How insane is this as a fun challenge with my friends?

[AviationFR]

So, my friends and I are looking for a cool explorationy way to visit Europe quickly, and I've come up with an idea, where you have to visit all the EU countries, take a picture of something relatively notable, and complete a task (specified later) in every one.
The rules are that you can't drive or taxi over any borders, and you can't enter and leave a country by both plane, except Iceland, Malta and Cyprus

 

[Lewlew]

If you can afford it then go for it but you won’t be seeing much!

Sounds very much like the current video series by the Jet Lag The Game channel on YouTube. Except for Europe instead of the USA.

 

[The exile]

Well, you don’t need to worry about Iceland for a start. I’m assuming you mean crossing borders by public transport or on foot (I doubt swimming is strictly legal anywhere!) - if “drive” precludes bus travel, you’ll have fun with the Baltics. An interesting (if exhausting) challenge - but quite a high carbon footprint. Incidentally - why are you allowing flights to Malta and Cyprus - which presumably have ferries? Guess you’ll be using ferries at some point in connection with one of Finland, Greece or ROI.

 

[JGurney]

(I doubt swimming is strictly legal anywhere!) -

In summer people frequently swim between Germany and Switzerland in Lake Constance and in the Rhine just downstream.

 

[AlterEgo]

Well, you don’t need to worry about Iceland for a start. I’m assuming you mean crossing borders by public transport or on foot (I doubt swimming is strictly legal anywhere!) - if “drive” precludes bus travel, you’ll have fun with the Baltics. An interesting (if exhausting) challenge - but quite a high carbon footprint. Incidentally - why are you allowing flights to Malta and Cyprus - which presumably have ferries? Guess you’ll be using ferries at some point in connection with one of Finland, Greece or ROI.

Cyprus doesn’t have a ferry service all year round and the one that does occasionally run in summer is tough to book.

 

[The exile]

In summer people frequently swim between Germany and Switzerland in Lake Constance and in the Rhine just downstream.

Fair enough - but the efforts required to satisfy the legal requirement to be carrying ID to produce on demand if you’re British and it therefore needs to be a paper passport are a bit excessive!

 

[The exile]

Cyprus doesn’t have a ferry service all year round and the one that does occasionally run in summer is tough to book.

Fair enough

 

[Bletchleyite]

Fair enough - but the efforts required to satisfy the legal requirement to be carrying ID to produce on demand if you’re British and it therefore needs to be a paper passport are a bit excessive!

Drybags are a thing

Not sure I'd advise it unless skilled at open water swimming though.

 

[Howardh]

In summer people frequently swim between Germany and Switzerland in Lake Constance and in the Rhine just downstream.

I believe that although the shores are clearly in those countries, there isn't a specific border down Lake Constance!

I'd be very interested in the challenge "how many European countries can you do in 24 hours by train?"; might even have a go one day.

 

[Nunners]

I'd be very interested in the challenge "how many European countries can you do in 24 hours by train?

It's not too difficult to do 11 with some planning, I don't think 12 is possible (but might be with some timetable changes)

 

[Howardh]

It's not too difficult to do 11 with some planning, I don't think 12 is possible (but might be with some timetable changes)

Assuming you set off from London? Think a lot depends if you can sneak through Luxembourg and/or Liechtenstein, and whether HST's can get you to and through some of the Balkans. Whether you could do more using bus and train I dunno, be an interesting challenge for three groups, one using train only, one using bus/coach only and one using a combination? I'd allow the coach user access to Eurostar to cross the channel though!!!

 

[Nunners]

Assuming you set off from London? Think a lot depends if you can sneak through Luxembourg and/or Liechtenstein, and whether HST's can get you to and through some of the Balkans. Whether you could do more using bus and train I dunno, be an interesting challenge for three groups, one using train only, one using bus/coach only and one using a combination? I'd allow the coach user access to Eurostar to cross the channel though!!!

That was the world record I was referencing, which is was Slovakia to The Netherlands via Austria and Switzerland. Not sure how close you could get starting in the UK, probably 9 or 10 depending on timings, maybe 11

 

[Bletchleyite]

I did a 4-country pub crawl once (Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany and France), that was quite cool.

 

[Howardh]

That was the world record I was referencing, which is was Slovakia to The Netherlands via Austria and Switzerland. Not sure how close you could get starting in the UK, probably 9 or 10 depending on timings, maybe 11

I did a 4-country pub crawl once (Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany and France), that was quite cool.

If Wales is considered a separate country, could you start in Cardiff then London/Eurostar?

Whatever the record is for bus/coach but no rail, with the introduction of "Flixbus" then that would help cover more countries?

I did a pub crawl where I was sat in two countries at the same time in the same pub, in Baarle Hertog which is in the Netherlands, except it isn't, it's in Belguim, except it's in Netherlands.....! The "crosses" which depeicted the border were under my chair and table!

I think you can pubcrawl by trains through Switzerland, Leichtenstein and Austria within the same afternoon?

 

[eastwestdivide]

In the EU or in Europe? People are mentioning a lot of countries that aren’t both.

 

[eastwestdivide]

… I think you can pubcrawl by trains through Switzerland, Leichtenstein and Austria within the same afternoon?

I’ve walked from Feldkirch Austria to Buchs Switzerland via Planken Liechtenstein in about 5 hours with photo stops (no pubs though!)

 

[Techniquest]

It sounds like a 100% crazy challenge, a bit different but I dread to think how expensive it would be!

 

[Howardh]

I’ve walked from Feldkirch Austria to Buchs Switzerland via Planken Liechtenstein in about 5 hours with photo stops (no pubs though!)

I'd swap the photo opportunities for a beer!! Liechtenstein is quite a lot bigger in real life than it looks on a map, and would take some walking round, especially uphill! To my knowledge it's the smallest country in the world to have two or more railway stations - Vatican has one, and I think Monaco only has one.

 

[eastwestdivide]

I'd swap the photo opportunities for a beer!! Liechtenstein is quite a lot bigger in real life than it looks on a map, and would take some walking round, especially uphill! To my knowledge it's the smallest country in the world to have two or more railway stations - Vatican has one, and I think Monaco only has one.

Each to their own! In fact it was a really hot day and beer plus walking would have finished me off.
Here's my approximate route, 14-15 km, close to the flat route taken by the road and railway across the country. As you can see, this was the less mountainous end of Liechtenstein