Ivy-covered exterior of Rufflets St Andrews at dusk, with the formal terraced gardens and lavender beds in the foreground
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Best Hotels in St Andrews, Scotland: A Local’s Guide to Where to Stay

If you’re trying to figure out the best hotels in St Andrews, Scotland, this guide covers all of it: splurge-worthy stays on the Old Course, boutique hotels in the town center, and apartment or house rentals for groups, based on four years of actually living there as a student. I’ll walk through what each one…

How to Plan a Europe Itinerary: 7 Essential Rules to Stop Rushing
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How to Plan a Europe Itinerary: 7 Essential Rules to Stop Rushing

I was standing at a miraduoro in Lisbon, looking out at genuinely one of the most stunning cityscapes I’ve ever seen in my life, when I noticed the couple next to me wasn’t looking at the view at all. They were looking at their phones, trying to figure out if they could still make the…

A row of harborside buildings in pastel purple, peach, and cream stand behind a busy stretch of stacked lobster/crab creels and a docked fishing boat.
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Things to Do in St Andrews, Scotland: 33 Best Options (Not Just Golf)

There’s a stretch of the Kinness Burn, just past Lamond Drive, where the local ducks have clearly decided the humans owe them something. I walked past most mornings on my way into town when I was a student at St Andrews, and there was always a small committee of them parked on the grass bank,…

East Sands Pier and ruins of St. Andrews Cathedral, Scotland – A stone pier leads to pastel-colored houses and the crumbling remains of a medieval cathedral on a cloudy day.
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St Andrews, Scotland: The Complete Guide (From a Four-Year Local)

Most people show up to St Andrews, Scotland with one of two ideas already in their head: golf, or Prince William. Both are true enough, but neither is the place you’ll actually find once you’re there: a small, walkable university town on Scotland’s east coast with three main streets, a ruined cathedral at one end,…

Amsterdam Canal House Boat
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Europe by Train Itinerary: Amsterdam, Belgium, and Paris in 2 Weeks

Planning your first trip to Europe is exciting… and then, very quickly, it can feel like a lot. Too many cities. Too many routes. Too many people telling you what you “can’t miss.” Add in jet lag, border crossings, and the pressure to make every day count, and it’s easy for a dream trip to…

Innsbruck’s Old Town Christmas Market at night, with a glowing Christmas tree and the famous Golden Roof lit up behind rows of festive stalls.
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Innsbruck Christmas Markets: A Festive Guide to Austria’s Alpine City

There’s something undeniably magical about Innsbruck at Christmas. I visited in November, just as the first stalls of the Innsbruck Christmas markets were opening, and the whole city seemed to transform overnight. Strings of twinkling lights appeared in the Old Town, mugs of steaming glühwein warmed chilly hands, and the pastel houses looked even more…