Hello fellow explorers! Do you love charming cobblestone streets, medieval history, and enchanting old towns like we do?! Well pull up a chair (or get your flight tickets ready), grab a cup of tea, and enjoy *in no particular order* our list of the 10 MOST CHARMING CITIES IN EUROPE that we’ve had the pleasure of visiting and hope you can too!
1. YORK, ENGLAND
York is one of the few last walled medieval cities of the world and you are still able to walk around most of it’s wall and even pop into some shops or a cafe in the turret. It’s history goes back to the roman and viking age and there are loads of museums and gardens to explore.
Our favorite was to visit in the spring when the daffodils covered the city. Don’t forget to take a stroll down the wonky and wonderful “Harry Potter” like Shambles and take in the beauty of the York Minster on a Sunday when the church bells chime through the whole town.
2. ROTHENBURG, GERMANY:
Along the romantic road through beautiful Barvaria you can find Rothenburg ob der Tauber, another walled medieval city. We visited in the fall on our anniversary and it was like stepping right into a story book like “Pinocchio” with all the half-timbered buildings and the most stunning view over what felt like a fairy tale kingdom.
3. VISBY, SWEDEN:
Take a ferry to Gotland, an island lost in time, somewhere in the sea between Sweden and Finland. Upon entering through the draw bridge into Visby you’ll truly feel like you’ve stepped back in time. Especially if you visit during “Medieval Week” where the whole town is taken over by vikings!
4. TALLINN, ESTONIA:
Oh yes, another walled city of the middle ages, Tallinn is full of eastern European goodness! There are loads of charming restaurants and cafes tucked away in the cobblestone streets and a walk along the medieval wall has iconic views of the city and it’s turrets.
5. GDANSK, POLAND:
Gdansk is a different sort of “old town” in that much of it was destroyed in WWII and the long main streets’ buildings were reconstructed to have that old world charm creating a mix of styles and an almost perfect facade.
Another uniquely beautiful landmark there is the “Zuraw” a medieval crane that was also hit during the war but reconstructed to be the only of its kind in the world and is an enchanting sight reflecting on the harbor water by day and night.
6. EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND:
Edinburgh is bold and charming with it’s castle fortress and royal mile with lots of shops that also gets invaded by all sorts of characters once a year during the “Fringe Festival” the largest arts festival in the world.
7. VENICE, ITALY:
Venice , the city of 100 islands with no roads or cars. One could wander the narrow streets along the canals for ages and always come around a turn to a new hidden courtyard, cozy cafe, and of course souvenir shop loaded with delicate and intricate Venetian carnival masks. The Piazza San Marco (St. Mark’s Square) is always a buzz for the perfect photo op with the world famous Venetian pigeons.
8. VIENNA, AUSTRIA:
Vienna, the city of music, boasting residents like Mozart & Beethoven, it’s not surprising that even still Vienna seems to always have a song playing as you wander the cobblestone streets.The city feels very royal with its stunning palaces and gardens.
9. PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC:
Prague, is a perhaps best known for it’s view over the city with richly red covered roofs and once you walk the old town you’ll find an interesting mix of architecture from Medieval to Baroque with some epic Gothic churches scattered in-between. Of course, you’ll have to take in the view of the city from the St Charles bridge as well.
10. BUDAPEST, HUNGARY:
A grand city upon the blue Danube, Budapest filled with neo-classical, renaissance, and baroque buildings with loads of charm. The royal palace is indeed a sight to behold.
So, are you ready to book your flights to one of these charming cities?!
Perhaps we can comprise a PART 2 one day because we feel awful having not included some amazing towns like Stockholm, Paris, Dublin, etc! We compiled a list of our TOP 10 of places we’ve been to that we think are the most quaint, now we want to hear YOURS!
Bye For Now,
-It’s A Charming Life
