Europe Roadtrip

roadtrip europe breakdown

This is Pascalcito standing in front of the broken car whilst our Europe Roadtrip.

The Breakdown

My buddy Pascalcito and me had a great Idea. Our plan was to go on a Europe Roadtrip from Zürich to Barcelona. Visit a handful of cities on the way and then along the coast through Cannes, Nice, and Monaco.

Excited for this adventure we hit the road early in the morning. After driving a couple of hundred meters the engine started to make strange noises. Suddenly Pascalcito couldn’t speed up the car anymore, so we took the next exit. On the first traffic light we stopped white smoke appeared in front of us, puffing right out of the bonnet! Was this the end of our Europe Roadtrip?

We couldn't wish for a better start. We called the breakdown service. After a short investigation we had the bad news: the engine is bust.

Called a taxi and headed to the airport in Geneva. As you might know taxi prices in Switzerland are tremendous. We payed 230 US dollars to get from our break down location to the airport, which already is probably more expensive than flying directly to Barcelona.

Anyways, the only car left was a spacious family-van. We loaded the van with our luggage and went back on the road with no plans at all.

The Europe Roadtrip video

I filmed along the way and made a short film of our adventure, on the roads to Barcelona. Don't forget to subscribe to my Youtube Channel

Annecy

After an hour drive we stopped in a city called Annecy. This lovely little town is situated close to Geneva right by the lake “Lac d’Annecy” named after the city. after a turbulent start we slowed down and strolled through the beautiful old town. Cobblestone streets leading along old facades with wooden balconies stocked with flowers.

lake annecy

annecy old town

europe roadtrip perfspots

annecy things to see

annecy castle

Nîmes

After four hours of driving we stopped in Nîmes, a city in the south of France. We were on the hunt for a restaurant to have dinner. After a good pizza prosciutto we explored the roman old town with its monuments and the impressive Arena.

nîmes things to see

nîmes old town

nimes france

Montpellier

The first city we really took our time to explore it for a few days because we were surprised by it’s pleasant atmosphere in the streets, delicious restaurants and fantastic architecture.

montpellier things to see

brunch montpellier breakfast

university montpellier

montpellier old town

Arc de Triomphe montpellier

Girona

We made it over the spanish borders and dove right into a catalonian city called Girona. There is a river flowing through the city, crossed by several bridges and accompanied by colorful houses stacked on each other right besides the river. We tried to get up the city murals where you have a breathtaking view on the roofs of Girona.

 

girona things to see

girona old town

girona city wall

Calella de Palafrugell

Last but not least we had a stop in this lovely little town. Sunbathing in the bay of Calella, having a typical spanish paella and simply enjoying the goodlife.

 

 

 

callela de palafrugell

paella spain

calella de palafrugell beach

calella de palafrugell boat

WE MADE IT

A week of driving, exploring and having amazing meals, we made it to Barcelona. We were super excited to explore the city, parked the rental car and checked in to the hotel. more to come…

I hope you enjoyed this adventure with us on the road to Barcelona. The moral of the story is that even if we plan things properly, it can go wrong, nevertheless it's important to keep your cool. There is always a way and sometimes spontaneity can surprise you with great things in life.

Here is the video of our time spend in Barcelona: