Hunting hounds, manicured grounds, and a mini theme park celebrating the genius of Da Vinci are a few of the amenities at France's grand residences. For European travel information, visit https://www.ricksteves.com.

The museums of Rome house the treasures of one of the world's great civilizations, from anonymous scenes of everyday life to breathtaking masterworks. For European travel information, visit https://www.ricksteves.com.

From Cornwall to the Adriatic, diners have an appetite for meals starring locally caught fish and shellfish — some humble, some chic, all delicious. For European travel information, visit https://www.ricksteves.com.

Delight in the mastery of titans Rembrandt and Van Gogh, and ponder the resilience of Anne Frank and her compatriots who lived under Nazi occupation. For European travel information, visit https://www.ricksteves.com.

The Reformation ushered a new Protestant ambiance into Germany’s places of worship — one conveying strength, humanism, and a more natural spirit. For European travel information, visit https://www.ricksteves.com.

Sophisticated cave paintings and Roman engineering achievements in today’s France reveal ancient standards of living that went beyond mere survival. For European travel information, visit https://www.ricksteves.com.

From the world’s oldest globe to reminders both mundane and dark of postwar Communism, Germany has preserved its rich and sometimes turbulent history. For European travel information, visit https://www.ricksteves.com.

Spain's great houses of worship showcase magnificent art and architecture in an array of styles, from Moorish majesty to the singular Sagrada Família. For European travel information, visit https://www.ricksteves.com.

These man-made marvels have stood as part of Britain’s geographic – and spiritual – landscape for thousands of years, their quiet allure undiminished. For European travel information, visit https://www.ricksteves.com.

The rise of humanism — and of art for art's sake — is on full display in the grand palaces of Florence and Venice, monuments to the rich and powerful. For European travel information, visit https://www.ricksteves.com.