Beyond the Capital:

Rethinking the Study Abroad Itinerary

Everyone knows the draw of major cities like Paris, Rome, Venice, London, Barcelona — they anchor study abroad programs for a reason.

But as costs climb and crowds at the usual landmarks grow faster than ever, we are increasingly asking one question:

Does the capital city always need to be the center of the itinerary?

In response, study abroad programs are increasingly considering Europe’s “second cities”—such as Porto, Leipzig, Bologna, Ghent, and Valencia—as home bases. These mid-sized cities offer a more functional, authentic environment where students can actually settle in rather than just cross sights off a bucket list.

By basing a faculty-led program outside a major capital city, participants have multiple benefits.

• Daily expenses, housing, and restaurants tend to cost less.
• Smaller cities foster deeper cultural and language immersion.
• Participants can interact with the locals in genuine ways, practice the language out of necessity, and gain a far more realistic, non-commercialized perspective on contemporary European life

This strategic shift doesn’t require removing major capitals entirely—they still make excellent day or weekend excursions—but repositioning the core program to a second city offers a win-win.

Faculty leaders and students will be able to experience authentic community engagement which leads to greater personal growth and study abroad with a lower environmental footprint.