Four journeys that go beyond the obvious
We set out to find better ways to leave. Not further, not faster, but with a bit more consideration. The kind of travel that changes pace rather than postcode, where the journey holds its own and the destination does not have to shout for attention.
What emerged were four distinct approaches. A train journey that rewards your attention, a house that asks you to settle rather than arrive, a city that exists slightly between worlds, and a walk that strips things back to what is essential.
All simple enough. Just done with a bit more thought.
Vienna to Venice
Some journeys are not meant to be rushed, nor slept through. Travelling from Vienna to Venice, via the Semmering and onward through the Alps, turns what could be a transfer into something far more considered.
You leave Vienna in the morning, coffee in hand, and watch the landscape shift almost immediately. The climb is gentle at first, then more pronounced. Forests thicken, valleys deepen, and the rhythm of the train slows just enough to make you pay attention.
It takes longer, certainly. But that, rather neatly, is the point.
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A house in the Franconian woods
Not a hotel, not quite home. Someone else’s well-thumbed novels, an olive oil you did not choose, a chair that has clearly hosted better conversations than yours. It forces a certain humility, which is rather refreshing. Live as they do, shop where they shop, and resist the urge to improve anything. You are not there to curate, only to inhabit.
This house, set in the Franconian countryside near Coburg, leans into that idea rather well. It sits at the edge of the forest, with walking paths starting more or less where the garden ends. The interiors are pared back without feeling austere, and the layout encourages a slower use of the day. Coffee in the morning, a walk without much ambition, perhaps a sauna if the weather insists on being unpredictable.
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Trieste, on its own terms
Italy, but only just. A city that leans as much towards Vienna as it does towards Venice, with grand cafés that take their coffee very seriously and a coastline that feels quietly self-assured rather than showy. Spring suits it best. The light is soft, the air still carries a trace of winter, and you can sit outside without competing for the table.
Spend the morning reading in a wood-panelled café, the afternoon walking along the Adriatic, and the evening eating something simple done properly. It is civilised in a way that feels almost unfashionable, which is precisely its appeal.
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Camønoen, start to finish
No grand declarations, no spiritual overhaul. Just a few days on foot along Camønoen, tracing Møn’s quiet curves of coastline, open fields and chalk cliffs that rise abruptly from the sea, bright and almost improbable against the Baltic. It is one of those landscapes that feels slightly too composed to be accidental, which is likely why it has recently found its way onto UNESCO’s list.
The route is well considered, allowing you to settle into a steady rhythm without much interference. There is a particular clarity that arrives somewhere between the second and third hour of walking. Thoughts settle, appetites sharpen, and the world feels agreeably simple again.
By evening, you step out under one of Northern Europe’s few certified Dark Sky Parks, where the night sky is the main event.
Get your hike on!
