Author: Rick Steves, Special to USA TODAY

With pilgrimages, the point is to go beyond tourism and connect more deeply with a place, a culture or a faith. Rick Steves shares several favorites.

Ireland is an isle filled with cultural and historic wonders … and lately with lots of tourists, too, prompting many sites to require reservations.

Be skeptical of fake officials, selfie-taking tourists behind you at the ATM and Airbnb hosts demanding wire transfers, warns Rick Steves.

When the museums in cities Rome, Florence, and Vienna are overrun with tourists, Rick Steves advises skipping the crowds and visiting these spots.

Paris’ Père Lachaise – final resting place of Jim Morrison and Oscar Wilde – isn’t Europe’s only must-see cemetery. Rick Steves suggest a few more.

An easy day trip from Edinburgh, St. Andrews. Scotland, is the birthplace of golf and where the future king and queen of Britain fell in love.

Rick Steves shares a few DIY tips from his own European cruise experiences: Disembark early and return late, try private tours and eat off the ship.

Within an hour or so of the Swedish capital, you can check out a palace, ancient rune stones, visit a college town or island-hop.

From France’s Versailles to Portugal’s Pena Palace, the best royal retreats provide insight into the dynamic, often quirky monarchs who built them.

Iceland was steamy long before Jon Snow and Ygritte found their love cave in “Game of Thrones.” Rick Steves takes you on a tour of geothermal sites.