Europe's under-the-radar cities
Ragusa - Sicily
Stunningly located on a rocky outcrop in the far south of Sicily, Ragusa's sandstone houses, domes and towers spill down its hillsides. From here you can explore surrounding wineries and towns. Less than half an hour away is the spectacular small Baroque city of Modica where La Gazza Ladra specialises in nuovo-Siciliano dishes such as citrus-scented duck with fennel purée and celeriac, and has a wine list strong on small local producers.
Stay at Locanda Don Serafino in Ragusa (0039 0932220065, locandadonserafino.it, doubles from €135 B&B), an intimate 10-room hotel.
Fly to Catania with thomsonfly.com or flythomascook.com.
Essen - Germany
A former coking plant in Zollverein, Essen, now a Unesco world heritage site. Photograph: Heinz Wohner/Getty Images/LOOK
Once a centre for the coal and steel industries, Essen's chimneys no longer pump out smoke - instead its former plants have been turned into cultural centres, housing collections of art that, in some cases, have become Unesco-listed attractions in their own right. The Gasometer Oberhausen (gasometer.de), a central gas storage facility, now houses exhibition halls (Out of this World - Wonders of the Solar System runs until January 2010); and Zollverein (zollverein.de), once the world's biggest coal mine, is now a Unesco site. Essen is one of several cities making up the Ruhr region, which together have been designated European Capital of Culture 2010. They're all within easy reach of each other by local transport and include Bochum with Germany's largest concentration of bars and restaurants.
Stay at The Ruhr Hotel (0049 201 778053, ruhrhotel.de, doubles from €89 B&B ) is fairly standard looking but well located in the museum district.
Fly to Dortmund from Luton with easyjet.com.
Lodz - Poland
The trouble with Lodz, even the locals used to say, was that unlike Warsaw it wasn't devastated in the second world war - so the ugly old industrial town (the Polish Manchester) missed out on a much-needed makeover. That's changed now: a combination of EU funds and private enterprise has transformed the city. The gloomy old hulks of obsolete textile factories have become handsome museums and shopping malls, and among the tourist targets are the Lodz film school, where Polanski and Kieslowski studied, imposing wartime memorials, and the majestic, sprawling Jewish cemetery. You'll be thirsty after that lot, so head for Ulica Piotrkowska, the three-mile long high street with its 90-odd pubs.
Stay at The Revelo hotel (0048 42 636 86 86, revelo.pl, doubles from £70 B&B), a restored city centre art nouveau mansion that's all polished parquet and period furnishings.
Fly to Lodz from Edinburgh or Stansted with ryanair.com.
Montpellier - France
Had Montpellier enjoyed a Roman heritage - the odd sun-pickled amphitheatre, decaying column or redundant aqueduct - it might have sent a stronger signal to the tourist radar. Instead, most visitors flock to Nîmes, Uzès and Arles, or go east to the Riviera hotspots or west to showboating walled Carcassone, leaving France's eighth largest city to the scholars and students - it has the country's oldest university and 43% of locals are under 30. So take to two wheels to check out the buzzy, cafe-drenched Place de la Comédie, compelling Musee Fabre and the startling 1980s housing of Antigone. Such innovative projects have seen progressive Montpellier lauded as the "Rome of Tomorrow." Quelle irony.
Stay at Hôtel du Parc (+33 467 41 1649, hotelduparc-montpellier.com, doubles from €53 room only. Breakfast costs €10), an atmospheric family-run Languedoc manor that's chocca with original features and period touches.
Fly to Montpellier with easyjet.com or ryanair.com.
Mantua - Italy
Often overlooked in favour of Florence, Rome and Venice, the art cities of Parma, Ravenna, Mantua, Padova and Ferrara in northern Italy have their own rich history and artistic heritage. Mantua, for example, surrounded by three lakes, was the seat of the Gonzaga family from the mid 14th century, and the impressive palazzos reflect the ambitions of the dynasty. Renaissance art and architecture abounds and the city was home to Andrea Mantegna whose Mantuan masterpiece was painted in the city's castle. It has a wide selection of restaurants serving local specialities and wines (head to L'Ochina Bianca on via Finzi). In 1586, the poet Torquato Tasso wrote: "This is a very beautiful city and one worth travelling a thousand miles to see." His words still ring true.
Stay at Casa Poli where three nights' B&B cost from £612pp, including BA flights from Gatwick to Verona or Bologna and car transfers, with Kirker Holidays (020-7593 1899, kirkerholidays.com)
Teruel - Spain
The people of Teruel, a coquettish city one hour's drive inland from Valencia, once campaigned for better roads under the slogan "Teruel exists" - just in case their compatriots had forgotten this little jewel. Teruel bears two special imprints from the past. Mudejar architecture, the Spanish hybrid created by Moorish artisans working for Christian architects, dots the cityscape in churches, the cathedral and the medieval centre. Outside town it is dinosaur footprints that bring visitors, especially Dinopolis (dinopolis.com) - a combined theme park and research centre. La Tierreta restaurant combines local produce with avant garde cooking.
Stay at The Parador hotel (00 34 902 54 79 79, parador.es, doubles from €104) on the outskirts of town.
Fly to Valencia with easyjet.com or ryanair.com.
Akureyri - Iceland
Reykjavik might hog the limelightwild nights, fresh crop of hotels and thriving arts scene, but from next June, when Iceland Express begins direct flights from Gatwick, Akureyri will emerge from the shadows to offer a slightly surreal take on the long weekend break. Iceland's second city, swaddled by a dramatic fjord just below the Arctic Circle, has a stack of galleries (one street, Kaupvangsstraeti, is known as Art Canyon), a burgeoning foodie scene with the likes of Rub 23, Strikio and Friorik V, whose chef trained at London's River Cafe, and a nightlife where you might bump into Sigur Ros on the dancefloor.
Stay at The functional rather than hip Hotel Edda Akureyri (00354 444 4900, en.hoteledda.is, open summer only) and be sure to head out of town for whale watching, lava landscapes and boiling mud, at the Myvatn Baths, northern Iceland's equivalent of Reykjavik's Blue Lagoon.
Fly with Iceland Express (0118 321 8384, icelandexpress.com) from Gatwick.
Yerevan - Armenia
Founded in 782BC, the capital of Armenia is one of the world's oldest continuously-inhabited cities. Crammed to the gills with history, it nestles in the shadow of Mount Ararat and has a medieval centre but it's Yerevan's religious heritage that is its main claim to fame. The city is dotted with early monasteries and the museum of Matenadaran holds 1,600 ancient religious manuscripts. Known as the City of Cafes, it's also a great place for a post history lesson surj (Armenian coffee) or freshes (fruit smoothie). You can also tuck into something a tad stronger - the southern chunk of the former soviet union is a specialist producer of famously high-strength wines and brandies, with most of the production in the Ararat Valley and the spectacular hills above.
Stay at The Hotel Hrazdan in Yerevan with The Traveller (020-7436 9343, the-traveller.co.uk). A three-night "Taster Weekend" costs from £995pp, including flights from Heathrow with British Midland, transfers, accommodation and optional guide.