Top 10 European Capital Cities in a motorhome

We often get asked which are our favourite cities so here's the top ten, roughly in order. The fact is that we like pretty much all of Europe's capitals so here goes anyway:

Budapest at night

Paris - we never fail to find something new to d however many times we visit Paris. We just feel drawn to the Eiffel Tower and it gives us a warm fuzzy feeling every time. Plus there are a few sites that are very easy to get to on the outskirts and you can just come in on the train.

Lisbon - although we have never been here in the van we flew in a couple of years ago and fell in love with it. It's relaxed, open and hot!

Stockholm - set on several islands on the archipelago. Packed with interesting museums and buildings yet very easy to navigate and lots of green spaces.

Surprising Zagreb

Copenhagen - lively and a bit touristy but fantastic architecture and easy to cycle around.

Ljubljana - the capital of Slovenia. Small and beautiful.


Bern - the capital of Switzerland. Also small and beautiful.

Vilnius - this one was a bit of a surprise for us as we didn't know what to expect from the capital of Lithuania. However, we found it to be much more charming than Riga and less commercial than Tallinn. Quite compact with a lovely castle on the hill overlooking the city.

Zagreb - gritty in places and not as touristy as all the others. Therefore worth visiting!

Vienna - simply overwhelming with a really handy campsite about 6 miles out on the banks of the Danube.

Copenhagen with emergency ponch

Budapest - similar feel to Vienna we thought and similarly spectacular with the added bonus of a city centre campsite about 3km out.

Wonderful Copenhagen

It's been a while since the last blog as we have just been away on our Summer In Sweden trip. We have blogged a lot about Sweden as it is one of our favourite trips. One of the additional benefits of visiting Sweden is that you pass very close to the Danish capital, Copenhagen.

View from the tower with the bridge in the background

In terms of logistics, Copenhagen is really easy to get to and there is a fantastic site called Absalon Camping, which is just off the motorway but only about 5 miles from the city. There are bus and tram stops nearby or you can cycle in on dedicated cycle paths. If you do cycle, you will find that there are hundreds of other people doing the same thing as the cycle paths criss-cross the entire city and are really well-observed i.e. you don't get people walking on them like you do in Britain.

In common with other capitals you really need a few days to get round it all, but even with just a day, you can get a really good flavour of the place. Our particular favourites are the Round Tower and the Cathedral, both of which are very close to each other, but you will find that just wandering the streets is a visual treat.

Last time we visited we searched in vain for the Little Mermaid and made a more determined effort to see it this time. We were glad of the bikes as it is a little way north of the main centre. It's only about 3 foot high and a bit of a disappointment to be honest, but that didn't stop it being the most popular attraction in the city.

Inside the Round Tower

You will hear lots of English spoken and the place does tend to fill with tourists from all over the world. Expect lots of Chinese, Japanese and Americans and if the cruise ships are in, the crowds swell even bigger. Having said that you can still find a quiet cafe or corner of a park to relax.

One final observation is the that Copenhagen is only a few miles from the Oresund Bridge that joins Denmark to Sweden. If you go up any of the towers and look east, you will see it on a clear day.