The richness of a European road trip: a fourteen-day, 3,000-kilometer ride to Italy via France, Belgium, Germany, Austria and Switzerland is like a modern version of The Grand Tour

Fifty kilometers into Belgium, I wonder if we might regret our hasty decision to drive all the way to Lucca in Tuscany, via Heidelberg and Tyrol, and back via Switzerland – a 3,000 kilometer round trip.

As a child, I was afraid of endless car rides. But it was nice to be able to talk to environmentally conscious friends: ‘Oh no, we’re not flying, we decided to go by car.’

But our main motive was not virtue. It was the freedom of driving and getting a feel for the changing landscapes, architecture and languages ​​of Europe that you simply don’t get when flying straight to Pisa.

And now I am converted. I can’t believe how much you can do and see in just under a fortnight if you travel by car. You get four consecutive mini holidays in four countries.

In the age of navigation, sturdy car suspension, playful air conditioning and the ability to listen to the novel of your choice on Audible, long road trips in the cocoon of one’s own car have become a pleasure. It helped that I married a man who really loves driving, so I was the passenger for all those 2,000 miles and only had to deal with the anxiety of every automated toll and parking barrier.

A good start is to cross the channel on a weekday evening (no crowds) with Le Shuttle and drive 160 kilometers, first laying your head on a pillow, far into Belgium. That’s the springboard. Choose the cities of your choice in Central Germany, Western Austria, Italy and Switzerland. We chose Heidelberg, Wattens in Tirol, Lucca and Interlaken, all about a six-hour drive from each other, and we stayed for three days in each.

Traveling by car brings you into contact with the contrasting delights of Europe: Heidelberg Castle glows in the sunset, as seen from the Philosophers’ Walk on the River Neckar; the medieval house with a golden roof in Innsbruck; the way Austria magically merges into Italy after crossing the Brenner Pass; the gloriously wide ramparts of Lucca; the dazzling ride over a high pass in Switzerland, cowbells ringing and waterfalls flowing on all sides.

The trick is to set aside whole days for the trip and leave after breakfast, so that you wander off to the next place in the late afternoon, eager to stretch your legs and nice and hungry for dinner.

Ysenda says traveling by car connects you to the ‘contrasting delights’ of the continent. In the photo above right you can see the Swarovski factory in Wattens and below left Heidelberg – two stops on their journey

Dinner after our arrival in Heidelberg was unforgettably good – in the courtyard of our charming little hotel, the Alte Brucke, next to the 18th century bridge of that beautiful university city. It was the schnitzel experience of my life.

We also went to an evening concert by Brahms, Mozart and Ravel in the romantic castle ruins of Heidelberg. The next day we visited the university’s old student prison, where high-born scholars from the 1890s and 1900s were held for drunkenness, leaving funny graffiti on the walls. That’s a must-see, along with the pretzel markings on the walls of the Heilig-Geist-Kirche (Church of the Holy Spirit): 1770s regulations for standard pretzel sizes, varying each year depending on the size of the harvest.

That first glimpse of the Alps as you drive through southern Germany towards Austria is a special sensation if you have driven overland from Belgium at sea level.

We chose Wattens in Tyrol because my mother, now 90 years old, was born there in 1933 and she and her parents had to flee to England as Jews in 1938. We found the Stolperstein (brass plaque with their names on it in the pavement) outside the house they had hastily abandoned a few months after the Anschluss.

“It was the schnitzel experience of my life.” That’s what Ysenda says about an ‘unforgettably good’ dinner she enjoyed in Heidelberg (above)

Ysenda went to an evening concert by Brahms, Mozart and Ravel in the romantic castle ruins of Heidelberg (photo)

Wattens is not as famous or architecturally beautiful as the nearby Hall of Innsbruck, but just a gentle Tyrolean, going about its business, while the paper factory where my Hungarian-born grandfather worked is still going strong, with the Alps as a backdrop. No wonder my mother still says, “I miss the mountains.”

The Goldener Adler hotel put us in a room with a covered balcony under the eaves, from which we could admire the mountains. Peach prosecco and dinner at the chic Das Grander restaurant were the perfect post-ride relaxation.

I didn’t expect to be so impressed by Swarovski Crystal Worlds, located on a spacious site next to the factory for which Wattens is famous. It is a multi-sensory journey through dazzling art installations inspired by the crystals.

We further drove towards Italy. After the Brenner Pass (altitude 1,400 meters) you still see a few pointed spiers and Austrian-style chalets, but soon the churches become Romanesque and the roofs are tiled in red.

Ysenda was amazed at the way ‘Austria magically turns into Italy’ after crossing the Brenner Pass (photo above)

Ysenda visited Interlaken in Switzerland, ‘beautifully situated between two lakes’

Ysenda’s room in Interlaken (above) was at the Hey Hotel, where rooms cost from £212

Driving time: Ysenda and her husband Michael

On our detour in San Zeno di Montagna, above Lake Garda, the friendly, older people running the bar gave us a plate of delicious fried zucchini. We were in Italy.

A few hours later, after passing Bologna, we drove through the medieval walls into Lucca, guided on the phone by the hotel owner through small pedestrian streets to the family-run Hotel La Luna. The first evening we walked 4.3 km around the red walls: children on bikes, dogs taking us for a walk, all enjoying the cool of the evening.

Dinner on the terrace of the Trattoria da Giulio was a treat, as was in the vaulted cellar of the Buca di Sant’Antonio, both after days exploring Lucca’s gardens (potted lemon trees in the Palazzo Pfanner) and enchanting streets . and climbing the tree-lined bell tower to enjoy beautiful Tuscan views.

On day three in Lucca we drove half an hour to the coast at Villareggio. Access to the beach is via one of the many beach clubs: €30 for an umbrella and a locked booth, well worth it. Immersing ourselves in the Mediterranean felt like truly arriving at the farthest point of our journey.

The next day we headed home. After the 11 km long Gotthard Pass tunnel, our navigation system took us on a hairpin bend route over a 2,000 meter high pass into the snow and down to Interlaken, beautifully situated between two lakes, with the snow-capped Jungfrau mountain. glittering behind. All you need to do here is get a Jungfrau rail pass so you can get on and off any cable car or local train.

While stopping in San Zeno di Montagna (above), which sits above Lake Garda, Ysenda and her husband enjoyed a plate of delicious fried zucchini

While in Lucca, Ysenda and her husband explored the gardens of Palazzo Pfanner (photo above)

This was our last mini-vacation: breathtaking drives along the mountains, from one beautiful place to another, including to the top of the roaring Trummelbach waterfalls, and a train ride into deep winter through a tunnel in the Jungfrau, ending in dense snow on the top. Then head back down for an evening meal of bacon, eggs and rosti in our friendly and trendy Hey Hotel.

You’ll be ready for Europe to flatten out again as you drive back to Calais, but you can take a break to pick up two crates of wine from E. Leclerc in Reims.

Before you know it, you’ll be riding through the North Downs on your way home, with your mind and soul expanded. We would do it all again.