Okay, there’s much more to a trip to Europe than just people-watching with a pint, but for beer lovers, a destination’s bar offering and beer quality is definitely something to consider.
And it’s not just Germany and Belgium that are renowned for their cold ones. Spain and Portugal make brilliant beer, as do places like Czechia and Poland – in fact, we have our very own roundup of the best European beer destinations (that aren’t Munich) right here.
But travel operator DFDS has also done some digging. The platform analysed 40,000 Google reviews of 70 European cities and scoured social media to determine the best cities for beer on the continent, based on quality, social media buzz, the city’s bar and pub offering and price. (Here’s where Europe’s cheapest pints are, FYI).
So where is the best place in Europe for beer? It’s the Spanish capital of Madrid! Yep, the city scored 90 out of 100 for beer quality and 93 out of 100 for social media buzz, giving it an overall beer score of 85.
Prague came in second place, which scored 96 for price – a pint here costs just €2.17 (£1.86), after all – and Vienna claimed bronze, which scores particularly well for bar and pub quality with 92 (with all those opulent bars and glitzy rooftops, we’re hardly shocked).
The best cities in Europe for beer
1. Madrid
2. Prague
3. Vienna
4. Budapest, Thessaloniki, Valencia
12. Seville
13. Amsterdam, Brno
15. Belgrade, Rome
17. Munich, Warsaw, Bratislava
20. Manchester
Have a look at DFDS’s study in some more detail here, and our hub for all the best bars in Europe here.
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