Man visits 44 countries in Europe and reveals ‘top five’

A 22-year-old German traveller has visited all 44 countries in Europe and revealed his top five favourite. 

Luca Pferdmenges, who has been a world traveller since the age of 15, is making it easier for people to choose their next European holiday destination as he’s visited every nation on the continent. 

Speaking to MailOnline Travel, he said: “It’s very hard for me to pick five favourites to visit, but I would go with Portugal, Cyprus, Spain, Austria and Croatia.

“They’re famous tourist destinations, but I think they are famous for good reasons.”

He explained his reason for choosing Cyprus. “I am a fan of warm places over cold ones, so I prefer spending time in the South of Europe generally.

“All the Mediterranean countries have the best weather, in my opinion, and I love Mediterranean cuisine overall, lots of olive oil, sundried tomatoes, and fresh vegetables. I like the chill vibes of the Mediterranean and Cyprus is one of my favourite countries as the people are some of the warmest in the world.”

But Luca said Croatia triumphs for its beaches, while Lisbon, Portugal is his favourite city in the world. 

He explained: “I like the big cities with lots of things to do – but I prefer them to be warm.”

But he also highlighted five of the worst countries he visited during his travels around Europe. 

He said: “Europe is my favourite continent to visit and live in. Picking a least favourite country is super difficult for me.”

“But my least-favourite list includes underwhelming San Marino. The microstate [within north-central Italy] is very hard to reach and there is nothing to do. You can see everything within hours.”

Luca also Belgiumis on the list as it is “too grey and cold in the winter”. He went on: “Belarus – I had a great time in Minsk, but it is very hard to reach and the only truly isolated country on the Continent.”

He also warned against these countries if you’re travelling on a budget – Finland, Iceland, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and Ireland.