A New Trend of Travel in Europe

According to the United States Commerce Department's Office of Travel and Tourism Industries, almost thirteen million Americans visited Europe in 2006. This was an increase of four percent from the year before.

However, there is a trend of European travel that is becoming more popular these days. You may start your European trip by visiting well-known landmarks in a certain city, but you will then end your trip by staying somewhere in the countryside.

More and more travelers still appreciate all the aspects of larger cities, but some would really like to see the real, or authentic parts of Europe.

For example, in Italy, there is a program called "agritourismo," designed so that travelers can stay in a farmhouse already set up for them, as they can become involved in the daily life of making a product such as cheese or wine.

Another example of mixing the known with the unknown is to cross the Amstel River in Amsterdam by ferry and rent a bike. After you have ridden on your bike for about ten minutes you will find yourself in the seventeenth and eighteenth century villages.

More Americans are seeking vacations that will allow them to "experience" more than just view. Some of the more recent and unique treks have been activities like wind surfing in Croatia, hiking the pilgrim's trail in Spain to see Santiago de Compostela, or even taking a cooking class in Italy.

Even though more United States travelers head to the United Kingdom and France, it seems that Italy is the one country that Americans are wanting to "experience" and learn more about Italy.

In 2006, travel agents booked more trips to Italy than any other Western European destination. More Italian travel guidebooks have been published because of this increase of interest of this country. One such author is Pauline Frommer. She has written a travel guide book titled, "Essential Italy; Rome, Florence, Venice & the Top Spots in Between."