7.2/1022 votes#1 - Burgundy: Profoundly French
Season 5 Episode 1 - Aired 3/8/2008
Burgundy is a calm and cultivated corner of France, where fine living is intimately tied to nature and traditions run strong. We'll slow down to enjoy the region's edible, drinkable, scenic, and floatable delights. We'll travel on a canal barge, visit a medieval hospice and a modern monastery, build a barrel, appreciate fine Burgundy wine, slurp escargot, and eat very, very well. If you're looking for quintessential French culture, you'll find it in Burgundy.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
6.8/1021 votes#2 - France's Dordogne
Season 5 Episode 2 - Aired 10/11/2008
The Dordogne River Valley — with its dramatic castles, evocative cave paintings, and prized cuisine — is an unforgettable blend of man-made and natural beauty. We'll take an idyllic canoe ride, and then visit a goose farm and savor the foie gras. We'll also wander through a lamp-lit castle, enjoy a country market, and visit the Sistine Chapel of the prehistoric world. Then we head south to Albi, home of Toulouse-Lautrec, and the imposing fortress city of Carcassonne.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.6/1024 votes#3 - Barcelona and Catalunya
Season 5 Episode 3 - Aired 10/18/2008
The creative spirit of Spain's Catalunya — the land of Picasso, Gaudí, and Salvador Dalí — is on a roll. We'll get caught up in the festivity of Barcelona, enjoying the vibrant street scenes, tasty tapas, and pedestrian-friendly Gothic Quarter. Then we'll take a scenic side trip to mountaintop Montserrat, and finish with an artist’s pilgrimage along the Costa Brava to Salvador Dalí country. In seaside Cadaqués, we’ll visit Dalí's home, and in nearby Figueres, we'll experience his playfully surreal mausoleum/museum.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.7/1029 votes#4 - Little Europe: Five Micro-Countries
Season 5 Episode 4 - Aired 11/1/2008
Don't blink as we blitz through Europe's tiniest countries: Vatican City, the planet's smallest country, boasts the its biggest church. The fairy-tale princedom of Monaco lures high rollers with its fancy casino and glamorous views. Italy's last independent hill town, San Marino, still looks formidable, as does the castle-guarded principality of Liechtenstein. And amid the rugged beauty of the Pyrenees, tiny Andorra draws shoppers and hikers alike.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.2/1020 votes#5 - Switzerland's Great Cities
Season 5 Episode 5 - Aired 11/8/2008
Focusing on Switzerland's often-overlooked urban charms, we explore lakeside Luzern, cobbled Bern, spire-filled Zürich, and sophisticated Lausanne. We'll enjoy eye-opening art, from Chagall and Klee to the works of asylum inmates. We'll ring a very big bell high up in a church spire, float down a rushing river, and ponder Switzerland's pragmatic drug policies and hidden underground arsenals. And it's all before a backdrop of stunning natural beauty.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.5/1022 votes#6 - Vienna and the Danube
Season 5 Episode 6 - Aired 11/15/2008
For centuries, Vienna was the crown jewel of the rich and powerful Habsburg Empire. A century after that empire's fall, the Viennese appreciate their imperial legacy as a cultural wellspring — and an excuse to live in style. We'll take in the city's wealth of elegant gardens, great art, and fine music. Then we'll explore the city's surroundings, with a trip along the romantic Danube River and a hike through the breathtakingly Baroque Melk Abbey.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.1/1025 votes#7 - The Czech Republic Beyond Prague
Season 5 Episode 7 - Aired 11/22/2008
Few travelers venture beyond Prague to experience the Czech Republic's many cultural riches and offbeat delights. We'll get started with a whirlwind of Art Nouveau, local pub music, stinky-cheese tasting, and peat bathing in places like Olomouc, Moravský Krumlov, Třeboň, and Konopiště. We'll also tour a remarkable memorial to the Holocaust in Terezín, and the charming castle town of Český Krumlov.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.3/1027 votes#8 - Athens and Side Trips
Season 5 Episode 8 - Aired 11/29/2008
The thriving capital of Greece sprawls out from the foot of its magnificent Acropolis. We'll tour the must-sees of ancient Athens: the Parthenon, Agora, and amazing National Archaeological Museum. We'll take the fast-paced pulse of the modern city, but waste no time getting to Rick's favorite side-trip destinations: the ruins of the mystical oracle at Delphi and a fast boat to the romantic, traffic-free isle of Hydra.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.1/1023 votes#9 - Greece's Peloponnese
Season 5 Episode 9 - Aired 11/29/2008
After exploring the ancient capital of Mycenae, we'll enjoy Greece's charming old port town of Nafplio, take center stage at the remarkably preserved theater at Epidavros, and time-trip through the ruins of Olympia. Then we'll wander off the beaten path along the rustic, rough-and-tumble Mani Peninsula — with a relaxing stop in the idyllic beach town of Kardamyli — and marvel at Greece's Rock of Gibraltar: the fortress town of Monemvasia.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.6/1025 votes#10 - Copenhagen
Season 5 Episode 10 - Aired 12/6/2008
As we get to know Copenhagen, we'll discover reminders of its Viking history and see reflections today of its proudly independent ways. We'll stroll down Europe's first great pedestrian boulevard, ogle crown jewels in the palace treasury, and take a bike ride through an inspirational hippie squatter community, finishing at Copenhagen's full-time carnival, Tivoli Gardens.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.8/1022 votes#11 - Denmark Beyond Copenhagen
Season 5 Episode 11 - Aired 12/13/2008
Using Copenhagen as a springboard, we'll visit the very best of Denmark. Aarhus welcomes us with its ruddy affluence, charming open-air museum, and eerily well-preserved ancient bog man. Roskilde impresses visitors with its royal burial church and the best Viking-ship museum anywhere. And the delightfully quaint isle of Ærø comes with half-timbered cottages, ships in bottles, and cobbled alleyways that remind us of the world of Hans Christian Andersen.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
6.9/1025 votes#12 - Istanbul
Season 5 Episode 12 - Aired 12/20/2008
In Istanbul, we’ll lose our way in the Grand Bazaar and munch our way through the famously fragrant Spice Market. We’ll follow the fall of the ancient capital of Byzantium and the rise of Islam at the city’s ancient wall, and wander among the treasures of Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, and Topkapı Palace. To escape the city bustle, we’ll cruise the churning waters of the Bosphorus, make friends over backgammon, and try a traditional Turkish bath.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.0/1015 votes#13 - Iran: Tehran and Side Trips
Season 5 Episode 13 - Aired 1/3/2009
As he's done with previous programs on Israel, Egypt, and eastern Turkey, Rick takes us beyond Europe to a place that's rich with history…and mystery. In this first of two half-hour shows on Iran, Rick dodges traffic in Tehran, enjoys the tranquility of a nearby village, and encounters both anti-American propaganda and a warm welcome from everyday Iranians.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.5/1022 votes#14 - Iran: Historic Capitals
Season 5 Episode 14 - Aired 1/10/2009
Iran's rich history goes back millennia, to the days when Persepolis was home to the "king of kings." In this episode, we explore three historic capitals of Iran: Persepolis, with its splendid monuments; Shiraz, with the tombs of Iran's most beloved poets; and Isfahan, with its extraordinary mosques and endearing people.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
The Best Episodes of Rick Steves' Europe Season 5
Every episode of Rick Steves' Europe Season 5 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of Rick Steves' Europe Season 5!
Rick Steves, America's leading authority on European travel, returns to transport viewers to the continent's bustling cities, quaint villages and picturesque countryside.
Genre:Documentary
Network:PBS
Season 5 Ratings Summary
"Burgundy: Profoundly French" is the best rated episode of "Rick Steves' Europe" season 5. It scored 7.2/10 based on 22 votes. Directed by N/A and written by N/A, it aired on 3/8/2008. This episode is rated 0.4 points higher than the second-best, "France's Dordogne".