The Road Trip Travel Blog
Rearview Mirror helps you plan independent trips across Europe, from well-known capitals to the smaller cities and scenic corners most travellers miss.
Find detailed road trip itineraries, honest city guides and practical tips drawn from nearly two decades of living and travelling across the continent. I've been based in France, Hungary and Albania, and spent years exploring Central Europe and the Balkans by car, train and on foot.
Whether you're mapping out your first trip to Croatia or looking for off-the-beaten-path routes through Romania or Poland, everything here is based on firsthand experience.
No press trips, no generic lists.
Not sure where to begin? Here's a quick guide to what you'll find on Rearview Mirror.
Where to Go: Browse my guides by country, season or month to find destinations that match your travel style and timeframe. I cover over 30 European countries.
Things to Do: City guides cover each destination's key attractions, local favourites and regional food worth seeking out and seasonal events you might not find elsewhere.
Where to Stay: Find neighbourhood guides that help you pick the right area to base yourself, plus boutique hotel recommendations I've personally stayed at and vetted.
Below are six of my most popular guides. They're a good place to start if you're planning a trip to Western Europe, the Balkans or Central Europe.
Every road trip guide is based on routes I've actually driven, most of them more than once. Each one includes a day-by-day breakdown with distances, driving times, suggested stops and tips on what's worth lingering over.
The itineraries are designed to be flexible. Use them as a complete plan or pick the sections that suit your trip. Most routes also work by train if you'd rather skip the car rental.
Find routes across France, Germany, Italy, the Balkans and beyond. Below are eight of my most popular driving itineraries to get you started.
Some of the best parts of travelling in Europe aren't the destinations themselves. They're the roads between them.
The Albanian Riviera is one of the most underrated coastal drives on the continent. The road hugs the cliffs above turquoise water, passing through small villages where tourism still hasn't taken hold. Further north, Slovenia's mountain passes connect Alpine valleys to the Adriatic in just a few hours.
In Western Europe, the Tuscan backroads between Florence and Siena wind through vineyards and hilltop towns that look exactly the way you'd hope. The French Riviera coastline is a different kind of scenic, all switchbacks and sea views between Nice and Monaco.
Germany's Romantic Road is one of Europe's most famous driving routes for good reason. It connects medieval walled towns like Rothenburg ob der Tauber with Bavarian castles and rolling countryside. Less well known is the Via Baltica, which runs from Poland through Lithuania, Latvia and into Estonia, covering a part of Europe most road trippers never consider.
Romania's Transylvania is another region that rewards driving. The roads between Sighișoara, Brașov and the fortified Saxon churches are quiet, scenic and steeped in history that goes well beyond the Dracula legend.
These aren't just scenic backdrops. Each route connects you to the culture, food and history of the region in a way that flying between capitals never will.
The Road Trip Travel Blog
Written by Andrea Anastasakis
PO Box 4049
Fitzroy Vic 3065
Email: [email protected]
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We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the land on which we live and work, the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation, and pay respect to their Elders, past and present.