With its romantic grounds, Sofiero Palace makes for a popular destination. The grounds are perhaps best known for their unparalleled rhododendrons, with an incredible 5,000 bushes bursting into flower in the spring. The fairytale of Sofiero began in 1864, when Crown Prince Oskar and his wife Sophia had their summer residence built here. In 1905, Oskar — by now King Oskar ll — gave the palace to his grandson Prince Gustav Adolf and his bride Princess Margareta as a wedding present. This is when the gardens literally flourished. Princess Margareta was a keen and creative gardener, and it was she who first laid out the grounds that we can enjoy to this day. She arranged flower beds and gardens, had paving laid and wasn’t afraid to get her hands dirty. Every summer, the Crown Prince couple travelled from Stockholm with their four young princes and Princess Ingrid, who eventually became Queen of Denmark. When Margareta died in 1920, Gustaf Adolf carried on the work in the garden, particularly with the rhododendrons. The palace was the summer residence of the Swedish royal family up until 1973, when it was given to the town of Helsingborg. This small palace, which lies like a jewel amid the extensive lawns, is home to a restaurant where the food is prepared by some of Sweden’s finest chefs. There’s also a café with views of the Öresund Sound and Denmark.

This reawakend Sleeping Beauty castle, built back in the day between 1858 and 1867, captivates with its fairy-tale architecture of battlements, towers and turrets, as well as with its almost entirely preserved furnishings. Embedded into the hills of the Calenberger Land, some 20 km south of Hannover, you can here join for a guided tour of the castle as well as enjoy concerts and events, or delicious food in the castle's own restaurant.

This Georgian public square is an oasis of tranquillity right in the heart of the city. It is a perfect place for those who need to get away from the bustle of the city for an hour or two. The park is rather small, but there are benches all around and there is plenty of space on the grass, so many choose this spot for a lunch break.