I Visited 6 European Cities in 2025. Here are the 4 I’d Go Back To (And The 2 I Wouldn’t)

In spring 2025, my family and I embarked on a 2-month trip to explore Northern Europe.

We spent 4.5 weeks driving through Scotland and Ireland, a week between the Netherlands and Denmark, and almost 3 weeks in Sweden.

The major cities we visited are:

• Edinburgh, Scotland
• Dublin, Ireland
• Belfast, Northern Ireland
• Amsterdam, Netherlands
• Copenhagen, Denmark
• Stockholm, Sweden

Of these cities, there are:

• 4 that we wanted more time in
• 2 that we were happy to leave

We spent at least 3 nights in each city (sometimes 4 or 5) and the rest of the time exploring the wider country of the place we were in – small towns, scenic countryside, nature and lesser-known gems.

Here’s my brutally honest opinion on each city (why we wanted more time, or why we were happy to leave), plus pros and cons of each.

The 4 Cities We Wanted More Time In

I want to say first that we enjoyed every city we went to, and are glad we visited them all. They’re all worth seeing at least once.

1. Copenhagen

Copenhagen was the 5th city on our 2-month adventure, and it was a nice break from some of the previous cities.

It was laid back, colourful, unique, very walkable, and extremely family-friendly.

We were a group of five people between the ages of 4 and 65 – and we all had a great time in Copenhagen.

There’s actually a lot to do in Copenhagen, more than what we could fit into just 3 days. We wished he’d had an upwards of a week there – we could have easily filled it with more things to do.

What we loved about Copenhagen

• Great public transit system
• How easy it is to rent a bike
• Extremely walkable
• Learning about Danish history
• Beautiful Nordic-style buildings and architecture
• Lots of pedetrian-only areas, including the Strøet

What we didn’t like

• Some of the more unique attractions (such as the trolls, The Little Mermaid statue) are a bit out of the way, so you have to arrange public transit, or take a tour

2. Stockholm

Stockholm is a beautiful city that consists of islands. It’s like a city on water, and the old town is one of the prettiest in Europe.

Stockholm is great for kids – I used to visit there as a kid myself, and was so happy to be able to bring my own kids to see it.

Stockholm is another city that we would have been happy to have a whole week in. We spend 5 nights this time, (four full days) and it wasn’t enough to do everything we would have wanted.

What we liked about Stockholm

• Great, well-developed public transit system which includes buses, metro and ferries
• Awesome amusement park
• Lots of interesting museums, such as the Vasa Ship, the Viking Museum, the Nobel Prize Museum
• The beautiful architecture and narrow streets in Gamla Stan

What we didn’t like

• The beauty of Gamla Stan has been all over social media for a while, and its starting to get a bit overtouristed. There was a line up to get a photo in the Martin Trozigs Gran, which is the narrowest street in the city. Getting a good view of the Royal Castle changing of the guard is impossible unless you show up 20-30 minutes before.

3. Belfast

Belfast had a much different feel from all the other cities we visited. It has had a turbelent past with unrest and you can tell.

At the same time, its very safe and walkable.

What we liked about Belfast

• Lots of daytrips to elsewhere in Northern Ireland, which by the way – is a beautiful country and worth seeing more of besides just Belfast
• Great multiethnic food options. We had Indian food and Japanese food and both were delicious

What we didn’t like

• Some parts of Belfast, including the place we stayed in, feel a bit ‘rough’ and had litter

4. Dublin

Dublin is an amazing city to visit as just adults, or with kids. I’ve been to Dublin with kids twice now; and done a variety of stuff there.

It’s a beautiful city, with both locals and tourists. You get a sense of the Irish way of life. The narrow cobbled streets of the old town are very quaint, and there’s so much good food.

What we liked about Dublin

• The busking culture – great music!
• Most of the main things to see are accessible by foot.

What we didn’t like

• It has a bit of a party scene, with a drinking culture that spills out onto the streets in the evening in many of the old parts of town. That being said, it never felt unsafe

The 2 Cities We Were Glad to Leave

I want to make it clear that we are still so glad that we visited the two cities below; they are both beautiful and worth seeing. But the experience of being there doesn’t match up to the pictures, and the beauty in our photos is higher than how much we genuinely enjoyed being there

1. Amsterdam

Let me start by saying that Amsterdam is a beautiful city – the endless canals, the tall narrow canal houses, blooming flowers in the spring, and people biking everywhere.

We loved just walking around Amsterdam, taking in the beauty of the architecture, canals, flowers, and decorative bikes that you find everywhere in the spring.

The reason I don’t feel compelled to go back to Amsterdam anytime soon is just how overcrowded it was.

Museums sell out several weeks in advance. I was lucky to get an evening ticket for Anne Frank House, but if I hadn’t booked it a month before, I wouldn’t have gotten in.

We were interested in the Van Gogh Museum, but decided to play it by ear – it turned out to be completely sold out during our visit, and well into the following week too.

I love the bike culture that Amsterdam has, but I found out that it’s not necessarily a safe place to rent a bike unless you’re used to biking there.

Amsterdam also draws a lot of party tourism, which isn’t really our thing as a family with kids.

What we liked about Amsterdam

• All the canals, everywhere
• The architecture. The canal houses (grachtenpand) and their designs
• The minimalistic and healthy lifestyle that the residents seem to adopt
• The Joordan neighbourhood
• Great museums
• The food – Dutch pancakes, donuts, fries and cheese. Lots of international cuisine too
• Very family-friendly, lots to do with kids

What we didn’t like (why we probably wouldn’t return)

• Too overcrowded
• The party scene

2. Edinburgh 

I had been told many times over the years that Edinburgh was one of the prettiest cities in Europe, and based on that, it lived up to my expectations.

The gorgeous medieval architecture and the Old Town live up to their reputation. The views from the castle show a great view of the surroundings.

The main reason I don’t feel compelled to return to Edinburgh is also (similar to Amsterdam) is that it suffers from overtourism.

Edinburgh was the first stop on our trip; we arrived there on May 1st. From everywhere we stood near the Royal Mile, there were big crowds coming from every direction.

Several attractions were sold out (so it was a good thing I booked them weeks in advance), there were lineups for almost everything, and we lined up for 30 minutes just to get into the Harry Potter Store.

The Royal Mile was beautiful but it felt more like a tourist playground, with almost every store being a Scottish souvenir store, day trips, etc – rather than a working city where people live.

I also heard from residents that the crowds we were seeing in May was only a fraction of the amount that come in the summer months, with August being the busiest due to Fringe. 

I’m so glad I finally got to see Edinburgh, but I was happy when it was time to move on to other places on our Scotland itinerary

What we liked about Edinburgh

• Gorgeous buildings and architecture
• Great public transit system (we used Lothian buses)
• Lots of great things to do with kids
• Interesting for Harry Potter and Outlander fans

What we didn’t like (why we probably wouldn’t return)

• Lack of pedestrian-only streets
• Too overtouristed