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Eating a cornetto on a sandy beach as you tilt your parasol just enough to catch the shade. Walking along cobbled streets to lay eyes on a famous church or statue or bridge. A coffee outside a cafe that turns into an hour of people-watching. Does any of this sound familiar?
If you’ve spent time in Europe, chances are you’ve lived versions of these moments already. But there’s another way to holiday here – one that takes you to places you might not find on your own, alongside people you’ve just met, led by someone who actually lives there.
That’s the idea behind small group Intrepid trips. They take you beyond the sights you’d naturally end up at if you were doing it solo.
Here are 5 things you haven’t done in Europe yet* – but could.
*(And if you have… we’re impressed. Carry on.)
Cycling in Iceland with Intrepid
Tree hug and arctic cocoon in a Finnish forest
Visiting Santa Claus’s hometown doesn’t have to be entirely for the little ones. Much like a good children’s movie, Intrepid’s Finland Family Holiday ensures both children and adults alike get something out of the experience.
In Halipuu Forest – a conservation project designed to deepen people’s connection with nature – travellers on this summer family trip will take part in the Finnish practice of tree hugging and arctic cocooning. Wrapped in thermal sleeping bags and suspended gently between the pines, you’ll spend time slowing down in the stillness of the forest, learning why experiences like these have become part of Finland’s wider conversation around wellbeing and protecting the natural world.
Travel along the Transilvanica Trail in Romania
For many, Transylvania means Dracula, but there’s another side to the story. Designed to preserve and connect the region’s struggling rural communities, the Via Transilvanica loops through meadows and medieval monasteries.
If you grab a spot on Intrepid’s Hiking in Romania: Via Transilvanica Trail, you’ll still visit Bran Castle – long linked with Dracula – but the focus shifts to the trail itself. Hike part of the Via Transilvanica and experience the hospitality of people in small villages, with homemade lunches and a taste of local wine along the way.
Kayak through a fishing village in Iceland
There are a few well-worn routes travellers take through Iceland, the Golden Circle being the most popular. And with good reason: Gullfoss and Strokkur alone justify the journey, two of the country’s most dramatic natural spectacles.
Discover a lesser-known side to Iceland
But join Intrepid’s Iceland: Hike, Bike & Kayak trip and the familiar route opens out. You’ll still take in those icons, but you also drift into quieter corners, like the sleepy fishing village of Stokkesyri, seen from the water rather than the road. Paddle inland canals towards the sea, and you might spot a seal breaking the surface alongside you.
Sleep in a cave house in Spain
It’s no secret that one of Europe’s most-loved holiday spots is feeling the weight of all that love. With overtourism in Spain never far from the headlines, it’s important to consider how you’re showing up when you go – going deeper than the highlights and giving back to the local community there.
On Intrepid’s Highlights of Andalusia, you’ll stay in a family-run cave hotel after a 4WD adventure through Granada Geopark. With deep ravines, jagged cliffs and crumbling earth pyramids that stretch toward the sky, you’ll understand why this landscape is often known locally as ‘the end of the world'.
Have lunch at a working farm outside Rome
It was 2011 when Giacomo Lepri and seven environmentally minded friends started asking what a more sustainable future for Rome might look like. Today, that idea has taken shape on the city’s outskirts, where Giacomo and the Cooperativa Coraggio team have been managing a 22-hectare regenerated farm since 2015.
Have lunch at a working farm outside Rome
On Intrepid’s Paris to Rome by Rail trip, travellers visit for a cooking demonstration and lunch on the farm. Here, you’ll see the project at work in three ways: creating local jobs, growing organic produce for some of Rome’s best restaurants and offering a green space just beyond the city.
Ready to explore Europe differently? Choose from hundreds of trips on intrepidtravel.com. You can hold your spot while you iron out the details or turn your deposit into credit if you need to postpone. Read Intrepid's flexible bookings policy for more details.
