Just like today, the royal families of the past were fond of their countryside getaways. These lavish retreats provided an escape from the city and the summer heat, a place for diversions like hunting and horseback riding, and enough land to build grand showpiece palaces and gardens. While Europe has many royal retreats, a few are remarkable for their sheer size, over-the-top opulence and the larger-than-life personalities who built them.

The granddaddy of European palaces...

Dear Globetrotter:

Welcome to the 521st issue of your monthly foreign-travel magazine, which is assembled largely from YOUR travel reports and articles, that is, items submitted by our subscribers. It’s travelers like you informing other travelers, your fellow readers, with the focus on destinations outside of the US.

I’m just here, aided by the rest of the ITN staff, to coordinate things, make announcements and share additional news.

Here’s an...

Hands down, Edinburgh’s Royal Mile wins as the city’s most visitor-trod street. And well it should be. To walk its length is to follow in the footsteps — most likely the carriage rumblings — of the kings and queens who for five centuries made the journey between the formidable castle-fortress that dominates the Old Town skyline to Holyrood Palace.

Since the 16th century, Holyrood has served as the Scots’ official royal residence. Today, Queen Elizabeth...