Fastest time to visit all European capital cities by scheduled surface transport

The fastest time to visit all European capital cities by scheduled surface transport is 24 days 22 hr 6 min and was achieved by Glen Burmeister (UK) in Reykjavik, Iceland, from 9 November to 3 December 2019.

Glen’s first adventure came in 2003 when he visited Australia. He realised that despite being on the other side of the world, he was doing the exact same things as he would back home – “sitting in cafes, going to the cinema and getting drunk”. So, after coming across a short article in a travel guide, he decided to walk Australia’s 600-mile (965 km) Bibbulmun Track, which took him 30 days overall. Upon returning to the UK he felt restless and immediately looked for a new challenge, eventually settling upon the iconic Land’s End to John o' Groats route by bicycle.

Following his LE-JOG triumph, Glen discovered an article on formed GWR title holder Kevin Sanders and was inspired to attempt a world record. His first GWR title was ‘Fastest cycle across Europe (North Cape to Tarifa)’ in 2011; followed by a cycle across the US and 5 other cycling records set before 2015. Glen then decided to attempt different record formats and took on the challenge of planning the fastest journey across all 48 contiguous US states by scheduled surface transport, which he achieved in just under 14 days despite multiple setbacks en-route. He then turned his attention to this attempt in early 2019.

The biggest issue he faced when planning the attempt was the risk of cancellation or delays. He initially wanted to begin the journey in Reykjavik – knowing the ferry from Iceland to Denmark would take around 60 hours – however could not get the schedule to work under the required 25 days, and so planned his route in reverse, starting in Valleta and ending in Reykjavic, knowing full well that if he missed the final ferry to Iceland it would be another week before the next one!

At one point – following a number of unforeseen cancellations – Glen found himself 9 hours behind schedule in Nice, France. After a spur of the moment route change, he found himself on a train to Spain, only to discover that all connecting trains into Madrid had been cancelled. This was the closest he came to giving up! After pushing through, Glen was back on track by the time he reached the UK – resorting to purchasing a costly Premium Class ticket for the Eurostar.

Throughout the journey, Glen had two books to read ('A Survival Guide For Life' by Bear Grylls and 'Happyslapped by a jellyfish' by Karl Pilkington) as well as pre-recorded radio shows to listen to. He was completely self-supported during the attempt and got most of his sleep on night busses and trains; though it was difficult to get uninterrupted sleep due to the number of border crossings along the way. He had just 4 hotels booked for the 25-day trip, some of which were for only 5 hours or less to keep him off the streets after midnight and to take a shower.

Glen had good intentions to try local delicacies along the way but was more often than not limited to a quick sandwich and whatever he could grab in the few hours before his next departure. On the few occasions he was lucky enough to get a few hours in a city, Glen would try to go to a restaurant. A rack of lamb and rustic soup was a highlight in Moscow, overlooking one of its many public squares.

Other highlights along the route were Malta and Iceland (where the attempt began and ended) as well as San Marino’s Piazza della Liberta. “Every capital city was a pleasure to visit", he mentioned post-event.

By profession Glen works as a garbage/rubbish collector and has done so for 17 years. He saves up his holidays to have a few adventures each year. Speaking after his attempt, Glen said “I am adventurous by nature. I'm continuously searching for the next adventure. I keep up to 10 record applications registered with GWR as I am always thinking ahead to the next few years. I have dozens more ideas for new record categories and hope I get to achieve them all. The biggie will always be to circumnavigate the world which I hope I'll be ready for in the next few years…

I had 3 attempts all planned for this year which are all on hold with the current situation (Covid-19). I hope to travel to every country in Europe in under 17 days but there is a short window of opportunity each year to do it in that timeframe. I have lots more ideas for transport records and also hope to be back on my bike for some cycling records shortly as well as some journeys on foot. If all goes to plan, I'll be attempting a bungee jumping record next year…

A Guinness World Records title is the ultimate prize. When I have to make an expensive decision like on recent trips, it's really easy when you remember what the reward is.”