This trip is best for...
- Adventure seekers
- Dog owners (pup of course!)
- Walkers
- Hikers
- Cyclists
We’ve been lucky enough to be able to travel with Eurotunnel and Benji over the last few years, enabling us to travel to Germany (Cochem, Rothenburg, Eltz castle), France (Colmar, Annecy) and more recently Switzerland, too.
Getting there
We find Bruges is a perfect short stay/stopover and there’s plenty to explore. It’s only 1 hour and 20 minutes’ drive from Calais and all the hotels are beautiful. More importantly it’s a dog-friendly destination, for Benji, whereas we can enjoy the world-famous chocolate, waffles, fries – and not forgetting the beer! On previous trips we’ve also stopped near Reims, too.
What to do
We often travel with Eurotunnel and book our hotels as we travel. After stopping off in Bruges we headed for Baden Baden, which was our base to explore Freiburg, The Black Forest and Seebach. We went for a drive through the national Black Forest Route B500, a scenic high road.
When travelling from Germany to Switzerland we stopped at Rhinefalls - the most powerful waterfall in Europe! One of the best things about travelling in your car you can stop anywhere you want to take in the view.
Where to stay
In Switzerland we stayed in a hotel on a lake and explored Grintelwald - one of the highest mountains in Europe - Lausanne, Lungern (a natural paradise), and explored Lucerne.
This is one of the best things about travelling in your car, you can stop anywhere you want to take in the view.
What to eat
Food in Europe is amazing. In Bruges you must try the fries and curry sauce from the food stalls in the grand square and Flemish stew from restaurants throughout the city, not to mention the waffles and Belgium beer.
In Germany, there are famous sausages served in the market In Freiburg called Lange Rote – a traditional grilled sausage, which we shared with Benji! Black Forest cake is almost a must-try, which was first made in Treiburg.
Needless to say, when in Switzerland you have to have fondue. When visiting any parts of Europe, all food is amazing.
Our last tip: always drive to explore areas near to where you are, staying in Europe is beautiful.
You can follow Benji's European adventures on Instagram here!