Top Europe Adventure Tours: Backroads Europe Bike Tours, Walking Trips, Culinary & Family Vacations, and More!

Discover the best of Europe on a Backroads bike tour, walking trip, and more!

Since the Renaissance, Europe has been a major influence in arts, culture, economics, and social movements around the world. That may be because this powerhouse peninsula is packed with countries. And one of the cool things about travel to Europe is that it’s easy to move among them, giving you more bang for your adventure buck.

And your available modes of moving about are as varied as the nations you’ll encounter here. On a bike, you can cross the Rhine River from Germany into France, spotting gothic churches as you go. Or trace the gentle contours of the Bohemian landscape from Prague in the Czech Republic to along the Danube River near Vienna, Austria. In Dordogne, France, pedal to caves where Cro-Magnons painted; and in neighboring Bordeaux, ride through medieval towns and fertile vineyards. In Holland, cycle to Leiden, the birthplace of Rembrandt, which is set on the Old Rhine River.

If you prefer conveyance by boat, visit seven countries on one cruise — Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Spain — or focus in on the European Arctic with an expedition to Spitsbergen. Watch as icebergs calve from the face of towering glaciers and arctic foxes, bearded seals, polar bears, reindeer, extraordinary seabirds, and walruses all pass within easy range of your camera lens.

“Footmobile” fans can stroll through citrus orchards and terraced gardens on Italy’s Amalfi Coast. In Brittany and Normandy, you may walk World War II battlegrounds and memorials, including the shattered bunkers of the German stronghold, Pointe du Hoc. In Iceland, trek across ice, sand, water, and lava and to hot springs.

If “moving up” has always stirred your blood, climb to Lac Blanc in the famed mountaineering center of Chamonix-Mont-Blanc, surrounded by a spellbinding, soaring parapet of rock spires, glaciers, and serrated peaks. In Norway, strap on crampons for a guided hike on sapphire-blue Nigardsbreen Glacier. In Ireland, walk into a pub and spend an enjoyable evening with well-known, local storytellers and a pint.

There’s a lot of news around the world today about people getting more sedentary. A moving European adventure is the cure for stationary.

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