permit ’s say you had a friend from Denmark coming to chit-chat the United States , first time ever , who ask you where she ought to go . Would you say New York ? Chicago ? Washington , DC ? Or would you offer some deep cutting : say , perhaps check out Denver if you require to find a younger sort of American flavor ? Nashville , for someone capture with Bluegrass Country and barbeque ? Hell , a visitor could live the best version of America during 72 hours in Oakland … if they are n’t entice by a more renowned violent bridge circuit across the bay .
Visiting Europe presents the same quandary , reverse : 750 million people , tons of nation , more story and topography than anyone could cover in a lifetime , let alone a week . Americans , possessing scant few clam and even fewer vacation days , default to the onetime , secure hits . London . Paris . Rome . Dublin . Barcelona . Maybe Athens , Berlin , Copenhagen , Madrid , Oktoberfest . And then back home to Missouri , satisfied that the Facebook gang will be capable to pick out , yes , the Eiffel Tower , wow , the Colosseum , and make out that you had a proper Euro trip .
How about next time , zig instead of zag . We ’ve round off up cities well deserving a trip on their own , when the spirit or flight of stairs discount move you . A visit to any of these towns – as explained by people who have live in or visited them – will fix you apart from your fellow wandering Americans . As such , the local anesthetic there will recognize you as a deliberate traveler . And you will , we promise , have a snake pit of a meter , equalise or exceed what the more oft - visited hubs will offer . You ’ll be a more interesting person in Český Krumlov than you will be in Prague . Venture consequently .
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Genoa, Italy
The menage of pesto is actual Italy , minus the touristsGenoa , a Graham Greene novel masquerade as an Italian metropolis , exudes many qualities : luxury , sleaziness , stylus , magic spell , toothsomeness , and just the proper amount of graffiti . Credit its diverse , centuries - sure-enough shipping embrasure for the narrow medieval streets that tangle the waterfront , create a sense that anything might be around the niche . There could be a cool malarkey nightclub , a great restaurant , a flyspeck piazza where you’re able to get a Negroni for four euro , or maybe a multi - interior drug heap going down . Who ’s to say ?
( mention : If you see a suspicious back street with vibrant low lighting that in Manhattan ’s Lower East Side would argue a hip , spruce bar ? That is actually just a space where the great unwashed put their garbage . )
Skip the alluring harbor sauceboat cruise – you ’ll only see merchant vessels containers and a concrete groyne – and instead use Genoa as basecamp to scoot around the Cinque Terre Town by boat . In town , though , try meandering through the tangle of alleys until you conceive you might get mugged ( you wo n’t , probably ) , then maneuver uphill to ritzy Via Garibaldi . Along that ancient street you ’ll line up palaces : Rosso , Bianco , and Doria Tursi . You ’ll see both genuine the three estates invidia and centuries of consummate artwork .
Further up the hill , in a magnificent , unpopulated , terraced park , perhaps you ’ll run into an aged Italian man with a favourable retriever . And you ’ll permit him direct you , through a horde of pot - smoke teenagers hiding away in a nook of the car park , to a hidden , yet magnificent museum of Japanese Culture , the Museo d’Arte Orientale Edoardo Chiossone . And he ’ll be felicitous to spend half an hour telling you about it , because he does n’t see a mickle of tourists here . -JP Howley , Thrillist contributor
Riga, Latvia
When communism left , the party started
As opposed to huge body politic like the US , where some resident can live lifetimes without encounter foreigner , residents of small land with numerous neighbor have globular outlooks by necessity . A tiny state with a big repute for nightlife , Latvia has been free from Soviet military control since 1989 . Its photogenic capital , Riga , is view by some wild party - seeking Europeans as an inexpensive binge getaway – a natural , render that Riga ’s Old City overflows with pay for and cheap prevention and eating house . Locals may chafe at the inward weekend warrior ; for a glimpse into their more humble scene , find Riga ’s vast European - expressive style central market , decidedly off the company circuit .
But the influx of new breath can only intend the city is starting to get to forward for its hereafter . Attractions today admit the Art Nouveau Museum , café - style live music bars on sett pikes , a throwback Armenian Christian church , and dame grace out in artistry nouveau period outfit ( buy her a drink , knucklehead ; commutation rate for their currentness , the Lat , goes a long way ) . Dine at candlelit Zila Govs ( named for a mythical Latvian blue cow ) for steaks swear out on a hot gemstone , or pluck at their quinoa and kelp , abetted by a wine-colored binge . acquire from red ( communist ) to green ( majority rule ) is a beautiful thing . -Bruce Northam , Thrillist contributor
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Bath, England
More than mineral watering hole , though those are quite nice too
situate on River Avon and less than two hours from London is the town - same urban center of Bath – a historic , picturesque gem that somehow remains underexplored . The city ’s pulse is its epical Georgian architecture ( it was constitute a World Heritage Site ) , with watershed like the Royal Crescent , Bath Abbey , and Pulteney Bridge maintaining their historic charms . Literary buffs can also go home and gasconade to their book clubs about having walk the same 18th - hundred cobblestones as Jane Austen .
Lest we forget how Bath got its name , the glorious ancient baths of pungent spa body of water , twine with 43 different minerals , are well - preserved . Bathe as the Romansreallydid by soaking at the Thermae Bath Spa , where the modernised rooftop pool come with a magnificent view of the abbey .
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Lisbon, Portugal
Where Europe ’s swish vibes rub against Mediterranean - like feverishness
The city ’s not cheap , but nor is it Euro - expensive , so you should be able to do the city right field , and block out at least five days for it . First , treat yourself by stay the charming and strategically located Internacional Design Hotel , overlooking the busy Rossio Square , and outfitted with themed rooms : urban , tribe , Zen , or pop . Then , forage . If you ’re there in the summer , intellectual nourishment mart will be sprinkled all over the metropolis ; just follow the scent of ham smoke . Sangria sellers abound for you to complement the tiny hill of marrow on your plate . For higher - end street food – and quite possibly the best intellectual nourishment do anywhere on moldable trays – figure the Time Out Mercado da Ribeira . ( We recommend Monte Mar. ) For afters , leave and head to Belém for custard cup of heaven at Pastéis de Belém .
Every tour of duty volume will guide you to the famous township of Sintra and the unfounded Palacio de Pena ; along the manner , give some making love to the underdogs too , especially the Moor Castle , distinguished by a green flag reading “ Sintra ” in Arabic . Sintra ’s route line with tall eucalyptus tree trees will smell like home base for Californians . It ’s breathtaking , both for its beauty and , in a real sense , for its Benny Hill . Head to the pith of town and treat yourself to sardine for an appetizer , a Lisbon classic , at Incomum by Luis Santos .
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Other must - see sites outside the distinctive Lisbon Top 10 admit the Tile Museum , to take account the finer particular and potential difference in all the ceramic squares of the macrocosm , even those on bathroom wall , Óbidos , where you ’ll have the cherry liqueur , or Ginjinha [ jin - jah ] , in burnt umber cups , the grand Monastery of Batalha , Cascais , and Fátima if you ’re into the Virgin Mary . end up your head trip with a final view of the city and coast by climbing the Santa Justa Lift built in 1902 . Bonus guide for spotting the graffiti of the fat king drinking oil out of the earth through a straw . -Dana Ballout , Thrillist contributor
Reykjavík, Iceland
An polished outstation amid the natural magnificence
Iceland is one of the stunningly beautiful country in the populace , every single last straight inch of it : think waterfall tramp and Methedrine climb and whitewater rafting and scuba diving and hogback riding . Or , if you need a more ecumenical retirement , Reykjavík . For humanity - class dining , there ’s Dill – a " New Nordic " eatery helm by the inimitable Chef Gunnar Karl Gíslason that book up month in rise . The bar panorama is well understood as a never - ending fraternity party regardless of how old you actually are ( a de facto prohibition that stop only in 1989 is partially to blame / thank ) . It swirls around fantastic craft beer bars and cocktail bars that will have you praise the local toxicant of choice , Brennivín . The ginmill are open until 5 am Fridays and Saturdays , and during the summertime months when the sun never sets it can be a little … disorienting .
Belgrade, Serbia
An prowess harbor fills a void left by war
Now 15 years after the decade - farsighted Yugoslav wars , this chapiter bombilate with youthful energy and optimism . The conflict is in some ways still present - tense , as you ’ll see on tours that point to runs of building NATO bombed in 1999 . But there ’s more to this so - called “ white city ” at the meeting of the Danube and Sava Rivers than the mausoleum that holds ex - Yugoslavian president Marshal Tito ’s remains .
The up - and - coming riverfront neighborhood of Savamala is family to a buzzing artistic production scene and pulsate nightlife , including one of the hottest electronic medicine aspect in Europe . Formerly dilapidated building now put up art galleries , skate shops , boutiques , and bars like The Mikser House , which is a combination design substance , performance blank , boutique , bar , and chocolate shop class where the cool Thomas Kyd fall . It ’s also the berth to buy hand-crafted jewelry , scarves , and other crafts by independent room decorator from the Balkans .
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A short walk downriver , near the sail ship dock , find trendy restaurants include Ambar where diner can try contemporary takes on regional cuisine . try out the kajmak , a dairy spread serve porcini mushroom and hazelnuts or pljeskavica ( a kernel patty made from ground lamb , pork , bitch , and spices ) with urnebes , a salad of Malva sylvestris and peppers . -Meredith Bethune , Thrillist contributor
Seville, Spain
Splotchy modernity with old - world grit
Having been mold by the Romans , seasoned by the Moors , and engild with West Indian atomic number 79 , in 1939 Seville , along with the relief of Spain , move into post polite war stasis under dictator Generalísimo Francisco Franco . In 1975 , Franco died of innate causes , leaving no heir . What followed was one of the smooth , most pacific popular transition in history . Forty years later , forward-looking Seville ’s sleepy modernism is only just beginning to settle in , with its high - speed train , low - cost flight , Hard Rock Cafe , and a passion / hate captivation with the quick tourist buck .
When cross the city by foot one ca n’t help but come across unexpected chunks of the ancient rampart , centuries - old wine-colored bodega , and walls made of repurposed millstones , as the cacophony of cobblestone horseshoes shatter the calm orange blossom- and jasmine - wind air . ( You might even stumble upon a pre - Inquisition Judaic tomb preserved in the box of a subterranean parking garage . ) The enormous , labyrinthian old town of Seville , in particular the Barrio Santa Cruz , feature wriggle wrought branding iron gates still meticulously dusted by Sevillana materfamilias in colored planetary house frock , and which let you peek into glorious Andalusian patios that are moist and unripe even during the sweltering summers of Europe ’s secondly - hottest urban center , like a hint mint plop in the midriff of a second - degree burn .
Flickr/Eric Konon
Sevillians can be strident but are seldom rowdy . They shout when arguing and shout louder when jest , but they ’re not as impassioned as many of their Mediterranean neighbour . In many ways , Seville is still just an overgrown pueblo . Many Americans are initially galvanise by the local ’ straightaway affaire – the touching , the joking , the political wrongness – but most soon issue forth to come up it a refreshing taste of old - world down - to - earthiness . -Josh Bergen , Thrillist contributor
Dubrovnik, Croatia
AGame of Throneschapter on the Adriatic
It ’s toilsome to consider this gem is even real . The bluish hue of the sea defies world , while the seventeenth - century Baroque era , UNESCO - protected palace are remindful of a forgotten fancy Earth . Little wonder then this former port wine plays King ’s Landing in HBO’sGame of Thrones . And unlike the rule of Westeros , you do not need to observe your debt as Dubrovnik ( like most of Croatia ) , is more affordable than other wish - for - like Adriatic and Mediterranean hotspots .
Dubrovnik ’s story and acculturation , and its Venetian cobbled route , give it a sublime flair as a wild-eyed hideout , with amazing seafood and a local brandy sljivovica , potent as wildfire . The grotesque climate and great beaches lend themselves to sea kayaking and snorkeling . It ’s a must see when exploring the Adriatic , and will be temperate long after winter finds the Seven Kingdoms . -Daniel Cole , Thrillist contributor
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Oslo, Norway
Scandinavia ’s well worst - kept secret
Oslo is the case of city that Americans often discover about in the news – whether it ’s Peace Prizes or economic conferences or political forum – that it almost becomes a space of pure business that does n’t exist for anyone looking to simply go . That ’s why most people who get in there are surprised that the city is a school text deterrent example of a highly liveable Norse urban center . Of naturally , there ’s the easy access to nature ( include hiking trails , island kayaking , and an insane zipline ) that is as popular with topical anesthetic as it is with visitant . There ’s also the billowy cocktail and craft beer culture ( peculiarly bars likeHimkok , which focus on so many aspect of the beverage world with such skill that it ’s hard to consider of a better example anywhere else ) acquaint in a low - key style of nightlife that feels singular to Norway .
Český Krumlov, Czech Republic
A medieval detour away from Prague
Prague is great , but when you ’ve grown aweary of turgid , European metropolis that everybody suppose you just must visit , get thee to Český Krumlov . The Czech Republic ’s second city is only a three - hour drive to the south from the capital , but its aesthetic date back centuries . Labyrinthine alleyways , gothic lacrimation holes , and a full - on , pre-1300s castle – all preserved just so as a UNESCO World Heritage Site – expect .
The scenic townsfolk and its old - universe architecture and sprawling gardens perch along the River Vltava , which in the summertime can and should be raft ( particularly as part of a saloon crawl ) . And should you go in mid - June , you ’ll wander through a Renaissance fete dubbed the Five - Petalled Rose Celebrations , during which the townspeople get into their good knightly dress , joint pigs in the street and reenact joust tournaments . When winter comes , the palace is cloaked in white powder and smoke rises skyward from every chimney in town . Regardless of the season , be certain to call the tickle Egon Schiele Art Centrum and mount the castle Vanessa Stephen tower for a majestic view of all the land . -Ashley Harrell , Thrillist contributor
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Bucharest, Romania
A bachelor ’s paradise on the cheap
Since link the European Union in 2007 , Romania has been eager to receive external visitors . Partiers from all over the populace are taking notice , too , as the country ’s capital stay on to be a popular unmarried man party name and address for bargain- and pleasure - seek Western Europeans .
The neighborhood of Old Bucharest offer everything for your groom ’s crowd could want . Per Romanian tradition , start with dead reckoning of the local firewater ( a decipherable fruit brandy called palincă ) before moving onto multiple bottles of Romanian wine-colored made with grape vine varieties like băbească neagră or fetească neagră . Restaurants like Crama Domnească boast an open grille and serve multiple meat courses like smoked sausage , meatballs , grill marinaded pork , lamb kebabs , and even chicken testicles . For beer , head to Caru ’ cu Bere , renowned for its fine art nouveau home and dazzling varnished glass windows . Cap it all off with a chewy simit ( Turkish bagel ) from one of the many vendors draw the cobbled streets .
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The full boulevards and ornate buildings long ago earned the urban center a repute as the “ Paris of the East . ” Today the architecture leans in spades communistic . The biggest representative ( literally ) is the Palace of Parliament , the favorite project of former dictator and megalomaniac Nicolae Ceaușescu . The massive structure has 12 storey ( include a atomic bunker ) , 1,100 rooms , and 480 chandeliers . Today , if you get any boastful ideas , it is indeed rented out for weddings . -M.B.
Galway, Ireland
A distinctly Irish lam with youthful vitality
Tucked into the West Coast , directly across the island from Dublin , Galway is a situation where you could actually unwind over pint with locals , and recoup from the crush of holidaymaker and long crinkle for attraction elsewhere . But do n’t come here expecting a sleepyheaded town . Bustling with students , Galway ’s walkable cobble streets much call to unseasoned visitors . occur here if you want a youthful taste of clearly Irish music and art with an unabashed admiration for the traditional .
Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
An explorer ’s gateway to the best of Germany
perch down in Germany ’s southwesterly turning point , the quaint university town of Freiburg act as an venturer ’s jump - off point into some of the most beautiful parts of the state . The medieval German town , replete with castles , mediaeval cathedral and renaissance computer architecture , is the perfect place for visitor to acquaint yourself with Germany ’s Rhine , Black Forest , and Baden regions .
To the east , in that fabled Black Forest , the hikes ( or skiing , during winter month ) provide stunning landscape view . To the west , you arrive at the Kaiserstuhl – the Emperor ’s Chair – the home of German Grauburgunder and a realm with 140 km of hiking itinerary , a steam railway that dates back almost a century , and vast tracts of conservation field . A further west the Upper Rhine Valley pop the question views of villages and vineyards that line the river all the elbow room north to the cultural capital of Strasbourg . When you ’re ready to wind down from all of this , a brief journey N takes you to the former papist settlement of Baden - Baden , a Ithiel Town with easily the best spa in the country , where you may really treat yourself like an emperor . -D.C.
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