Why only see one place when you could see two? Luckily for those of us living in Europe, it’s pretty easy to squeeze two great cities into just one long weekend away, so here are some of our top picks of cities that are close by in distance, but offer two very different experiences. Before you go, be sure to read some of our tips on exploring a city in 48 hours.

The colourful capital city of Copenhagen offers everything you need for the quintessential city break: eye-catching architecture, excellent gastronomy and an exciting cultural scene. Get a taste for the city with a canal tour, where you’ll see Copenhagen landmarks like the Opera House, Christiansborg Palace and the famous Little Mermaid sculpture. Then explore the famous Tivoli Gardens amusement park and stroll through the beautiful gardens at Rosenborg Castle.

Around one hour 40 minutes away by car, the charming city of Odense has the appeal of a small town despite being the third-largest city in Denmark, with picturesque houses, cobbled streets and pretty gardens. The birthplace of fairy tale writer Hans Christian Andersen, you can visit both the author’s childhood home and a museum that explores his life's work. There are also plenty of fairy tale sculptures inspired by the writer dotted around the city.

As capital of Belgium and the EU, Brussels isn’t just a politically significant city but an exciting one for tourists too. It’s packed with museums, attractions and great restaurants, and is a must-visit for architecture lovers, with its imposing Grand Square. Make sure you check out the Musée Fin-de-Siècle Museum, which exhibits varied works by both Belgian and foreign artists, and don’t miss out on the Belgian Chocolate Village, an enormous museum dedicated entirely to chocolate.

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Just a short train ride away, the picturesque city of Antwerp is a perfect holiday pairing if you're travelling to Brussels. It’s an easily walkable city that’s also fun (and safe) to get around by bicycle. There’s plenty to explore, from the stunning Cathedral of our Lady, which took 169 painstaking years to build, to the Rubens House; where you can walk through the house of the famous Baroque painter and admire his masterpieces and those of his contemporaries.

London is one of the most-visited cities in the world, and there really is something for everyone in this diverse capital. The likes of Big Ben, the London Eye and Buckingham Palace can easily be taken in on a bus or walking tour, while the range of free museums, like the British Museum and V&A, means it’s easy to discover the city’s cultural riches on a budget. And, of course, there are the gorgeous parks to explore on foot.

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Just short of an hour away by train is the beautiful city of Oxford, home to the world-renowned Oxford University. You can walk in the footsteps of some of the nation's prime ministers, revered Nobel Prize winners and famous authors, who all lived in Oxford while attending the prestigious university. While there, you can take in several locations where the Harry Potter films were shot, such as the Bodleian Library (Hogwarts Library). Another must-visit attraction is the Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology, the first purpose-built museum in England.

Whether you love football, beer or culture, you’ll have fun in Munich. Bavaria's capital is particularly lively during Oktoberfest, but it’s a great city break choice year-round. Don’t miss visiting the central Marienplatz square, with its famous town hall glockenspiel, or climbing the south tower of the Cathedral Church of Our Lady, which offers sweeping views over Munich’s rooftops and the Alps. Stock up on traditional Bavarian delicacies at the city’s food market, the Viktualienmarkt.

Just over an hour’s train journey away, Bavaria’s second-largest city Nuremberg waits to be explored. Visit the Nuremberg Historical Mile to take in numerous striking buildings, from ornate churches to powerful fortresses. You can also visit the courthouse where Nazi leaders were tried for their crimes, with Court Room 600, where the trials took place, still a working court. The Nuremberg Trials Memorial on the top floor is an information centre educating visitors about the trials.

For a slightly offbeat break, consider a double dose of Lithuania. Vilnius is a picturesque capital, with striking baroque architecture, cobbled streets and historic buildings. Wander around the medieval Old Town and take in small boutiques, cosy coffee shops and churches constructed so intricately they’ll stop you in your tracks. Don’t miss a visit to the neighbourhood of Uzupis, a bohemian, artistic district that’s a self-proclaimed republic with its own anthem, constitution and bishop.

Spend just €6 and you'll get a first class train ticket to Kaunas, a UNESCO City of Design located just an hour away from the capital. There’s lots to do, from snapping eye-catching street art to visiting Kaunas Castle, the oldest stone castle in Lithuania, built in the 14th century. Arty types will also enjoy spending time in M. Valančiaus Street, nicknamed the "Gallery Street" for its galleries full of contemporary Lithuanian art.

Lyon has all the right ingredients for a varied weekend break: a UNESCO World Heritage old city with narrow streets that are great for exploring on foot, an endless supply of superb restaurants and plenty of memorable monuments, such as the 19th-century Notre Dame de Fourvière basilica. It’s also got the striking metal and glass Musée des Confluences, with several varied scientific exhibitions on the origins of our planet.

If you want to team culture with sport, look no further than Grenoble, just 90 minutes from Lyon by car. While its mountain location means that hiking, climbing and biking are never far away, there’s plenty for non-active types too. Take the famous “bubble” cable cars up to the fortified mountain of La Bastille to take in sweeping views of the city, visit the Musée de Grenoble for art from the 13th century to the modern day and lose track of time in gourmet food markets.

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Spain’s capital is a non-stop city with so much to do you could have a year-long city break and still be left with countless activities to tick off. Be sure to visit the Museo Nacional del Prado, full of some of the planet’s most famous artworks, and get back to nature in the charming Parque de El Retiro, with its lakes, monuments and outdoor cafés. And, of course, embrace the siesta because, in Madrid, the night is always young.

Less than an hour's drive away, the ancient city of Toledo is full of intrigue. Thanks to its multicultural heritage, it’s known as the “city of the three cultures”, with a huge wealth of Christian, Arab and Jewish monuments, from synagogues and mosques to palaces and churches. Don’t miss a walk around the old quarter, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, where you’ll be stunned by monument after monument standing side by side.

Scotland’s largest city, Glasgow is full of energy, with friendly locals, a lively arts scene and notable architecture varying from Victorian structures to the modern Riverside Museum, designed by Zaha Hadid. As a UNESCO City of Music, there’s always a live music event to attend, and shopaholics will love the Style Mile, where you can browse well-known high street stores, vintage shops and quirky boutiques. Plus, you won’t go hungry, with its exciting global dining scene.

Just an hour away by train, Scotland’s capital Edinburgh is a picturesque, hilly city that’s perfect to explore on foot. Take in historic buildings, royal palaces, magnificent cathedrals, cobblestoned streets and the enormous Edinburgh Castle, sitting on the peak of an extinct volcano. When the hills get too much, stop to enjoy some exceptional Scottish hospitality: Edinburgh has more Michelin-starred restaurants than anywhere else in the UK except London.

The picture-perfect capital city of the Netherlands, Amsterdam is like a postcard with its elaborate canal system, narrow houses and omnipresent bicycles. There are plenty of museums you should stop at, including the Rijksmuseum, home to masterpieces from the Middle Ages to the modern day, and the Van Gogh Museum, with works from the famous Dutch painter and his contemporaries. Then visit Anne Frank’s house to see where the diarist hid and learn about that tragic time in history.

It takes just over 30 minutes to reach Rotterdam from Amsterdam by train, and once you're there you’re in for a treat. Drink in the eye-catching architecture, with hyper-modern skyscrapers, cubed upside-down houses and the circular De Markthal, a fusion of luxury housing and an indoor market with a huge, brightly coloured artwork covering the ceiling. Make time to drop by the Euromast observation tower for 360-degree views of Rotterdam.

Pack your walking shoes, because Lisbon, Portugal’s coastal capital, is all about discovering the city on foot. Visit the imposing Moorish São Jorge Castle on the city’s highest hill for sweeping views and take a trip to the UNESCO World Heritage monument of Belém Tower, built as a fortress in 1515 to guard the entrance to Lisbon’s harbour. And when you've done enough sightseeing, head to the beaches of Costa de Caparica for relaxation and great beachside bars.

A three-hour drive from Lisbon is Portugal’s second-largest city, Porto, perfect for a tranquil break after racking up those steps in Lisbon. With great wine bars, sleepy cobbled streets and plenty of cultural points of interest, it’s all about exploring Porto at your own pace. If you’re a bookworm, make a beeline straight for Livraria Lello, undoubtedly one of the most beautiful bookstores in the world at a hundred years old, and said to have inspired JK Rowling’s Harry Potter locations.

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Italy’s gorgeous capital needs little introduction. Rome is practically bursting with fascinating monuments, ruins, museums and architecture, with iconic structures such as the Colosseum, Trevi Fountain and Roman Forum reliably drawing in the crowds year after year. There’s an almost endless list of things to do in the city, but a great way to start is to head to the beautiful baroque Piazza Navona to have an espresso and take in fountains, sculptures and a magnificent church from your seat.

Hop on board a two-hour train from Rome to Bologna for even more Italian charm with far fewer tourists. Often called Italy’s gastronomic capital, if you’re visiting, you’d better take elasticated clothes. Head for the central square, Piazza Maggiore, for lively bars and restaurants and prominent buildings such as the Basilica di San Petronio. Plus, when you need to walk off all that pasta, there are more than 50 museums to explore.

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For culture, architecture and music you just can’t beat Vienna, with its imperial architecture, art collections and musical heritage. For magnificent, sprawling palaces, visit the Hofburg imperial palace complex and the baroque Schönbrunn and Belvedere Palaces. Be sure to catch a show in one of the city's grand venues or visit Mozart’s Vienna home, Mozarthaus, where you can learn more about the composer's work and life.

A 2.5-hour journey from Vienna, the fairy tale-like city of Salzburg is not only visually stunning, but has a fascinating history. It's where Mozart was born, where The Sound of Music was filmed and where the prominent Salzburg Festival has been held since 1920. Fans of the classic Julie Andrews film can walk in the steps of the real Von Trapp family and the movie characters, visiting shooting locations such as Leopoldskron Palace and the Summer Riding School.

Architecturally outstanding, the city of Budapest has a seemingly inexhaustible supply of beautiful buildings, from the Baroque to the Art Nouveau. There’s so much to see, from the Széchenyi Chain Bridge, the first to permanently connect the two areas of Buda and Pest, to the jaw-dropping Parliament building, the third-largest in the world and home to the Hungarian Crown Jewels. Once your feet are tired from walking, head for one of Budapest’s famous bathhouses to make the most of the city’s hot springs.

Just over two hours’ drive away, or a three-hour train journey, is the ancient city of Pécs. With a fascinating history, it’s got plenty of landmarks to gawp at, including the 16th-century Mosque of Pasha Qasim that has since been converted into a Catholic church; and the 11th-century Pécs Cathedral, which has been restored several times and has an ornate interior.

Cities don’t get much cooler than Stockholm. Although it has a fascinating old town, museums and castles, many people visit for the modernity of the capital city, with its hip bars, gourmet restaurants, nightlife and quirky shopping boutiques. The Moderna Museet (Modern Art Museum) is a must-visit for anyone interested in modern art, while those with a love of photography should make time for Fotografiska, where you can take in works by world-famous photographers.

In just over three hours you can reach the city of Gothenburg by train. This city has its own energy, but is a little more laidback than Stockholm. Get your trainers on and enjoy walking through the picturesque streets. Stop at the Gothenburg Museum of Art, which houses Nordic collections from the 15th century, eat plenty of seafood at one of the city’s many trendy restaurants and get a different view of Gothenburg via a waterside city tour. 

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Dublin is often the first (and only) city visitors see in Ireland. This intriguing city’s cobbled streets and craic-filled pubs are bound together by a literary heritage. There’s also an impressive drinks legacy, with a clutch of distilleries and storehouses to tour and sample for yourself. You could spend a couple of days exploring one of Dublin’s many ‘themes’ – be it history, music, art, literature – and still leave having not quite seen it all.

Many people visit Dublin and come away wishing they’d had time to see more of the Emerald Isle. A two- to three-hour drive or train ride away lies the small town of Knock. Okay, it's not a city, but it makes a great starting point to venture around the surrounding green lands of County Mayo. On top of its current Edinburgh, East Midlands, London Luton and Manchester flights roster, Ryanair recently launched a new route from Birmingham to Knock. 

The Czech capital is worthy of a long weekend in itself, with quirky museums, stunning architecture and more than enough pivnices (pubs or brasseries) to keep you merry. See as much of the city as possible by making good use of its excellent tram system. For a self-guided tour, hop on board the number 22, which passes the dazzling National Theatre and historic Malá Strana neighbourhood and winds uphill to Prague Castle.

Take a budget-friendly FlixBus from Prague’s Florenc coach station and less than three hours later you’ll arrive in Brno. You’re in for a treat in the Czech Republic’s second-largest city; head up the observation tower in the Old Town Hall for sweeping views of the city’s terracotta rooftops, enjoy a spot of museum-hopping, take in many modern public art installations and pause at a hipster brewery or pub to round off the day.

One of the best things to do in Split – or any European city for that matter – is to go on a walking tour. As your guide tells you all about this ancient city and shows you around the likes of UNESCO-listed Diocletian’s Palace (recognisable from HBO’S Game of Thrones), dream of a post-dinner stroll along the pleasant Riva Promenade, which offers watery views of the shimmering Adriatic Sea.

It’s less than two hours from Split to Zadar by car. Continue the sea-theme and watch the sunset from the city’s southwestern quay. While you’re here, listen to the impressive Sea Organ; the movement of the waves and sea breeze transforms this art installation into a musical instrument. If you can tear yourself away from the water’s edge, the city’s historic centre is packed with Roman ruins and medieval churches. Want to spend more time here? Ryanair recently launched new routes from Birmingham and Bournemouth to Zadar.

Now plan your weekend in Istria, Croatia