Hooray! It’s here. I have been wanting to share my travel itinerary with you guys for quite some time now, but to be honest, 6 weeks traveling throughout Europe takes a while to plan, especially when you’re booking it yourself and not using travel tours like Contiki or Top Deck. Especially tricky to plan when you’re working full time, traveling with different people and as indecisive as me! There are so many places I want to go to but I don’t want to be rushing around spending only a few nights in each country.
Here’s my list of all the European cities and places I’ll be visiting from the end of this month, May, until mid July. I’m coming for you Europe!
My Six Week Europe Travel Itinerary
Stop 1: London, England
Duration: 5 days
Of course, London. How could you not be my first port of call for my 6 week European escapade. I chose London as the first stop for a couple of reasons. First of all, flying from Sydney it’s often the cheapest destination to fly into Europe due to airport taxes. It’s also a great hub where it’s quite easy to access other European cities, with 3 major airports and regular daily flights.
Most importantly I chose London as my cousin and some close friends from Australia are currently living over there, and I have been dying to visit them for quite some time. It’s been 5 years since I was last in London so I am well overdue for a visit, and severely missing the British sights, shops and sounds. Read here for what I will be getting up to in London.
Stop 2: Valencia, Spain
Duration: 3 days
A bit of a random destination if I am honest, but very intentional as my gorgeous cousin and I will be partaking in a south of Spain road trip! Valencia is on the south east coast of Spain and provides a great location to hire a car and start the drive south. Valencia is a modern, architectural city with thriving cultural, eating and nightlife scenes.
Stop 3: Calp (Calpe), Spain
Duration: 3 days
No explanation needed for this place I think. Pink, european and by the sea. Enough said. I stumbled upon this place on Pinterest and always wondered where it was. It was the perfect second location for our road trip being only 1.5 hours from Valencia. Calp is on the Mediterranean coast and has some spectacular sights you’d only see in Spain. We also love the sea so will enjoy some time by the ocean here, and of course Spanish tapas.
Stop 4: Granada, Spain
Duration: 4 days
A four hour drive from Calp, Granada is a city in southern Spain’s Andalusia region, in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains. My heart jumps with joy about the idea of exploring the grand sights, medieval architecture and Moorish influences of this spectacular Spanish town. The icon being the Alhambra palace and gardens at the top of the city hill. We’ll spend a bit more time here indulging in the sights and food, also considering the longer drive.
Stop 5: Marbella and Gibraltar, Spain
Duration: 2 days
A 2 hour drive will take us to Marbella, a city and resort area in the south of Spain. Mountains are the backdrop to 27km of sandy Mediterranean beaches and villas. There are some amazing resorts and bars here – hello Euro summer! It’s an additional hour to Gibraltar which is on the peninsula of south Spain – I’ve heard you can see Africa from the giant rock there.
Stop 6: Seville, Spain
Duration: 4 days
We’ll then take the 2.5 hour drive through to Seville, the capital of Spain’s Andalusia region. Seville is best known for its flamenco dancing, the ornate Alcázar castle complex, built during the Moorish Almohad dynasty, and spectacular cathedrals and palaces. It’s become a popular tourist destination over the past 2 years thanks to its churros, unforgettable views and picturesque city where you really can’t take a bad photo.
Stop 7: Lagos, Portugal
Duration: 5 days
To finish our south coast road trip, we’ll be crossing the border to Portugal and take a 3 hour coach to the breathtaking town of Lagos, in the Algarve region. We’ll leave the car in Spain to avoid hefty fees for taking it to another country. Lagos is best known for its walled old town, cliffs and Atlantic beaches with steep wooden steps and sweeping cave beaches. I can’t wait to wander the old colourful towns and take photos of every pretty door I come across.
Stop 8: Warsaw, Poland
Duration: 2 days
Goodbye Mediterranean Sea and hello Eastern Europe! Next up on the itinerary is my home country of Poland starting with the capital city of Warsaw. For this part of the trip, I’ll be meeting my hubby Arden, who’s first time it will be visiting Poland. The varied architecture of this city reflects the turbulent history, from Gothic churches to Soviet-era blocks and modern skyscrapers. We’ll be seeing the Old Town square, Lazienki gardens and Royal palace.
Stop 9: Lodz, Poland
Duration: 3 days
We’ll make our way south through Poland and visit Lodz, the city where some family and friends live and my parents grew up in. We’ll mainly be spending time with our family here, devouring all the delicious foods of Poland. Hello donuts, schnitzel, cabbage and Polish vodka!
Stop 10: Krakow, Poland
Duration: 3 days
I think my favourite destination in Poland is Krakow. It is a beautiful city with so much history and culture. The town square and Wawel Castle are the main attraction, alongside the salt mines. I look forward to balmy summer nights sitting at the Town Square people watching and devouring Polish delicacies. Oh and did I mention how easy it is to get around Poland? $8 coach trip to get from one major city to the next. Too easy.
Stop 11: Lucerne, Switzerland
Duration: 4 days
I might never return after staying here. I have literally found my dream resort, in the clouds. Real life heaven. By luck I stumbled upon this incredible resort high up in the Switz mountains overlooking Lake Lucerne. We did have to remortgage the house after booking our stay here (well almost haha!!) but isn’t that a given for traveling in Switzerland? Wow wow wow. We will also be doing some hikes around Interlaken and visiting the town of Lauterbrunnen.
Stop 12: Lake Annecy, France
Duration: 4 days
Ards and I will have a car so once we leave Lucerne we’ll cruise through the amazing roads of Switzerland, past Berne and Lake Geneva, across to France. This part of the trip is all about spontaneous adventures, wanderlust and relaxation. And French croissants, champagne and macarons.
Stop 13: Lake Como, Italy
Duration: 4 days
Okay another place where upon booking a grand palace for our accommodation (I was desperate to swim in their pool) we’ve had to remortgage the house (FYI aussie sarcasm, but seriously… it’s not cheap). The first 3 weeks of my trip includes several hostels (I’m no princess people), so when hubby makes it across to Europe we’ve decided to indulge and stay in our dream places we’ve had on our list for a while – I mean you can’t do this stuff once you have kids. Pretty sure we’ve included some private boat tours on the lakes to the multiple villas around Como and Bellagio. I look forward to long afternoon vinos, alfresco dining and total isolated relaxation. Si si!
Stop 14: Florence and Tuscany, Italy
Duration: 4 days
The last stop of our trip will be heading south through Northern Italy, passing through Milan and Bologna to Florence and Tuscany. We’ve booked a gelato and pizza making class which may be the highlight of the whole trip – am I right?! We’ll also be visiting the Boboli Gardens and some wineries along the way, as well as the Florence Cathedral, Ponte Vecchio and galleries. I’m sure I’ll fit in some shopping, or window shopping at this point, to the Italian boutiques. We’ll be flying out of Rome back to Sydney so will make our way down.
So that’s my 6 week Europe itinerary! What do you think? Any tips for where we are going? Would love to hear from you.
A x
Golden Hour Girl 
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