There’s no shortage of content telling you that riding in Europe is beautiful. There’s considerably less telling you what a specific road actually feels like under your tires in July, what the border crossing into Albania involves, what accommodation costs on the Montenegrin coast, or which section of the Dolomites is worth the detour and which one exists only on a tourist poster.

This section covers the destinations and routes I’ve ridden — country guides, multi-country trips, and personal accounts from the roads that earned a report. The Balkans, Greece, Italy, Austria, Slovakia, and beyond. On tarmac and off it, on the V85 TT and the DR 800 S, with costs quoted from the receipts rather than estimated from a desk. If you’re planning a trip to somewhere covered here, you’ll find the kind of information I was looking for before I went — and couldn’t find.

The country guides are the most detailed entries — built to be read before you leave and referenced on the road. The route posts zoom out to cover multi-country planning. Start with wherever you’re headed.