Toronto &
European
Adventure

The journey begins with heart — cousin Nancy's wedding on 6 September draws you to this vibrant, multicultural metropolis. Toronto hums with the energy of a city that celebrates every culture it touches, from the steaming phở houses of Spadina to the gleaming towers of the Financial District.

Two to three weeks with family means time to slow down. No rushing between landmarks — just long mornings with uncles and aunties, afternoon walks through High Park, and evenings exploring Kensington Market's eclectic food scene.

This isn't just a stopover — it's a homecoming. The kind of trip where the destination matters less than the people you're sharing it with.

Steve arrives from Melbourne via Qantas staff travel — touching down at Heathrow before connecting to Malpensa. After three weeks apart, Milan is where the trip transforms from solo family time into a shared adventure.

Alessia and Cam, freshly settled back in their homeland, provide the kind of local guidance no guidebook can match. Their Milan isn't the tourist's Milan — it's aperitivo hour at a hidden Navigli bar, Sunday lunch at a family trattoria in Brera, the quiet majesty of the Duomo at dawn before the crowds.

Milan teaches you that luxury isn't always about price tags — sometimes it's an espresso at the bar, standing up, surrounded by people who've been doing exactly this for generations.

Italy rewards those who linger. The high-speed Frecciarossa carries you south from Milan in hours, but the countryside demands a different pace entirely. Whether it's Florence's Renaissance grandeur, Rome's layered history, or Venice's floating impossibility — each deserves days, not hours.

This is the week where the trip's rhythm settles. Morning light through shuttered windows. Coffee that needs no embellishment. Markets where the produce tells you what to cook, not the other way around.

The beauty of Italy is that you don't need to choose correctly — every path leads somewhere extraordinary. The only mistake is rushing.

A budget flight from Milan drops you into Copenhagen's effortless cool. Daniel and Michele know this city the way only residents can — beyond Nyhavn's painted facades and Tivoli's vintage charm, there's a design capital that quietly punches above its weight in every category that matters.

Then Paris. There's nothing left to say about Paris that hasn't been said better by someone sitting at a café with a glass of something red. But visiting friends who live there changes everything — you skip the queue at the Louvre and find the bakery their neighbourhood swears by instead.

Two cities, two moods, one week. Copenhagen's restraint meets Paris's excess. Both, somehow, feel exactly right.

Manchester surprises people who've never been. It's not London's little sibling — it's its own creature entirely. Ollie's Manchester is all Northern Quarter vinyl shops, curry mile late nights, and the kind of honest warmth that makes you wonder why you don't visit more often.

Two hours on the Avanti West Coast train delivers you to London for the finale. Three or four nights in a city that somehow contains everything: Michelin stars and market stalls, royal parks and grime venues, architecture spanning a millennium.

The QF A380 lifts off from Heathrow, and somewhere over Singapore, you'll already be planning the next one.