Travel: European road trip inspiration

Road trippin in Havana, Cuba

Since hiring a car in Portugal for a week, I've become even more inspired to get out on the road and explore Europe...I've always wondered whether this would actually work out cheap or if I would have to save up for months...Skyscanner have conveniently just released a list of petrol prices for the top 10 European holiday destinations and even researched the best value road trips (hooray!). A lot of people don't think about the petrol prices, even though this could seriously affect their trip and pocket!

Spain, with the best value for both car hire and petrol, is not surprisingly the best value country to visit for a road trip this year, with a 500 mile, week-long trip costing just £137 or £0.27 per mile. The same trip in Norway would cost 258% more, at £354 for the week long trip – or £0.71 per mile. Interestingly, Portugal is ranked as the second best value country to visit, despite having only the 4th cheapest petrol, due to its affordable car hire.

Road trippin in Iceland

The global travel site, which includes car hire, found it’s not just the petrol prices that vary across Europe – average car hire costs can be more than four times as much for a 7 day car hire depending on the country. 

Again Spain comes out top with the best value car hire at just £62.54³ for a week, closely followed by Portugal at £66.59. Comparatively Norway is yet again the most expensive with car hire coming in at £253.35 for a week (oookkk Norway....).

TOP EUROPEAN DESTINATIONS	COST PER MILE (500 mile journey with 7 day car hire)	COST PER LITRE UNLEADED PETROL	COST PER TANK*	AVERAGE CAR HIRE PER WEEK	TOTAL COST CAR HIRE FOR 1 WEEK, TRAVELING 500 MILES
Spain	£0.27	£1.11	£50.00	£62.54	£136.99
Portugal	£0.31	£1.29	£58	£66.59	£153.11
UK	£0.38	£1.29	£58	£101.03	£187.55
Germany	£0.38	£1.29	£58	£105.44	£191.96
France	£0.39	£1.20	£54	£112.20	£192.68
Greece	£0.44	£1.30	£59	£135.14	£222.33
Switzerland	£0.46	£1.15	£52	£151.55	£228.68
Italy	£0.46	£1.44	£65	£133.09	£229.67
Netherlands	£0.48	£1.43	£64	£142.89	£238.80
Norway	£0.71	£1.50	£68	£253.35	£353.96

*Based on fuel capacity of an Opel Corsa Hatchback (45 litres) with an average of 33.9 MPG

Spain’s low petrol prices mean travellers can soak up some of Europe’s most stunning world heritage sites along the way for just £181 or 21p per mile. The best value road trip starts in Malaga and tours around Andalucía visiting sandy coves of Nerja, the port town of Almería and UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Seville and Granada.

10 POPULAR EUROPEAN ROAD TRIPS (in order of best value)

1. Best of Andalucía: Southern Spain
Start: Malaga
End: Malaga
Visiting: Sandy coves of Nerja, the port town of Almería, Córdoba and UNESCO World Heritage sites in Seville and Granada
Duration: 15 hours driving over two weeks         
Miles: 873                           
Total cost petrol and car hire: £181          
Cost per mile: £0.21

2. Cultural tour: North-west Spain
Start: Madrid
End: Madrid
Visiting: The UNESCO World Heritage sites in the old city of Segovia, castles, museums and palaces in Salamanca, religious buildings in Valladolid and the archaeological site of Atapuerca
Duration: 13.5hours driving over two weeks       
Miles: 597
Total cost petrol and car hire: £154          
Cost per mile: £0.26

3. The Grand Tour: France, Switzerland, Italy
Start: Paris
End: Nice
Visiting: Picturesque French villages, Geneva, snow-capped mountains in Chamonix, the stunning Lake Como and glamourous cities of Milan and Monaco
Duration; 1,005 miles over three weeks
Total cost petrol and car hire: £395
Cost per mile: £0.39

4. Portugal's highlights: Lisbon, Porto and beyond
Start: Lisbon
End: Lisbon
Visiting: Architectural monuments in UNESCO World Heritage  Sintra and Porto and the port town of Setúbal
Duration: 14 hours driving, over two weeks        
Distance: 528 miles
Total cost petrol and car hire: £241
Cost per mile: £0.46

5. Fairy tales and Castles: Germany's romantic road             
Start: Nuremberg
End:  Munich
Visiting: Historic towns, walled cities and castles in Würzburg, Tauber Valley, Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Nördlingen, Augsburg and Munich          
Duration: 8 hours driving over one week              
Distance: 374
Total cost petrol and car hire: £174
Cost per mile: £0.46

6. France Beyond Paris
Start: Paris
End: Paris
Visiting: Iconic architectural monuments in Paris, Chartres, Le Mans, the historic centre of Rennes and UNESCO World Heritage sites in Versailles
Duration: 547 miles over two weeks
Total cost petrol and car hire: £266
Cost per mile: £0.49

7. Scottish Highlands: North & West Highlands
Start: Inverness
End: Inverness
Visiting: Magnificent scenery from mountains and lochs to rugged coastlines and secluded beaches, passing Ullapool, Achiltibuie, Lochinver, Kinlochbervi and Durness           
Duration: 276 miles over one week         
Total cost petrol and car hire: £154
Cost per mile: £0.56

8. Classic Greece: Athens, Olympia and Delphi
Start: Athens
End: Athens
Visiting: The most iconic landmarks of the ancient Greek civilization in Nafplion, Sparti, Olympia and Delphi               
Duration: 14.5 hours driving over two weeks      
Total cost petrol and car hire: £322
Cost per mile: £0.62

9. Nordic Tour: Bergen to Oslo       
Start: Bergen
End: Bergen
Visiting: Fjords, snow-capped mountains, lakes and beautiful villages via Oslo, Kristiansand and Stavanger               
Duration: 21.5 hours driving over three weeks  
Total cost petrol and car hire: £871
Cost per mile: £1.08

10. Italy: Amalfi Coast           
Start: Naples
End: Naples
Visiting: The World Heritage coastline passing Salerno, Amalfi, Praiano and Positano Duration: 5 hours driving over one week
Total cost petrol and car hire: £187
Cost per mile: £1.67

Time to go and plan!

Croatia, Brijuni Island

 Bosnia - how cute is this car??!

*Prices based on 5th August research