Colour can be the first thing that draws you to a place: a row of houses beside a canal, warm timber against plaster or small buildings scattered below snow-covered mountains.

Once you arrive, the colours become part of a larger story. These four places offer different ways to turn a beautiful view into a day with texture, conversation and something new to learn.

Colourful buildings in Tasiilaq beneath a snow-covered mountain landscape
Colourful buildings in Tasiilaq beneath a snow-covered mountain landscape.

1. Burano, Italy: follow colour towards craft

Burano’s bright façades and canals make a distinctive combination within the Venetian lagoon. A walk gives you a changing palette as one group of buildings opens into another.

Bright façades and a canal on Burano in the Venetian lagoon
Bright façades and a canal on Burano in the Venetian lagoon. Original image credit: Quora.
Pink and yellow houses beside a canal on Burano
Pink and yellow houses beside a canal on Burano. Original image credit: williamcarrgallery.com.

The island is also associated with lace-making. Let that be a second interest: look for opportunities to learn about the craft and ask how a particular piece was made before choosing a souvenir.

The Burano visitor guide introduces the island’s houses, craft traditions and transport options. Check the boat timetable for your actual departure point, then leave enough time to enjoy the island between services.

For a wider lagoon trip, our Venice Grand Canal guide offers a different perspective on life and architecture beside the water.

2. Colmar, France: look beyond the canal photograph

Colmar’s timber-framed buildings and waterside streets invite a slow wander through the historic centre. The area commonly called Little Venice is one part of that wider setting.

Use the Colmar Tourist Office to choose a walk, museum or event that matches your interests. Then give yourself time to notice signs, rooflines and the details above shopfronts.

A satisfying visit need not chase the same canal composition from every possible angle. Choose a few views, then let a second interest—art, regional food or architectural history—shape the rest of the day.

3. Oia, Greece: give the village more than sunset

Oia on Santorini is known for its white buildings, coloured doors and views towards the caldera. Its appeal changes throughout the day as light moves across the closely arranged forms.

Our Santorini guide and island-base comparison help decide whether Oia suits your stay or a shorter visit. Think about your preferred pace and transport as well as the view from a room.

Keep to public routes and respect gates and terraces. The most memorable photograph may come from noticing a modest detail rather than trying to enter a private viewpoint.

4. Tasiilaq, Greenland: colour in an Arctic landscape

Tasiilaq’s buildings sit within a dramatic East Greenland setting of hills and water. The scale of that surroundings gives the town’s colours a very different character from a compact European canal street.

Visit Greenland’s Tasiilaq guide explains the seasonal activities and connections through Kulusuk. Outdoor excursions need local planning suited to Arctic conditions; this is a destination to organise carefully rather than add casually between nearby towns.

Choose a reason to stay a little longer

Craft in Burano, urban detail in Colmar, changing light in Oia or the landscape around Tasiilaq: each gives the colour a context.

Pick the place whose wider experience interests you most. The photographs will then remind you of something you did and understood, as well as a scene you admired.