Categories: Travelling

Travelling in Europe by car in 2021

Travelling in Europe by car was an easy decision because I love driving on a trip without strict plans. We have a sense of freedom because we do not have to buy public transport tickets is unique.

For a long time, I wanted to leave and travel by car in Europe, leaving Manchester without any hotel booked and changing plans every day. Changing my mind at the last minute, transforming a passing city into a place to stay for a few days is something I love to do.

In 2020, it was not so simple to book a hotel. There were three hypotheses:

or we discovered in the accommodation where we spent the night a leaflet from another hotel/hostel of the same chain in the next destination;
or we found suggestions for accommodation in a paper travel guide (and called from the road);
or we knocked on the door of several lodgings (in desperation)
Regarding the itinerary itself of this travel guide in Europe, the idea was to cross Spain (which seems to have no end), Andorra, and France without stopping to sleep, if we could. Then, make the round trip through several countries: Switzerland, Austria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Italy, France, Monaco, and perhaps visit Barcelona.

After all, we ended up not going through all the places in the initial script. Because? Well, to find out, you’ll have to read the articles. Anyway, I can go ahead with something about this trip by local taxi.

Throughout every day, in a planned way or as a result of chance, we discovered the fantastic diversity of Europe.

Travelling in Europe by Car – What to Expect

We visited some mountains (Pyrenees and Alps) and valleys, which is extremely fun for people like me, who love to drive. The landscapes of green grass or peaks covered with white snow or ice have made these paths wonderful to photograph and enjoy. We stopped a lot at the side of the road.
We climbed to the top of Europe, Jungfraujoch, where we could see a glacier. Getting up there is quite an adventure, especially as we have to cross the mountain by train to the highest station in Europe.
We drive along lakes (on Lake Geneva, for example) and the Mediterranean Sea. Sometimes, we couldn’t resist and ended up trying to bathe and swim a little. It was good to refresh. Travelling by car in Europe in the summer allows us to stop when we feel like and take a dip.
We explored small villages, towns, and cities. In them, we learn and meet people in museums, castles, and markets. Knowing the history, the past of a country/city, we understand our days’ culture and way of life much better.
We drive massive kilometers by car, 8,000 to be more precise. However, we also walked many kilometers on foot, especially in cities like Prague, Vienna, Salzburg, or Venice.
We brought thousands of photographs of landscapes and monuments. But also many unforgettable moments between us. Travelling in Europe trip brings us closer to the people with whom we share our time. We have to choose our teammates well because it can go very badly if they are not the right people.
On the route between Vienna and southern Croatia, we travelled 600km under a storm that, a few days later, would chase us on the way to Portugal. Luckily, we were almost always ahead of her. This storm was also why we had to change our plans to travel quickly across Croatia from south to north. What happened was that the infernal wind that was on the elevated motorway forced us to take a detour and drive along the Adriatic Sea. It took us longer, but the seaside landscape was well worth it. And I was able to go a little more on roads with curves and counter-curves…
We were mistaken many times on the paths. Do not forget that, at that time, there were no mobile phones with GPS. Many of these mistakes made us waste time. Others let us find beautiful places.
We made too many detours. Most of them because we felt like going down any road. Long live freedom!
In Vienna, one of us spent two nights in a hospital.
We risk sleeping in the car some nights. On two occasions, both in Croatia, we thought it would be impossible to find a hotel. We ended up sleeping for a few hours in the car at a motorway service station near Madrid, on the way back, because no one can stay awake with the accumulated fatigue of 15 days of travel.

How to organize your trips?

These are the sites and services I use. If I inspired you to plan your trip, follow the links below. So, please help me keep this blog paying you the same for reservations. Thank you very much!

To book accommodation I use Manchesterprivatetaxi trips. It has the best hotels and promotions.
My searches and flight reservations are made on Skyscanner or Momondo.
By far, the best site for renting a car is Rentalcars.
To avoid queues at monuments and to have transferred to/from airports, I use Ticketbar.