Adventuring across Europe is at the heart of the latest Pub2Pub road trips! With two very different tours taking on the Alps and northern Italy, this latest guest blog from Ben Coombs looks at Pub2Pub’s Beer Italia and Alpine Traverse tours, taking in spectacular Alpine passes and the home of Ferrari and Lamborghini. For enthusiasts planning their own European road trip, it’s another reminder of just how much adventure can be found when you take a classic car beyond the UK.
It’s been quite a summer so far, here at Pub2Pub. In fact, it’s been quite a year, with seven of our driving tours taking place in the first six months of 2026. But for the next few hundred words, we’ll be focusing on two of these in particular; a pair of tours which took place simultaneously over a ten-day period at the end of June. These are an old favourite which goes by the name of the Beer Italia, and an all-new adventure called the Alpine Traverse.
But why focus on these two, in particular? Because they provide a fine illustration of just how far things have moved on for us in the past few years. Let me explain.
In 2022, when we relaunched after Covid, Pub2Pub ran three trips, picking up a total of 42 bookings.
Fast forward to this year, and for the ten-day period in which the two trips ran, we had 42 bookings. In just over a week, we’d equalled our entire 2022. This illustrates the progress which has been made as we’ve grown the business, and so we’d like to take the opportunity to say thank you to everyone who has been a part of the story so far, whether it be through joining the tours, or simply spreading the word. And a big thank you has to go to ClassicLine Insurance, who have been with us through thick and thin, right from the start.
So, how were the two trips in question? Well, it’s safe to say that both were a success. This year was the fifth time we’ve run the Beer Italia, and so it’s became a fairly polished event by now. This year’s Beer Italia was hosted by Pub2Pub’s Richard and Amanda, who looked after the various cars as they headed over the Alps to Italy, where the guests spent time touring supercar central – the Modena area, where the likes of Ferrari and Lamborghini are based.
But the big news for this year was the Alpine Traverse – our all-new trip for 2026. The idea behind this one was simple – a drive from Grenoble to the Grossglockner, taking in as many of the alpine passes as possible along the route. And as the route pretty much runs from one end of the Alps to the other, there were plenty of possibilities for switchbacks on this one – from the Grand St Bernard to the Stelvio, and from the Furka to the Sella. And let’s not forget the Grossglockner either – the route certainly saved the best ‘til last on this one.
Both trips went pretty smoothly, and one of the pleasures of running the two tours concurrently was that we could bring everyone together for the last few nights, as we headed back towards the UK. And when we did, each night’s hotel saw over 40 Pub2Pub cars in the car park, and over 70 people in the hotel – a real visual reminder of how things are coming along here at Pub2Pub.
So, once again, thank you to everyone who has helped us get this far, and if you’re tempted to find out what all the fuss is about next year, feel free to join one of the tours. You can see what we’ve got planned by heading over to the website, here: www.planetpub2pub.com/drives
