11 small front yard landscaping ideas that are low maintenance

Table Of Content

• Minimize Maintenance
• It’s Possible to Replace Your Turfgrass Lawn With Chamomile—But Should You?
• What are Small Front Garden Landscaping Ideas?
• The 12 Best Trees for Front-Yard Landscaping
• Front Yard Landscaping Ideas
• How do you make a small front garden look good?

There are also many techniques you can use to keep your front landscaping as low maintenance as possible. Xeriscaping is a landscape design strategy for areas with limited water. Choosing native plants that are adapted to your climate will almost always require less care than temperamental imported tropicals. If your small front yard puts your house up close to the street - again use your home for design!

Minimize Maintenance

Vibrant flowering plants mingle with evergreens perfectly. Furthermore, they give the front yard a splash of color in the summer and spring. Bright orange flowering plants effortlessly inject a pop of color. In addition, they direct the eye to the wooden front door.

It’s Possible to Replace Your Turfgrass Lawn With Chamomile—But Should You?

Artists and dreamers who want dramatic rock garden ideas might try polished black pebbles or moonlike lava stones to add interest to an otherwise ordinary area. In an effort to increase curb appeal, in went a pair of six-foot-tall concrete walls that now enclose the front yard shelter and outdoor dining area. The dining alcove was placed here because this spot is west-facing, and warm and sunny is a good thing in the home's chilly, coastal climate. The staggered walls provide room for generous planting pockets for green and burgundy foliage plants.

What are Small Front Garden Landscaping Ideas?

Redbud trees and flowering fruit trees like crabapples or Kausa dogwoods are all popular choices that require little maintenance. Fill your front garden with perennial flowers for a sustainable burst of color every year. They come back season after season and, once established, require less maintenance than annuals. Phlox, black-eyed Susans, and lavender are hardy varieties that add vibrant pops of color without the need for replanting each year. Layering creates a multidimensional small front yard landscape design that adds depth and creates a dynamic look. Plant different species of plants with varying heights to introduce vertical progression, drawing the eye upwards.

Small Lawn Online - Atlanta Progressive News

Small Lawn Online.

Posted: Fri, 19 Apr 2024 05:28:02 GMT [source]

Whether you're at the beach or at the lake, in the mountains or in town, hardscaping can help foster a sense of place and give interest to living landscape elements. In small yards, it's arguably better to minimize barriers—especially tall ones—since they can make a space feel tiny and chopped up. "We want to do the opposite, designing spaces to feel as large, open, and free flowing as we can," Lenhart says. "You can subdivide a small yard into different zones—just keep the boundaries of those zones free from impediments, so that you can freely circulate between them." The smallest yard in the world has room for a garden when the plants are miniaturized.

You don't need tons of plants to create interest in a small front yard. These small front yard landscaping ideas are low-maintenance but will still deliver gorgeous curb appeal. As night falls, the entire vibe of an outdoor living area shifts. Here, hefty rocks blend into the background during the day and then transform into an eerily beautiful moonscape in the light of these softly glowing LED indoor/outdoor orb lights.

Provided you choose a species that doesn't require a huge plot of land to grow in, you can create a beautiful landscaped look with just the canopy of your tree. Consider an acacia or magnolia – both perfect trees for smaller outdoor spaces. These small front landscaping ideas that are low maintenance deliver on curb appeal without requiring you to constantly weed, prune, or even water your front yard.

How do you make a small front garden look good?

When choosing the best plants for hanging baskets, think about what will add the most color and texture. A restrained palette of one to three shades is more elegant than a riot of color, while the best trailing plants for hanging baskets will add a soft, romantic edge to the display. Use these alongside the most creative small garden ideas, and you can use them to enhance your back yard, too. Some of the best garden ideas are born out of constraint, so use your imagination –  your small front garden may be a much more rewarding space than you think. Don't worry about raking the gravel, either – that's only required for Zen-style gardens that use very fine gravel and is entirely optional. You can use ordinary, gray gravel to create the same effect; no raking required.

Landscaping ideas with rocks

"Stacking functions through plant choices creates resilience and a more layered landscape because the plants do more for you and the planet." When considering your small front yard landscape design, minimize maintenance as much as possible. "In almost any scenario, a well-kept yard is going to outshine any poorly maintained yard," Lenhart says. As you saw earlier, a small lawn can be helpful to a small-space garden because it opens up the area and makes it feel less claustrophobic.

Your mulch beds don't have to be perfectly straight or symmetrical, and this walkway project can help you revamp your front yard in just a weekend. Make a small front yard seem bigger than it is by working with layers of varying depths and heights. Planting fuller shrubs at the top of your yard next to any trees you may have will add a sense of lushness, and it allows you to go smaller and simpler right next to your home. We also love how the terra cotta pots by the door echo the home's roof.

Here, the sloped front yard boasts a concrete retaining wall with a mulch-filled flower bed. Furthermore, they do not only ensure that flower beds look tidy but also keep the homeowner from disturbing plants’ roots. This is one of the creative small front yard landscaping ideas for certain. Trees and boxwood shrubs accompany flowering plants beautifully. Moreover, the concrete walkway and steps create a more modern look.

Over-designing is one of the biggest mistakes people make when building out their small front yard. Without a proper edit, you'll quickly find yourself dealing with a messy, overwhelming, non-cohesive space. "Emphasis can't be everywhere at once," says Kevin Lenhart, the design director for Yardzen. Maybe indulging in your morning cup of coffee outside is your goal—or perhaps you'd like your yard to serve as a haven for native birds and bees. Or maybe you'd like to provide privacy between you and the road or utilize the space to grow produce. Whatever the case, remain thoughtful in your design and let these small front yard landscaping ideas inspire you.

Make the most out of this part of your house and create an additional outdoor seating area. Sloped yards offer a unique canvas to create stunning landscaping features that also help with erosion control and water runoff. When you have a small or non-existent yard, you have to think creatively. Add a wooden trellis and drape it with climbing flowers like roses or flowering bushes like wisteria. This will add some visual appeal to your home and give you some privacy.

And it doesn't take loads of money or a background in landscaping to make an impact. Filing your front yard with overflowing hydrangea bushes will make your home look like a fairytale cottage or seaside bed and breakfast. Plus, these plants can withstand cold winters and will come back to delight you year after year. For coastal homes, make every day a beach day and opt for sand over rocks or mulch. The tan looks beautiful with bright succulents, and the sand will provide great drainage for everything you plant.

Get easy-to-understand, actionable yard tips that will give you the greenest grass on the block. Traditional white picket fences are some of the best fencing materials for small spaces. Or warm things up with the sleekness of a modern-styled, wood-colored option. “On small lots, it has become increasingly popular to screen the front yard with   fencing, shrubs, or vertical plantings,” according to horticulturists at the University of Kentucky.

12 Small Front Yard Landscaping Ideas

Table Of Content

• Robotic Lawn Mowers
• Plant Colorful Semi-Shade Beds
• Birdbath Garden
• Mix Grass + Gravel
• Fill your yard with flowers

However, a full paved front yard can look unimaginative and featureless. Therefore, it's vital to add characterful features to your front yard landscaping ideas. 'Using groups of a few different types of plants help to keep the landscape from getting too busy. Don't forget to use evergreens, grasses, trees, and shrubs with structure for winter interest,' recommends Dawn James.

Robotic Lawn Mowers

Then, pink turtlehead, dwarf sweet flag, and lobelia camouflage the area around the opening to help it blend into the landscape. Make a bold statement—even if you've got a shady front yard—with this hosta-filled garden plan. It features five different hosta cultivars planted around an antique millstone recruited into service as a fountain. Variegated vinca edges the bed, perfectly complementing the hostas and resulting in a design that is simple, lush, and tidy.

Plant Colorful Semi-Shade Beds

On the south side, where tender plants and fruit can best survive the cold? Simple landscaping ideas like a wall, fence, or sometimes only a small screen can give you the privacy you need. To add beauty and additional shade to a front yard, carefully situate accent trees between the street and the house.

Birdbath Garden

When choosing a living privacy barrier such as a hedge, or an inorganic barrier such as a fence or wall, consider what the function will be. Waist-high hedging or fencing along the front sidewalk will prevent people from wandering into your front yard, yet at the same time allow light and views onto the street. A functional area for lounging and playing, or simply a more visually pleasing space? How you choose to landscape your front yard says what you want to convey to others about your home and yard.

However, tucked in the gravel panels are small succulents, giving this yard an unexpected and oh-so-charming edge. 'To maximize usefulness and impact, the size of your entry walk matters. If you go too small, it’s more of a path while too wide means it may compete with your driveway,' says Cassi Hallam, expert at System Pavers.

Feature Large Plantings for Impact

It can help with drainage, making it an ideal addition for the budget-conscious or environmentally-minded homeowner. A steep, shady incline didn’t stop this howeowner from creating an easy-care, all-season landscape. Depending on the size of your front porch, add comfortable furniture, hanging baskets, and other decorative accessories.

Mix Grass + Gravel

A low-maintenance xeriscape or native garden is easier to manage than a vegetable plot or traditional lawn. To reduce maintenance, mulch beds to suppress weeds and retain moisture. You'll also need to determine if your preference is for, and your site demands, a formal or informal landscape. Formal garden settings include strong geometric lines and architectural features, clipped hedges, and uniformly shaped plants and beds. Generally, informal home styles and sloping land require less rigid landscapes. In the past, plants were set where the house meets the ground to hide foundations and first-floor basements.

Fill your yard with flowers

Study links friendly front yards to happier, more connected neighborhoods : Shots - Health News - NPR

Study links friendly front yards to happier, more connected neighborhoods : Shots - Health News.

Posted: Sat, 20 Apr 2024 11:00:44 GMT [source]

These front yard landscaping ideas are the perfect starting place for inspiring your front yard redesign. The garden was always a big part of Holly's life growing up, as was the surrounding New Forest where she lived. Her appreciation for the great outdoors has only grown since then; over the years, she's been an allotment keeper, a professional gardener, and a botanical illustrator.

'Always take the architecture of your home into consideration when creating the design and make sure your plant material works in harmony . When you follow these simple guidelines the front of your home will always be a welcoming place,' says Dawn James. By adding one to a front yard, homeowners can enjoy the relaxing sound of water falling, instead of the hustle and bustle of traffic, he adds. Speaking of size, it's also better to go for larger planters if you're planning a contemporary container garden. This space uses large Corten steel raised beds, which define the edges of a sleek, sloped pathway. The traditional style home pulls from a variety of historical architectural periods.

Uplights make a great addition to trees or flags, while spotlights work well for highlighting sculptures. You also can install string lights on your front porch for a touch of whimsy. Instead of focusing your attention outwards, maximize your small front yard’s vertical space. Trellises, arbors, and wall-mounted containers create vibrant focal points without taking up valuable space in your lawn, which can make your outdoor area seem busy and crowded. Create a focal point in your small front yard to draw the eye into a centerpiece.

You can also approach your house slowly from each way in your car. For an unexpected take on typical front yard landscaping ideas, get a little strategic about your grassy areas. Sphere Hanging Basket | $38 from TerrainMake the most of the overhead space in your front yard with these handmade, hanging planters. You could even grow some vegetables in your front yard using this approach. For a sense of cohesion, choose plants that offset the colors of your chosen containers – such as these shrubs and perennials in a palette of fiery hues. The result is a low-maintenance front yard that's functional, calm, and elegant, too.

"Think about how you want to use the space or solve problems with the design," Hall says. "Make a list of how you envision using your space and then draw connections by considering how one constructed element solves for multiple needs." The concrete paver walkway is set in a layout that pleasingly mirrors the shape of the stake lights alongside. Ground-cover plants add a naturalistic touch, as do the large boulders. If you have the space, a front yard tree or two can also be incorporated for color and structure. Install a small water feature, such as a fish pond or a glazed pot with a circulating pump, and let the overflow splash into a bed of attractive rocks.

'The main design concept in a modern-minimalist landscape is to use restraint and work hard to minimize your planting palette,' says Amy Hovis of Eden Garden Design. We love the stripped-back look of this design – but a metal water bowl is another modern option. ”Your house is a large object that will block the sun for part of every day,” notes Winslow. If your house faces north, the front yard is never going to get great light. If it faces east or west, it may get searing sun for part of the day and then no sun for the remainder.

Evaluate your yard and keep these things in mind before laying down any concrete, pea gravel, or sand. Vegetable gardens are charming to look at, calming to work on, and generally good for the environment. Front yard vegetable gardens are also surprisingly social, driving the same community-building phenomenon that you might find with front yard gathering spaces. "We've heard from many clients that people frequently say hello or stop by to chat when they're out front working on their garden," Lenhart says. In small yards, it's arguably better to minimize barriers—especially tall ones—since they can make a space feel tiny and chopped up.

Symmetrical houses often look best when each feature and plant is duplicated on the opposite side of a front walk (as long as the walk isn't too long or too narrow). However, most houses are asymmetrical since they have only one garage or drive. Perhaps a tall tree belongs on the side opposite the driveway. If trees or shrubs obstruct the view, remove them for safety's sake. Where curves or slopes are involved, the placement of the driveway on one side of the yard or another can increase visibility. The old rule that the front yard is for the public and the backyard is for fun and family is sometimes better broken.

Long-blooming, easy-care perennials provide colorful blooms from spring through fall. Evergreen shrubs provide structure even in winter, and a concrete urn planter filled with annuals of your choice is a focal point in the center of the bed. It's possible to create a beautiful garden in a challenging spot along a sun-drenched curb; you just need to use tough plants that can tolerate heat and drought well. This easy street-side garden plan relies on a mix of native perennials that do just that, plus they'll create an oasis of colorful blooms and foliage that will look good all summer long.

18 Halloween decoration ideas: for a spooky seasonal display

Table Of Content

• Halloween Home Decor Friendly Neighborhood Witch's House Vertical House Flag
• Spiderweb pendant with string lights
• BZB Goods Halloween Inflatable Haunted House Castle
• Cheesecloth Spirits Halloween House Decorations
• Or, opt for colorful, painted pumpkins for a fresh look
• Flame Pumpkins
• Jack-O-Lantern Wine Stopper – Halloween Party Decorations

If you’re looking for a spooky decoration to scare your guests this Halloween, the Halloween Ghost Hanging Decorations is the perfect choice. These Lansian Halloween picture frames are designed to create a spooky and immersive atmosphere in your home. The lenticular pictures change from different angles, making them an interactive decoration that will keep your guests entertained. If you’re looking for a spooky and immersive Halloween decoration, Lansian’s 3D Changing Face Moving Picture Frames are a great option. Overall, if you’re looking for an affordable and spooky addition to your Halloween decor, the Fun Express LifeSize Skeleton is a solid choice. If you want to add some spooky vibes to your Halloween decoration, the Fun Express LifeSize Skeleton is a great choice.

Halloween Home Decor Friendly Neighborhood Witch's House Vertical House Flag

They’re easy to set up, flexible, and look great both day and night. This animated Halloween decoration is a great addition to your Halloween party. The motion sensor and light sensor make it easy to use, and it’s a great way to scare your friends and family. The JOYIN Halloween Cocoon Corpse Decoration is the perfect addition to your Halloween decorations.

Seattle 'Stranger Things' house shows off next-level Halloween décor - The Seattle Times

Seattle 'Stranger Things' house shows off next-level Halloween décor.

Posted: Mon, 30 Oct 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]

Spiderweb pendant with string lights

You can also use coloring markers to create custom faces on your ghosts, depending on what you think looks best. Make sure to let all of your paint dry before moving on to the next step, so it doesn’t smear. The following steps show how to make a ghost that hovers in the air and looks like it’s not connected to anything. Start by drawing a circle on white fabric using chalk, then cut it out with scissors.

BZB Goods Halloween Inflatable Haunted House Castle

This table centerpiece is so easy to craft, you’ll think it’s absolutely ridiculous how you’ve never thought of pairing up these materials before in order to get this piece of decoration. The best part about it is that you can remove the feathers afterward and keep the chandelier around the house, or repurpose it for some other occasions if you feel creative. However, it’s worth mentioning that, as opposed to some other projects we’ve included and described in our guide, you won’t be able to make this one out of things that are simply laying around in your house. Not unless you just happen to have a jack-o-lantern mold and some plaster at your disposal, that is. If you’re a fan of nifty decorations, then you probably gave tiny terrariums a thought or two before. Basically, this decoration is a simple tiny terrarium, but with added Halloween-themed components such as spiders, fake webs, and skeletons.

Spooky Terrarium – DIY Halloween Decorations

"Embrace the darkness, let your imagination run wild, and indulge in the macabre delights," the site says. There will be a themed haunted walkthrough, monster dancing, and over 160 suitably scary vendors. Avenue O, ChicagoOutside of our Kidlist area, but we couldn’t leave it off the list.

Cheesecloth Spirits Halloween House Decorations

If you feel like there’s not enough pumpkin in your life, you could even turn it into a jack-o-lantern design by painting over it. As you can see, in our example the pumpkins were cleverly turned into place cards by simply using small pieces of cardstock and toothpicks, but the way you’re gonna include them in your decor is entirely up to you. Oh, and don’t forget that the pumpkins in our examples are actual mini pumpkins, as they’re easier to handle, look extremely cute, and don’t take as much paint to be covered. Plus, the paint dries quickly on smaller surfaces, so that’s also a perk, as you’ll have to coat them in several layers. Well, if the splatter pumpkin wasn’t the easiest decor from our guide that you could craft in a matter of minutes, then this one totally is. Trust us that when we say “simple,” we actually mean it, so you can expect that these simple mini pumpkin decorations should be a walk in the park to craft and hang around in your house.

Check the website for the most current information regarding this year’s festivities. The Haunt With No Name has been providing families with 30 years of spookiness! Generally, The Haunt starts at the end of October — the last few days leading up to Halloween — and features a kid-friendly yard haunt that has many decorations and special effects. Be sure to check the website for the most current information regarding this year’s festivities. Elevate your Halloween party supplies and outdoor decorations with the enchanting allure of this Witches Cauldron on Tripod.

Flame Pumpkins

Make a point this year to get out there and see as many of them as you can. These Headless Horseman Garden Stakes are a great decoration to step up your light displays. Dressed in an upright purple hat, adorned with smooth white hair, purple and black striped stockings, and intricately detailed pointed-toe shoes, this witch boasts an unmistakably lively appearance. Crafted to seamlessly blend with your Halloween decor, these covers feature charming patterns of spider webs, skulls, ghosts, candies, and cats.

These ghostly figures will send shivers down the spines of all who dare to approach, adding an electrifying ambiance to your haunted house. Some people prefer more traditional decorations, such as jack-o-lanterns and spider webs, while others prefer more modern options, such as projection lighting and animatronic figures. When choosing the best Halloween house decorations, it’s essential to consider factors such as quality, durability, and price. When it comes to Halloween house decorations, there are countless options to choose from, including inflatable figures, spooky lighting, and creepy sound effects.

The Art of Doing Stuff teaches us how to create a spiderweb wall as an indoor Halloween decoration. Given their vibrant design, these pillows will definitely bring a splash of color into your house, and if you’re really into them, you could just flip them over and keep them long after the season’s gone. This chandelier will definitely be a nice piece of decoration that will tie the room together nicely, especially if you go with the minimalist, goth aesthetic that this item brings to the table. Well, after you’ve managed to acquire both the pumpkins and the sharpie markers, you can start using the marker to create various patterns on the pumpkins. In our example, we’ve created dotted patterns, which seem to go great, but you could also try other patterns if you’re feeling inspired.

Use bright red candlesticks in matte black candle holders, and then add drips of red hot glue to resemble dripping blood. Start by carving out our headstone template onto a tall, dark pumpkin. After adding lights, you can place your new headstone in the yard, porch or lawn. In this case, we painted the pumpkins white, then used white puff paint to draw on the leaf designs. Orange and black may be the go-to colors of the season, but they're not your only option for a scary atmosphere.

GOLD BASE FOR CUSTOMIZATIONWith a base of GOLD ornaments in textures of shiny, matte and glitter this is beautiful as it is. SILVER BASE FOR CUSTOMIZATIONWith a base of SILVER ornaments in textures of shiny, matte and glitter this is beautiful as it is. Magical Holiday Designs is proud to offer the leading professional holiday decorators in Southern California. We decorate for Halloween and Christmas, so whether you need a spooky vibe at home or a magical Christmas light show, we’ve got you covered.

Efunly Halloween Spider Web Lights are a great addition to your Halloween decorations, adding spooky vibes to your party or haunted house. If you’re looking for a set of spooky decorations to add to your Halloween party or haunted house, this set is definitely worth considering. This inflatable haunted house castle is easy to set up and provides a fun and spooky addition to your Halloween decorations. If you liked the paper mache pumpkin in our guide but want more variety for your Halloween decorations this year, how about we offer you yet another project that involves both pumpkins and paper you could easily craft? Alright, so before getting started it’s important to mention that having an empty toilet paper roll won’t cut it for these cute little pumpkins, so you’ll have to source some other materials, as well.

As you can see above, we provide our holiday decorating services to a wide variety of businesses—but that’s not all. We’re also proud to decorate luxurious homes throughout Los Angeles and its surrounding counties. Chicago Haunt Builders has an extensive list of Halloween decorated houses throughout Chicagoland. 101st Street, Oak LawnThis family has been haunting for over eight years.

These 9 Design Museums Are the Best in the World

Table Of Content

• List of design museums
• Dolled up: Design Museum to host Barbie exhibition next year
• These 9 Design Museums Are the Best in the World
• The Design Museum Collection

John Owusu Addo, an architect involved in the early development of the Tropical Modernism movement, speaks fondly of his experiences at the AA’s Department for Tropical Architecture and the challenges of applying that knowledge in reality. Staged in the V&A’s Porter Gallery, Tropical Modernism is a densely packed exhibition, trotting through 20th-century architectural histories in Ghana and India. Divided into rooms based on both geography and chronology, the exhibition invites viewers to explore the development of architecture in these postcolonial contexts. These museums are not just worth a visit—they’re an essential part of any London experience. Thom said preparation work for the show had taken place long before the film was released. She concentrated on the idea of Barbie only being a blond, blue-eyed white-skinned woman.

List of design museums

Thanks to its varied collection, this is one of the most visited design museums in the world. Located a few steps from Central Park, the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum is one of the most important museums in the United States dedicated to the history of design. Plus, it’s the only museum in the country dedicated exclusively to modern and historical design. Founded by the Hewitt sisters, a pair of American art advocates, as the Cooper Union Museum for the Decorative Arts, it currently has an impressive permanent collection of over 200,000 objects spanning more than 30 centuries of history. Although museums have been around for centuries, there weren’t many focused entirely on design. For design lovers, starting at the end of the 21st century, institutions have begun to specifically focus on design.

Dolled up: Design Museum to host Barbie exhibition next year

One of the blocks acts, at its base, as a gatehouse to the museum, which is then reached through a zone of landscaping continuous with that serving the flats, but discreetly separated from them. It creates a terrain that is vague as to whether it is an introduction to a luxury residential complex, in which the sale price of handful of flats would fund the entire museum, or to a public institution. Whether we stop to think about it or not, we’re always surrounded by design.

A Tim Burton exhibition is coming to the Design Museum in 2024 - Time Out London

A Tim Burton exhibition is coming to the Design Museum in 2024.

Posted: Tue, 14 Nov 2023 08:00:00 GMT [source]

These 9 Design Museums Are the Best in the World

Each designer was nominated by an established Hackney-based designer, including Lee Broom, Pearson Lloyd, Camille Walala, Nelly Ben Hayoun and Roksanda Ilincic. The exhibition presents eight animated models that move around an empty building site in King's Cross. The six-day event displays tiger-themed rugs to raise awareness around the endangered species. Auction house Sotheby's presents the Tomorrow's Tigers exhibition in partnership with the wildlife charity WWF. The Design Museum Collection is an important record of the key designs which have shaped the modern world.

The Story of the Design Museum

It is the culmination of more than 60 years’ campaigning for good modern design by Terence Conran, the retailer-restaurateur-designer who founded and helps fund the Design Museum. The Design Museum offers opportunities to explore the present and future of design through a programme of temporary exhibitions and displays. Located in London, the world's leading museum devoted to contemporary design in every form. Archival photography also highlights model makers Rattan Singh and Dhani Ram on display, who worked to translate Pierre Jeanneret and Le Corbusier’s drawings for The Capitol Complex. Nehru’s wish to be free from the strictures of the colonial past was granted, but some later questioned whether there was enough of a tie to the national character in the new contemporary style. Large-scale drawings by Aditya Prakash explore what the planning framework could have been like if it had taken into account the reality of Indian culture, for example with space to trade goods and tend animals close to the home.

The Design Museum Collection

Original stained glass panels were removed, refurbished and reinstated to be enjoyed by future visitors to the Museum. Inaugurated by Rolf Fehlbaum, chairman emeritus at Vitra and member of the board, the Vitra Design Museum opened its doors in 1989, originally intended as a home for Fehlbaum’s private collection. Over time this space expanded to house retrospectives of important architects and designers such as Frank Lloyd Wright and Charles and Ray Eames. The spectacular museum building was designed by Frank Gehry, and it is located in the German town of Weil am Rhein, near Basel. A prevalent spirit is what might be called a fear of content – not of exhibits themselves but of the power of objects, spaces and architecture to provoke, unsettle and be unruly, to carry a political or emotional charge. It’s an issue of which the museum itself is aware, to judge by an opening exhibition called Fear and Love by the chief curator Justin McGuirk, on the feelings aroused by new technologies.

More London Museums Worth a Visit

The Bauhaus School was one of the most influential design schools of the 20th century, and this special archive—founded in 1960—displays art pieces and documents that relate to the institution and its members. The Red Dot Design Museum Singapore is one of three museums within the Red Dot design organization, which is responsible for the Red Dot Design award. This museum also happens to be the largest design museum in Asia, making a splash in a region where this scene is just beginning to blossom. The Red Dot Design Museum Singapore focuses on product and communications design, and each of the more than thousand pieces in its collection has received the coveted Red Dot Design Award. The 10 rugs are designed by world-renowned artists and designers, including Anish Kapoor, Francesco Clemente, Rose Wylie, Kiki Smith, Peter Doig and Ai Weiwei, in addition to rug designer, Christopher Farr. On show are a range of unconventional and playful objects, including fashion, furniture, artwork, photography and interior design pieces.

It explores such things as the industrial uses of the body parts of a cow, and includes a diverting display by OMA about the European Union. Against a backdrop of war-bombed Rotterdam, as a reminder why the union came into existence, are shown a piece of design from every EU country. Britain is represented by some floral wallpaper from the former Chancellor’s family business, Osborne and Little. The Design Museum is devoted to contemporary design in every form, from architecture and fashion to graphics, product and industrial design. Established as the Museum of Manufactures in 1852, the Victoria & Albert Museum (V&A) was renamed after Queen Victoria laid the foundation stone of the current building in 1899. This museum features over 5,000 years of art and design objects from around the world, like ancient Egyptian textiles, Eames furniture, and even Alexander McQueen dresses.

Design Museum UK Skateboard Exhibition Info - HYPEBEAST

Design Museum UK Skateboard Exhibition Info.

Posted: Thu, 27 Jul 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]

Sir John Soane’s Museum

Today corporate museums like the Vitra Design Museum, Museo Alessi or Museo Kartell play an important role. In his previous role as artistic director of the Royal Academy of Arts, he helped the historic London gallery evolve to bring in younger audiences through a more expansive curational project. He also led the extension by another leading architect David Chipperfield which, when completed in 2018, helped expand the RA’s reach. News from Dezeen Events Guide, a listings guide covering the leading design-related events taking place around the world. Weekly updates on the latest design and architecture vacancies advertised on Dezeen Jobs.

Enjoy delicious, ethically sourced drinks and snacks in our new space designed by Matthew Williamson with stunning views to Holland Park. Josh Fenton is an architectural writer and communications consultant based in London. The exhibition begins with an introduction to Maxwell Fry and Jane Drew and their arrival in the tropics in the 1940s. The room feels dimly lit in contrast to the entrance vestibule, and focused light beams down on glass vitrines featuring reading material, wall mounted maps, and archival photography narrate their initial years in the region.

The world's leading museum devoted to contemporary design in every form from architecture and fashion to graphics, product and industrial design. Design — how we engage with it as a concept and understand it as a discipline — has transformed dramatically since 1989. That was the year when the late Sir Terence Conran and Stephen Bayley opened the original Design Museum in its more modest Shad Thames site in a former 1940s banana warehouse on the other side of London. A space dedicated to contemporary design, showcasing what many would have viewed as everyday objects, was a radical concept. Then, museums and galleries were reserved for the high arts, the visual arts, not the applied arts and certainly not objects with little historical value.

A special concept has been realised in the Pinakothek der Moderne in Munich, in which four independent museums cooperate, one of them being Die Neue Sammlung – the largest design museum in the world. On the day of my visit, the museum is surprisingly lively for a drizzly Monday afternoon, with visitors of all ages, including lots of uniformed kids on a school outing. I’m pleasantly surprised, as on previous expeditions, the Pawson building had been a quiet, underwhelming space, dare I say a little clinical for my taste which is more attuned to wondrous spaces like the V&A. Opened in 2016, the Design Museum was reimagined and redesigned by the architect John Pawson. It is tucked away on the side of Holland Park but without direct access or views into one of London’s loveliest green spaces. Still, the building is impressive, vast, inviting, and a stone’s throw away from some of our other significant collections of past and contemporary treasures at the V&A.

Daily updates on the latest design and architecture vacancies advertised on Dezeen Jobs. Sent every Thursday and featuring a selection of the best reader comments and most talked-about stories. Dezeen Events Guide is our guide to the best architecture and design events taking place across the world each year. The models convey how resources, building methods and environment impact architecture and what consumers are prioritising post-Covid, such as convenience, sustainability and affordability. The Museum of Architecture has briefed the participating architects to set the cities within the polar, continental, temperate, dry and tropical climate zones to showcase how design changes around the world.

This is important, valuable, thrilling stuff, when you consider what the Model T Ford or the iPhone have done for and to the world. Located just a couple of minutes from Notting Hill’s popular Portobello Road, the Museum of Brands is an unexpected find sitting along a pretty London street. Inside is a treasure trove of objects that trace over 200 years of the history of brands, packaging and advertising collected by consumer historian Robert Opie. We all have memories connected to the things we use every day – often without even realizing it. Yet, without the thought of historians and collectors like Opie saving these items, they are often lost to time.

But in the hands of female creator Ruth Handler, one of the founders of Mattel, she became the unlikely inspiration for Barbie, a doll designed to look like a grown woman instead of the baby dolls popular at the time. Marlow wants to be expansive, offering exhibitions that address as many facets of our contemporary life as possible. Soon artist Ai Weiwei will take over the museum with his first show focusing on design, inviting us to meditate on value and humanity, art and activism. Meanwhile, an exhibition this summer celebrates the contemporary Indian sari.

Exhibitions

Table Of Content

• The story
• Fala Atelier transforms Porto warehouse into "house of many faces"
• Shepley Bulfinch celebrates 150 years of practice with a new exhibition at the Boston Architectural College
• Subscribe to our newsletter
• Discover our free digital guide
• Museum of London and Bastion House demolition plans approved

Personalize your stream and start following your favorite authors, offices and users. Our museum staff have the right to work in a safe environment that is free from intimidation, racism or any other form of discrimination. If you wish to smoke or vape, please kindly move into the park or onto the High Street to do so. Since 2015, the Design Museum has published innovative books and exhibition catalogues encompassing all elements of design. This acknowledges the museum’s ability to lead and support groundbreaking research.

The story

The Design Museum Collection is an important record of the designs which have shaped the modern world. Founded in 1989 by Sir Terence Conran, the museum is the place in the UK where the design industry, education and the public come together to change the way people think about themselves and the future. Support the museum by hiring our spaces for your business events, breakfasts, dinners, drinks or wedding reception. Discover the shortlisted and winning projects from our national schools' design competition created in partnership with Deutsche Bank’s youth programme Born to Be. The approach to the hidden figures behind the movement and activity at the Architectural Association’s Department for Tropical Architecture, which was initially supervised by Fry, Drew and James Cubitt, is quite limited.

Dropping into the UK's first major skateboard exhibition - Euronews

Dropping into the UK's first major skateboard exhibition.

Posted: Fri, 20 Oct 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]

Fala Atelier transforms Porto warehouse into "house of many faces"

This museum is located in the Parco Sempione in Milan, and it is one of the most beautiful establishments in the area. Founded as an independent institution in 1989 by designer and restaurateur Terence Conran, the Design Museum in London has positioned itself as the world’s leading museum of 20th- and 21st- century design, architecture, and fashion. The museum was first housed in a converted 1940s banana warehouse, but in 2016 it moved into the vacant Commonwealth Institute building where it currently resides. The studio has created the models to represent a building it has designed and encourages visitors to engage with them as they would other small moving models, such as cuckoo clocks, doll's houses and model railways.

Shepley Bulfinch celebrates 150 years of practice with a new exhibition at the Boston Architectural College

With world-class museums and unexpected design treasures, London is the perfect spot to discover how design influences our daily lives. From the V&A—the world’s largest museum of decorative arts and design—to the award-winning Design Museum and architects’ homes to a museum that delves into the meaning home, London is a dream for design lovers. If you’re not already a design enthusiast, a tour through these London museums might just change the way you look at design – and the world around you.

The exhibition was curated by writer and critic Antwaun Sargent and addresses how stylists, models, makeup artists and creative directors all helped produce the final images. The Design Museum’s character owes much to the roundabout deal-making that goes into achieving a project like this in contemporary Britain. Thus the public spirit inherent in the original institute was transmuted into its listing, which was transmuted into the museum, but in such a way that it feels like an adjunct of a property deal. Like an old widow married for her fortune, the 1960s structure seems more valued for its usefulness in the negotiation than loved for its beauty. For, where the old structure is mostly curves and odd angles, the new is insistently rectangular, an interesting exercise in contrast, perhaps, except that there is little of the rapport that would make their differences speak.

Sir John Soane’s Museum

We've selected seven current and upcoming London design and architecture exhibitions listed on Dezeen Events Guide, including Tomorrow's Tigers, Parables for Happiness and The Gingerbread City. The setting of the Design Museum has been designed with landscape architects West 8. Original features of the Commonwealth Institute have been painstakingly researched and reinterpreted back into the contemporary design with significant trees retained along the edge of Holland Park and Kensington High Street. Design Museum Members enjoy free unlimited entry to all the exhibitions, with access to tours, events and discounts.

More insight into the figures who have long been seen as peripheral would have added greater depth to the exploration of Tropical Modernism in the museum context. It is the first time a major UK museum has held a show dedicated to the doll. The Design Museum drew on Mattel’s archives in California for a number of important loans and used the company’s brand archivists. Hair has the potential to be emotional and political in how different hair textures have been represented and treated. These days the different variations on offer are for all hair textures and colours.

Discover our free digital guide

Marlow landed the Design Museum role only months before the closure of public spaces due to the pandemic. “I realized how much design holds the key to how we deal with catastrophes and opportunities. Design is responsible for so much of the environmental damage, but it can also be the way out of it.

Museum of London and Bastion House demolition plans approved

The Barbican Centre, which was built in the 1970s, is Grade II listed but the local authority secured an exemption for the former Museum of London and Bastion House in 2019, allowing them to be demolished. A new Museum of London development to replace the former building, which closed in December 2022, is currently under construction in Smithfield. A CLC spokesperson said the new buildings would help meet growing demand for office space in the City. Here are some tours and tickets near The Design Museum, including discount cards & passes, skip the line tickets and tickets to events & activities in London. She also hoped design fans were surprised because a toy had this complex network of intentionality behind it.

Additionally, attractions like Madame Tussauds and the Harry Potter Studios (Warner Bros. Studio Tour London) provide unique entertainment, though they differ from traditional museums. These choices cater to a variety of interests, from science and history to popular culture and movie magic. The Barbie universe’s evolution will also be on show including the playsets, vehicles, houses and other accessories that have been used to design the world in which the doll exists. There will also be a section dedicated to Ken, charting the doll’s development from his introduction in 1961. It'll have a big story to tell, exploring how Barbie was inspired by a German doll called Lilli that, with her overtly sexy proportions, was designed as a joke gift available to buy at tobacco stores and bars.

And although many museums are dedicated to the industry, there are some that stand above the rest. As such, we’ve put together this list of 10 fantastic design museums to add to your must-visit list. Many of the museums on this list offer free admission, which can mean they get quite busy at times, especially on weekdays when school groups often visit. Several museums extend their opening hours on Fridays, which can be a less crowded time to explore. However, crowd levels can vary, so it’s a good idea to check the specific museum’s schedule and any special events they might be hosting to plan your visit accordingly. Opened in 1923, La Triennale is an international institution that organizes exhibitions and conferences on art, design, architecture, fashion, and cinema.

They pay attention to different details like painting baby hairs on the hairlines of afro dolls which is a recent innovation but shows they are thinking of accuracy. Although this Barbie exhibition is arriving on the scene with immaculate timing, it's actually been three years in the planning, and was scheduled long before the movie came out. It will open on July 5, 2024, and run throughout the summer, ready to delight tourists and visitors to London alike. I have authored several lifestyle books, including the critically acclaimed and commercially successful The Life Negroni, and I work as a content strategist and luxury brand consultant at Spinach.

What a Room on Royal Caribbean's Wonder of the Seas Cruise Looks Like

Table Of Content

• SOUTH PACIFIC CRUISES
• My cabin was on the same deck as Central Park, an outdoor space with 20,000 plants.
• Bars and Beverages
• eXPLORE MORE
• Cobranded Cards
• Is food free on Royal Caribbean?

After you’ve booked your cruise, follow the checklist below to ensure a smooth sailing. No matter where you choose to sail from, you’re bound for a bold adventure. From snorkeling in the Caribbean to dog sledding in Alaska, castle chasing in Europe and kayaking in the Mexican Riviera — wow-worthy adventures are yours for the taking. Easily view, edit and update your travel details for your upcoming cruise. You will also be able to view your cruise itinerary, remaining balance, and submit payments.

SOUTH PACIFIC CRUISES

The drinking age on sailings from South America, Europe, Asia, Australia and New Zealand is 18. Royal Caribbean allows you to bring two bottles of wine or Champagne per cabin onto ships at boarding, plus up to a dozen standard cans, bottles or cartons of nonalcoholic drinks such as sodas. The line charges a $15 corkage fee if you bring the wine or Champagne to an onboard restaurant or other public areas to drink. Many of Royal Caribbean's biggest ships have state-of-the-art theaters as big as you'll find on Broadway, with top-name Broadway shows. Symphony of the Seas has "Hairspray," for instance, and Oasis of the Seas has Andrew Lloyd Webber's "Cats."

My cabin was on the same deck as Central Park, an outdoor space with 20,000 plants.

You’ll be able to choose between a 3-restaurant package or an unlimited package. Kids ages 6 to 10 can dine at specialty restaurants for only $10. Royal Caribbean is a large cruise line offering mega-ship cruises across the globe. The company has been on the cutting edge of the cruise industry since it launched in 1969.

Bars and Beverages

Discover the white-sand beaches and rugged cliffs of Barbados. See towering mountains like Petit Piton in St. Lucia, explore the lush rainforests of Belize, or boost your adrenaline as you zip-line through the treetops of Labadee or Honduras. If calm, contemplative nature is more your thing, spend the day admiring cascading waterfalls in Jamaica and the vivid coral reefs of Bonaire, home to manta rays and parrot fish.

Quantum of the Seas offers 28 of these dedicated studio cabins, each measuring from 101 to 119 square feet. Based in Miami, the 16-year-old vessel operates short three- and four-night voyages to the Bahamas that are often on sale for just $250 per person or less. It's a lot more affordable per day than the two ships mentioned above, which are the belles of the ball in the Royal Caribbean fleet and command significantly higher rates. Called the Suite Neighborhood, the complex offers some of the biggest (and priciest) suites at sea, including the sprawling, two-deck-high Royal Loft suites that measure more than 1,500 square feet. Icon of the Seas also features the largest water park ever built on a cruise ship, with a record six top-deck waterslides and a cool new ropes course.

eXPLORE MORE

Here are some Rome vacation must-sees and tips on how to navigate travel when arriving or departing via cruise through Civitavecchia. If you want to unwind, head to Chill Island on the east side of CocoCay. Or visit the Oasis Lagoon or the Thrill Waterpark to get on the side of adventure. Most people tend to focus on the Caribbean for summer cruises, but an Alaska summer vacation can be a great option, too. My parents loved traveling to the island because of the amount of kid-friendly things to do in Jamaica. Did you know some abbeys in England are still open for visits?

When you plan a cruise trip with us, you’re choosing a vacation that will max out memories like never before. From gourmet globetrotting and awe-inspiring entertainment to one-of-a-kind thrills and sun-soaked itineraries — you can count on larger-than-life experiences for adventurers of all types. Make the most out of your adventure by adding exciting shore excursions and deluxe drink packages. Be sure to also review packing tips and essential documents for seamless onboarding. Amp up your Perfect Day at Coco Cay vacation with a variety of bold ways to level up your days. Soar 450 feet aboard a helium balloon to score thrill-topping island views or ride the tallest waterslide in North America at Thrill Waterpark.

How Royal Caribbean is leading the charge in the cruise industry comeback - CNBC

How Royal Caribbean is leading the charge in the cruise industry comeback.

Posted: Mon, 15 Apr 2024 15:00:01 GMT [source]

Transatlantic sailings make for such a special vacation, and this 13-night Transatlantic Azores itinerary on Adventure of the Seas® packs four remarkable ports into the crossing. You'll cruise the Atlantic for the first nine days, living it up on a ship that is packed with ways to play and relax. You'll arrive in idyllic Tenerife in the Canary Islands on the tenth day.

Along the way, discover World Wonders in South America, including man-made marvels and extraordinary natural phenomena. Travel with the best family vacation ideas possible onboard Icon of the Seas. Encounter top level cruise experiences and its seven neighborhoods. Discover the best travel tips to booking single-parent vacation cruises with your children traveling alongside for all the adventures and family fun. All-inclusive family vacations, whether at a resort or on a cruise, offer the convenience of one-stop booking and activities for the whole family to enjoy.

Sailing since January 2024, Icon of the Seas is the biggest cruise ship in the world — more than 6% bigger than the next-biggest ships in Royal Caribbean's fleet. That means greater space for the family fun zones that are a hallmark of Royal Caribbean ships, from children's clubs to water parks. As is typical for cruise lines, Royal Caribbean charges on a per-person basis, not per room, and it prices most cabins based on two people occupying a room. It does offer a small number of cabins on some ships that are priced based on single occupancy for solo travelers. On a Royal Caribbean cruise, you’ll enjoy onboard activities like waterslides, zip-lining, bumper cars, and rock climbing.

Each port will welcome you with easily accessible, powdery sand beaches primed for world-class swimming, snorkeling and diving. You'll have your pick of 86 dive sites at Bonaire National Marine Park with more than 350 recorded fish species known to frequent the waters. Whether you're looking for a weekend getaway, a family-friendly vacation or an extended voyage, you'll find cruises out of Port Canaveral, Florida that tick all your boxes.

Scandinavian Cruises: Luxury Cruise to Scandinavia

Table Of Content

• Northern Europe Cruise Highlights
• Get Ready for a Nordic Spring Adventure!
• NORDIC CRUISE REVIEWS
• The Spookiest Places in Europe for Ghost Hunters Royal Caribbean Cruises

Stroll alongside the Nyhavn Harbour, admiring the wooden ships floating in the calm waters. Relax and play at Tivoli Gardens, a perfect activity for all ages. Come see why Denmark is consistently rated one of the happiest places in the world. We've narrowed down a list of the most; historic, cultural, famous, and royal significance. Our guide covers top attractions, insider tips, and expert recommendations.

Northern Europe Cruise Highlights

Many cruises only visit the western Norwegian fjords while others call at the capital cities in the southern part of Scandinavia. Some people choose summer because they want to experience the midnight sun. For those who prefer a more intimate experience, smaller cruise ships also operate in the area. In addition, the Norwegian coastal cruise is a must-do experience that bolts on a cruise-like experience to the traditional coastal ferry. The lands of ancient settlers, marauding Vikings, glaciers and fjords, historic and modern cities, and the mesmerising northern lights are waiting for you to discover them. For cruises there are fixed departure dates as the vessel must adhere to an itinerary.

Get Ready for a Nordic Spring Adventure!

You'll be able to see an incredible range of wildlife during your stay. Learn about the types of Greek architecture you can explore during your next Mediterranean vacation. When in Greece, you're sure to discover hidden gems of ancient ruins that still stand alongside modern buildings. Take your best European vacation with access to the top secret vacation spots to visit when traveling in Europe. Plan the best spa getaway possible with experiences being tailored to suit your vacation needs. Admire Norway's impressive fjords surrounded by mountains, explore Scandinavia's medieval past, treat yourself to New Nordic cuisine, or go shopping for Swedish design.

NORDIC CRUISE REVIEWS

Take a moment to make the most of your Greek island hopping travels, reveal the best places to visit in Greece. Reveal the most romantic ideas for a couple’s weekend getaway while traveling on a Paris vacation. Discover the best things to do as a local while traveling to Spain for your own Barcelona vacation experience with these helpful ideas & travel tips. It can bring you to some of the most beautiful port cities in the world. This guide will help you discover the most glorious and influential abbeys in England.

Scandinavian cruise ship will bring foreign travelers to China - ScandAsia

Scandinavian cruise ship will bring foreign travelers to China.

Posted: Wed, 21 Feb 2024 08:00:00 GMT [source]

Head to the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Old Town in Tallinn, Estonia, and see Gothic buildings like the Town Hall and the Dome Church. Stroll along the cobblestoned streets in old Baltic Sea towns with their charming medieval architecture. Head to the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Old Town in Tallinn, Estonia and see Gothic buildings like the Town Hall and the Dome Church. Cruise Critic is not a booking agent and does not charge any service fees to users of our site.

From the awe inspiring Fjords of Geiranger, to the modernist cityscape of Hamburg, Germany, you'll get a chance to dig into the region's natural and urban excitement. Explore Gothic town squares in Tallinn and Stockholm, journey down quiet canals and cafe-lined lanes in Amsterdam, or hang out with the locals in a Helsinki hot spot. Put on your walking shoes and go hiking around one of the port cities and admire the wild landscape of the North. Trek through part of Norway's Discovery Route, which runs from Stavanger to Bergen, and see snow-capped mountains towering over pristine fjords and thunderous waterfalls. Admire Norway's impressive fjords surrounded by mountains, explore Scandinavia's medieval past, treat yourself to New Nordic cuisine or go shopping for Swedish design. Norway’s distilleries and craft microbrewing scene is rapidly growing in cities like Bergen and Alesund.

Couple's Weekend Getaway Paris Vacation

In this charming capital, see design mastery at the Oslo Opera House, dine al fresco along the Aker Brygge boardwalk, or tour the Norwegian Folk Museum. Stay in town and see Victorian architecture or head to Loch Lomond, Scotland’s largest freshwater lake. In the shadow of snowy peaks and near stunning blue-green fjords, Eidfjord is considered by many to be one of the most beautiful villages in Norway. Filled with canals, cobbled squares and copper spires, Copenhagen is also Scandinavia's most cosmopolitan city. Embark from Amsterdam, affectionately known as the "Venice of the North." This city is actually situated below sea level and built entirely on stakes driven into the ground. Arrange ground transportation to create a custom cruise package.

Sailing from May to August, our Norwegian fjord cruises last anywhere from seven nights to nine nights. Longer itineraries give you the chance to see towns like the mountainous Flam or the remote Geiranger. On a Northern Europe cruise, you’ll overnight in Oslo on the way to cities like Copenhagen, Bruges, and Paris, or visit the capital before venturing to Sweden and Finland. On board our new coastal cruise ships, the emphasis is on providing passengers with spacious cabins. Our cabins are intended to be pleasant places to relax during the day and sleep well at night.

The Spookiest Places in Europe for Ghost Hunters Royal Caribbean Cruises

Norway and Sweden four-day cruise in March 2024 - The Independent

Norway and Sweden four-day cruise in March 2024.

Posted: Thu, 14 Sep 2023 16:29:41 GMT [source]

There are many things to do and see at the ports so plan your day and pace yourself to have enough energy for the entire trip and excursions. The currencies used in each country can vary from the British pound, Swedish krona, Danish krone, Polish złoty, Norwegian krone, and the euro. Be prepared to exchange for the correct currency and have a credit card on hand preferably without a foreign transaction fee. Pack comfortable shoes for your cobblestone filled walks and prepare for various weathers as it can be cold, rainy or hot depending on the time of year.

In fact, if you do so, you'll likely be spending more money than you need to. Independent tours are available in every port, such as these northern lights tours in Tromsø. The most notable are the much higher frequency and shorter duration of port calls. Because of those frequent stops, the ships sail much closer to the coastline than regular cruise ships. Fred Olsen are one of the cruise lines with smaller ships that run regular itineraries to Scandinavia, especially Norway.

When you move on from historic wonders, grab a craft beer or sample local salmon at any of Oslo’s trendy eateries. The best way to approach packing for a cruise to Norway to focus on dressing for the seasons. Though the winter brings brutal cold, summer temperatures can exceed 77 degrees, so if you're traveling during this period, bring breathable, comfortable clothing. It's harder to define luxury in the cruise market these days as even the budget lines offer excellent comfort and dining options. But the generally accepted luxury category includes lines such as Regent Seven Seas, Seaborn, and Silversea.

As the capital city, Copenhagen is the most popular Danish cruise destination by a distance. Exactly where your ship docks will depend on the ship's size and how many other vessels are in port. Some cruise lines focus more on this ‘scenic cruising' aspect and spend less time in port or call at fewer ports. I would consider those a better choice if your goal of the trip is to appreciate the wonderful landscape of fjord Norway.

Found well within the Arctic Circle, these Norwegian islands are home to soaring mountain peaks, charming fishing villages, and exciting Viking history. Northern Europe is a place of ancient myths, stunning scenery, and breathtaking adventure. Here are some of our favorite places to visit, presented to you for exploration from home. Rather than pack your luggage with warm clothes, pack lots of layers to allow for flexibility. Cruise ships are typically warm inside, so you won't want just big, fluffy jumpers. This charming town is still surrounded by the town wall, inside which you'll find churches, lively squares and a medieval ambience.

Gamla Stan, the old city centre, is a great place to immerse yourself in a medieval Scandinavian atmosphere while having all the conveniences of modern life close at hand. Some Svalbard cruises depart UK or mainland Norway, but others–especially small expedition ships that circumnavigate the archipelago–require a flight to Longyearbyen. Bear in mind also that cruising in the Norwegian fjords will soon undergo major changes. In just a few years, only zero-emission vessels will be allowed in the part of the fjord region designated a UNESCO World Heritage site. Bear in mind that December and January will be much darker, especially north of the Arctic circle where you'll experience polar night. If you are interested in Arctic scenery just as much as the aurora, consider October-November and February-March for a better balance between light days and dark nights.

The region enjoys a vast range of histories and cultures, and the architecture and landscapes are common pulls for many visitors. There's also the issue of refunds should the ship be late arriving in port, or need to miss a port entirely due to poor weather, sea conditions or other operational reasons. Even so, I recommend looking at independent tours if you want to save some cash. Cruise lines will tell you they will only wait for late passengers if you are on an official excursion. That's true, but the majority of experienced independent tour operators are well aware of your need to return to the ship in good time. So, it's well worth looking out for some of these cruise ports too.

It’s also worth mentioning that you can visit St Petersburg without a visa for up to 72 hours if you book a package cruise tour. Usually British and American citizens require a visa for Russia, but booking a Baltic cruise is one of the few exceptions. Some of the top sights in Northern Europe include glaciers, volcanoes and waterfalls in Iceland, and fjords, mountains and valleys in Norway.