One of the most diverse, captivating and culturally rich continents on the planet, Europe is a maze of colourful combinations and a home to a thousand different personalities. Take a Polish chef serving up Italian cuisine in a blueprint Ikea-catalogue kitchen smack bang in the middle of Spain and the concept of its diversity begins to unfold. But in each pocket of unscrambled land there are magnificent self contained elements of culture that grab your attention and don’t let go. Whether you’re into cycling through Oporto vineyards, unearthing rare archaeological digs, dancing at a Spanish summer music festival or lazing along undiscovered coves on Kefalonia, there’ll be something to suit all tastes and tongues. With a hotbed for talent – or perhaps cold bed if you stay at Sweden’s Ice Hotel, you can walk the fashion talk, live out long-told legends and soak up the cultural lowdown you’ll collect, unnoticed along the way. Sail along the River Danube or spend New Year’s Eve under a firework lit sky, not in Paris, but another captivating city like Bucharest and be dazzled by a Europe that still makes the rest of the world turn its head.