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Original poster

What was the last European city you visited?

220 replies

AGHHHH · 09/12/2018 00:41

And what did you think of it?

Currently in Paris and due to the current unrest and terrible weather it's not been enjoyable and it does seem to be overrated from this experience, but I'll come back at a better time.

Where have you last been in Europe? I'm thinking about where I should next go. Berlin and Warsaw are on the cards. What do you think of those?

OP posts:
MrsTerryPratcett · 09/12/2018 02:04

Reykjavik sort of counts. Lovely but extremely expensive. Incredible landscape around it and I loved Iceland.

TJEckleburg · 09/12/2018 02:11

London
Oxford
Edinburgh.

These are all European cities. The fact we in Britain think of Europe as something “other” is part of the reason we are in this mess.

(But serious answer - Oslo. It’s lovely and clean and calm. And Innsbruck. Similar -fab mix of just enough culture for a couple of days and ability to get put into fab nature v nearby)

Bloodybridget · 09/12/2018 03:27

Copenhagen, technically, but that was just a few hours on my way to another place. San Sebastian earlier in the year, loved it.

tryinganewname · 09/12/2018 03:41

Rome and we absolutely loved it. We went in January so it was nice and quiet but lovely weather.

I think Bruge and Amsterdam are next on the hit list.

DH wasn't keen on Paris but I really loved it. We'll be going back before too long to take DD to Disneyland and sneak in a day of sightseeing.

ILoveDaveGrohl · 09/12/2018 03:46

Wiesbaden in Germany. Lovely little place

Agustarella · 09/12/2018 04:12

Very well said @TJEckleburg!

The last city I visited as a tourist must have been Norwich, with DP. He's into churches and I'm less so, but the cathedral and grounds are gorgeous. The last mainland European city I passed through (as opposed to visiting properly) was Dijon, which looks a bit like a smaller, cleaner Paris without all the traffic. We went for our regular walk in the elegant Jardin Darcy and admired the big fountain and all the smart apartment buildings that overlook the park. I mean to go on one of the trams next time, I've never ridden on a tram ever, even though I've been on holiday to San Francisco and Sheffield. :)

The last mainland European city I visited as a sort-of tourist was Besançon. We went there by mistake and got stuck for four days because the car died, but apart from some unfortunate experiences in a Formule 1 hotel it was actually great. The citadel is a stunning monument and an exhilarating climb, and there are real monkeys in the moat, which made DD2's day! The famous old museum was closed for renovation work so we didn't get to see it, although it's open now. We had a walk around the historic Cimitière des Chaprais and walked along some of the shopping streets as well as across the bridge over the Doubs river, which is amazingly beautiful. It's one of those places where you wonder why it's not really on the tourist trail in its own right, although we did see a few other British cars, perhaps en route to Switzerland or Italy. I've promised the DCs we'll go back as we didn't have time to see everything.

YeOldeTrout · 09/12/2018 05:52

Lisbon. It's run down and needs repairs. You can see former glories, though. Every bakery has the exact same cakes. Too much custard.

There are red squirrels (!!) in the big park. They were fab.

Philomensapie · 09/12/2018 06:00

Münster. It's really lovely and mediaeval.

Mehmehmeh19 · 09/12/2018 06:01

Gdansk pierogi is indeed the food of the gods.

Lots to do beautiful and cheap as chips

brizzledrizzle · 09/12/2018 06:04

Bristol
But abroad-Reykjavik

sashh · 09/12/2018 06:17

Verona. Lovely place, good food but not a lot to do if you want night life unless you like opera (I do) and it's summer (it wasn't).

We were there in Feb when there is a festival, loads of people in costumes, whole families and hundreds of small children in spiderman costumes.

We took the train to Venice for a day.

BlackeyedPetitsPois · 09/12/2018 06:30

Bordeaux. Was fabulous - particularly impressed with the ease of traveling round the city; the trams are brilliant.
Great restaurants and lovely old buildings

N0rdicStar · 09/12/2018 06:42

Copenhagen.£££££ but loved it. Loved Amsterdam too though,a tie in my appreciation.

Toddlerteaplease · 09/12/2018 06:44

Cacassone. Nice enough but very little to do.

MirandaWest · 09/12/2018 06:47

Amsterdam in August was lovely

Fredathetortoise · 09/12/2018 07:17

Luxembourg City. I was there for 3 weeks for work. It's very small, a couple of interesting museums, some nice bakeries, but everything is London prices, and generally I'd say don't bother as a tourist

tomhazard · 09/12/2018 07:19

Amsterdam. It's been years since I went and I really enjoyed it , beautiful place.
Off to Paris on Boxing Day, staying at a relatives place while they are away so hoping for a change of scenery if nothing else

MyCatIsAFiend · 09/12/2018 07:28

Nice. Loved it! Beautiful weather, great food.

My favourites include Stockholm, Lviv, Budapest, Berlin, Lisbon and Warsaw. St Petersburg is amazing, depending on how far east you want to venture.

For smaller cities, Nancy in France is amazing - beautiful architecture, museums, great food. I would also recommend Strasbourg, Brasov and Dresden.

Tahitiitsamagicalplace · 09/12/2018 07:39

Bruges. Beautiful little place, lovely restaurants and the best chocolate. I spent days exploring the whole city.
Rome is another great city - don't go during high season. We went last January and had the best time. Do the night food tours!
I also really like the little towns dotted around lake Como in northern Italy.

SleepySofa · 09/12/2018 07:44

Brussels - I think it’s very nice. Lovely chocolate and amazing architecture.

Sitranced · 09/12/2018 07:46

Amsterdam, I'd live there if I could.

PlatypusPie · 09/12/2018 07:54

Warsaw - part business, part pleasure. Wouldn’t recommend as a tourist destination unless particularly interested in its sad 20C history. . Before that Lisbon which was lovely - good workout for the calf muscles on the hills !

smeerf · 09/12/2018 07:54

Istanbul and Copenhagen - love them both in very different ways. Both are absolutely beautiful especially in the Summer - I'd say Istanbul is best around late May/early June, beautiful sun but not too sweltering.

The food is out of this world and there's so much to do within walking distance of the centre of town. The public transport is great once you get your head round it, bit like London with their version of the Oyster card (ferries, trams, funicular, excellent taxis).

And it's surprisingly good with a baby - ok so changing facilities leave a lot to be desired, but the culture is extremely baby friendly and everywhere I went they fussed over DS and made us so welcome.

Igneococcus · 09/12/2018 07:57

Würzburg for a family wedding. I grew up there.
Good Christmas market, wine growing area, lots of nice little walled towns close by. Nürnberg and Frankfurt about an hour by train and Munich about two by ICE.

SmilingButClueless · 09/12/2018 07:58

Dubrovnik - amazing, but I’d hate to be there at peak cruise ship time as you’d never get near the Old Town.

I was a bit concerned that everything would be about Game of Thrones but actually it was quite easy to avoid that.