Best ways to see Europe :-

1. By Trabant, Berlin, Germany :
This boxy, growling, twostroke auto proliferated in the Eastern bloc pre1989. When the Wall came down many easterners fled to the west in their Trabis, their transport to a new world. Now you can relive some of Berlins most poignant moments in one of your own: guided fleets of sprucedup Trabants tour the capital, from Checkpoint Charlie to littleknown excommunist hangouts. Commentary is piped in from the lead car upfront while you steer your own piece of history.

2. By PostBus, Switzerland :
A big yellow coach doesnt sound very glamorous, especially in a country bursting with elegant lake steamers, timely trains and vertiginous funiculars. But dont discount the humble PostBus. Operated by the Swiss mail system, these functional vehicles provide the missing link, connecting tiny or hardtoreach communities that would otherwise be near impossible for carless travellers to access. Take Meiringen (where Conan Doyle dispatched Holmes over the nearby Reichenbach Falls): in summer the yellow bus squeezes along the narrow, 2200m Sustenpass to deliver letters and mountainlovers to the town, a great base for striking out into the hills.

3. By canal boat, France :
Life slows down on the waterways of France. Once allimportant for transporting goods and connecting settlements, today canals are the peaceful back roads. Rent a houseboat and set off , mooring at pretty villages and negotiating an écluse (lock) or three perhaps buying some homemade mustard from the enterprising lockkeeper as you pass. Most impressive is the 240km Canal du Midi linking the Med with the Atlantic, built in the 17th century to avoid Spains pirateinfested waters. Gorge on cassoulet in Castelnaudary, creep through the Malpas Tunnel and explore Carcassonnes medieval splendour, all without exceeding 6km/h slow travel at its best.

4. By train, everywhere :
Rails have never been more romantic: a vast web of tracks spider the continent, linking evocative cities, delving courageously into mountain valleys and trundling out to rural backwaters. Chug from Parisian boulevard to German castle to Greek acropolis in a few short hops, discussing pop and politics with locals though not at the expense of superlative window gazing. The ultimate journey is the Orient Express. Not the flashy (and pricey) tourist train the original, though shortened, Orient Express service still runs under that name from Strasbourg to Vienna. Book a couchette for a historic (if jiggly) nights sleep.

5. By Vespa, Tuscany, Italy :
Twisting, empty roads skirting rolling fields of vines and cypress trees, hilltop tumbles of houses and bell towers, and you so chic as you glide by on a shiny Vespa. La dolce vita, indeed. Tuscan back roads are ideal for exploration on Italys national vehicle: scooterpace enables you to exchange buongiornos with passing farmers, to sniff wildflowers and maturing pecorino, and to delve into cobbled town centres, off limits to cars but accessible to twowheeled travellers. String together wow cities such as Siena, Florence and Lucca with country detours; the lesserknown pootle between San Gimignano and Volterra is one of the best.

6. By ferry, Norway :
Its taken millennia for Norways coast a succession of glaciergouged fjords stretching up into the Arctic Circle to look this good. Take to the water to appreciate the drama: 1300mhigh rock walls, waterfalls and remote fishing villages can be accessed by ferries. For the full picture board one of the Hurtigruten fleet: coastal express boats delivering travellers, villagers, parcels and pickled herring to tiny communities along the serrated shoreline every day of the year, be it glorious midsummer or northernlightsflashed midwinter. Disembark for hill hikes or simply watch the fjords float by.

7. By caravan, Ireland :
Theres something appealing about cramming into a gaily painted traditional Irish caravan, harnessing a stocky horse and rolling off across the Celtic countryside at a sedate 6km/h. These retro wagons have been trundling for 150 years though todays nomadic Irish Travellers have upgraded to lorrypulled fiberglass versions, you can hire a curvedroof wooden replica. A few quick lessons in horse care (oats for one end, shovel for the other) and youre clopping along lanes, admiring loughs (lakes), finding deserted beaches and stopping off at pubs en route for the craic, a Guinness and a dash to the loo (caravans are heavy on atmosphere, light on plumbing).

8. By foot, everywhere :
Free, green and a good way to earn pizza/wurst/tapas credits, exploring by foot opens up any countrys nooks and crannies. Get lost in the great cities: Parisian alleys, Roman backstreets and London parks all reward transportshunning wanderers. On a grander scale, follow one of the continents mammoth walking trails: there are 11 official longdistance routes. Try the E7, which snakes for 4330km from the Portuguese Spanish border to Nagylak in Hungary. Or perhaps the E1 4900km through Sweden, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland to Italy. If youre serious about really seeing Europe, this is the way forward. Just pack comfy boots.

9. By bicycle, the Netherlands :
The Netherlands: 20,000km of fietspad (cycle paths) and a high point of just 322m possibly the perfect place to get on your bike. Take a spin alongside Amsterdams canals, then head out into the countryside: wend between Frieslands interconnected lakes, investigate the polders and oldschool fishing villages of Noord Holland or pedal through the forests and sheep fields of the Drenthe region, where hunebedden (ancient stone graves) lay scattered by the paths. To get away from it all (not easy in this densely populated nation) steer towards the Veluwe: villages are scarce, trees plentiful and wild boar and deer your cycle mates.

10. By seakayak, Croatia :
There are more than 1000 islands scattered off the Adriatic Coast of Croatia, outcrops bearing olive groves, tavernas or uninhabited wilderness. Conveniently for paddling explorers, many are clustered close together, so its possible for even beginners to glide from one to the next with relative ease. Just a 40minute ferry ride from Dubrovniks Old Town walls, you can be kayaking the Elafiti Islands: dont miss a glass of the locally pressed wine of Sipan and the beaches of Lopud. Or cast off in Kornati National Park, a cluster of 140 rugged islands, where there are more buzzards than people.