Road trips in Europe: From Athens to Prague

Road trips are a great way to travel in Central Europe, driving along small, winding roads and getting to know also more remote corners of countries. In this post we introduce our route from Greece to Czech Republic through Italy and Austria, including a ferry ride from Patras to Ancona, sightseeing in several historic cities, tasting Chianti Classico wines in beautiful Tuscany region and hiking in the mountainous northern Italy.

As you may know, we left our dear travel companion, loyal Nissan Tiida, in Athens in early February, to travel in Cyprus, to go for a “work&holiday” in our home country Finland, and to explore Portugal. After all those travels, and when we were back from our sudden adventure in Siberia in late May, it was time to rejoin with the car (thanks Rencha and Kavan for keeping an eye on it!) and begin a new road trip in southern and central Europe.

We had an appointment, or well, more a gig trip, with our former orchestra from Finland scheduled in Prague in mid June. This meant that we had only a bit more than two weeks time to drive from the capital of Greece to the one of Czech Republic. It would have been a nice option to drive through Balkan countries again, but we soon realized that it would make no sense; too much driving, not nearly enough exploring. So we checked out the options to shorten the ride by crossing the Adriatic Sea to Italy.

Ferry from Patras to Ancona

The first option that we considered, was to cross from Bar in Montenegro to Bari in Italy, but that route would have meant a long drive through Greece and Albania to Montenegro first, and driving basically through the whole Italy from south to north. To save more time, we ended up driving to Patras in Peloponnese and taking a longer ferry route all the way to Ancona in central Italy.

The ferry we chose was Anek Lines Superfast XI, that left from Patras at 5:30 pm, and the arrival time in Ancona was 2 pm the next day. It was easy to book and pay the tickets online. It’s advisable to book straight from the ferry company website, since tour operators sell the tickets with a bit higher price. Our ferry ride cost 89 € for the car and 68 € per passenger, without a cabin. Check-in is done in the port office, and that can be done several hours in advance. So if you’d like to do some sightseeing or have a lunch in Patras, it’s possible to first drive to the port office (which is not far away from the center) and do the check-in, spend the day in the city center and drive back to the port for boarding.

The boarding itself was quite a hassle. First we weren’t even sure from where we should enter the port area. After asking around we then just drove together with trucks through the gates that are in the north end of the port. Getting through was straightforward, we just showed the tickets and opened the trunk for quick inspection. There was no instructions given on where to drive from the gates, so be sure to check the names of the ferries if there are more than one! Queuing to the ferry was a total disaster, as no-one knew where to wait and when to drive, and the unloading of the ferry was still in action. Maybe it was business as usual in a Greek port, but for us it looked insanely disordered.

Anyway, we finally managed to drive in the ferry and park in one of the car decks. When leaving the car, take into account that the car decks are open only when the ferry is docked, so take everything you need during the night with you. As said, we didn’t take a cabin, but slept on the deck, using our camping mattresses and sleeping bags. There were several other people doing the same and the crew didn’t seem to mind, so apparently it’s allowed to do so. The night was clear and the morning was sunny, but before reaching the coast of Italy we sailed through a thunderstorm with heavy rain, violent winds and lightning. It looked fierce, but luckily the sea wasn’t very rough. We arrived in Ancona couple of hours late of the schedule, and drove roughly 100 km north to Rimini.

Rimini, an old-time beach favorite

Knowing that the beaches of Rimini and Riccione are mostly package holiday destinations, why would two backpackers, who favor off-the-beaten-path places, ever go there? Well, it’s close to San Marino, and we managed find a very affordable hotel from there. Plus, Toni had made his first trip abroad there as a kid, back in the 80’s, so it was kind of a throwback in the memory lane also. But yes, Rimini is one of the most popular beach towns in Italy, with 15 kilometers long sandy beach and countless hotels, resorts and tourist restaurants. It has been popular for decades, and the beach is full of sunbeds, endless lines of them from Rinimi to Riccione.

Early June is not the busiest time of the summer, but there was a lot of tourists in the area already, most of them elderly people. We didn’t go sunbathing, but made morning runs along the beach streets instead. We spent a day exploring beautiful San Marino and visited the Rimini old town. It seems that most of the tourists that come to Rimini focus just on the beach and use the services provided there, skipping the actual town. It’s a shame, since the Rimini old town is gorgeous, with history dating back to 3rd century.

Unfortunately Rimini was under heavy bombing and badly destroyed in WWII, but the historical center has been largely restored. The main sights of Rimini town include the Tempio Malatestiano cathedral, the Augustus Arch, that was build to celebrate the Roman emperor by the same name, the Sismondo Castle from 15th century and the palaces around the main plaza, Piazza Cavour. There are also some museums, and walking streets with cafes and restaurants. So even if popular beaches are not your thing, consider stopping in Rimini old town when traveling in this part of Italy.

Related post: Castles and hiking trails in San Marino

From Rimini to explore Tuscany

Drive along small roads from Rimini on the Adriatic coast to Florence in the heart of Tuscany truly is scenic, with green hills, small picturesque villages, majestic stone churches and endless lines of vineyards. Tuscany region is known as one of the most beautiful areas of Italy and it holds architectural treasures, Renaissance art and World Heritage sites. Some world famous wines are produced in Tuscany, and the traditional cuisine is based on slow cooking and simple but high-quality ingredients.

Coming from Rimini, we drove along small roads over a low mountain ridge, past Parco Nazionale Foreste Casentinesi in between Emilia Romagna and Tuscany regions. When turning to SR70 towards Florence we noticed a castle up on a hill, and made a spontaneous stop in a small town of Poppi. With it’s charming, walled old town up on a hill and the medieval castle, Poppi was a very positive surprise.

We had only few days to explore Tuscany on our way north, so we focused on Florence and surroundings. We stayed couple of days in small town of San Giovanni Valdarno, southeast from Florence, partly focusing on work but also enjoying the Tuscan landscapes. We also got a wonderful chance to visit Colle Sorripa winery in San Casciano del Pesa, Chianti wine region. This small winery produces high-quality Chianti Classico wines, among some other products. Chianti area south from Florence is home to iconic Tuscan landscapes, so if you have your own wheels, don’t miss a Chianti road trip. Chiantigiana Road SR222 is probably the most famous road for this purpose, winding among hills full of vine and olive grows.

Related post: Wine tasting with a view in Tuscany

Florence, city of arts and architecture

The capital of Tuscany is at least as gorgeous as the scenic region around it. Florence is home to some masterpieces of art and architecture, and considered as the birthplace of Renaissance. The historic center of the town is a UNESCO World Heritage site and often ranked as one of the most beautiful cities in the whole world. All this draws huge amount of tourists to admire the city throughout the year. In this road trip post I won’t even get started talking about the sights of Florence, as the list is overwhelming, and there are endless amounts of travel articles written about it already. Our visit included a sightseeing tour in the historic center, walks along the river banks and iconic bridges, and climb up to Piazzale Michelangelo with awesome views over the old town.

For those who arrive in Florence by own car, you should take into account that parking can be tricky in the city center. There are not that much parking places in general, and hotels can charge a lot for private parking. Part of the street side parking lots are reserved for residents only, and others are with an hourly charge, so overnight parking is pretty expensive. Also, the accommodation prices in Florence are relatively high, so staying outside the city center and visiting it on day trips using public transportation is a recommended option, at least for budget travelers.

Via Ferrara to the mountains in north Italy

Northernmost Italy is all about mountains and lakes, offering breath-taking scenery and a playground for all outdoor enthusiasts. The mountain regions can be roughly divided into Italian Alps, Dolomites and Western Julian Alps. When leaving Florence behind, we chose to drive towards Italy along smaller roads through mountainous landscapes.

Before reaching the mountains, we stopped for few hours in Ferrarra old town, that is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This historic city is home to several Renaissance palaces, that were built when it hosted the court of the House of Este. The historical center is surrounded with handsome stonewalls, and the surprisingly wide streets are lined with stone buildings. The castle, Castello Estense, that dates back to year 1385, has a moat and a drawbridge. A passageway leads from the castle to 13th century Palazzo Municipale. Other sights include a gorgeous cathedral, more palaces and few museums. Ferrara is worth of at least a day trip, and it would have been nice to stay a bit longer also.

We stopped for the night in the town of Arzignano, from where we found a very nice and affordable Airbnb room. We had a long hike somewhere near Lake Garda in mind, but as we also needed to work, we had to leave that out of the itinerary this time. Instead we made a short day hike from Arzignano to the trails near a small town called Bolca; it was nice exercise, but didn’t offer that much to see. To enjoy the mountain scenery of North Italy, we drove northeast using roads SS51 and SS52. These small roads go past natural parks, next to the sharp peaks of Dolomite mountains and turquoise mountain lakes. Driving along these roads is of course slower than along motorways, but the scenery is jaw-dropping.

Gemona del Friuli and summiting Mt Chiampo

We spent the last couple of days in Italy in Gemona del Friuli, a small town along Tagliamento river. The town is surrounded with mountain peaks both west and east, and thus an excellent base for hikers. We stayed in a camping area just next to the town, and made a rewarding, long day hike up to the summit of Mt Chiampo.

Related post: Day hike to Mt Chiampon

Through Austria to Czech Republic

Mountainous Austria offers endless possibilities for outdoor sports year around. Long-distance hikes in Alps are something that we’ll definitely do one day, but so far our travels in this beautiful country have been more about driving than trekking. Back in 2015, when we were on a road trip in Central Europe, we had hiking in mind, but the weather in Austria was cold and rainy. This time we hadn’t much more luck with the weather, and not enough time for hikes anyway.

We drove from Gemona along SS13 through Tarvisio, and crossed the border in Coccau Valico. In Austria using highways requires buying a vignette, but we once again decided to use only smaller roads, to be able to enjoy the views on the way. We headed towards Linz, planning to stay the night in a camping area close to the town. However, as the site seemed full and noisy, we continued a bit further north still, and camped near Freistadt, just about 20 km from Czech border.

Ceske Budejovice

As there was still couple of days left before the reunion with our orchestra in Prague, we headed to České Budějovice, to get to know this capital city of South Bohemia, and the home town of famous Budweiser beer. We set up our camp in a camping site by Vltava river, next to a water sports center. We noticed that there was a great cycling route following the river to the city center, and as we still happen to have our roller skates in the trunk of our car, is was a great chance to use them. Exercise combined with some sightseeing once again.

The old town of Budějovice is built around a huge central square, called Ottokar II Square. There are well-preserved buildings from different architectural eras, like from the Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque. It was a pleasure just walk around the lively town, that is small enough to be explored on foot. There are some nice cafes and restaurants with outdoor sitting areas in the center, and also on the islands just next to it. At the time we visited, there was a city festival ongoing, with some kind of rowing contest for teams and park concerts.

Arriving in gorgeous Prague

Prague, the capital of Czech Republic, is a wonderful destination for few days city-holiday. We visited Prague for the first time back in 2006, and at least once after that also. I’m not going to get started with listing the sights or things to do in Prague here, but the city is full of historic buildings, monuments, statues, great restaurants, museums, squares and parks.

When arriving in the city with your own wheels, take care that your accommodation has parking lots for guests. Otherwise it can be a bit complicated to park in the city center. There are garage services available, but those in the center are quite expensive for longer stays. We decided to book a place from a garage few kilometers out of the center, and then used metro to reach our apartment in the city center.

How do you feel about road tripping in Europe? Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments