Europe off the beaten track- holiday ideas?

[Minitoots]

Summer holiday advice wanted! We're looking for somewhere away from the crowds by the sea in mainland Europe for a relaxing and cheap(ish) self catering holiday. We've had some great long-haul off the beaten track holidays in the past but want to try something nearer to home - any suggestions? We can go from around 14th July or later for 2 weeks.

[EDmummy]

Montenegro? Haven't been there myself but read an article last year which said it is still a very new destination to tourists but breathtakingly beautiful with great beaches. The only downside I found was the price of flights. The best thing would be to fly to Croatia and drive down. Some of the holiday apartment websites (Holiday Lettings etc.) have apartments advertised.

[snowboarder]

Andalucia? The cOsta de la luz is lovely, we went late June one year and really not that busy. Tarifa is lovely, and the costal towns like Conil are nice. We stayed in a really small village called El Palmar. Not too far from Cadiz for a city day. Lots of kite surfing!

[womanofdulwich]

Norway is so beautiful there are no crowds, its not cheap , but not expensive unless you drink alcohol!!The scenery comes free and its so uncommercial, go now before it gets too busy. :)

[Minitoots]

Thanks for the ideas so far - we'll look into them - keep them coming in! thanks.

[cupatea]

Will second Montenegro. Went there on honeymoon. We booked a cottage through someone like Owners Direct. Def go early July tho. We went in August and it was as busy as anywhere in Europe. Fly into Dubrovnik and hire a car as I think car hire is also cheaper plus greater choice of flights. Dubrovnik is def worth a visit too tho busy all year round. Other off the beaten track places in early July - northern Portugal, parts of Corsica or Sardinia, smaller Greek islands, Swedish archipeligo (sp?), or other lakeside places like Slovenia?

[EDmummy]

Cupatea, we have the same tastes! Swedish Archipelago (no more than 40 mins to an hour out of Stockholm)is probably one of the most truly beautiful and peaceful places I have been to. Make sure you get a speed boat in the holiday cottage deal and you are totally sorted. We even swam in the Baltic Sea (not for the faint hearted even in summer).

[sophiechristophy]

Another vote for Norway.

[hislordship]

Not mainland, but we went to the Azores (the remotest you'll get in Europe I think) a couple of years back, and will definitely go again. I don't think there are any direct flights, so all in, it takes almost a day to get there, esp. if you go to one of the smaller islands.

We rented a little farmhouse, and hardly saw anyone for 10 days. Sensational and unusual scenery, sub-tropical climate and absolutely nothing happening. Bliss.

[mockney piers]

Sarajevo, beautiful place. Porto, so much nicer than the algarve (lots of lovely port too).

Finland, Helsinki is lovely then all the lakes and forests outside.

Anywhere in Bavaria. The dolomites if you like walking.....

Blimey choice is endless.

[Yak]

I'd third the suggestion of Montenegro. We flew into Dubrovnik on cheapy flights with WhizzAir. Hire a car and turn right out of the airport; drive for 45 minutes and you're in Kotor Bay - one of the most beautiful in the world, accordingly to UNESCO. There aren't that many sandy beaches, though, if you're into that kind of thing. They're mostly shingle, but that applies to most of the Adriatic coast. We got a great self-catering apartment with Rent Montenegro, run by a Montenegro / English couple. Most of the tourists tend to be Russian. Currency is Euros and about a third cheaper than Croatia. It's not far (and not hard) to drive down into Albania, either.

Malta/Gozo would probably be too hot in July/August, but north Corsica is lovely that time of the year. You can get decent flights into Bastia and then there's plenty of choice of holiday accommodation in Cap Corse, which tends to be less crowded than the fashionable South. The Corsicans love babies and also love the English (on account of the fact that they're not mainland French or Italian, which account for the bulk of the tourists).

I've only been to the interior, but I hear great things about the Bulgarian Black Sea coast. Again, certainly cheap and welcoming (or it was the last time I was there).

Another option would be the northern tip of Denmark - I've not been but I think there are supposed to be some amazing deserted white sandy beaches there.

And definitely avoid going in August, if you can. July or September is much, much nicer.

I now have seriously itchy feet again....oops:)) PM me if you'd like to borrow some guide books!

[Minitoots]

We're getting a nice little 'Europe off the beaten track' going here! Someone else has suggested Lithuania - anyone been there?

[Minitoots]

Any more suggestions?

[Saffron]

Ok, it's not seaside, but the river is very nice: Basel, Swizerland. The main Rhine is clean and good for swimming (mostly floating!), but it's deep and also rapid. Better for children would be one of the tributaries. I'm thinking of one in particular near where I used to live, which has wide grassy banks, good trees for shade, and shallow areas good for childrens' swimming.

Tickets to Basel are usu fairly cheap b/c it's not a main holiday desitnation for Brits. EasyJet flies there, so do British Airways and Swiss Air. The older population in Basel tends to speak German/French, while you find the younger people speaking German/English.

Public transport in Basel is great. Public transport all over Switzerland is great infact. You're only a couple hours train ride to the lakes and mountains for hiking etc. Since Basel is on the border with France and Germany, you're also a short trainride away from many other lovely small towns with distinctly different characters.

I have friends living in Basel. If anyone is interested, I'd be happy to put you in touch.

xx

[Minitoots]

thanks for that, Saffron - another interesting idea. We don't mind if our destination is not by the sea as long as there is a river or lake that is clean and warm enough to swim in!

[Minitoots]

Hi Yak, We're still on our holiday hunt so I'd love to borrow some of your guide books if possible - I'll PM you too.

[Minitoots]

All the suggestions so far have been great but flights to most of them are either fully booked or too expensive this time.We've found cheap flights to Lanzarote but can't really see if we'd be able to get away from the crowds if we went there - has anyone been to the less touristy areas?

[Yak]

Ooh if you go to Lanzarote you could hop over to the island of La Palma (NOT to be confused with Las Palmas which is on Gran Canaria). La Palma is a tiny island and full of loads of fauna and flora and as far off the beaten track as you can get in the Canaries. I think you may be able to get flights from Lanzarote and / or a boat in high season, if that's still when you are thinking of going. We had an amazing holiday booked there but due to the Great Snow of 2008 (or was it 2009?) we never made it.

This website will give you some ideas

http://holiday.islalapalma.com/

[????]

Snowboarder gets my Prize. Costa Da Luz is fantastic - family friendly, slight indie vibe, and near....and cheapish and great weather and you can visit Seville/Cadiz. I LOVE TARIFA especialy but further up the coast plenty of family friendly places and no sky high Costa de Sol stiff

[????]

Snowboarder gets my Prize. Costa Da Luz is fantastic - family friendly, slight indie vibe, and near....and cheapish and great weather and you can visit Seville/Cadiz. I LOVE TARIFA especialy but further up the coast plenty of family friendly places and no sky high Costa de Sol stiff

[Jo'sEnglish]

Albania! Where else in Europe can you get a deserted mediterranean beach? The people are friendly, hardly any tourists and it is cheap. You can have beach, historic towns and lovely countryside.

Alternatively, find a less popular Greek island, they will also be grateful for any tourists at the moment. I can recommend Ikaria.

Getting itchy feet now.... :)

[snowboarder]

Yep can't wait to take our boys to Costa de la luz when they're a bit bigger - the beaches are just fab. All we have to look forward to this year is a week in Suffolk in september - which seems ages away!

[DagmarJ]

The North Sea islands in Germany are beautiful, and an easy drive away. Some are car free. Obviously no sun guarantee which is a bit of a set back. Germany's biggest island is Ruegen in the Baltic which you can also drive to, but probably with a stop over. The German and Danish North Sea coast has beautiful beaches generally, and is generally not too busy.

I'd second the Swiss rivers idea - haven't been to Basel but the Ahre in and around Bern is a fantastic river to float and swim in, can be very cold though still in Summer.

[lillyanginger]

Minitoots,

how about a flight to Munich and time around the truly beautiful lakes and castles in Southern Bavaria. Or holiday around the Mondsee in Austria, near Salzburg. Even though...by now you are hopefully already somewhere lovely.

But maybe for next time...

We visited Bern (Switzerland) and while I can understand people suggesting it, we found it SERIOUSLY expensive. Lovely, but far too much money for what I consider very average 'goods'.

[Minitoots]

I started this post last year, and now we're looking for the same sort of ideas for this this year - any new suggestions?