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Let's GoCastle itinerary

Ever wanted to visit all those castles you’ve seen in the movies? The British Tourist Authority’s Web site has a five-day itinerary that takes you to more than a dozen locations from Scotland’s Highlands to London.

The route starts on the west coast of Scotland and includes Castle Tioram in Loch Moidart in the Highlands, the scene of the clans fight in the film "Highlander."

It continues to Glenfinnan Viaduct, which was shown in "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets." It ends the day at Fort William, where "Kidnapped" was filmed. It then goes to the 15th-century castle of Megginch and on to Drummond Castle, both used in "Rob Roy."

The route then turns to England. Northumberland offers three more castles. Bamburgh Castle was used in Roman Polanski’s film "Macbeth," as was the next castle, Lindisfarne Castle on Holy Island. Alnwick Castle was used as the Hogwarts school in the Harry Potter films.

The route moves into Yorkshire to Castle Howard, setting for "Brideshead Revisited," then to Chatworth House in the Peak District National Park, used in "Pride and Prejudice." It finishes in Hampton Court, London, setting for "A Man for All Seasons."

Details are at www.visitbritain.co.uk/things-to-see-and-do/interests/history-and-heritage/features/castles/itinerary/index.aspx.

Cycle Catalonia

Cycle around the beautiful countryside of Catalonia in northeastern Spain and visit its cultural, historical and natural sites on a trip organized by Pure Adventures, a company specializing in self-guided tours.

The five-day "Catalonia B&B Cycling Tour" covers all three. It visits the archaeological sites of the Empúries ruins, the ancient Iberian settlement of Ullastret and the castle in La Bisbal d’Emporda.

It also stops in Figueres, location of the Dali Museum and its collection of works by Salvador Dalí. You also go by the biggest lake in the region in Banyoles and through the Natural Park of the Marshes.

The route goes through villages and medieval towns and along the seaside of the Coast Brava.

Distances each day range between 20 and 40 miles. The tour is available year-round except in August, with costs starting at 737 euros per person, double occupancy, in low season. It includes four nights in farmhouse bed-and-breakfasts, morning and evening meals, luggage transfers, orientation and bike fitting, bike delivery and pickup, local traveler support, riding routes with maps and suggestions on places to visit.

The trip is one of many — including hiking trails — offered by the company. For details, see www.pure-adventures.com

Rome museum pass

If you want to visit a lot of museums in Rome, be sure to check out the Roma Pass.

The pass costs 20 euros and is good for three days. With it, you get free admission to the first two museums and/or archaeological sites visited, discounts at selected museums, a map of the city, a guide to sites, access to the public transportation system and a program of events and tourist services.

Find more information at www.romapass.it.

BEST BETSEngland

Get a jump on the ski season at The Metro Ski and Snowboard Show, Europe’s largest winter-sports event for consumers, which runs throughout the weekend at London’s Olympia. Wander about the trade stands. Learn about skiing and snowboarding around the world in the World Resorts Village. Check out the latest in skiing fashion. Drive a Land Rover up a 10-meter slope with a 35-degree angle. Get photographed with sled dogs and relax in the Northern Lights light-show igloo. The show is open 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Thursday and Friday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. Tickets on Saturday cost 13 pounds (about $25) for adults, 6 pounds for children 11 to 16; on other days, tickets are 9 pounds for adults, 4 pounds for children. Find more details at www.metrosnow.co.uk

Germany

Even if you aren’t quite marathon material, you can head to Frankfurt’s Marathon Mall — the sporting-goods fair at the city’s fairgrounds throughout the weekend — to get the latest on running and other fitness activities. About 120 stands will offer information on training, sports clothes and equipment, diet plans, sports vacations, walking and biking sports and children’s sports. The fair is open 1-7 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday and 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. Entry is free. The event’s Web site is www.marathonmall.de

Scotland

Trolls, selkies, Vikings and other characters from Norse traditions will join the Scottish brownies, fairies and Celtic warriors at this year’s International Storytelling Festival in Edinburgh, which runs Friday through Nov. 2 in the Scottish Storytelling Centre. Guests are coming from Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Norway and Alaska to tell their cultures’ traditional and contemporary tales, so expect some top stories from the Nordic tradition. In addition to performances by the invited storytellers, there will be workshops on topics such as developing voice and story patterns, "meet the storyteller" sessions and evening ceilidh-style story performances. For the full program and tickets, see www.edinburghfestivals.co.uk

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