My Favorite Top 12 Experiences in Europe

By Hank Schrader, USMA ’71, Europe Destination & Europe River Cruise Expert

www.dreamdestinations.com

Wow, do I miss traveling to Europe!!! I hope it returns soon—we have a river cruise scheduled in December—I sure hope we get to go!

As I sit at my desk writing this during a pandemic, my mind can’t help but wander on what great experiences we have had in Europe.

So, this week I’d like to talk about my 12 favorite experiences traveling in Europe.

No. 12. My first trip to Europe in 1971

After graduating from West Point on 9 June 1971, I went with a classmate to Europe for 6 weeks. Armed with a Eurorail pass, a bunch of American Express Traveler checks and a backpack, we went on a tour of the most famous places in Europe—Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Hamburg, Heidelberg, Munich, Madrid, Vienna, Venice, Rome Nice, Paris and London.

In a way, it replicated most of the old Grand tour of Europe that the nobility often took. I fell in love with Europe and still can’t wait to return—it all started with that trip!

**Post Card I sent my parents. On 24 July 1971 I was on top of the Eiffel Tower.**

No. 11. Our First River Cruise

There is no doubt that I was stunned after taking a river cruise in 2009 on AmaWaterways. It changed my perception of how great travel could be. The Moselle River and Main River voyage through the heart of Europe will always be one of my favorite travel experiences.

**What a surprise—Hank ordering wine on our first river cruise in 2009**

In 2015, we led a group to this wonderful part of Germany and will return when we can.

No 10. Our tour of Croatia and Ireland

There may not be a 2 week period where we learned so much about Europe in depth as those two weeks in 2010. What a complete contrast—a Balkan country and an Irish Island. My two favorites—Dubrovnik, the pearl of the Adriatic, and marching in the St. Patrick’s Day parade in Sligo.

**Hank and Anne ready to march in the Sligo St. Patrick’s Day Parade**

**A quick pint with some Leprechauns after the parade**

There can also be no better time than drinking pints in a Dublin pub just before the Ireland Scotland test rugby match during the Six Nations test matches.

**Dublin Koehoe’s Pub before the Ireland Scotland Rugby test match**

No 9. Our Celebrity Cruise in the Mediterranean

Seeing part of the world of Greek islands, Ephesus, Israel and the highlight for me Istanbul was an adventure beyond belief. The spice market, the Hagia Sofia and Topkapi Palace were thrilling. I also remember walking hand-in hand in Ephesus with Anne, just like Anthony and Cleopatra did thousands of years ago.

No 8. Our Route of Wine Traders Azamara Cruise.

Sailing from London to Spain along the coast on the western edge of Europe was special. My favorite part was a visit to Sintra in Portugal to see Pena Palace and Sintra National Palace. At the end of the cruise, we went to Granada and visited the Alhambra. Later on that same trip, we visited Carcassonne, the largest walled city in Europe.

No 7. Our 2 Baltic Cruises

This fascinating part of Europe is best understood from the importance of the Baltic Sea for development of the modern world of Scandinavia and northern Europe. The two standouts for me—Estonia’s Tallinn Old Town walled city and Peterhof Palace in St. Petersburg. I also liked seeing all the Scandinavia capital cities and visiting Berlin.

No 6. Our British Isles Cruise

Sailing to Ireland and around most of England and Scotland is an experience not to be missed. Sharing pints in numerous pubs, visiting castles in Scotland and buying custom made kilts in Edinburg made this trip so memorable.

**Kilt Factory where our custom made kilts were made**

No 5. Our Danube River Cruises

We have sailed on the Danube River 6 times. The second longest river in Europe has helped us explore a region that is so unique. Visiting Budapest and Prague, my two favorite eastern European cities, once that seemed so exotic and unfamiliar, now beckons us to return!

**Anne with Lazlo on our Blue Danube River Cruise on AmaWaterways**

Sailing the lower Danube to the former iron curtain countries was wonderful—this area was once closed off to me during the cold war and I just thought I’d never get a chance to explore this part of Europe. We ended that trip by staying in Brasov, Romania with visits to Peles Castle and Braun Castle. Who knew you could visit the Iron Gates, 3 capital cities and end up chasing a vampire myth!

No 4. Our Provence River Cruises

France is such a great country, so diverse and an amazing place to explore. While it is hard to pick one favorite place, I always come back to the Rhone. Wine, Roman ruins, home to the Pope for over 100 years and Lyon, the gastronomical capital of France, are just some of the reasons these trips are special.

Tournon Wine Tasting.jpg — **Hank and Anne Wine Tasting**

Perhaps best of all, we met our travel chums, Denise and Mark on our first cruise in 2013 and now we travel together whenever we can.

**Our travel chums. Captain Dany, Denise and Mark**

No 3. Guiding Our Friends and Clients in Europe

There can be no better feeling than helping others learn more about Europe. We strive to help them see great sights, remove hassles and share great times together. We have helped folks visit with us guiding Amsterdam, Brugge, Ghent, Prague, Budapest, Paris and London

No 2. Leading 2 D Day Tours

There is probably more work related achievement that compares with the privilege of leading 2 groups on our D Day tours. My military background, coming from a family where my Dad fought in Europe in WW II and the responsibility of helping folks understand the D Day invasion, has challenged us and taught us a lot about how to make our participants understand what a debt we owe to those brave men who changed the course of history on 6 June 1944.

No 1. Sharing Europe with Anne.

It is hard for me to image what our Europe travels would be without each other sharing our trips since 1989. There are just too many to mention but several stand out in my mind—our cooking class in Wales with Angela Gray for Anne’s 60th birthday; hiking to Burg Eltz in March, after basing in Koblenz; Christmas markets river cruises on the Rhine and Danube; buying hats in Regensburg; traveling with our travel chums to share Christmas in Kastel Englenburg; waking up in 1990 in Baden-Baden to learn Germany had won the world cup with a street party right in the square below our window and finding Brugge, our favorite European city. Paris, Rome and London, including our visits to the Cotswolds, were also special. I know I have missed many others but we look forward to more adventures.

**Anne, Santa and Hank at Christmas Dinner**

**Anne, and Hank with our new hats in 2019**

My Final Thoughts

I know this list is not complete—I’m sure I’ve missed something wonderful. Makes you want to go to Europe, doesn’t it!

We would like to thank those of you who have trusted us for their travel needs and we look for to help you again and anyone else in the future who might need our help.

When you are spending your hard-earned money for a vacation, you want an advisor who can match you with the right trip. You want someone who will understand your expectations and fuel your anticipation (or excitement) to get you the best possible trip experience. And, you want someone who can help you with the decision making process. We think we have all these qualities.

Whatever your Dream Destinations are, we are here to help you get the best possible vacation based on what is important to you! We will provide you high quality, expertly planned travel. Please give me a call 713-397-0188 (Hank) or email me at hschrader@dreamdestinations.com. We want to help you: Savor life…make memories…Visit Dream Destinations! Your journey begins here!

HANK is a certified Western European Destination Specialist (DS) who has been traveling to Europe for 49 years. He is also an Accredited Cruise Counselor (ACC), conferred by the Cruise Line International Association (CLIA). This recognized expert in cruise and leisure travel is a retired Army Officer, and taught World Geography for 8 years. He is a `71 graduate of West Point and has earned 2 master’s degrees. His other Certifications:

AmaWaterways River Cruise Specialist
Viking River Cruise Specialist
Scenic River Cruise Specialist
Emerald Waterways Specialist
Avalon Waterways Specialist
Brit Agent

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