Looking for advice planning my solo trip to Europe!

[u/talon_0415]

So I am currently on a fishing boat in Alaska planning on being done around October 31st, and I start school on January 17th. I am used to being super busy with absolutely no turn around time, so don’t be alarmed, I know I have a pretty optimistic trip in the works. I fly into Lisbon on the 5th of November, I bought a 2 month nonstop eurail pass, so here is my route plan:

start Lisbon, Porto, Madrid, Barcelona, Geneva, Interlaken, Zurich, Munich, Vienna, Bratislava, Budapest, krakow, Warsaw, Vilnius, Riga, Tallinn, ferry to Helsinki, ferry to Stockholm, rent a car and road trip Norway, fly to Paris for my birthday (dec 20) Copenhagen for Christmas, and Berlin for new years.

I understand that going at a slower pace and staying 4-5-6 days per city would be much more enjoyable. I have done other trips at much slower paces. (My last trip was 3 months in one country) But my goal for this trip is to travel light and move fast, see as much as I possibly can, learn about each of the countries and cultures I visit, but not dwell in them.

I plan to come back later in life and visit these countries and do more like 2-3 weeks for 1-2 countries.

I am looking for advice on anything along my path that I should make sure not to miss. Any castles or cathedrals? Huge cliffs with stunning views? (Shorter) hikes to die for?

I plan on doing some guided tours to sights like the D-day beaches, holocaust camps, culture tours, and things of that nature so I would love recommendations for that. I’m not big into spending a bunch of money on tours that you can go do or see for free, but I believe that some things are a much better when you pay for an experience.

Am I overlooking anything? I know a lot of people will tell me to slow down, which I very well may change up once I get there depending on how I’m feeling. Thoughts?

[u/thildemaria]

Be aware that almost everything in Copenhagen is closed during Christmas (from the 24-26th), so there's not much to do there on those dates.

If you get here before those dates, there's probably still Christmas markets scattered across Copenhagen, and Tivoli might still be open (people say it's lovely in December)

If you happen to be Christian or just wanna experience a danish church at Christmas, you could join a church service on the 24th... it's open for everyone, and even if you don't understand the words, the hymns are quite beautiful. Although the majority of Danes don't go to church regularly, for many, it's tradition to do so on Christmas Eve so the church can get packed with people and it's a good idea to be there early

[u/talon_0415 → u/thildemaria]

I did not know that. From the research that I’ve done it paints Copenhagen to be one of the best cities to spend Christmas. I was also looking into Edinburgh as they have a very popular Christmas celebration, or Vienna I hear is amazing during Christmas. Would you recommend I go to another city?

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[u/galatamartinez]

You will most likely do Porto-Madrid via Galicia since there’s no direct train. I highly recommend visiting Galicia or at least stopping by. You can do Porto-Vigo and visit the city, it’s a medium to big seaside city and you can visit the Castro if you are into celtic culture. The beach might be nice for a walk, but not so enjoyable since you would go in winter. Christmas time is so beautiful in Vigo (but a bit crowded because it became touristy in that time of the year), there’s a market in the streets for a whole month, but idk if it will be there by November. From Vigo you can take the high-speed train (AVE) to Madrid, but I would also recommend to do something nature related in Galicia, because our lands are the most remarkable part of our identity. For that, I would suggest going to the interior, you can visit Ourense (it’s on the way to Madrid, 2.5 h away by train) and since you are going in winter you can enjoy its famous hot springs. The city itself is small and walkable, with several bridges worth visiting and a nice oldtown to have some tapas. There are also hiking routes and nature nearby to enjoy, if you have time I would recommend the Sil canyon, it’s stunning honestly. You can go and do some hiking routes there (I would recommend renting a car because it’s not so accesible by transport unless you book a tour) or book a boat to do a guided tour along the river. And overall, if you stop by please enjoy the food, many typical dishes, very good food and big quantities in general :)

[u/talon_0415 → u/galatamartinez]

Great advice. I will definitely look into all of this. I’m a sucker for some nice countryside. What are some traditional dishes you might recommend? I am really looking forward to Portugal, I’ve heard many great things.

[u/galatamartinez → u/talon_0415]

I recommend cocido gallego (specially in winter, it’s a well loaded dish with meat, potatoes, veggies, chorizo and chickpeas), pulpo á feira (octopus) and some pork, either raxo or zorza (both marinated pork but they are different from each other). If you go to Ourense, tapas in the oldtown are pretty good. You can also try pimientos de padrón (fried green peppers, some are spicy). And if you like beer, try out Estrella Galicia, it’s our local beer but usually sold across the entire country (didn’t try it out because I’m celiac but it is said to be very good haha)

[u/galatamartinez → u/galatamartinez]

I forgot to mention churrasco, so so good and I love it personally, consists of grilled pork ribs (sometimes some beef and chicken as well), often served with french fries and/or salad. For dessert, you shall try Tarta de Santiago (almond cake) or filloas (very similar to crêpes). You also have bica (basically plain cake) and torta de nata (cream cake).