Many people get confused when visiting The Netherlands, or planning a trip to The Netherlands, because so many people call it Holland. Technically, this is incorrect, because there are actually twelve provinces in The Netherlands, and North and South Holland are merely two of them. The country itself is most well-known for their passion for social freedom, and fierce liberal tolerance towards things that are frowned upon in most other countries, making it very popular for young people, as a place to go to where they can get away with more than they would be able to in their home countries.

Despite popular belief, there are more things to do in the Netherlands than visit Amsterdam’s many coffeeshops. For nature lovers, and those who enjoy hiking, and seeing the sights on foot, there are over a dozen different nature preserves and parks distributed throughout the provinces in The Netherlands. A few of which are Nationaal Park Lauwersmeer, in Groningen, Friesland, Nationaal Park De Hoge Veluwe, in Gelderland, Nationaal Park De Biesbosch, which covers areas in both North Brabant and South Holland, Grenspark De Zoom - Kalmthoutse Heide, which covers areas in North Brabant, and Belgium as well. Other popular activities include bicycling to see the sights, fishing, camping, and more.

Dutch cuisine, and that most commonly found throughout the Netherlands can be both palatable to anyone who enjoys hot, traditional delicacies, and food for the soul, or people with a more adventurous taste. The Netherlands are famous for their variety of native cheeses, such as Goudse, Edammer, Leidse, and Leyden, which are flavoured with herbs, like cloves, cumin, caraway, and nettle. Tea and coffee are popular all day, every day, amongst all warm drinks, such as hot chocolate, or “Kwast” which is hot water, serve with lemon juice. Breads in the Netherlands, such as Rye, and others, are made from yeast, which makes them soft, and airy. Dinners in the Netherlands are very meat and potatoes based; beef stews, and seasoned meats, roasted and served with vegetables are popular, as well as liverwurst and meatloaf.

When traveling through the cities in the Netherlands, if it’s the nightlife, restaurants, and urban culture that travelers are interested in seeing during their visit, hotels and hostels are available for tourists for them to take lodging in, as well as guesthouses. If nature, hiking, and outdoor activities are the main focus of the trips being made, it’s a good idea to search for camp sites, or farmhouse lodgings. Getting around in the Netherlands, when going from one province to another is mostly done by rail, but while traveling through the cities in the Netherlands, it’s a good idea to either go on foot, or by bicycle. If you’re good at finding parking spaces, riding a motorcycle, or scooter is another great idea for urban travel. The best times to visit the Netherlands are the later spring months, such as April through June, or July, or the early autumn, however, visiting in colder months can be cheaper, although the whole point is; it’s colder, as well as rainy.

There are seven main regions of Iceland, all worthwhile and ideal for travelers to spend time in, both for their wide range of wildlife, and atmosphere. These seven major regions, each with their own features and attractions are West Iceland, The Westfjords, Reykjavík and the Capital Area, North Iceland, East Iceland, South Iceland, and The Highlands. Iceland is much different than a great deal of other countries; from surveys taken, statistics show that as much as 80% of the country believes in elves, and even in modern times such as these, construction projects have been re-routed, or detoured, in order to avoid disturbing places where elves are said to reside. Also, five hundred years before Christopher Columbus was even born, Leif the Lucky, is said to have been the very first European to set foot in North America. He was said to have landed in Newfoundland, where there have been found ruins of a Viking era farmstead.

There are several different exciting activities travelers can take advantage of while visiting Iceland, such as whale watching, where many species of whales can be seen in the Atlantic Ocean; then there’s bird watching, another popular activity in Iceland, because some places have large amounts of exotic bird life, both colorful tropical birds, and native cold-weather birds. Another popular activity amongst tourists is hiking in various regions of Iceland; with the many areas that are over 400 m above sea level, there are also glaciers, volcanoes, and lakes, that many people enjoy hiking through to see for themselves on foot. Horseback riding is an excellent activity for families and individuals, and rides can go from an hour, up to ten days. Other popular activities in Iceland include fishing, hunting, sea angling, kayaking, glacier tours, golf, including Midnight Golf; The Arctic Open, which takes place in June, annually. There’s also the Reykjavík Marathon, which is another annual event, as well as river rafting, and swimming, also popular because a great deal of swimming is done in therapeutic hot springs, found naturally in Iceland.

Cuisine in Iceland ranges from the delicious, to the bizarre. For instance, the fresh seafood, and mountain lamb. The traditional preparation for the lamb is by smoking it, which is delicious, although the traditional preservation is used in a few areas as well, which is by burying the meat in snow to keep it cold, which was used before there were refrigerators. One of the more adventurous types of food you’ll find in Iceland is by sight alone, something that would raise the hairs on your neck. Rotten shark, cured by being buried, and then chased with some Black Death schnapps.

Finding a place to stay in Iceland is easy enough, for instance, there are over a hundred different campsites in Iceland, hostels, private accommodations, such as inns or hotels, summerhouses, cottages, farmhouse accommodation, and guesthouses. Getting around in Iceland is most often done with a vehicle; the roads have a loose layer of gravel on them, in order to provide traction, when conditions are icy. Traveling in the summer is more ideal than winter for obvious reasons; conditions may be too harsh to properly enjoy some activities in certain areas.