Renee Hannes, Dream Plan Experience
Most people travel Europe in a way that feels rushed.
They try to see everything. Fit it all in. Make the most of one trip.
And then they come home feeling like it all went too fast.
I’ve felt that too.
And I’ve learned there’s another way to plan a trip to Europe—one that feels unhurried, personal, and more memorable.
I’m Renee Hannes, founder of Dream Plan Experience. Author of the eBook “Experience Paris: Finding the Joy of Slow Travel”.
And I’m here to help you plan a more thoughtful, slow-paced trip to Europe.
How I came to see travel differently
I was seventeen the first time Europe felt like home.
I spent three months in Germany on my first solo trip abroad. It was the first time I had that kind of independence. Time to wander, return to the same places, choose how I spent my time, and settle into everyday life in a community.
I would stop at the same bakery each morning for a pastry before school. Walk the same streets. Meet friends in the town square.
Somewhere along the way, travel stopped being about seeing places and started being about being there. Being present. Feeling like I belonged.
I didn’t have language for it then. I do now.
As featured in conversations on slow travel:
Ranked #28 on Substack’s Rising Best Sellers in Travel—alongside established voices like Frances Mayes—I write from decades of lived European travel experience, grounded in a slow, immersive approach to place.
What I’ve come to understand
Over the next nearly four decades, I kept going back to Europe.
Sometimes for weeks. Sometimes for months. Often alone.
While others collected countries, I started paying attention to something else—how it feels to travel Europe more slowly.
I return to the same countries. Sometimes the same city, often a new region.
I look beyond the must-sees and pay attention to how people actually live.
Sit in cafés where no one speaks English.
Shop at local markets.
Take the metro.
I stay longer. Choose fewer places. Let days unfold with a sense of curiosity instead of filling them to the brim.
What I realized is this:
You don’t need unlimited time to have a meaningful trip.
You just need to be more intentional with how you use it.
Over time, I’ve returned to the same places again and again—refining how I plan, where I stay, and how I spend my time in each destination.
How I help you plan a better trip to Europe
Through this website, I help you plan a trip to Europe that feels better to you.
That means:
- choosing fewer places
- structuring your days with more space
- building a Europe itinerary around what actually matters to you
Not what everyone else says you should see.
This is the foundation of how I approach travel—and what I’ve developed further through my Unrushed Itinerary Method.
A slower way to experience Europe
For me, travel has never been about checking things off a list.
It’s about:
- walking through a city before it wakes up
- finding places where locals actually spend time
- returning somewhere and noticing what you missed the first time
That’s where the experience deepens.
That’s what stays with you.
If this resonates with you
You’re probably not looking to see more.
You’re looking to experience your trip differently.
In my weekly newsletter, I share personal insights based on years of travelling in Europe—along with practical ways to think about your trip so it feels more aligned with you.
If that’s what you’re looking for, you’re in the right place.