5 Reasons to take a city break with Travel Department
Georgina Willcox
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From Krakow to Madrid
Passionate local guides
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City Breaks
City breaks are perfect for quick escape and provide many options for a beautiful relaxing getaway. Our city breaks offer a fantastic, hassle-free way to discover the wonderful areas of Europe and beyond at great-value prices.
City Breaks in Europe
With a wealth of world-renowned cities just a short plane ride away, our city breaks in Europe are a great opportunity to take advantage of that proximity and explore a new destination or revisit old favourites.
From Rome to Budapest, Krakow to Istanbul and Marrakech, we offer a selection of European destinations as well as further afield. No matter what, every location provides our guests with the chance to immerse themselves in an entirely new place. Whether that be soaking up the city’s history, sampling its culinary delicacies or taking in its culture with visits to galleries or museums.
Our tour begins as soon as we arrive at our short city break destination where we’ll be whisked to the hotel by one of our English-speaking local guides. We’ll then take a half day city tour to get a feel for the location and our expert guide will be on hand to answer questions and help us decide how to spend the rest of our holiday.
If you’re looking for city breaks in Europe for 2025, make sure to travel with us to maximise your time away. Our holidays include flights, transfers, hotel accommodation and a guided city tour so we get the most out of our time wherever we go.
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City Breaks from Dublin 2025
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Why Choose a Travel Department City Break
Get A Lay Of The Land
All cities have their own landscapes and layouts. Getting accustomed to a new one can be tricky, especially in a relatively short space of time. However, on all our City Breaks, we offer a half-day city tour, given by an English-speaking local guide, to help us find our bearings. We’ll see the main highlights of the city, learn its history and our experienced guides will be happy to answer any questions and recommend other places in the city that we might enjoy visiting.
Taste Local Flavours
One of the most exciting things about visiting a new place is the chance to try some of its particular delicacies. Sometimes you may already be familiar with the food from a particular place, such as Spanish tapas or Roman spaghetti alla carbonara but, even in the most famous culinary destinations, our expert guides will be able to point us to new tastes to explore. What about pa amb tomàquet (bread, rubbed with ripe tomatoes, salt and olive oil) in Barcelona or fiori di zucca (battered courgette flowers, stuffed with anchovies and mozzarella) in Rome?
Take In New Scenery
A City Break offers a chance to enjoy a change of scenery for a few days. On these short holidays, for example, we’ll explore the fantastical architecture of Barcelona or the Gothic facades of Prague, take in the stunning coastal scenery in cities like Lisbon and Nice, or stroll along the winding rivers of Bruges and Budapest. In other cities, we have the opportunity to experience incredible urban parks, such as those in Berlin or Krakow.
Explore Art & Culture
On each of our City Breaks, we’ll have the opportunity to experience the culture of a new place. A great way to get under the skin of a city is to experience its art by visiting galleries, museums or other cultural attractions. With tips from our expert local guides and plenty of free time, you’ll be able to immerse yourself in the art and culture of whatever city we travel to. Imagine viewing paintings by Raphael and Caravaggio, in the splendid surroundings of Vienna's Kunsthistorisches Museum, or admiring Gaudi's artistry in his adopted city of Barcelona!
City Break Tour Highlights
- Take an optional excursion to Sintra from Lisbon.
- Visit the Vatican and admire Michelangelo's most famous masterpiece in the Sistine chapel.
- Relax in one of the many thermal baths in Budapest.
- Enjoy wine tasting in Porto.
- Discover the Blue Mosque in Istanbul.
- Explore the Eastside Gallery, an open air art gallery on a section of the Berlin Wall.
Top European City Break Attractions
City Breaks FAQs
Where are the best city breaks in Europe?
Europe has a wide range of city destinations and each one can suit various interests. For history buffs, you can step back to ancient times with a trip to Rome and explore the Roman Forum. See how royalty lived with a visit to the palaces in the opulent capital of Vienna. For food lovers, each city offers its own unique dishes, enjoy a Pastel de nata in Lisbon or experience the best tapas in Madrid. If you’re looking to take things easy, you can easily relax with a drink and watch the world go by in the Old Towns of Prague, Riga and Tallinn. It’s not just capital cities that offer a quick escape, you can also unwind in Nice or you can even go beyond Europe and discover Marrakech to get a taste of North Africa.
What’s included on my city break?
With Travel Department, return flights, airport transfers, hand-picked hotel accommodation and a guided city tour are all included.
Do you offer short breaks in Europe?
If you’re looking to stay a little longer, we also offer some other short breaks in Europe from 4 - 6 days, such as Malta, Athens, Munich, Lake Garda, Salamanca and Gdansk.
Do you offer Christmas City Breaks?
Yes, you can experience the best Christmas markets in Europe and see the top sights of your chosen destination during a winter city break.
What if there is an emergency?
We have local representatives in all of our destinations who are available 24/7 as well as an emergency contact number for our offices in Ireland should you ever need it.
