Where were the most popular European holiday destinations in 2024 – and where should you go instead?
Bavaria, Cornwall, Amorgos: Europe’s finest off the overwhelmed path locations to go to in 2025.
Paris, Barcelona and Palma de Mallorca have been the highest booked locations globally this 12 months, in accordance with a brand new report by on-line journey company Opodo.
Additionally within the high 10 have been London, Madrid, Rome, Lisbon, Amsterdam, Istanbul and Malaga.
Amongst UK travellers, Paris, Amsterdam and Barcelona have been the preferred cities. However lesser-known locations additionally crept into the highest 50, together with Bilbao, Stuttgart and Jersey, whereas Bremen is on the rise amongst worldwide travellers.
Waiting for 2025, Paris stays a high European vacation spot amongst world travellers, alongside London – with Germans making up the majority (20 per cent) of travellers to the UK.
However with main cities like these buckling beneath the burden of overtourism, is it time to enterprise off the overwhelmed path? On Reddit’s Europe Journey discussion board, travellers share their favorite lesser-known locations.
Ferries, beer and mountain climbing: Discover Germany’s Danube Gorge
Germany’s Bavaria is famed for its beer – and there’s no higher place to attempt it than Weltenburg Abbey, a Benedictine monastery on the Danube River that claims to be residence to the world’s oldest monastic brewery.
Pattern the normal, cave-aged Weltenburger Barock Dunkel within the abbey’s chestnut tree-shaded beer backyard earlier than taking the ferry again throughout the river to the closest city, Kelheim.
Alternatively, take the “tremendous scenic” strolling path alongside the Danube Gorge amongst towering limestone cliffs, really helpful by one Reddit person.
Kelheim is well accessible from Regensburg, which has direct prepare connections with Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Munich, Prague and Vienna.
With its vibrant buildings and Twelfth-century Stone Bridge, the UNESCO-designated German metropolis – “one of many largest to get by means of WW2 with out a lot harm”, as one Reddit person notes – is nicely value a go to in its personal proper.
Attractive shoreline and vigorous historical past: Escape London for the South West Peninsula
Escape London for “a world of beautiful shoreline” within the UK’s Devon and Cornwall.
“A whole bunch of seashores, cliffs, coves, miles of coastal trails that wrap throughout the southwestern English peninsula, historic coastal villages with the narrowest streets you’ll ever see,” await you there, guarantees one Reddit person.
Hunt for fossils alongside Devon’s Jurassic Coast, delve into industrial historical past on west Cornwall’s rugged Tin Coast and stroll within the footsteps of Seventeenth-century pirates in Penzance.
The latter is reachable by way of the Night time Riviera sleeper prepare from London in round eight hours.
Bike trip by means of meadows and alongside windswept seashores in Ærøskøbing, Denmark
The fairytale city of Ærøskøbing on the Danish island of Ærø will allure you with its well-preserved 18th-century cobbled streets and chilled out ambiance.
Go to over the festive season when the city involves life with a conventional Christmas market or in summer season for the Ærø Jazz Pageant.
Take a bike trip by means of peaceable meadows and alongside “windswept seashores”, one Reddit person recommends, earlier than refuelling with lemon cake from Ærøskøbing Bageri Aps – “the only finest baked good I’ve ever had in Europe”, they declare.
Ærøskøbing may be reached by ferry from Svendborg – round two hours from each Aarhus and Copenhagen.
Swap Amsterdam’s crowds for tinkling sheep bells in Friesland, Netherlands
For many worldwide travellers, Amsterdam is synonymous with the Netherlands. However there’s loads to discover past the Dutch capital.
Head north to the province of Friesland, the place metropolis crowds dissolve into “small household farms, wild heath and rocky levees”, suggests one Reddit person who took a regional prepare from Leeuwarden down the coast to Hindeloopen.
“Did not meet a soul all afternoon, however loads of sheep. I can nonetheless keep in mind the tinkling of sheep bells carried over the wind,” they recall.
That’s to not say there’s nothing to see right here: Friesland is residence to the world’s largest ice skating occasion – a 200 kilometre tour – and guests can try the world’s largest assortment of skates on the Frisian Ice Skating Museum in Hindeloopen.
Additional up the coast, it’s also possible to hop on a ferry to the character reserves and rolling dunes of the Wadden Sea Islands.
Uncover a lesser recognized Greek island criss-crossed with mountain climbing paths
Greece is not any stranger to overtourism: in summer season final 12 months, the Acropolis launched a cap on each day guests to curb crowding and simply final month business officers highlighted the necessity for change – together with the promotion of low season journey.
Whereas the likes of Athens and Santorini are firmly on the world map, there are nonetheless lesser-known pockets of Greece ready to be found.
The Cyclades island of Amorgos is amongst them: “Completely off the overwhelmed path as a Greek island and the landmarks are breathtaking,” says one Reddit person.
“From the shipwreck to the monasteries or windmills on cliffs… however actually essentially the most pleasant folks there made it 100 per cent one of the best Greek island ever.”
Discover its scenic bays and historical rocky footpaths, pattern contemporary native goat’s cheese and mirror on the Tenth-century cliffside monastery of Panagia Hozoviotissa.
Ferries depart for Amorgos from Athens year-round, with extra frequent crossings throughout the summer season months. It may also be reached from neighbouring islands like Paros and Mykonos.
