Just two weeks ago I went on a road trip from Frankfurt to Brussels and last week I was on a road trip in Germany again. How come? I got this offer to test a new app called Breakzy and therefore I traveled to Amsterdam to pick up a Peugeot again, this time a brand new Peugeot 307 SW. But I of course I was not going alone, I picked up my travel buddy from previous trips to India, Austria and my road trip to Balkan first.
The first stretch from Amsterdam to Nijmegen I had to drive alone but then stopped at Chloe’s house. You probably know her, the blogger from dailynonsense.nl, as we have done quite some jobs together this year. Since my travel schedule for the rest of the year is kind of fixed already and I am bound for Asia this was going to be our last job together in 2018, testing the Breakzy App.
What is Breakzy?
When going on a road trip it is actually hard to find the best places to stop along the road, right? Mostly we use Google Maps which is giving us the best and most convenient route from A to B and we stick to it. Traveling is not only about the destination, the journey is just as important, someone famous once said. But he was right when you ask me. The best thing about a road trip is the feeling of freedom. You can go wherever you want, whenever you want. But where to find cool places to stop along the route?
This is how they came up with the idea of Breakzy! This app shows you the best places to stop on a road trip. So no more endless stretches on a highway. Break your trip by stopping along the road at cool places.
Examples where the Breakzy App already would have been handy
Road trip Bosnia
I know it is off the beaten path in Europe, but my road trip in Bosnia was among the best trips in Europe ever taken. I instantly fell in love with this country. There are so many cool things to do and places to visit in Bosnia on a road trip that it was hard to make decisions where to stop. How I found these places? Mostly on Google, which was a lot of trip planning and searching to find to best route. I wish there would have been an app showing you the best stops within 50km on my itinerary.
Road trip Portugal
Damn it this was the best example I think. When driving in a campervan from Porto to Algarve I literally had no clue where to go. I wanted to avoid big cities and found out that toll roads were expensive too, so we mostly sticked to byways. But with so many beach villages we constantly found ourselves pretty lost. Which beaches are the best? Where to eat? Where to stop and park our campervan? Decision making without a proper idea what is where is difficult I can tell you! If you read my blog post about it you can feel how difficult it was finding the hotspots in Portugal.
Road trip Luxembourg
Just two weeks ago I traveled to Frankfurt to pick up one of my Asian besties who flew over to travel around Europe for a couple months. To make her see a couple new countries we decided to travel from Frankfurt through Luxembourg to Brussels and then onwards to Amsterdam. She of course assumed I would know where to stop along the way to make her see some interesting places. Honestly I had no clue, what is cool to see in Luxembourg? Eventually we found a castle along the way and a place down by the river to have a picnic but that was just random luck. The Breakzy App would have showed me the following places on the route.
Road trip Germany
For this trip Chloe and I decided to take a road trip to Germany from Nijmegen to Dusseldorf then south to Koblenz and back to the Netherlands via Maastricht. Traveling in Germany and looking for the best sim card for tourists? Click on the link to find out which mobile phone provider is the best for you.
First stop Dusseldorf
On our way from Nijmegen to Dusseldorf we picked up someone looking for a ride to Dusseldorf. Always great to help out a stranger, right? We dropped the Brazilian guy and found our first spot on Breakzy: a Japanese garden outside the city center of Dusseldorf. A place that I had never found if the Breakzy App would not have recommended me.
Did you know that Dusseldorf has the biggest Japanese community after London and Paris? Coincidentally our hotel for the next two nights was also located in the Japanse Quarter in the center of Dusseldorf. It was a pleasure staying at Me And All Hotels and the Hyatt Regency, read the full reviews here. Exploring the city center of Dusseldorf with a goal of finding cool places to add to the Breakzy app was a pleasure. Chloe was good in searching for lovely coffee places, cool restaurants and hip hotspots. The free bikes from our hotel were perfect to roam around the city, Dutch people love to bike!
A new hotspot in Dusseldorf: Paris Bar, with the most amazing views!
From Dusseldorf to Koblenz
The weather was lovely, but I still wanted to finish some work before leaving Dusseldorf so we only left around 13.00 and continued our road trip. Driving South from Dusseldorf we were heading to Koblenz, another beautiful little touristy village in Germany. As if it was staged, Chloe got really excited by which stops the Breakzy App was showing along the way. There is Phantasialand, one of Germany’s most popular amusement park on our route, she said. Shall we go? I looked at the clock it was almost 14.30. A little too late I reckon, but yeah we can give it a try. Why not!
Stop at Phantasialand
A couple phone calls later I changed my navigation towards Phantasialand. One moment we had no clue what we were doing today, the next moment I sat in the front row of the fastest multi launch coaster in the world.
We were given quick passes to skip the lines and in a couple hours time we walked from one roller coaster to the other. Never too old to have fun, right? But definitely too old to handle so many roller coasters in a row. Damn I was totally nauseas and at dinner I could not eat a single thing. But wow what a great day thanks to Phantasialand and Breakzy.
Doesn't this look like a fantasy land? :)
Burg Eltz
Close to Koblenz we found out there was an old medieval castle named Burg Eltz. Famous for its Instagram pictures and surely one of the best stops on a road trip. This place you only get to when driving around the area, as it is located off the beaten path in a forest.
Totally worth stopping by and so did we. From the parking there were shuttle busses but we decided to walk 20 minutes through the forest. This castle looks cool on Instagram pictures, but is even more impressive when you walk up to it in real life. The pictures will do the talking I would say.
There is no entrance fee apart from the parking lot which is €2, but to see the interior of Burg Eltz you have to pay €10 and you are not allowed to take photos inside.
Funny fact: we were actually heading towards Koblenz two days in a row, but never even made it there.
Cochem
Recommended again by the Breakzy App we found out that Cochem was nearby. I had actually heard of it before and when I googled it I recognized it from the pictures. This popular village on the Mosel River is famous for its wine festival end of August. Unfortunately we just missed that, but it was a fun stop to have lunch along the river. At Cochem a lot of multi day river cruises make a stop. This lovely little town is one of the most perfect places to visit in Germany in autumn. The autumn colors will this make it an incredible destination this time of year.
Onwards to Maastricht
Our last stop on our road trip through Germany was going to be Maastricht in the Netherlands. While heading back to our own country, we decided to make a little detour through Zuid - Limburg and eventually never made it to Maastricht. Be careful this Breakzy App can cause problems with your travel partner! Luckily Chloe and I just go with the flow and no plan is the best plan! We hung out in the hilly country side of Belgium, Germany and Netherlands and visited the point where these three countries meet at the Drielandenpunt in Vaals. Here you will find the highest point in the Netherlands with 322,5 meter above sea level. Don’t laugh! ;)
We ended our road trip with Breakzy eating Limburgse vlaai and drinking coffee around the hilly country side, one of the most beautiful regions in The Netherlands.
Review Breakzy App
As you have read I really liked traveling to Germany trying out Breakzy. Our spontaneous stop at Phantasialand was probably the best example of how much fun it can be to stop along the road at cool places rather than sticking to the highway. The Breakzy route planner directs you from A to B without using highways and thus tries to show you the best in and between. From beautiful landscapes to medieval castles and picturesque towns to lovely coffee places.
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Thank you again for keeping up with my travel adventures!