) Holland<BR>The Normandy area of France<BR>There's my 2 cents worth

Matera in Basilicata<BR>Go for the Festa del Bruna<BR>July 2nd<BR>

Detva, Slovakia.<BR><BR>Not for the "rocks" as my daughter calls it but for the outstanding folkloric festival that is held every year in mid-July. Slovak musicians, dancers, and artisans from all over the world (including Australia, Canada, US, France, etc.) gather in this village every year. Slovak gypsies came out the last year I went. <BR><BR>Performers are lucky enough to stay in school dorms but many spectators slept in their cars. When you get hungry, drive to the local Salaz where "brindzove halusky" (small potato dumplings topped with fresh sheep's cheese) can be wolfed down for a song.<BR><BR>Others<BR><BR>Bamberg, Germany <BR>Colmar, France<BR>Trier, Germany<BR>St Guilhem le d&eacute;sert, France (medieval monastic buildings and village in Languedoc, near Montpellier)

MAASTRICHT..Holland with hills!..sort of "Frenchy"..good food , chic shops, flea markets..the best of Europe...virtually ignored as tourist destination...charming and very liveable<BR>..I could live there easily!!<BR>

The Azores.Although not a city but an archipelago.Unspoiled natural beauty and not very touristy.In one word:Paradise!

It’s not a city – but is so out of the way and beautiful. Try Sark, one of the Channel Islands. No traffic, lovely walks and cycle rides around the tiny island. Enid Blyton country, if you know what I mean. You get there by boat from Guernsey, and a tractor pulling a glorified cart takes you up the hill. Magic.

Trier Germany<BR>Durnstein, Austria<BR>Orvieto, Italy<BR>Brugges, Belgium<BR>

Saw all the good stuffs said about Le Marche and check with the website below:<BR>http://www.le-marche.com/<BR><BR>Seems like the region is a good place particularly if one wants to get away from the crowd....but seems to me that one can't get around from one town to another without a car?

St. Gilles in the south of France. A wonderful little town full of friendly people...

Well, I'll come back to generate a small list other than the favorite village I mentioned a few postings back. Using "out of the way" literally, and "undiscovered" as seriously as I can, I would mention these other places:<BR>-Koszeg, Hungary (someone else did too: does that make it undiscovered?)<BR>-Valkenberg, Holland (lovely village with some of the old walls intact, plus hills, unusual for Holland)<BR>-Gurk, Austria (nice place with incredible cathedral)<BR>-Govedartsi, Bulgaria (in the hills not far south of Sofia)<BR>-Tartu, Estonia (like nothing changed)<BR>-Liepaja, Latvia (coastal resort)<BR>-Trakai, Lithuania (west of Vilnius)<BR>-Pushkin, Russia (village just south of St. Petersburg)<BR>-Malbork, Poland (south of Gdansk)<BR>-Santa Maddalena, Italy (mountains northeast of Bolzano)<BR>-Castrovillari, Italy (toward the toe of the boot)<BR>-Procida, Italy (island off Naples now being discovered)<BR>-Piran, Slovenia (old village on the end of a peninsula)<BR>Well, those are my favorites. But the more I travel, the more new "discoveries" I make. My trips to Europe are the high points of my life.

Two of the most charming cities I've found in Europe are Brugge, Belgium and Visby on the island of Gotland, Sweden.

just found this post again. thanks xinalo for the website info. I actually might be headed back to Le Marche (Macerata) this fall to live again! hope so. Anyway, you are probably right about not having a car there--it is hard to get around. we were able to, though, with the use of busses and trains. if you get a chance, visit Ascoli Piceno--definitely hard to find, but worth the visit! very roman city. beautiful.<BR><BR>http://www.thelongtriphome.com

<BR>Aachen Germany was a great town near the border with Belgium. It's not so much small and quaint, but it was beautiful and full of life. We happened upon a great festival full of all gneres of music and theater that lasted well into the night. A really fun place.