So what should one see on a European vacation? What sites will stir the soul, fire the imagination and leave you feeling glad you made the journey?

Our Word Travels experts pick their top 10:

1. Swiss Alps (Geneva, Switzerland)
Take the railway from Chur to Martigny in southern Switzerland and see the Swiss Alps unfold in all their majesty. Snow frosted peaks soaring into oceans of blue sky, and wondrous vistas peeling into view as you gently traverse the mountain range. And the train always leaves on time…

2. London Eye (London, England)
In a city that is both constantly moving and surprisingly flat the London Eye’s capsules of calm and the elevated perspective they provide form a memorable experience for any of London’s harried sightseers. As the wheel gently turns you may for the first and only time think of London as rather beautiful.

3. The Hermitage (St Petersburg, Russia)
Catherine the Great set out to gather the world’s greatest artistic treasure trove and built a suitably magnificent building to contain them all. The Hermitage is an astounding temple of decadent luxury built with impeccable taste. You’ll need Raybans to take in all the glittering gold and diamonds on display.

4. The Alhambra (Granada, Spain)
A million photographs and thousands of articles about the Alhambra can be distilled into a few simple words: the most beautiful building on earth. From the meticulous carvings, lavishly proportioned hallways and tranquil courtyards and fountains, this 14th century Moorish palace is poetry made visible in stone.

5. Versailles (France)
The Sun King, aka Louis XIV, built Versailles to be the grandest palace in Europe and a lavish statement of monarchical power. So successful was this magnificently opulent structure that it became a symbol of royal excess that helped to inspire the revolution of 1789.

6. Grand Place, Brussels, Belgium
The heart and soul of Brussels is also the most important, beautiful and perfectly proportioned town square in Europe. Brussels' confusion of cobbled streets resolves to the blissful open-air space of Grand Place, framed on all sides by medieval buildings and the magnificent Gothic Town Hall.

7. The Vatican, Vatican City
The Vatican has an unrivalled collection of art and architecture compressed into a tiny area of focused creative and spiritual significance. The key Vatican attractions of St Peter's Basilica, the incomparable Sistine Chapel, and the Vatican Museums need a week of devoted attention and alone warrant a trip to Europe.

8. St. Mark's Basilica, Venice, Italy
Europe's most beautiful church is also one of its more popular attractions so get here early and enjoy the lavish decorations, astounding mosaics, and glittering gold for yourself. Don't miss the floor of inlaid marble and glass at your feet. In the restricted light of the interior their colours take on a seemingly mystical glow.

9. Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Unheralded and neglected in his lifetime, Van Gogh was a tortured genius whose work is now hailed for its transformation of the ordinary into the astounding. The Van Gogh Museum has the single biggest collection of his work and a visit here is an amazing chance to experience them for yourself.

10. Mont Saint-Michel Abbey, France
Dramatically situated on a rocky island off the coast of Normandy, the Abbey was founded in 708 and progressively built until the 16th century. Built in striking granite, with architectural styles ranging from Norman to Gothic, Mont Saint-Michel has been a pilgrimage site for centuries filled with mystique, majesty and scenic splendour.