From a historic café in Paris to a brand new beach club on the Amalfi Coast, these outdoor dining spots will inspire you to book a trip.
When it comes to outdoor dining, Europeans have got it on lock. As soon as the sun begins to shine its spring rays on the continent, café terraces fill up, and seasonal spots reopen. Travel around Europe in the warmer months, and you’ll notice that locals tend to spend a lot of time outdoors, walking or riding bikes to get around, lingering in public squares and by river banks, and hightailing it to the sea. So while there’s no bad time to visit Europe, going between April and October gives you the best chance to enjoy outdoor dining. From Paris to Portugal, we’ve rounded up a selection of gorgeous outdoor dining spots that’ll have you ready to hop on a plane.
The legendary Café de Flore on the Boulevard St. Germain was the haunt of Jean Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, Pablo Picasso, and other artists and intellectuals in the early 20th century. These days, it’s more frequented by tourists than contemporary writers, but it’s still a beautiful place to sit on the terrace fringed by plants and enjoy a niçoise salad or croque monsieur while watching the beautiful Parisians walk by.
