Gehry's Guggenheim Bilbao and hands-on Basque cooking class ● Roncesvalles pilgrim blessing and beech forest walk ● Roman road sections through Navarre and medieval Estella ● Cruz de Ferro stone ceremony in the mountains above Astorga ● Final approach into Santiago's Plaza del Obradoiro on foot ● Celtic Galicia — Roman walls of Lugo and O Cebreiro highlands ● Finisterre lighthouse — the Atlantic edge where the medieval world ended

Halifax's historic harbour and Victorian Public Gardens ● Cabot Trail's spectacular coastal drive through Cape Breton Highlands ● Fortress of Louisbourg's immersive 18th-century French colonial experience ● Anne of Green Gables Heritage Place and PEI's red sand beaches ● Bay of Fundy's world-record tides at Hopewell Rocks ● Grand-Pré National Historic Site

Lan Ha Bay cruise through limestone karsts ● Sapa's rice terraces and vibrant Bac Ha Sunday market ● overnight sleeper train through northern highlands ● Luang Prabang's dawn alms ceremony and gilded temples ● scenic Lao-China Railway through 75 mountain tunnels ● Buddha Park's surreal sculptures and COPE Centre's powerful story.

Marvão: medieval fortress village above the Alentejo plain ● Monsanto and Idanha-a-Velha — Portugal's deepest historical layers ● Serra da Estrela glacier plateau at 1000 m+ ● Douro Valley vineyard trails and river cruise ● Porto's Ribeira district and Dom Luís Bridge crossing ● Levada hike through UNESCO Laurissilva forest, Madeira ● Vereda do Larano coastal trail above the Atlantic

Explore medieval Transylvania with its imposing castles and fortified churches ● discover the vibrant culture and rich history of Bucharest ● wander through picturesque villages and immerse yourself in local traditions ● visit ancient fortresses and marvel at their architecture ● experience the serene landscapes and natural beauty of Moldova ● enjoy the warm hospitality and rich cultural heritage of these fascinating nations.

Rila Monastery's mountain sanctuary ● four days exploring Istanbul's Byzantine and Ottoman heritage ● Georgian supra feast with qvevri wines and polyphonic song ● overland Caucasus journey crossing into Armenia ● Geghard Monastery carved into mountain cliffs ● Khor Virap beneath Mount Ararat's biblical peaks.

Prague: one of the world's most magical cites ● Exquisite gothic and baroque Cesky Krumlov ● Bratislava, including the historic Old Town ● Budapest walking tour ● Three nights in stately Vienna

The Great Pyramids and Sphinx at Giza ● the spectacular Grand Egyptian Museum with Tutankhamun's treasures ● pre-dawn excursion to Abu Simbel's colossal rock-cut temples ● three-night Nile cruise from Aswan to Luxor sailing past Kom Ombo and Edfu ● Luxor's magnificent Karnak Temple and the Valley of the Kings explored with private guides ● camel trek to St. Simeon Monastery and felucca sail on the Nile