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There’s so much to be mentioned for touring to Europe throughout the summer season.
Long days, a lot of sunshine, and a vibrant environment make summer season the preferred time of yr to journey to Europe’s hotspots.
But there are three extraordinarily well-liked locations that I’ve visited in each summer season and winter — and I discovered winter to be the perfect time to go to by far.
Those three cities are:
- Venice, Italy
- Dubrovnik, Croatia
- Barcelona, Spain
These locations have a number of issues in widespread: the height season for visiting is in the summertime, they’re all extremely well-liked locations that draw tens of millions of holiday makers annually, they’re all notoriously costly, they’re all well-liked with cruise ships, and so they’re all affected by overtourism.
Here’s why winter is definitely the perfect time to journey to those trending European locations.
Venice, Italy
Venice is one in every of my favourite cities in all of Europe. It’s really magical and enchanting, with its breathtaking structure and lots of of bridges and canals.
During the summer season months, although, visiting Venice can really feel like visiting an overcrowded theme park fairly than a historic metropolis. The crowds have gotten so dangerous that Venice will soon implement a visitor fee of 5 euros to enter town on peak days.
But Venice within the winter is a totally totally different story. The crowds are almost nonexistent, and though the climate could be chilly and overcast, it provides to the moody, mysterious environment of town.
Winter can be the perfect time to go to for decrease costs, with common resort costs dropping greater than 50% in comparison with the summer season months.
Dubrovnik, Croatia
Dubrovnik is a surprising historic metropolis on the Adriatic Sea, well-known for its walled Old Town. This is a vacation spot that has been exploding in reputation in recent times, with the summer season of 2023 ushering in a new tourism record for Dubrovnik.
Like Venice, it is a metropolis that has been struggling immensely from excessive crowds and overtourism. Dubrovnik has additionally seen skyrocketing costs up to now few years, particularly after formally becoming a member of the Schengen Zone and adopting the euro as forex at the start of 2023.
Winter is my favourite time to go to Dubrovnik as a result of there are only a few vacationers, and you may get pleasure from actions like strolling the City Walls with out shoulder-to-shoulder crowds.
It could also be too chilly to go to the seaside or go swimming within the Adriatic Sea, but it surely’s nonetheless sunny and gentle, with common temperatures within the excessive fifties throughout the winter.
Barcelona, Spain
Finally, Barcelona is one other European hotspot I desire visiting within the winter in comparison with the summer season.
While there are definitely execs to visiting Barcelona in the summertime — you’ll be able to go to the seaside, there are many concert events and festivals happening — there are additionally loads of cons. Summer in Barcelona could be unbearably scorching, and every little thing is extraordinarily crowded.
This is as a result of Barcelona is a significant cruise port, so cruise vacationers flood town in the summertime months (very similar to Venice and Dubrovnik.) It’s additionally peak season for tourism basically.
But Barcelona may be very a lot a year-round metropolis, so there’s no scarcity of issues to do throughout the winter. You can get pleasure from all that town has to supply with far fewer crowds and decrease costs. Plus Barcelona has a Mediterranean local weather, so even throughout the winter, temperatures are sometimes within the low sixties.
Surprisingly, Barcelona can be an excellent vacation vacation spot. I love town throughout the Christmas season, particularly on Three Kings Day on January sixth, when there’s an enormous parade.
European Hotspots Best Visited In Winter
Overall, Venice, Dubrovnik, and Barcelona are three European cities I positively desire visiting throughout the winter in comparison with the summer season.
In the winter, you don’t need to take care of big crowds, costly costs, or extraordinarily scorching climate. You can get pleasure from these locations with out the hordes of cruise ship vacationers and benefit from decrease low season costs.
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This article initially appeared on TravelOffPath.com