Originally Posted by MichaelBrighton

And, as I'm sure you know, fuel costs in Europe are far higher than in the US.

This stopping for the odd castle seems to me a romantic fantasy. Most people, I would guess, especially on longer drives, would use the high-speed motorways, where these "inviting" places are no more accessible than from a train. And this is not to mention that trains travel far faster and more directly than autos do.

I would agree that there might be some situations where an auto might offer greater convenience than a train/bus, but this doesn't sound to me like one of those situations.