8 lovely towns you've never heard of

Slightly further east from Crovie, you’ll come to Pennan, another quirky fishing village that deserves a mention. The brightly coloured houses are vibrant on a blustery day and the listed red telephone box that featured in Billy Forsyth’s blockbuster Local Herois a must photo op! Pints at the Pennan Inn are class and well worth a stop. Not much more you can ask for from such a small village

It is almost a ghost town, but Doel still has about 20 residents. It can’t be easy living there. This deserted village north of Antwerp, which once had 1300 inhabitants, stands on the banks of the River Scheldt, next to a nuclear power station. The houses were due to be demolished in the 1960s to allow the construction of a new dock, but then the plan was put on hold. Most residents have now left, leaving behind abandoned houses, an empty church and a little harbour. The village has become a favourite location for street artists, including ROA and Bué the Warrior. It also attracts a few tourists, photographers and urbanists. Now there is a bold plan to revive the town. No one knows if Doel will still exist in a year, but it feels like a place that does not want to die.

For years Margate had a reputation as a down-on-its-luck seaside resort, but in 2011 the prestigious Turner Contemporary gallery opened and in 2015 the derelict 1920s Dreamland pleasure resort was reopened, with its many retro amusements including Britain’s oldest rollercoaster. Just an hour and a half away by train, it offers quirky shopping, an awe-inspiring shell grotto and real traditional seaside appeal.

While the throngs overwhelm nearby Assisi, smart travellers sneak into Spello, just across the Valle Umbra. Here the wine bars are full of locals, Italian is heard at the cafes, and the town benefits from the same natural beauty as its more famous neighbour, with idyllic stone houses crawling up Monte Subasio.

Four of Fuji’s five lakes (Fuji Goko) are situated in Fuji Kawaguchiko. A place where you are guaranteed to have gorgeous views of Mount Fuji, in other words. Cherry blossoms in spring, lavender in summer, bright red foliage in autumn, and snow in winter... enjoy nature’s splendour here throughout the seasons.

The town of Naxxar is an interesting mix of old medieval streets and lanes, surrounded by modern buildings and more recent development. The church at the centre of the town is imposing. There is a private and very richly decorated palace nearby called Palazzo Parisio. Take a stroll down the narrow streets behind the palace to admire the city’s vernacular architecture and typical small churches.

In the early nineties, this quaint village with its narrow streets was still very quiet. Too quiet even: many of the shops remained vacant. When a series of book merchants moved into the vacant buildings in 1993, this gave rise to a real ‘national book city’. Bredevoort is now a bustling town once again, and has 20 unique (antiquarian) bookshops, including a German and an English bookshop, and a lively central square with a city brewery. An international book fair is held five times a year.

Sweden’s oldest town is located less than an hour from Stockholm. Sigtuna was founded in 980 AD and is known for its fascinating history with rune stones and old church ruins as well as for its picturesque, pedestrian-friendly town centre with cafes, restaurants and small shops in charming wooden houses.