Morocco•2 min read
Morocco: Medinas, the Atlas Mountains and the Sahara
A maze-like medina in Marrakech, a blue-painted mountain town in Chefchaouen, and the Sahara's dunes a long but doable drive away.
TravPlanner Travel Guides
In-depth country travel guides: itineraries, costs, transport, food and practical tips for planning a trip anywhere in the world.
Liechtenstein•2 min read
Liechtenstein: One of Two Doubly Landlocked Countries
Wedged between Switzerland and Austria, reachable in a morning from Zurich, with Alpine hiking trails right above the capital.
Canada•2 min read
Canada: Provinces That Feel Like Different Countries
French-speaking Quebec, the Pacific coast and the Rockies barely feel like the same country — pick one region rather than trying to link them all.
United States•3 min read
The United States: Plan by Region, Not by Country
Too large to plan as one country — pick a region (a coast, the Southwest, the Northeast) and build the trip around driving distances there.
Finland•2 min read
Finland: Saunas, Helsinki, and Lapland Logistics
A country with roughly one sauna per household, a design-forward capital, and a real shot at the Northern Lights further north — if you time it and get there right.
Estonia•2 min read
Tallinn's Medieval Old Town, a Digital-First Country
A medieval old town that looks untouched by time, in a country better known for pushing government services fully online — and one of the cheapest capitals in the EU to actually visit.
Tunisia•2 min read
Tunisia: Mediterranean Coast to Sahara Edge
Blue-and-white hilltop villages on the coast, and the edge of the Sahara only a day's drive further south.
San Marino•2 min read
San Marino: The World's Oldest Republic, One Afternoon
The world's oldest surviving republic, perched on a mountain above Italy's Adriatic coast, seen in a single afternoon.
Slovenia•2 min read
Ljubljana and Lake Bled: Slovenia in Short
One of the smallest, most walkable capitals in Europe, and a fairy-tale lake barely an hour away.
Egypt•2 min read
Egypt: Pyramids, Cairo and the Nile
The Giza pyramids sit right at Cairo's edge, and a Nile cruise south to Luxor and Aswan extends the trip well beyond the capital.
Slovakia•2 min read
Bratislava: An Easy Add-On to Vienna
An hour from Vienna by river boat, and a compact old town that rewards more than the usual day-trip treatment.
Austria•2 min read
Vienna's Coffeehouses and the Alps Next Door
A capital where sitting in a café for hours is a protected cultural tradition, and the Alps are a short train ride away.
Malta•2 min read
Malta: Small Island, English-Speaking, Packed With History
One of the smallest EU countries, English-speaking, and dense with fortress cities that regularly double as film sets.
Ireland•2 min read
Ireland: Layer for Weather, Then Drive the Coast
The weather changes by the hour, not the season — pack layers and plan the Wild Atlantic Way as the trip's backbone.
Portugal•2 min read
Lisbon or Porto: Portugal's Two Hills
Two hillside cities on two rivers, both worth the visit — Lisbon for scale, Porto for its port-wine cellars and tighter old town.
Norway•2 min read
Norway's Fjords Without Overspending
The fjords are the whole point of the trip, and there are real ways to see them without the country's famously high prices taking over the budget.
Switzerland•2 min read
Switzerland by Train: Worth the Price
The most expensive country on this list to visit — and a scenic rail network that goes a long way toward justifying it.
Turkey•2 min read
Istanbul: A City on Two Continents
A ferry ride across the Bosphorus takes you from Europe to Asia and back — the easiest border crossing most travellers will ever make.
Lithuania•2 min read
Vilnius: The Baltics' Baroque Capital
A baroque Old Town that's one of the largest in Europe, a genuinely strange pilgrimage site a few hours north, and still one of the least crowded EU capitals.
Latvia•2 min read
Riga's Art Nouveau Old Town: A Latvia Primer
One of the world's largest collections of Art Nouveau buildings, a beach resort town a short train ride away, and prices that still undercut most of Western Europe.
Netherlands•2 min read
The Netherlands Beyond Amsterdam's Canals
Amsterdam by bike, then a short train out to Rotterdam's modern skyline or Utrecht's quieter canals.
Luxembourg•2 min read
Luxembourg: Free Public Transport, Tiny Footprint
The only country with fully free public transport nationwide, and a capital built dramatically along a gorge.
Belgium•2 min read
Belgium: A Country Built for Day Trips
Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp all sit under an hour apart — small enough to base in one and day-trip the rest.
Germany•2 min read
Germany: More Regional Variety Than the Stereotypes Suggest
Bavaria, Berlin and the Rhine barely feel like the same country — and the trains aren't quite as punctual as the reputation claims.
Denmark•2 min read
Copenhagen by Bike: A Denmark Primer
A capital built for bikes first, an inter-city rail network that reaches the rest of the country in a few hours, and a culture of hygge that's a genuine daily habit, not a marketing word.
France•2 min read
France Beyond Paris: Regions and the August Shutdown
Paris is the start of the trip, not the whole thing — and August is when much of France itself goes on holiday.
Monaco•2 min read
Monaco as a Day Trip From Nice
The second-smallest country in the world, reached by a 20-minute train from Nice, best avoided during Grand Prix week.
Sweden•2 min read
Sweden: Stockholm's Archipelago and the Right to Roam
A capital built across fourteen islands, an archipelago of thirty thousand more by ferry, and a legal right to roam almost anywhere outdoors.
Vatican City•2 min read
Vatican City: The World's Smallest Country in Half a Day
An entire sovereign state that fits into half a day of a Rome trip — if the Sistine Chapel tickets are booked ahead.
Italy•2 min read
Italy: Regional Trains Over a Rental Car
Rome, Florence and Venice by train, not rental car — plus realistic timing, costs and church dress-code rules first-timers miss.
Cyprus•2 min read
Cyprus: A Divided Capital and Two Coastlines
Nicosia is split by a UN buffer zone you can walk across, and the island itself splits into two very different halves.
Greece•2 min read
Greece: Choosing Islands Without Guessing
Which islands to combine comes down to ferry routes, not the map — and Athens is worth more than a layover night.
Spain•2 min read
Spain's Schedule: Planning Around the Siesta
Dinner at 9pm isn't a stereotype — plan the day's schedule around it, and treat each region as its own trip.
United Kingdom•2 min read
The UK Beyond London
London is one stop, not the whole trip — the rail network makes Edinburgh, the Lake District and Wales realistic add-ons.
Costa Rica•1 min read
How Much Does Costa Rica Cost in 2026?
A breakdown of what a mid-range Costa Rica trip costs in 2026, from the mandatory car-rental insurance nobody warns you about to $5 casados.
Serbia•2 min read
Belgrade: Serbia's River-Barge Nightlife City
A capital known for river-barge nightlife on two rivers, and an easy day trip north to Novi Sad.
Bulgaria•2 min read
Bulgaria: Black Sea Coast and Mountain Towns
A Black Sea coastline, hill towns with Ottoman-era streets, and a currency that just changed — Bulgaria adopted the euro in 2026.
Albania•2 min read
Albania's Riviera: Still Ahead of the Crowds
A coastline compared to Greece's, a capital reinventing itself fast, and prices that haven't caught up to either yet.
Costa Rica•1 min read
Costa Rica in 10 Days: A First-Timer's Itinerary
A tested 10-day loop through Costa Rica's cloud forests, volcanoes and Pacific beaches, built for first-time visitors who want a relaxed pace.
Czechia•2 min read
Czechia Beyond Prague's Old Town
Prague's beer halls and Charles Bridge crowds, and two easy train trips — Český Krumlov and Brno — that thin them out.
Bosnia and Herzegovina•2 min read
Bosnia and Herzegovina: Sarajevo and Mostar
A capital with Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian streets sitting side by side, and an easy day trip to Mostar's rebuilt bridge.
Japan•1 min read
Planning a First Trip to Japan: What Actually Matters
A no-fluff guide to the handful of choices that make or break a first trip to Japan — timing, rail passes, basing, and the few things you must reserve early.
Hungary•2 min read
Budapest and Beyond: A Hungary Primer
Thermal baths, a river-split capital, and a currency that still makes Hungary one of the cheaper stops in the EU.
Croatia•2 min read
Croatia: Planning Beyond Dubrovnik
Dubrovnik's walls get the postcards, but the ferry-linked islands and inland Zagreb are where the trip opens up.
Poland•2 min read
Poland: A First-Time Traveller's Guide
Warsaw's rebuilt Old Town, an easy day trip to Kraków, and a currency that stretches further than most of the EU.