You’ve done it! You’ve decided to take a gap year in Europe. That is an achievement on its own — seriously! There are plenty of people out there who let too many factors in life get in the way of ever even stepping on a plane, and we get it, that’s fair. However...those aren’t our people.
You, with your eagerness to dedicate a year of your life to learning about the world, you are our people. And we want to make sure you’re able to savor every single beautiful, challenging, stressful, formative moment over the next 365 days.
Wondering what to do during a gap year in Europe? Sitting on a cliff seems popular (...and dangerous).
We can’t give you the perfect answer for what to do during a gap year in Europe, but we can get pretty darn close. It’s important to keep expectations and budgeting in check. True, travel between the countries on this continent is typically affordable and easy to navigate, but the likelihood that you’ll see every major city and site and museum is going to slim down quickly with your wallet.
Our suggestions featured here center around Western European gap year programs, but that is not to say you should skip out on the countries to the east!
READ MORE: 9 Best Gap Year Programs in Europe
9 best ways to spend a gap year in Europe
1. Volunteer your time meaningfully
Volunteering is hands down the coolest way to achieve hands-on exposure to people, nature, society, culture, language — whatever it is that’s got your wanderlust yearning for a gap year in Europe. Can we get a raise of hands for who’s interested?
Seriously though, volunteering for a cause you’re invested in, whether that’s because you’ve always been a fiery advocate for it or because you know nothing about it and it’s time to change that, is among our favorite ways to absorb everything that your European gap year can offer.
For one, you’ll be learning about your surrounding community while also being a part of it. Gappers who travel to a new part of the globe in order to offer their services are going to earn a lot of interest, respect, and support from the community, right from the get-go. Not to mention the fact that gap years in Europe can be jam packed with straight tourism...so why not shake it up and contribute something, too?
Plus, volunteering is an umbrella term for almost anything you could dream up: How about collecting food from restaurants in Lisbon to donate to the hungry? Or volunteering in Greece to help refugees coming into the country? Ever considered an apprenticeship in the realm of Scandinavian furniture design? Choices is the buzzword for volunteering during your European gap year.
2. Explore the unspoiled wilderness
You’ll never forget the first time you see the Northern Lights!
For some gappers, the most sensational aspect of journeying abroad is how vastly different the climate and biodiversity in other areas of the world can be. Have you ever taken a nature tour of the volcanoes and glaciers in Iceland (if you have, kudos!)?
How about making things a little more quaint, with an agricultural farming program in Ireland, which will allow you to gain insight, experience, and maybe even a passion for a way of life that you might not have known before.
There are some pretty dazzling uncharted options out there, too, if you’re willing to dig — like visiting the Norweigan fjords in winter. You’ll be freezing, but the Northern Lights will be nothing short of worth it. Wherever you choose, whatever you’re discovering, wilderness exploration is sure to enhance your European gap year.
3. Get to know the history (there's a lot of it)
European civilization has been around since about the 27th century BC, and it would be comical to think you could begin to absorb all of that history in one gap year...but we’re not here to stop you from trying! All we’re saying is, whether you’re a history buff or not, you’re not going to have any shortage of learning to do during your European gap year.
From exploring art and archeology in Italy and touring the ruins of ancient Greece, to paying respects at WWII memorials in Germany and educating yourself about conquistadors in Portugal and Spain, historical lessons are bursting out of every corner of this continent — so grab at them while you can!
4. Immerse yourself in a new language (...there's a lot of them)
Sitting in a classroom, listening to a teacher discuss the same mnemonic devices for memorizing verb conjugations that you’ve been over one hundred times before...isn’t proven to be the most effective path towards foreign language fluency.
Sit in as many cafes as possible during your European gap year, and you’ll probably pick up some language skills.
There is no better time to latch onto a new language than during your European gap year. You can test yourself in small ways, by greeting clerks in stores, and ordering for yourself off the menu, and tuning into what those around you are saying.
Seeing the language in grocery stores, shops, advertisements, and public transportation will reinforce your language skills in no time, and you’ll get all the joys of cultural interaction, not to mention a resume booster too. Go au natural or find a course to sign up for amongst other eager gappers.
5. Earn money as an au pair
We don’t blame you for considering your finances during a year of travel, so being a gap year Europe au pair might be exactly the route for you. This activity provides the rare experience of living with a host family, gaining 24/7 insight into the location’s culture, and learning your host country’s language with ease.
Places like Spain and France are excellent options for au pairing and immersing, with dozens of available programs. Or consider England, where you might have an easier time with the language and get to experience the posh tastes of a Londoner.
Whatever additional goals you have for your time in Europe, an au pair placement is going to give you the insider scoop, a little bit of moolah, and a guaranteed additional career boost.
6. Feast your ears on incredible music
The music scene in Europe is amongst the most elite in the world. In other words, you’re missing out if you don’t fit this activity in at least somewhere during your European gap year.
London’s West End is the European equivalent of Broadway, meaning it’s loaded with talented entertainers. See a show or two, or study music, acting, and artistic performance with designated European gap year programs.
Hop over to La Scala, Milan’s world-famous, world-class opera house, and then compare the performance to a Sound of Music tour along the Austrian alps. From there, take a quick train ride to Prague, and allow yourself to be serenaded by fiddlers and violinists along the Charles Bridge. Trust us, one of these musical scenes is sure to get your soul singing.
7. Learn a new sport
Water sports? Winter sports? Kicking sports? Take your pick!
No matter your level of athleticism, you can almost always count on sports for the camaraderie they offer. Joining an informal neighborhood football game (remember, that’s soccer!) or an expat club American football league are phenomenal ways to make friends, feel involved, and hang on to a solid sense of home.
If sports are really your thing, you could enroll in a soccer training camp in Portugal, become a certified ski instructor in Switzerland, or try your hand at applying for coaching positions at local high schools (make sure you check out work visa requirements and opportunities first, of course!).
8. Get your adrenaline pumping
Adventuring during your Europe gap year? Duh! For some, Europe calls to mind cobbled streets, classical music, and universal health care. For others, it’s all about the beaches and the clubs. Adventure might not be the top of your European gap year search bar, but if you want it, oh baby, they’ve got it. Four words: running with the bulls.
Yep, you can sign up to sprint the streets of Pamplona while bulls charge alongside you (chasing adventures in Europe is not for the meek). If that’s a bit much (it IS pretty dangerous and we don’t recommend it), you can sleep in the ice hotels of Sweden, sail along the shores of Greece, or take up canyoning and/or paragliding over the Swiss Alps. Hopefully this picture is getting clearer — gap years in Europe definitely call for at least a little bit of adventure travel.
9. Lend a hand to animal conservation
Still wondering what to do during a gap year in Europe? Get involved with animals! Seriously. You must. Though many of the continent’s animals will be familiar to those from North America, the exposure to them in their natural habitat is not something that can be replicated.
Check out a bear safari in Finland, or spend time amongst the sea turtles of Cyprus and Greece. Visit a wolf sanctuary in the United Kingdom by land, and swim alongside the Canterbury Seals by sea. Just make sure it’s ethical!
If animal advocacy is your passion, you could sign up for a 20-plus week gap year program working on dolphin and whale conservation off of an island in Spain. Is your interest piqued yet?
Take the next step—Get Matched with 5 European Gap Year Programs for Free!
During gap years in Europe, you’ll never run out of things to do!
Your gap year in Europe will be full of amazing moments, no matter what you do!
During your European gap year, you might eat schnitzel in the fairytale hillsides of the Czech Republic, fresh citrus from the trees along Italy’s Amalfi Coast, and herring in the chilly markets of the Netherlands. Perhaps you’ll spend your time dog sledding in Sweden or basking on the beaches of Malta. Maybe your major goal in spending time abroad is a literary job in Edinburgh, or growing fluent in Portuguese alongside a host family.
Hopefully you’re no longer questioning what to do during a gap year in Europe; hopefully you’re now questioning how you can possibly do it all! Building out your perfect program is possible, we promise. Between selecting the places you want to see and the experiences you want to have, there will be plenty you can do on your own (making buddies in hostels, playing soccer in your community, attending a concert), and there will be plenty to sign up for. Explore your options and get excited, because this dream is all about to become a reality!
Explore ALL Your Gap Year Options in Europe on GoAbroad.com
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