Australia is a long way from both Europe and North America; our population is relatively small; and our residents can visit many parts of Asia and the Pacific for a relatively small outlay and without spending 24 hours or more just to get to a destination. Consequently, the number of Australians who fly to Europe is minute compared to the numbers of Asians and North Americans. Less demand + longer flights = more expensive.

So, although it is still a fortnight ’til Maggie and I depart for our next visit to Europe, we have already begun to plan and make bookings for another trip in 2016. Early plans + early bookings = less expensive.

And now we have discovered another reason to get your bids in early – the world has gone crazy for European river cruises. We had some idea that this was the case, having seen cruise ships on the Rhine when we were in Central Europe in April/May last year. Now we have incontrovertible evidence. We have just secured the last cabin with a modest deck, for a cruise from Amsterdam to Basel, 12 months from now! And our chosen cruise line, Viking, is already taking bookings for 2017. Crazy stuff!

I will tell you about the other places we plan to visit next year, after we have returned from our imminent travels in England, Scotland, Wales, Croatia and Singapore.