Computing the optimal road trip across Europe


Published on March 11, 2015 by Dr. Randal S. Olson

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As a follow-up to my post about computing optimal road trips across the U.S., I thought it'd be fun to make a road trip map for Europe as well. If you'd like to get into the nitty-gritty of how these road trips are created, check out the first post.

Europe is a massive continent with a diverse mix of cultures, so there's no way I'm going to pick a set of stops that will please everyone. However, last year Business Insider published a nice article listing "50 Places In Europe You Need To Visit In Your Lifetime." These stops seemed like a nice mix of inner city exploration and outdoorsy fun from an eclectic collection of countries, so I made a map showing what an epic road trip across Europe hitting most of these spots would look like. (Some of the locations couldn't be reached by car, so I had to exclude them.)

europe-optimal-road-trip

Click here for the interactive version

In total, the trip covers 16,287 miles (26,211 km) and 14 days of driving, so expect to dedicate at least 3 months if you're going to take on this road trip. You may notice that eastern Europe is somewhat underrepresented in this road trip, so if you want the full taste of Europe, it'll be worthwhile to add some stops between Poland and Estonia.

Here's the full list of stops in order:

  1. Innsbruck, Austria
  2. Munich, Germany
  3. Pag, Croatia
  4. Venice, Italy
  5. Tuscany, Italy
  6. Florence, Italy
  7. Rome, Italy
  8. Vatican City
  9. Amalfi, Italy
  10. Gozo, Malta
  11. Dubrovnik, Croatia
  12. Santorini, Thira, Greece
  13. Rila Monastery, Rilski manastir, Bulgaria
  14. Istanbul, Turkey
  15. Sighisoara, Mures County, Romania
  16. Budapest, Hungary
  17. Vienna, Austria
  18. Prague, Czech Republic
  19. Krakow, Poland
  20. Jägala Waterfall, 74205 Harjumaa, Estonia
  21. Lapland, Finland
  22. ICEBAR, Marknadsvägen, Jukkasjärvi, Sweden
  23. Bergen, Norway
  24. Copenhagen, Denmark
  25. Berlin, Germany
  26. Amsterdam, Netherlands
  27. Keukenhof, Stationsweg, Lisse, Netherlands
  28. Edinburgh, United Kingdom
  29. Inverness, United Kingdom
  30. Ballybunion, Ireland
  31. Cliffs of Moher, Clare, Ireland
  32. Cornwall, England
  33. Stonehenge, Amesbury, United Kingdom
  34. London, United Kingdom
  35. Brussels, Belgium
  36. Paris, France
  37. Pamplona, Spain
  38. Lagos, Portugal
  39. Granada, Spain
  40. Ibiza, Spain
  41. Barcelona, Spain
  42. Luberone, Bonnieux, France
  43. Nice, France
  44. Monte Carlo, Monaco
  45. Interlaken, Switzerland

Make your own road trip

If you'd like to customize your own road trip, I've released the Python code I used in this project with an open source license and instructions for how to optimize your custom road trip. You can find the code here.

Happy road tripping!