Blessed with a dramatic setting on the steep banks of the river Douro, Portugal’s second city is currently enjoying something of a renaissance, and is best known as the home of the country’s most famous export, port wine.

La Coruña is the largest city in Galicia, a beautiful region of lush green countryside and wild, windswept beaches. Historical sights of note include the Tower of Hercules, a UNESCO-listed Roman lighthouse, and the city is also home to some great seafood restaurants.

Saint-Malo grew rich off the back of maritime trade and its plundering corsairs, a seafaring heritage that is still proudly on display today. It’s great fun getting lost in the streets of the walled old town, and the famous medieval abbey of Mont Saint-Michel is an easy day-trip.

Situated on the southern bank of the Seine estuary, Honfleur was once one of France’s most important ports. It was also a favourite location of Monet and the Impressionists, and art lovers may well recognise the elegant Renaissance architecture of the old harbour, the Vieux Bassin.

Only the smaller ships can make it up the river to the Pool of London, tying up next to HMS Belfast, with glorious views to the north of the Tower of London, and to the south of the modern City Hall. As you sail from here, the bridge opens, stopping the traffic for your departure.

The island of Guernsey draws visitors south from the British mainland with its more favourable climate and beautiful coastline. The capital, St Peter Port, is a lovely little town of cobbled streets and elegant architecture, and there are also several interesting museums dedicated to the island’s occupation by the Nazis during the Second World War.

Pembroke Castle, built by the Normans in the 11th century, was the birthplace of Henry VII, the first Tudor king. Take a look around the impressive ruins or head out of town and explore the beautiful Pembrokeshire coast, with its long sandy beaches, pretty seaside towns and abundant birdlife.

The tiny island of Iona, situated off the southwestern tip of Mull, is said to be the cradle of Christianity in Scotland, and is a popular place of pilgrimage. Thousands of visitors flock here every year to visit the Abbey, and the island gets particularly busy in summer.

Fort William, on the shores of Loch Linnhe, is the gateway to mighty Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in the British Isles. The town itself is nothing special, but the Highland scenery in the area around nearby Glencoe is truly stunning.

The St Kilda archipelago is a remote and rugged collection of sea stacks and rocky islands, some 40 miles to the west of Benbecula in the Outer Hebrides. The islands constitute the largest nesting site for seabirds in the North Atlantic and are home to over a million birds, including puffins, gannets, fulmars and petrels.

The Westman Islands lie just off the south west coast of the Icelandic mainland, and most visitors head for the largest island, Heimaey. The jagged landscape is a reminder of Heimaey's volcanic origins; the most recent eruption, back in 1973, created the volcano now known as Eldfell, which looms over the island.

Surtsey is one of the world’s newest islands, formed by a volcanic eruption at sea which was first spotted by a fishing trawler in November 1963. Today the island covers just under two square miles, and provides a unique laboratory for scientists to study the colonisation of new land by plant and animal life.