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Learn more about seven smaller European towns that you may not already know
Europe's cities are famed attractions for visitors from around the world - whether chic Paris, beautiful Venice or historic Budapest.
Away from the cities, however, across Europe many smaller towns are home to beautiful sights and fascinating local heritage.
Let's learn more about seven smaller European towns that you may not already know.
Cariño, Spain
Cariño is a town in the northwestern Spanish province A Coruña. It is a coastal town, located on a tidal inlet of the Ría de Ortigueira y Ladrido.
The coast nearby Cariño has some of the highest cliffs in Europe.
Kinsale, Ireland
Kinsale, a town in County Cork in Ireland, is known for its restaurants and gastronomy.
Just outside the town, at the Old Head of Kinsale headline, stands a lighthouse - one of the first lighthouses to be built in Ireland following permission granted by King Charles II in 1665.
Edam, The Netherlands
The name Edam is known around the world due to the cheese named after the town.
A regular cheese market has been held in the town for centuries, since Emperor Charles V first granted the right for this in 1526.
For centuries, the town, to the north of Amsterdam, stood on the sea coast of the Zuiderzee, with shipbuilding and fishing being an important part of the town's heritage. Since the early 20th century, the Zuiderzee has been enclosed to prevent flooding and is now an inland sea, the IJsselmeer.
Fiskars, Finland
Fiskars in the south of Finland is another place which has given its name to a company known throughout the world.
Fiskars developed around ironworks founded in 1649 which developed through the 18th and 19th centuries to become a world-leading company. Fiskars itself was the site of mills, workshops and factories.
The company is no longer located in Fiskars. Today, those buildings are home to artists, artisans and designers, and Fiskars is a popular tourist destination.
Bușteni, Romania
Bușteni is a small town in Romania, located in the Prahova Valley surrounded by the Bucegi mountains.
This gives the town spectacular views, and today it is a popular mountain resort for skiing and mountain hiking.
On top of one of these mountains stands the Commemorative Cross of the Romanian Heroes from World War I, a memorial which was completed in 1928.
Marsaxlokk, Malta
Marsaxlokk is a vibrant fishing port in Malta, with a weekly fish market on the Mediterranean seafront.
The port has been inhabited for centuries and used by Phoenicians and Carthaginians. The name Marsaxlokk comes from the Arabic word marsa, which means port and xlokk, which is the Maltese word for south-east.
Perast, Montenegro
Perast in Montenegro is a town located on the Bay of Kotor.
Perast was an important trading town for the Venetian Republic, and is known for its baroque architecture. For a small town with one main street, there are 16 churches and 17 former grand palazzi.
