How about a trip to Slovakia

The much less travelled-to half of the former Czechoslovakia, Slovakia is being poorly represented given just how much it offers the informed traveller. For a start, this is a beautiful country, not just geographically, but the towns, cities and castles here (of which there are many!), are for the most part, aesthetically very pleasing. Lakes and mountains, particularly in the north dominate. Summer here is reminiscent of parts of the Alps and winters are very quickly becoming a cheaper and quickly improving alternative place to dust off the skis or snowboards.
Architecturally, the cities here are a wonderful mix of baroque, medieval, renaissance and gothic, with the odd smattering of wood thrown in for good measure. Several towns have been built on or around thermal spas and really make terrific use of the natural wonders. The two largest cities are Bratislava and Košice, at virtually opposite ends of the country. This is great news, because you really should see and experience both, and the transport connections between them are good which means experiencing the rest of this rapidly-appreciated nation!