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A countdown of Rick's favorite undiscovered European destinations
This two-hour television special, highlighting a dozen of Rick Steves' favorite discoveries, is sure to stoke your travel dreams with places most American travelers don't even know exist. You'll venture with Rick from a fairy-tale Danish isle to a forgotten Tuscan hill town to a proud Basque capital. This travel special is all about connecting intimately with Europe, past and present, by getting off the beaten path. From the Slovenian Alps to a Bohemian dream town to your own hidden Greek port, this is your chance to enjoy the glories of offbeat Europe — truly "through the back door."
Here's a sneak preview of Rick's countdown. For the actual identities of these unheralded wonders, you'll have to tune into the Rick Steves' Hidden Europe special...or you can just skip to the end of this article.
12. Remote Italian Hill Town: In the chaos that came after the fall of Rome, communities literally ran for the hills, establishing stony escapes. And to this day, there are incredible enclaves of the Old World still hiding out in the hillsides of Italy. We'll climb up to the most dramatic Italian hill town of all, a time-passed pinnacle village barely surviving into the 21st century.
11. Basque Culinary Capital: When they drew the border separating France and Spain, they ignored the Basque people. To this day, this plucky and resilient "nation without a state" straddles the French-Spanish border on the Atlantic coast. The best stop in all of Basque Country also just happens to cook up the tastiest of tapas — or pintxos, as the Basques would say.
10. Bohemian Retreat: Most travelers to the Czech Republic visit only its capital city, Prague. But digging deeper into the heartland of any country comes with rich rewards. This little town, hemmed in by a tight bend in its river and watched over by a fanciful castle, offers an endearing taste of small-town Czech Republic.
9. Moroccan Detour: While not actually part of Europe, Morocco, just a one-hour ferry ride from Spain's Costa del Sol, is the perfect way to spice up your European travels. After sailing the Strait of Gibraltar, the ferry docks, and you walk right into the heart of this thriving and historic port city — bristling with minarets, crammed with colorful market stalls, and laced with tight lanes lined by keyhole arches and engaging locals.
8. Walled Tuscan Town: Italy is one of Europe's most crowded destinations. A key to avoiding its hordes of tourists is to go somewhere without famous sights: no Colosseum, no Leaning Tower, no opera-singing gondoliers...just pure Italy. One of the most underrated Tuscan towns, just an hour outside of Florence, features once-formidable walls that corral plenty of good living and travel fun.
7. War-Torn Yet Inspiring Bosnia-Herzegovina: Part of the thrill of traveling in Europe is sorting out its complicated cultural mix. And nowhere is Europe's ethnic make-up more complex than in Bosnia. Once the heart of the former Yugoslavia, Bosnia is a world where East meets West, where minarets and church spires compete for your attention, and where the cultural tectonic plates of Islam and Christendom rub together. We'll visit a Bosnian city that was in our headlines two decades ago as its landmark old Turkish-style bridge was blasted to bits. It's a fascinating place to learn about the last generation's war...and about how a new generation is knitting the city back together.
6. Austrian Lakeside Retreat: While almost everyone enjoys Austria's heavily promoted Salzburg, it can feel like a tourist trap. But nearby is an often-overlooked little town nestled on a sleepy lake high in the Alps. In this lazy village, in-the-know visitors join locals to commune with nature and enjoy a heritage made very rich...by salt.
5. Alpine Slovenia: Europe's Alps can be crowded — which you may discover the hard way when you jostle with fellow nature-lovers on alpine trails and lifts. But to the south, on the "sunny side of the Alps," is an entire region that few American tourists even consider visiting. This corner of Slovenia's Alps mingle spectacular mountain scenery with unexpected World War I intrigue — a combination sure to please history buffs and hikers alike.
4. Cliff-Capping Etruscan Burg: In Italy, so many appealing hill towns compete for your vacation dollar. But the hill town with the best crowds-to-charm ratio is a stony wonder just west of Florence. Hiding out in Tuscany, this hill town boasts a rich history going back to Etruscan times and a vibrant and proud community today.
3. Ship-in-a-Bottle Danish Isle: Islands have an advantage when it comes to being remote. And tucked away in the south of Denmark — but still handy to Copenhagen — is an island with a salty ambience that any retired sea captain could enjoy calling home. Denmark's capital of quaint is a hit with strollers, bikers, and those who just want to relax.
2. The Cozy Croatian Adriatic: Venice and Dubrovnik may be the gems of the Adriatic, but with their fame comes high prices and mobs of tourists. If you scour the eastern Adriatic coastline, you'll find one port with the flavor of Venice, the Slavic intrigue of Dubrovnik...and none of the touristic intensity of either. This romantically crumbling seaside village — with its castaway Old Town and mighty bell tower — is the most Italian-feeling town in Croatia's most Italian-feeling region.
1. Undiscovered Greek Island Escape: The finale of Rick Steves' Hidden Europe features Rick's vote for the most underrated attraction on the Continent. This island provides a quick escape from one of Europe's most intense mega-cities, Athens — just 90 minutes away by boat. While sprawling Athens is congested and chaotic, this getaway is entirely traffic-free; only people and donkeys climb its idyllic lanes. The island is notorious for ruining carefully crafted trip plans: Visitors here tend to toss their itineraries into the bay and find themselves thoroughly on vacation.
For the identity of each of Europe's dozen most overlooked destinations, don't miss Rick Steves' Hidden Europe countdown. (Or, if you just can't wait, here are the answers: 12. Civita di Bagnoregio, Italy; 11. San Sebastián, Spain; 10. Český Krumlov, Czech Republic; 9. Tangier, Morocco; 8. Lucca, Italy; 7. Mostar, Bosnia-Herzegovina; 6. Hallstatt, Austria; 5. The Julian Alps, Slovenia; 4. Volterra, Italy; 3. Ærø, Denmark; 2. Rovinj, Croatia; 1. Hydra, Greece.)
A countdown of Rick's favorite undiscovered European destinations
This two-hour television special, highlighting a dozen of Rick's favorite discoveries, is sure to stoke your travel dreams with places most American travelers don't even know exist. You'll venture with Rick from a fairy-tale Danish isle to a forgotten Tuscan hill town to a proud Basque capital to your own hidden Greek port. This is your chance to enjoy the glories of offbeat Europe — truly "through the back door." Here's a sneak preview of Rick's countdown. For the actual identities of these unheralded wonders, you'll have to tune into the Rick Steves' Hidden Europe special...or you can just skip to the end of this article.
12. Remote Italian Hill Town: We'll climb up to the most dramatic Italian hill town of all, a time-passed village barely surviving into the 21st century.
11. Basque Culinary Capital: The best stop in all of Basque Country (the plucky and resilient "nation without a state" that straddles the French-Spanish border on the Atlantic coast) also just happens to cook up the tastiest of tapas — or pintxos, as the Basques would say.
10. Bohemian Retreat: This little town, hemmed in by a tight bend in its river and watched over by a fanciful castle, offers an endearing taste of small-town Czech Republic.
9. Moroccan Detour: Morocco's best stop (just a one-hour ferry ride from Spain) is this thriving and historic port city — bristling with minarets, crammed with colorful market stalls, and laced with tight lanes lined by keyhole arches and engaging locals.
8. Walled Tuscan Town: One of the most underrated Tuscan towns, just an hour outside of Florence, features once-formidable walls that corral plenty of good living and travel fun...with none of the crowds of Italy's more famous sights.
7. War-Torn Yet Inspiring Bosnia-Herzegovina: Here where the cultural tectonic plates of Islam and Christendom rub together, we'll visit a now on-the-mend Bosnian city that was in our headlines two decades ago as its landmark old Turkish-style bridge was blasted to bits.
6. Austrian Lakeside Retreat: Near Salzburg is an often-overlooked little town nestled on a sleepy lake high in the Alps. Here, in-the-know visitors join locals to commune with nature and enjoy a heritage made very rich...by salt.
5. Alpine Slovenia: The "sunny side of the Alps" mingles spectacular mountain scenery with unexpected World War I intrigue — a combination sure to please history buffs and hikers alike.
4. Cliff-Capping Etruscan Burg: Hiding out in Tuscany, this stony wonder boasts a rich history going back to Etruscan times and a vibrant and proud community today.
3. Ship-in-a-Bottle Danish Isle: Tucked away in the south of Denmark is an island with a salty charm that any retired sea captain could enjoy calling home.
2. The Cozy Croatian Adriatic: This romantically crumbling seaside village — with its castaway Old Town and mighty bell tower — is the most Italian-feeling town in Croatia's most Italian-feeling region.
1. Undiscovered Greek Island Escape: This idyllic, traffic-free island provides a quick escape from one of Europe's most intense mega-cities, Athens (just 90 minutes away by boat). The island is notorious for ruining carefully crafted trip plans: Visitors tend to toss their itineraries into the bay and find themselves thoroughly on vacation.
For all the details on each of Europe's dozen most overlooked destinations, don't miss Rick Steves' Hidden Europe. (Or, if you just can't wait, here are the answers: 12. Civita di Bagnoregio, Italy; 11. San Sebastián, Spain; 10. Český Krumlov, Czech Republic; 9. Tangier, Morocco; 8. Lucca, Italy; 7. Mostar, Bosnia-Herzegovina; 6. Hallstatt, Austria; 5. The Julian Alps, Slovenia; 4. Volterra, Italy; 3. Ærø, Denmark; 2. Rovinj, Croatia; 1. Hydra, Greece.)
A countdown of Rick's favorite undiscovered European destinations
This two-hour television special, highlighting a dozen of Rick's favorite discoveries, is sure to stoke your travel dreams with places most American travelers don't even know exist. Enjoy these glories of offbeat Europe — truly "through the back door":
On a breath-taking and inspirational whirlwind tour, this special will take you to the top dozen under-appreciated wonders in Europe: Civita di Bagnoregio, Italy: The most dramatic Italian hill town of all is a time-passed village barely surviving into the 21st century. San Sebastián, Spain: The Basque culinary capital offers a fascinating glimpse at this plucky and resilient "nation without a state." Český Krumlov, Czech Republic: Hemmed in by a tight bend in its river, this adorable town is watched over by a fanciful castle. Tangier, Morocco: Bristling with minarets and crammed with colorful market stalls, this historic port city is an easy detour from Spain. Lucca, Italy: This untrampled town's once-formidable walls corral plenty of good living. Mostar, Bosnia-Herzegovina: Formerly war-torn, this Bosnian city is on the mend. Hallstatt, Austria: Made wealthy by the salt trade, this village is nestled on a sleepy lake high in the Alps. Slovenia's Julian Alps: The "sunny side of the Alps" mingles spectacular mountain scenery with unexpected World War I intrigue. Volterra, Italy: This stony wonder boasts a rich history going back to Etruscan times. Ærø, Denmark: This Denmark's capital of quaint is a hit with strollers, bikers, and those who just want to relax. Rovinj, Croatia: A castaway Old Town and mighty bell tower distinguish this romantically crumbling seaside village. And the finale: The Isle of Hydra in Greece. Idyllically traffic-free, this island is notorious for ruining carefully crafted trip plans: Visitors tend to toss their itineraries into the bay and find themselves thoroughly on vacation.
For all the details on each of Europe's dozen most overlooked destinations, don't miss Rick Steves' Hidden Europe.
A countdown of Rick's favorite undiscovered European destinations
This two-hour television special, highlighting a dozen of Rick's favorite discoveries, is sure to stoke your travel dreams with places most American travelers don't even know exist. Enjoy these glories of offbeat Europe — truly "through the back door":
12. Civita di Bagnoregio, Italy: The most dramatic Italian hill town of all is a time-passed village barely surviving into the 21st century.
11. San Sebastián, Spain: The Basque culinary capital offers a fascinating glimpse at this plucky and resilient "nation without a state."
10. Český Krumlov, Czech Republic: Hemmed in by a tight bend in its river, this adorable town is watched over by a fanciful castle.
9. Tangier, Morocco: Bristling with minarets and crammed with colorful market stalls, this historic port city is an easy detour from Spain.
8. Lucca, Italy: This untrampled town's once-formidable walls corral plenty of good living.
7. Mostar, Bosnia-Herzegovina: Formerly war-torn, this Bosnian city is on the mend.
6. Hallstatt, Austria: Made wealthy by the salt trade, this village is nestled on a sleepy lake high in the Alps.
5. Slovenia's Julian Alps: The "sunny side of the Alps" mingles spectacular mountain scenery with unexpected World War I intrigue.
4. Volterra, Italy: This stony wonder boasts a rich history going back to Etruscan times.
3. Ærø, Denmark: This Denmark's capital of quaint is a hit with strollers, bikers, and those who just want to relax.
2. Rovinj, Croatia: A castaway Old Town and mighty bell tower distinguish this romantically crumbling seaside village.
1. Hydra, Greece: Idyllically traffic-free, this island is notorious for ruining carefully crafted trip plans: Visitors tend to toss their itineraries into the bay and find themselves thoroughly on vacation.
For all the details on each of Europe's dozen most overlooked destinations, don't miss Rick Steves' Hidden Europe.
A countdown of Rick's favorite undiscovered European destinations
This two-hour television special, highlighting a dozen of Rick Steves' favorite discoveries, is sure to stoke your travel dreams with places most American travelers don't even know exist. Connecting intimately with Europe, past and present, you'll get off the beaten path in a fairy-tale Danish isle, a forgotten Tuscan hill town, and a proud Basque capital. From the Slovenian Alps to a Bohemian dream town to your own hidden Greek port, this is your chance to enjoy the glories of offbeat Europe — truly "through the back door." Don't miss this exciting countdown featuring Rick's picks for Europe's 12 most overlooked destinations.