Car trips in Europe in general are less “fun” than the US due to the simple fact in Europe most businesses keep sensible hours. Unlike the the US you can’t just drive and expect to find gas, food, or lodging at midnight. This may have changed in the past 10-20 years though. At least today you don’t have to bother with showing your papers at every border crossing.

It seems that your view is outdated. Most gas stations are open 24/7 if you have a credit card and it has been that way for at least 25+ years. Showing your passport at borders has not been in effect for 3 decades--since the Schengen Agreement in 1985. You could not show up at a regular restaurant in the US at midnight either. For lodging, there are hotels that allow for late check-ins just like in the US.

This is not a comment about Europe, but rather America: It is quite normal for there to be several fast food restaurants open either all night or at least until 2 am.

I would very much expect to be able to leave the highway at midnight in most parts of the country and get something to eat.

I've taken exactly one road trip in Europe, and it was during the daytime, so I have no idea if this is common there or not. I do note that you specified "regular restaurant" but GP said "gas, food and lodging", all of which are readily available at midnight in the US.

We have McDonalds and KFC in Europe, too. Many are open 24/7, and the ones that aren't tend to be open at least until midnight.

It’s pretty doable to find over-night accommodation, you just kind of need an approximate idea in the morning about the town/city where you’re going to spend the night. I’ve managed to find same-day bed-and-breakfast stays in cities like Salzburg and Trieste at reasonable prices. And driving in Europe is pretty great. Seeing the Alps, the Lago Maggiore and the Adriatic Sea on the same day is quite the nice feeling.

Sorry, folks. A business which is only open when I'm in the office and closed when I actually have some free time doesn't sound sensible at all.

With european wages it's not always economically feasible to have people on the clock 24/7, plus you won't find many people doing 12h shifts.

It doesn't have to be 24/7, but, please, not everybody has a stay at home spouse to do shopping in the middle of the day.

When I lived in Europe there was a furniture store next to my house. An owner had a large poster glued to the window about how beneficial would it be for the economy of everyone used his store instead of Ikea. Being a huge fan of small local business I honestly tried to stop by. But theres no way I'll take a day off work to do it. Ikea won.

Well, you can leave the office at 4pm if you need to. It's also not uncommon to just take one of your 20+ week days off on short notice.

In many cities there are special days (thursday here) where many large and small shops are open until 9pm; one day doesn't break the bank. Big hardware stores, supermarkets and other larger chains are commonly open 9-9 every day. Smaller stores can not do this, and their owners also want normal work hours like you.

Taking a day off to do groceries?

That sounds like an exact opposite of "spending more time with your family".

He said furniture shopping. Not something you do often, and grocery stores do stay open late already.

Yeah, it makes far more sense to be open 11-7 or something instead of 9-5 if your clientele will likely also be at work. A lot of smaller restaurants near me are only open for lunch and dinner (11-2, 4-9).

If they were as insane as you make out, surely they would have gone bust.

Which is happening to a lot of small businesses which are stuck to nine-to-five hours.

In where I live we have either 24-hours ASDA or small Indian stores which are open till 11pm 7 days a week.

I prefer that people go home and spend more time on their hobbies or families. I spent a few months in Austria and in a couple of weeks I was used to everything bar restaurants closing at 5.

I don't really understand this, why not have everything people want to go to be open after typical office jobs close? If you are only open for 8 hours, why not open later (11am or so) or have a couple hours that the shop is closed for family time (e.g. 3-5pm or something)?

Closing at 5 isn't convenient for anyone but the business owner, and even then it's not necessarily better than opening later.

It isn't just the business owner who benefits, the cashiers too. In South Africa most of the cashiers are women with children. I like the convenience of getting my bread at 8pm but would rather these cashiers where home with their children. Certain parts of the country are not so safe when traveling at night. These tend to be the areas cashiers can afford to live in. So its a double whammy for them.

Look it is a balance that needs to be struck. I appreciate the challenges in South Africa and different to the rest of the world. There is a price for everything, I question the price we pay as a society to have all these shops open late?

In Austria and Switzerland bars and restaurants definitely don't close at 5PM unless they don't serve dinner. Even the staunchest German doesn't eat dinner at 4PM. In Swiss villages though, its not common for many smaller stores to be closed by 4-6PM. I don't understand it, however most do open quite early so you can get food before work, or a fresh croissant in the morning.

If I were opening a store today though I'd rather have the essentials in a vending machine out front for the morning rush and open the store later and keep it open until later. If you travel Switzerland you can see many Alpkäsereien (Fromageries) have vending machines for their cheese. Appropriately made out of wood and looking like a tiny little chalet.

I didn't say bars and restaurants close at 5pm. I said everything except restaurants (bars by extension).

I like the idea of vending machines for essentials. Look its a personal preference thing. In South Africa most of the cashiers are female and most have children. I just feel children should have mothers read bed time stories to them. I love the convenience of buying bread at 8pm but I wonder what the cost to society is for this convenience.

We have a problem in Africa where young kids have to assume the role of the adult all because mommy is away working late into the night. I guess the situation is different elsewhere.

Where did you buy groceries?

I bought my groceries before 5pm. Sometimes during lunch. It really wasn't a big deal getting used to it. Humans adapt and in no time at all I was way more organised with my groceries because I knew shops closed at about 5.

Also, if you've got some friends you can get a train car and get some sleep on the way on long trips.

> Also, if you've got some friends you can get a train car

What's a train car?

A private room in the train where you might have a bed, etc. Kind of "business/first-class" of trains.

I think that's a 'sleeper car'. A 'train car' means any train carriage in all contexts I know. So anyone getting a train is getting into a train car.

Sure, I just assumed from context that's what OP meant (though I chuckled at the idea of getting on a train, but not in a train car, and what that would imply).

Or maybe OP rents/owns a train car and hitches up to the rest of the train.