Dear friends, welcome to 2023! Before I dive into new travels (and there are many planned!), allow me to once more look back on 2022. It was the best travel year for me so far and I’ve seen so many different and amazing places that I needed to put the best of them into one separate blog.
Hope you enjoy it and find some inspiration for your future travels!
Whether these places were the most interesting, beautiful or special in a way, they will be remembered forever.
The Canary Islands
The Canary Islands are an archipelago off the coast of South Morocco. Politically, they belong to Spain and the EU, forming two distinct provinces: Santa Cruz de Tenerife & Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. They are of volcanic origin, situated in the North Atlantic Ocean and so far, it’s the most gorgeous place I’ve ever visited.
Practical information
Transport
- Aerial: The Canary Islands have 8 airports, not all of them are international but with local airlines CanaryFly and Binter, you can get from island to island in no time. From Central Europe, the flight to the Canaries takes approx. 4-5 hours.
- Ferry: you can totally get to the archipelago by ferry from Spain but it’s going to take a lot of time. But ferries can be ideal for switching between the islands, especially those closest to each other. With companies Naviera Armas and Fred Olsen, you can reach La Gomera from South Tenerife in an hour, and Gran Canaria from North Tenerife in almost two hours. The tickets were, if I remember correctly, between 40-70€ depending on the distance and the category.
- Bus connections: the islands have quite well-operating public transport, although it is a little wilder than in Central Europe and certainly doesn’t reach all the interesting places within the islands. In Tenerife (where I traveled by bus on almost a daily basis), you can download an app called Titsa, search for connections on Google Maps and get a Ten+ card that gets you a fixed discount on almost all connections. You can drive from the South Airport to Puerto de la Cruz in the North for 10€ (which is over 90 km).
- The best way of navigating through the islands is by renting a car. Although the prices have risen quite significantly in the last two years, it is still quite cheap, especially when sharing the costs with more people. Plus gas is cheaper in the Canaries than almost everywhere in Europe. I always rented a car at Cicar but some of the other good rentals are PlusCar or AutoRiesen.
Accommodation
The accommodation is getting pricier these days as the archipelago is getting more and more attractive. The most expensive places for accomodation are the south sides of Tenerife and Gran Canaria as they offer a beautiful and warm weather all year long. Still, they are cheaper than big Spanish cities such as Madrid or Barcelona. Other locations can get very cheap depending on the season, precise location and other factors.
Prices
Prices in general are not high in the Canaries. Obviously, if you’re staying in tourist hubs and do the general tourist stuff, it might get more expensive. But outside of those, you can eat and drink or even shop for cheaper as the Canary Islands have a very low tax. If you know at least the basics of Spanish, I recommend eating in one of the local restaurants called guachinche where you can get a full lunch with tapas, wine and dessert for as little as 10€.
Locations
The list of gorgeous and interesting locations in the Canaries could be endless, really. So I picked the top 10 and included links to articles I’ve already written so you can learn more about those spots and maybe find other ones.
- The Teide volcano, Tenerife – the highest mountain in Spain, the highest in the Atlantic, and the third biggest volcano in the world (if you count from the ocean bed). Read the full story of the climb to the top at night HERE.
- Porís de Candelaria, La Palma – the most remote settlement on the island, which is so hard to get I would never dare to go there alone. And especially drive myself. But the result is so stunning it’s got to be my favorite spot on the whole island.
- Cascada de los Tilos, La Palma – another beautiful spot, straight outta the Lord of the Rings. A beautiful waterfall surrounded by greenery where you have to walk through tunnels is just perfect. Read more about locations in La Palma in the blog post HERE.
- Tajogaite/Cumbre Vieja volcano, La Palma – since it’s one of the world’s newest volcanoes (erupted and grew in 2021), I was naturally curious about what it would look like. Still hot and de-gassing, with lava going through the middle of the road and covering 8% of the island with black rock, it was one of the strongest experiences. Find more about the volcano HERE.
- Roque de Taborno, Tenerife – the most beautiful hike in the island, in my opinion. 4 km round trip on a mountain ridge with Hawaii-like views of the mountains and the ocean. Read more about it HERE.
- Mirador de Balcón, Gran Canaria – an amazing spot with beautiful views of the shore of Gran Canaria and Tenerife in the distance. Read about a weekend in Gran Canaria with the best spots HERE.
- Finca Los Castanos, Gran Canaria – one of the northernmost coffee plantations in the world, Finca Los Castanos offers amazing first-hand experience on the process of growing and roasting coffee. You can read my article about this place on the European Coffee Trip website.
- Mirador de Chipeque, Tenerife – my favorite viewpoint in Tenerife, maybe even the whole archipelago. It offers beautiful views of the Teide volcano and the rare phenomenon of „the sea of clouds“ that the natural conditions create on the northern side of the island. See the list of my favorite viewpoints in Tenerife HERE.
- Playa de Las Teresitas, Tenerife – The most beautiful beach in Tenerife, although very windy. Beautiful, yellow sand imported from Sahara, palm trees growing straight from it, and a mountain behind. See the full list of the best beaches in North Tenerife HERE.
- The canyon of Masca, Tenerife – one of the most hardcore hikes, but probably the most beautiful valley on Tenerife. Full report HERE.
Bosnia & Herzegovina
A beautiful, wild country located in the center of the Balkan peninsula, with a turbulent history and stunning nature. Going there, I didn't expect to fall in love with it so fast and in such an intense way.
Practical information
- Transport
a. Bosnia and Herzegovina isn’t in the EU, so it’s important to remember to bring your documents with you. If you’re coming with your passport, you’re very likely getting a stamp on it 😉
b. You can fly directly to Sarajevo or to Tuzla from Vienna – it’s 2hours ride from Sarajevo but the flights are much cheaper. There are buses operating between Sarajevo and Tuzla.
c. It might also be nice to drive by car to Bosnia since it’s the most convenient way to get around. If you can’t, you can always rent a car there. The gas prices are below average in Europe. - Data – since Bosnia isn’t part of the EU, the cell connection is very expensive. I advise you to buy a tourist SIM card with data and use that instead of your own. It could cost you a lot.
- Accommodation – I was staying at my friends‘ place in Sarajevo, but did a little research for you: the average price for a decent Airbnb in Sarajevo, for a week in July for two people is between 20-40€, in Mostar, it’s a tiny bit more expensive but still appears very cheap to me.
- Safety – Bosnia & Herzegovina is a safe country at this point, except for some areas which might still be infested with landmines after the war in the 1990s. These areas are always marked and I highly advise you to take this threat seriously.
- Prices – The one thing that seemed expensive to me was tap beer. Except for that, everything is very cheap. What was surprising for me, though, is that although you’re in a Slavic country (and Slavs are famous for drinking alcohol a lot), many establishments don’t offer alcohol at all in Bosnia.
Locations
I only spent 6 days total in Bosnia, hence my offer and knowledge of this country are much more limited compared to the Canary Islands. But what speaks for itself is the fact that every place I visited was absolutely amazing.
- Sarajevo – the capital is obviously a must-see when in Bosnia. With its turbulent history and a long-lasting mixture of different cultures, it’s one of the most intriguing cities I’ve ever been to. Read my post about Sarajevo HERE.
- Mostar and its surroundings – the most popular tourist hub in the country, thanks to its UNESCO-registered bridge and close proximity to a popular Catholic shrine Medzugorje and the border with Croatia.
- Skakavac waterfall & Borovik mountain – just a few kilometers away from downtown Sarajevo, you can admire the beautiful power of nature. You can read about Skakavac and Mostar in my blog post HERE.
- Lukomir – a tiny, picturesque village at the end of the world. My friends and I spent a night there and were rewarded with the most beautiful colors of autumn nature and the amazing hospitality of the locals. A full report of our trip there to be found HERE.
- Kravica waterfalls – I don’t have any blog posts written about this place since I visited it a long time ago. With close proximity to Mostar and Croatia, it is a beautiful sight and a swimming spot. But be ready for a very cold water, even in the middle of summer.
Czechia
Funnily enough, I haven’t written much about my own country. But I guess it’s normal, isn’t it? So what if I just promised to write more about the spots I visit in the future and just gave you generally known tips for now? 😉
Practical information
- Transport – you can get literally anyhow to Czechia. Well, except by ferry as we don’t have sea access. The most convenient is probably to fly to Prague or any of the other, smaller airports (Brno, Ostrava, Pardubice), or to take a train or bus. Getting a car is a good way of moving around the country but there is a very dense net of well-functioning public transport so you can get pretty much everywhere by bus or train. And it’s been cheaper recently as the gas prices went totally mad in the past few months.
- Accommodation – If you’re coming from Western Europe, Czechia is going to feel very cheap for you. And that includes accommodation. Prague is probably going to feel average but the rest of the country is just going to be cheap.
- Prices – although the latest inflation made it feel super expensive for locals, you’re still going to be suprised by how cheap some things are, especially beer. In some places, you can get the highest quality tank Pilsner for less than water!
Locations
- Prague – I don’t even have to mention that. Our capital is so beautiful that you can often find A-class movie crews filming in the streets, and many tourists from all around the world touring the old town and there is no wonder. Prague has the biggest castle complex in the world and beautiful, cozy old town that looks straight outta fairytale.
- Brno and Moravský kras – second biggest city in the country located on hills. The city center is small, but full of cozy and hipster establishments, and above the city, you can see two dominants: a cathedral and a castle. Close to the city, you can find the biggest karst area in the country, with multiple stunning caves open to tourists.
- Rock formations of Český Ráj and Adršpach – natural beauty that can be found in movies such as the Chronicles of Narnia is awaiting in the North of the country. Huge rock pillars creating mazes show the astonishing beauty of our tiny country.
- Český Krumlov, Kutná Hora & Olomouc – beautiful architecture, old towns, castles and cathedrals. These towns have it all. I spent a weekend in Olomouc and wrote a post about it HERE.
- Krkonoše & Jeseníky – two highest mountain ranges in the country, located on the northern border. Green forests, cold streams and snow in winter make it a popular holiday destination for locals.
- South Moravia wine region – sometimes called the Czech Tuscany, this region produces pretty much all of Czech wine. Bonus: old castle ruins, wine cellars, castles, a lake and many viewpoints.
Would you like to travel to any of these locations? To make it easier, I put together a map with all of the locations pinned, you can find it HERE.
Oooof, that was a lot, wasn't it? It might be the longest and most comprehensive blog post I've ever written and it took me 2 days to put it together. So if you liked it, I would very much appreciate it if you let me know!
If you have any further questions about any of the destinations or locations I stated, don't hesitate to leave a comment or send me a DM on Instagram.
Thank you and safe travels!
