It’s already been a busy year for Rick Steves. In March, Tacoma’s Pacific Lutheran University honored the international travel expert and Edmonds resident with its 2023 Wild Hope Award for his commitment to helping others build cultural connection by exploring new destinations. Next month, Steves’ work will be highlighted as part of a special May 16 re-screening of “The Way,” a 2010 movie starring Martin Sheen about a father following his son’s footsteps to make the El Camino de Santiago pilgrimage in northwestern Spain.
“The greatest souvenir is a broader perspective,” Steves said while reflecting on the newly filmed 15-minute bonus footage of his conversation with Sheen and director Emilio Estevez about the value of travel. “My hope is that moviegoers will use our conversation as a springboard for appreciating the beauty of the world beyond our borders.”
Steves’ year will only accelerate from there as he globetrots from Spain to the South of France to Morocco — that’s just his schedule for May. When summer starts, Steves will visit the Scandinavian capitals and Estonia before heading to Poland and Iceland to be a part of different television shows.
The Edmonds resident has a busy agenda, and he’s excited to get to it. While readers’ interests in visiting European destinations might vary from his own, Steves offered tips that will help anyone trying to go overseas this year.
Rather than focusing on whether our itineraries match the latest Instagram influencer bucket list, Steves said we should think about these four ideas:
For those who are over the Washington winter weather (regardless of its intensity — or lack thereof — this year), visiting the Mediterranean region of Europe during either the spring or fall months is ideal.
“With climate change, the Mediterranean is really hot in the summer… tracking average temperatures is just a bell shaped curve when getting away from the heat,” Steves said. “North of the Alps is kind of like Seattle, south of the Alps is kind of like California. If you want to get a break (from the wet weather) you can go to Phoenix or San Diego or you can go to Barcelona, Rome, the Greek islands, Portugal.”
On the contrary, maybe colder weather is what a family favors. After all, as Steves said, there is no such thing as bad weather.
“There’s just inappropriate clothing,” he said.
There are the given hotspots: London, Rome, Paris. But what about the little guys?
“One thing I would remind people of is that, a lot of times, second cities are a good idea,” Steves argued. “Everybody goes to “the first city” of Seattle. Why not check out Tacoma? Everybody goes to Lisbon, why not check out Porto? Everybody goes to Madrid, why not check out Cordoba?”
Along with not just picking whatever the most blogged-about terminus is this year and charging a package to your credit card, Steves suggests learning about your chosen spot ahead of time.
“Remember that the more understanding and context you bring to a place, the more you’ll enjoy it. I can’t get you into the Prado Museum cheaper than anybody else, but if you know a little bit about art history when you go to the Prado, it’s going to be much more rewarding,” he said.
Think critically, too, about how to use your vacation time most effectively.
“Americans have the shortest vacations in the rich world, so we need to know how to use our time smartly,” Steves added.
Natural Google Calendar addicts may favor a new COVID-created system: required bookings. When health orders were in effect, many tourist destinations began limiting how many people could go in and out with timed entries. In many places, that system still exists.
“What the smart traveler these days knows is, if you’re going to any big city you should do your reading in advance and figure out which sites need to be booked,” Steves said. “If you’re going to Florence, you really gotta book the Accademia to see Michelangelo’s David and the Uffizi Gallery in advance. You’ve gotta book the Duomo [di Milano] cathedral in advance.”
Look for guidebooks that weren’t simply published after the height of COVID, but that were researched afterward too, Steves says. If you plan your trip right, you’ll be the superior of Steves’ two known traveling groups: those who wait in line, and those who don’t.
In the first two months of 2023, Steves’ tourism corporation sold just as well as it did in 2019. In the third month, prospective travelers surpassed the number of tour seats the company had sold in the entirety of 2019 — more than 31,500 seats.
“That’s great, but as far as choosing a destination in Europe, everything is as exciting as it has always been,” Steves said. “There’s nothing that’s better this year than it was five years ago, it just depends on where you want to go.”
Steves said his customers are going to what he calls the “fringe countries”: Scotland, Ireland, Portugal and Greece.
“Those are popular destinations compared to previous years. People are still wanting to go to France and Germany and England, but a lot of people have had that kind of experience and now they want to do something a little more away from the mainstream,” he said.
Whatever your boarding pass reads, if you’re going to Europe, Steves said you’re likely to be embraced.
“Europe is better organized and more willing to give you a good time than ever before. They had a very tough pandemic and are excited that people are coming back,” the travel expert said. “There’s been a lot of inflation in Europe just like in the United States, so the good news for our buying power is that the dollar is really strong against European currencies this year. The euro is worth $1.07, almost par. So if it’s a 20 euro meal, it’s a $20 meal.”
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