The continent that produced the world's greatest explorers has no undiscovered nooks and crannies of its own. Europe's secret places are in the open: right in front of our eyes, but invisible all the same, because our gaze is too often distracted by the glare from its brilliant metropolises—London! Paris! Rome!

Looking away from the bright lights, TIME's correspondents have discovered 14 secret capitals: not the biggest or best-known places around, but ones that have acquired star status among insiders in a particular field. European cities have always been known for specialties—Sheffield for its cutlery, Chantilly for its lace—but many of these capitals have remade themselves. Industrial Newcastle has swapped coal for high culture; medieval Grenoble has turned itself into a nanotech haven.

Other towns—Tallinn, Trieste, Bad Wörishofen—have revved up their ancient rhythms for the new millennium. So think of this special report as a salute to Europe's talent for survival and renaissance. These secrets are worth shouting about.