Discover the best European city breaks
Your Weekend Starts Here
Whether you've got 48 hours or a long weekend, a city break can be the perfect reset. My guides cover everything you need to know: the top sights you have to see, the local dishes you have to try, and the souvenirs worth taking home.
I’m Janine and over the years I’ve visited some of the most vibrant cities in Europe. In my city guides I’ve pulled together the information you need to help you plan your own trips.
So whether you want to visit the Colosseum in Rome, go shopping in Paris or have a budget break in Prague, I'll show you exactly where to go, what to eat, and the best souvenirs to bring home.
Featured Guides - Autumn Picks
🌷 Amsterdam
Amsterdam packs an enormous amount into a compact city. Stroll past Golden Age mansions, explore world-class museums, and discover a diverse food scene that reflects Amsterdams history as an international trading port and gateway to new worlds.
🗺 Tours Worth Booking
Skip the tourist queues and see the city like a local. A guided canal boat tour gives you Amsterdam's skyline from the water, and the commentary is genuinely brilliant. For art lovers, a skip-the-line Rijksmuseum tour is non-negotiable. If you want something a little different, a street food walking tour through the Jordaan neighbourhood hits the sweet spot between sightseeing and eating
Top picks:
- Canal boat tour (evening for the best light)
- Rijksmuseum skip-the-line guided visit
- Jordaan street food walking tour
- Anne Frank House, book tickets weeks ahead
🍽 Local Cuisine
Amsterdam's food scene is wonderfully eclectic, but don't leave without trying the classics. Grab a haring (raw herring with pickles) from a street stall, it sounds intimidating, it's delicious. Order bitterballen (crispy fried snacks) at a brown café with a cold Heineken. And if you have a sweet tooth, stroopwafels fresh from a market stall are a completely different experience from the packaged ones at home.
Don't miss:
- Haring from Vishandel de Vrijer at the Albert Cuyp Market
- Bitterballen at any traditional bruin café
- Poffertjes (mini fluffy pancakes) with butter and icing sugar
- Indonesian rijsttafel, Amsterdam's colonial history shaped its food, and this feast reflects that beautifully.
🛍 Best Local Buys
Amsterdam is a brilliant city for picking up things you'll actually use. Head to the Spiegelkwartier for antique Delftware and vintage Dutch prints. The Albert Cuyp Market is perfect for affordable ceramics, fresh cheese, and local snacks to take home. For something a bit more contemporary, the Jordaan neighbourhood is dotted with independent boutiques selling Dutch design pieces.
Great souvenirs:
- Hand-painted Delftware (mugs, tiles, or small vases)
- Aged Gouda or Edam from a market cheese stall
- Dutch gin (*jenever*) from a traditional distillery
- Vintage maps or prints from the antiques quarter
⚓ Stockholm
Stockholm sits across 14 islands, and every single one of them is worth exploring. It's clean, it's gorgeous, it's effortlessly stylish, and it has some of the best design shopping in Europe.
🗺 Tours Worth Booking
The best way to understand Stockholm is to see it from the water. A boat tour through the archipelago gives you a completely different perspective on the city. On land, the old town (Gamla Stan) is compact enough to explore on foot, but a guided walking tour will fill you in on the Viking history tucked behind every corner. Culture seekers shouldn't miss the Vasa Museum, a 17th-century warship that sank on its maiden voyage and was salvaged almost entirely intact. It's extraordinary.
Top picks:
- Stockholm Archipelago boat tour
- Gamla Stan guided walking tour
- Vasa Museum (allow 2–3 hours)
- ABBA The Museum, genuinely fun even if you're not a superfan
🍽 Local Cuisine
Swedish food is having a serious moment, and Stockholm is where you taste it at its best. A traditional husmanskost lunch, usually meatballs, lingonberry sauce, and creamy gravy, is a must. For something more modern, the city's smörgåsbord brunches are a brilliant introduction to new Nordic cooking. And no trip to Stockholm is complete without a proper fika: coffee and a kanelbulle (cinnamon bun) at a classic bakery.
Don't miss:
- Swedish meatballs with lingonberry sauce at a traditional restaurant
- Fika at a cosy café in Södermalm
- Gravlax (cured salmon) on rye bread
🛍 Best Local Buys
Stockholm is a designer's paradise. The city is famous for clean Scandinavian design, and you'll find it everywhere from flagship stores on Biblioteksgatan to indie boutiques in Södermalm. Swedish glassware, particularly from brands like Kosta Boda, makes a beautiful gift. For edible souvenirs, pick up cloudberry jam or a tin of Swedish crispbreads from a deli.
Great souvenirs:
- Swedish glassware or ceramics (Kosta Boda, Iittala)
- Dala horse, the classic hand-painted wooden folk figure
- Cloudberry or lingonberry jam
- Design pieces from Södermalm boutiques
🏰 Prague
Prague might be one of the most beautiful cities in Europe, and it's still one of the best value, which makes it almost too good to be true. Gothic towers, baroque churches, and the kind of atmospheric old town that makes every photo look like a postcard.
🗺 Tours Worth Booking
Prague Castle is the obvious starting point, it's the largest ancient castle complex in the world and the views over the city are spectacular. A guided tour makes all the difference here; there's centuries of history in every room. For something more unusual, take an evening ghost tour of the Old Town, Prague's medieval past lends itself brilliantly to spooky storytelling. River cruises on the Vltava are also a lovely way to see the Charles Bridge and city skyline without the crowds.
Top picks:
- Prague Castle guided tour (book a guide, worth every penny)
- Old Town ghost tour (brilliant for a weekend group)
- Vltava River evening cruise
- Jewish Quarter walking tour, historically significant and deeply moving
🍽 Local Cuisine
Czech food is hearty, comforting, and very good value. Svíčková, beef sirloin in a creamy root vegetable sauce, served with bread dumplings, is the national comfort food and you should order it at least once. Wash it down with a half-litre of Czech lager, ideally a Pilsner Urquell or local Staropramen. For something sweet, trdelník (a warm, cinnamon-sugar spiral pastry) is sold at almost every market stall in the Old Town.
Don't miss:
- Svíčková with bread dumplings at a traditional Czech restaurant
- Czech lager at a local pub (not a tourist bar on the square)
- Trdelník from a street stall, hot from the oven is best
- Palačinky (Czech crepes) with fruit and cream for dessert
🛍 Best Local Buys
Prague is excellent for affordable, beautiful souvenirs. Bohemian crystal and glassware are the obvious highlights, you can find stunning pieces at much lower prices than you'd pay anywhere else in Europe. The Havelské Tržiště open-air market is a good spot for wooden toys, ceramics, and artwork. And for something edible to bring home, Becherovka (a herbal liqueur) makes a great gift.
Great souvenirs:
- Bohemian crystal glasses or a decorative vase
- Hand-painted wooden puppets or marionettes
- Becherovka herbal liqueur (available at the airport too)
- Czech garnet jewellery, the deep red stones are mined locally
🍺 Munich
Munich manages to be both cosmopolitan and deeply traditional at the same time. Oktoberfest is the headline act, but this city has so much more going on, world-class museums, a stunning English Garden, and a food culture that goes well beyond sausages.
🗺 Tours Worth Booking
The English Garden (Englischer Garten) is larger than New York's Central Park and the perfect starting point for any Munich visit, a bike hire tour through the park and along the Isar River is a brilliant way to spend a morning. For history, the Third Reich walking tour is sobering but important, covering sites connected to the rise of the Nazi party and the White Rose resistance movement. Beer hall tours are also genuinely informative, a guided introduction to the Hofbräuhaus and Munich's brewing history is far more interesting than just walking in and ordering a Maß.
Top picks:
- English Garden bike tour
- Third Reich historical walking tour
- Hofbräuhaus guided beer hall tour
- Day trip to Neuschwanstein Castle, one of the most iconic views in Europe
🍽 Local Cuisine
Bavarian food is rich, warming, and completely unapologetic. A Weißwurstfrühstück (white sausage breakfast with sweet mustard and a pretzel) is a local tradition you should experience at least once, ideally before noon, as tradition dictates. For lunch, Schweinshaxe (slow-roasted pork knuckle with potato dumplings and red cabbage) is the ultimate Bavarian comfort dish. And yes, you should eat it all in a beer garden with a litre of wheat beer.
Don't miss:
- Weißwurst breakfast at Café Frischhut or Viktualienmarkt
- Schweinshaxe at a traditional Bavarian restaurant
- Obatzda (a Bavarian cheese spread) with a pretzel and beer
- Cake at Café Luitpold, Munich's café culture is underrated
🛍 Best Local Buys
Munich is a great city for quality souvenirs that don't feel tacky. Traditional Bavarian clothing, Dirndl and Lederhosen, might seem like a novelty buy, but good-quality versions are genuinely worn here and make brilliant gifts. The Viktualienmarkt food hall is the best place for edible souvenirs: jars of mustard, Bavarian honey, and regional cheese. For something to drink at home, pick up a few bottles of local Weissbier or a bottle of Obstler (Bavarian fruit schnapps).
Great souvenirs:
- Quality Dirndl or Lederhosen from a traditional outfitter
- Bavarian mustard and honey from Viktualienmarkt
- Local Weissbier or Dunkel to take home
- Hand-painted Bavarian ceramics
Not Seeing Your City?
I've covered over 20 European cities, from Dublin to Bratislava, Barcelona to Vienna. Whether you're looking for the best beach cities, Europe's top foodie destinations, or the most budget-friendly breaks, there's a guide for you.