Which is great. If you like football.
For those that don’t, you can always turn the telly off and not visit the pub for a month. But here’s an alternative thought: why not eschew the ball-based ballyhoo completely by taking a well-earned trip to a nation that isn’t competing at all?
Somewhere quiet and serene where you can wonder the streets with not a football shirt in sight and, well, do loads of other memorable stuff instead.
Here’s some choice city breaks in countries that did not qualify for Qatar 2022…
Revered by some travel journalists as “the most beautiful city in Europe”, Budapest has architectural hints of Vienna, Paris and London, and was originally split into two cities itself: Buda on the west bank of the River Danube, and Pest on the east side, each with its own distinctive personality and undulations.
A great way to explore the city is to traverse the Liberty Bridge towards the Citadella and the Liberty Statue. From the more hilly Buda side of the river you can enjoy some splendid views to the north and you’re in a prime location to visit Buda Castle, the Hungarian National Art Museum and the almost-fairytale vistas of Fisherman’s Bastion, or Halászbástya.
On the Pest side the neoclassical St Stephen’s Basilica is a must: it contains the mummified right hand of St Stephen himself and has splendid views of the city from the dome.
Unless you’re desperate to explore the outer reaches of the city, all the above is manageable on foot. In our experience, it’s best to just pick your route of choice – incorporating your must-see destinations – and then get the Metro back to your digs for dinner and a debrief.
You should also try the thermal bath and young creatives will adore the ruins and the cheap drinks and tall tales that flow within.
With its alluring blend of magnificent history, incredible art, world class cuisine and modern-world attractions, the Eternal City is never far from our minds when it comes to European excursions.
Visually, Rome is just an awesome sight to behold: ancient ruins are incorporated into modern buildings and there’s elegant piazzas and architectural prowess around every corner.
You can conjure up brutal games of old in the biggest amphitheatre in the world, the Colosseum,. You can gasp in awe at the biggest unsupported dome in the world, the Pantheon. And you can visit Vatican City, the smallest state in the world and one of the most hallowed places in Christendom.
Rome isn’t finished there either. You still have St Peter’s Basilica and the Vatican Museums to visit, the latter incorporating the unfathomably wonderful Sistine Chapel.
After all this walking, we’d recommend one of Rome’s pasta specials, such as amatriciana (sauce with tomato and pork), carbonara (sauce with egg, cheese and pork), cacio e pepe (sauce with cheese and pepper) or if you just want a quick bite on the move, how about just grabbing a pizza al taglio (pizza by the slice).
The great thing about Rome is that the locals instantly make it feel like home and yet there’s new things to try and wonder to be had every time you go.
Oh, and the shopping’s pretty good, too…
Oslo is cool. It’s set between the mountains and the Olso Fjord with gorgeous visuals and crispy, clean air and tap water. It hosts world-class museums, original cuisine and charming architecture. And it does everything so effortlessly, it makes you feel a bit more voguish just to be a part of it.
Let’s start with the food: Norway has an eclectic taste with unusual traditional menu (including the doesn’t sound-inviting-but-is-actually-delicious mutton stew) and the best way to get to grips with it as at Mathallen. Translated it means ‘Food Hall’ and it consists of 33 shops and restaurants that will help showcase the breadth of innovative options on offer.
Fancy a bit of nature? No problem either. You can explore the Oslo Fjord on a public transport boat or an organised private trip to one of the islands. You can snowboard in the winter in the Oslo mountains. Or you can hike till your heart’s content up into the hillsides.
Time in the city is well-spent, too. First-timers will experience a wonderful cross section of old and new, experiencing the Akershus Fortress (a medieval castle) one minute and the more modernist architecture of the Bjorvika area and The Opera House and Aker Brygge the next.
There's a bit of everything in mighty Oslo and no matter what you choose to do, there’s an unhurried brilliance about the place that everyone should soak up at least once.
With its combination of French and Byzantine architecture, the post-communist city of Bucharest is not only an incredibly beautiful place to spend the weekend, but a varied and changing one, too.
As you walk your way through the city you’ll discover art nouveaue and art deco buildings, uncover hidden cafes, ogle elegant parks built around lakes, see brutalist communist apartment blocks and marvel at the full-on replica of the Arc de Triomphe.
Locals are super-friendly and keen to guide eager tourists to the favourite spots of their city. For most this doesn’t include the Palace of Parliament, but tourists may want to check out its overbearing, megolomaniacal grandeur for themselves.
More change can be seen in the burgeoning Romanian nightlife and in the variety of cuisine, making the city feel both historic and contemporary.
In fact, Bucharest is very much a city still reshaping and redefining itself, which makes it a rather exciting place to be.
