This feels like it's supposed to sound like a bad thing. I think it's awesome the cities you went to were designed for the people who actually live in those cities, not the people driving through.

Probably comes down to what you are used to. I find driving in the US stressful mostly because of other drivers not behaving like I’m used to.

Yeah in Europe you want to head for the main train stations or Park and Rides if you're spending time in cities. They usually have large car parks and good public transport.

Outside of towns and cities the road networks in those countries are generally excellent. Especially in France and Italy with their toll roads.

If you're just going city to city, take the train.

I've driven extensively in Spain and to a lesser extent France, Italy and Germany and never found parking a "joke" except in cities or with a huge car. Of course, due to density, the free parking places are usually very busy and hectic. But there's always an option to pay/pay more

>Yeah in Europe you want to head for the main train stations or Park and Rides if you're spending time in cities. They usually have large car parks and good public transport.

I live in Europe. I have travelled in Europe immensely over the last 15 years. I would NEVER recommend anybody this strategy, ESPECIALLY if they're coming from outside the EU.

Any particular reason?

The main thrust was about finding a big car park outside of the historic centre and use your legs. Not sure what is objectional about that

(I'm also European if we're doing that)

Well, how do you travel personally? Do you employ the same approach that you're recommending here?

Yes

When visiting Europe, I mostly avoid cities, but when I visit them, I usually take public transport. (Yes, if you stalk my comments, you'll see I make an exception occasionally). I've parked at various train stations in Europe and got the train in, especially the bigger cities

Outside of cities (e.g. the coasts) I usually rent a car, and park in the cheaper spots and use my legs.

I'm generally pretty tight when it comes to paying for parking. 15 EUR a day is my limit when travelling so usually find cheaper alternatives even if it means more walking

At home in the UK I walk, cycle, take the train and drive. Again, I tend to avoid cities but yes I do use Park and Ride sometimes when I drive. Or I park on the outskirts during free periods (e.g. Sundays).

On top of that, I live close to amenities and walk everywhere for shopping etc. It's not flat either.

Satisfied? :)

Yes actually, cheers

Thanks for the substantive contribution to the conversation ... /s

You wanted to try to call me a hypocrite but failed. Better luck next time

Perhaps the best roads are those that see the least vehicular traffic.

If you find those roads narrow, don't try the UK or (especially) Ireland.

I've driven in France, Iberia, and Central/near Eastern Europe (Stuttgart to Budapest, Krakow, and back). City streets can be small, but the highways are highways. Even smaller roads in Slovakia weren't bad. Honestly didn't seem that different from driving in the US except that obedience to speed limits was a lot higher (though their limits are generally higher, so there's no real need to speed - 130 km/h is just over 80 mph, which is usually as fast as I would want to drive anyway).

I honestly loved driving in France...once I realized that parking somewhere near transit (usually at the end of a tram line) was a heck of a lot better than driving my car around in the centre. Outside of the cities, intersections were great (primarily roundabouts), the freeways and tollways were impeccable, and people generally drove well