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The surprising European cities where travelers waste the least — and most — time on vacation

Luxembourg tops the list as the most time-efficient European city.

By Amanda Teague Published November 7, 2024

Jardin du Luxembourg, Paris, France — Michelle_Raponi / Pixabay

In an effort to help vacationers make the most of their time, a new study by Avis has unveiled which cities allow travelers to make the most of their vacation – and which ones can lead to significant time wasted. The findings reveal that vacationers typically spend an average of 5 hours and 45 minutes of their vacation waiting in lines and navigating delays, highlighting the importance of efficient travel planning.

Topping the list of efficient destinations is Luxembourg, where visitors can enjoy a quick 12-minute car journey from the airport to the city center. Paired with an efficient public transportation system, Luxembourg emerges as the clear leader for time-conscious travelers.

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Following closely behind are Vilnius and Stuttgart, both of which benefit from relatively low annual passenger volumes (4.4 million and 8.4 million, respectively) along with low TripAdvisor Queue Scores of 9 and 7.

In stark contrast, Athens, Greece, has been identified as the city where tourists face the longest delays, scoring the lowest overall for airport waiting times with a rating of just 2.25 out of 5. With a TripAdvisor Queue Score of 164, Athens epitomizes the challenges many travelers face when navigating busy tourist hotspots. Istanbul and Berlin also rank poorly and are known for their lengthy queues and waiting times that can easily dampen the excitement of exploration.

Europe’s most time-efficient cities

A view of Helsinki and the Gulf of Finland — Ninara / Flickr

Luxembourg
Vilnius, Lithuania
Stuttgart, Germany
Zagreb, Croatia
Lyon, France
Helsinki, Finland
Belgrade, Serbia
Zurich, Switzerland
Naples, Italy
Nice, France

Europe’s least time-efficient cities

The Parthenon in Athens, Greece — Dimitris Kiriakakis / Unsplash

Athens, Greece
Istanbul, Turkey
Berlin, Germany
London, England
Lisbon, Portugal
Krakow, Poland
Madrid, Spain
Milan, Italy
Warsaw, Poland
Rome, Italy

Contributor

Amanda, an accomplished freelance writer from Columbus, Ohio, is a dedicated explorer of both the world and the written word…

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