It’s a rainy and cold day in Pisa’s Piazza del Duomo, where I stare at the Leaning Tower of Pisa. The weather is only just barely cooperating, and it probably won’t start truly pouring for a few hours. Such is life in Tuscany in January.
My last trip was in late summer. It was warm, with blue skies framing the white of the Leaning Tower. I could sit outside, enjoy a sandwich in a square or a coffee along the street.
And do you want to know something? I prefer January.
It is a different experience traveling to Europe in the offseason, but one that brings me pleasure. It is a swap of weather for access, of external comfort for internal ease. It means dealing with rainy days in Pisa in return for an astonishing – and paradigm altering – lack of obnoxious tourists doing their silly poses pretending to hold the tower up for Instagram.
Planning an offseason trip can be a little daunting. After all, with the limited vacation time most people have, it can be worrying to potentially “lose” some of that to uncooperative weather. And in some parts of Europe, that weather is very uncooperative. So while I loved Oslo in February, and lucked out with blue skies to pair with freezing temperatures, it could just have easily gone the other way. (And even then, my visit for the panoramic view from the top of the Olympic ski jump was only clouds and winter fog.)
But while it can be intimidating to plan that offseason Europe trip, the rewards can – and DO in my opinion – offset the risk. During the summer months, major tourist destinations are positively overrun with visitors. So while even in March, Barcelona’s Sagrada Família sold out every available time slot, in my visit to the city’s incredible history museum, I was among fewer than several dozen people in the entire huge complex, never having to try to push through a crowd to read a sign or access anything I wanted to see.
Offseason Europe travel is all about compromise and hedging. If you have a few days only in Milan in January, and your top sight to see is the Monumental Cemetery, you have to understand that it might be (as it was for me) a balmy 29 degrees Fahrenheit during your visit – or worse! It could snow, or icy rain, and you might have to have alternate plans.
On the other hand, without all of the tourists, you’ll tend to get better deals on flights and hotels, easy reservations at some of the top restaurants, and an easier time getting admission to restricted sights like The Last Supper. It’s a compromise.
A February visit to Nice is a bit different than the summer. While the sunsets along the city’s Mediterranean beachfront were just as magnificent, wearing a jacket and knit cap is a bit different than beachfront (or on the beach) dining. But not having to fight for views or places to sit can make that exchange worthwhile. Again, it’s a compromise.
Of course, there are things one gives up for an offseason Europe trip. Swimming in the sea is out for all but the most comfortable with cold. Outdoor dining can be a challenge. Weather can – and probably will – necessitate changes in plans, and even some truly major changes that might leave you with a different feel on a trip.
On the other hand, fighting the tour groups at the Colosseum during summer can also leave one with a bad taste. Weather in the 90s or higher can mean other challenges. Top restaurants can have major waits, and some sights will sell out.
For me, it’s a worthwhile exchange. While I’ve had rainy days derail plans, I always travel with backup ideas for such eventualities. Cold days can be seen as a drag, or an opportunity to sample more coffees and hot chocolates to warm up. A cold wind and some drizzle on the walls of Carcassonne in France is more than worth it given that there was often not a single other person in range of photos, let alone earshot.
The best thing about offseason Europe travel is the feeling that, even if one’s visit is only a day in a location, one is there with the locals. If you are in Rome in August, pretty much every local who is able leaves the city. But in February, those people wandering the old city or visiting museums might actually live there since they don’t have to avoid such things due to the mobs of tourists. Those people watching the sun set in Nice are locals, not overwhelming waves of visitors jockeying for position.
I love Europe at any time of year, and some summer trips have been incredible. And I don’t blame anyone for preferring to deal with crowds in exchange for ideal weather. But I’ll take the offseason basically every time, and I’ll gladly pack my umbrella and heavy jacket to be able to have the lighthouse in Genoa entirely to myself. I will smile when rain forces a day trip cancelation (after grumbling, of course) and know that I’ll have clear line of sight at the Tate Modern in London, even though I really wanted to be outdoors.
Europe in the offseason is a different experience. It is one I value, and while I will happily visit at any point, that offseason trip is the one I almost always seek out.