In praise of the "gap year"

Traditionally, the “gap year” was the domain of fresh-faced students with backpacks and Interrail passes, off to discover the world before real life began. But the gap year has evolved, becoming shorter, later, and more varied. Crucially, the spirit of the traditional gap year is no longer bound to youth, or to a 12-month time frame.

Today, the spirit of the gap year can be found just as easily in a sabbatical, a career break, or (my personal favorite) a “quarter-life quest.” And while the pursuit of "finding oneself" might sound trite, there’s something to it. Perhaps it’s in the gaps between life’s seasons — in between jobs, kids, homes — that we’re most open to change. The spaces between chapters, where adventure and reflection unfold side by side.

Here’s our collection of gap-year-inspired journeys, each infused with that same spirit: a curiosity to see the world, and a willingness to be changed by it. Epic adventures to find yourself, yes — but also to find something far bigger.

johanna schrag

Passage to Sicily

When life gives you lemons, make lemon granita. Or, better, head straight to Sicily and devour it beneath the shade of a citrusy courtyard in Palermo. The pace? Slow. The vibes? Immacolate.

Jerome

Scandinavian odyssey

After an overnight sail (that feels more cruise than ferry), there's clarity to be found in cold-water dips in the Sørenga pool and Trondheimsfjorden. Once you've dried off, Swedish stopovers are a smorgasbord of natural beauty, colorful wharves, and fika hangouts. 

Marco D'Abramo

From Europe to North Africa

Home to Africa's first high-speed rail line, Morocco is one of the best countries on the African continent to explore by train. Even more so when the outbound and return journey means stopovers through Spain's ancient cities and an hour's sail across from Tarifa to Tangier. 

Cedric Letsch

Traversing the Low Countries

For depth over distance, a short hop to Belgium by Eurostar kicks off a 20-day sojourn through the Low Countries. Get heady over Belgium's beer (a cultural institution) and Luxembourg's 1,200 valley-spanning bridges, before freewheeling along Dutch canals. 

Leonhard Niederwimmer

Central Europe explorer

Waltzing from spire-studded skylines to riverside ruin bars, variety is the name of the game. Trains thread through castle-clad hills and echoes of the Eastern Bloc, but the real thrill is how no two nights feel the same.