“Where’s the place you feel most at home in nature?”

This is the question we posed to our network of local travel experts all around the world. They came back with responses about incredible landscapes that make their corners of the earth special. We’ve compiled their thoughts about some of the best landscapes from around the world.

We’ve asked our global network of local tourism professionals about the ‘length of stay’ factor in their destinations. Answers varied, but they all agree on one thing: the average tourist isn’t a slow traveller and just doesn’t stay long enough to really appreciate a place. Here are their thoughts on how long is long enough and what the average fast traveller is missing.

We believe that the different forms of local transport are unique qualities of a place that, when experienced, are a vital part of a local travel experience. To know a place is to get around it the way local people do: cramming yourself into a chicken bus in South America, throwing caution to the wind in a tuk-tuk in Southeast Asia or boarding a ferry in Africa. We’re sure you will find these rides to be a brilliant bonding experience with locals.

Every month, we delve into the travel experiences of people in the extended WHL Group network. This month we talk to Kestas Lukoskinas, co-founder of The Beautiful Land of Nevermind, the whl.travel local connection in Vilnius and Klaipeda, Lithuania.

Easter in Lithuania is the second biggest festival after Christmas. To this day, it is a family event that combines both Christian celebration and age-old Lithuanian tradition. According to the old ways, Easter marks the rejuvenation of nature. In years gone by, the festival had a fixed date – on the spring equinox. Around that time the temperature rises above freezing and green starts coming back into the world.

An independent republic in the middle of a city? With its own president, constitution and Independence Day?! Welcome to Užupis, a district of Vilnius Old Town – beloved home for many artists, celebrities, politicians and even religious prophets! Užupis is often compared to Montmartre in Paris, with its citizens, their lifestyle and beliefs all contributing to the cosy neighbourhood feel of Vilnius, the UNESCO-listed capital of Lithuania.

When it comes to life’s simple pleasures, food definitely ranks near (if not at) the top of the list for most people. It’s probably fair to say that the way to a whole nation’s heart is through its stomach, so finding out what makes a country tick is often as simple as checking out what dishes regularly make it onto the dinner table. Thanks to the efforts of our local partners around the globe, we’ve assembled an extensive selection of typical local appetisers, soups and stews, main dishes, vegetarian dishes, desserts, drinks and snacks and street foods.