< p>Greece in turmoil, the state of the Euro, EU legislation and all the British teams out of the Champions League already; there really isn’t much to smile about Europe at the moment.

However, The Weekender is on hand to save the day and proudly play Ode to Joy, the EU national anthem (yeah it was news to me too), as we look at the best Europe has to offer.

Holidays

One of the plus sides to the Euro crisis is that throughout 2015, the Great British Pound is now worth a lot more than it was a few years ago, with the current rate (at the time of publishing) standing at €1.39 to the Pound.

A major plus point of being part of the EU is that we get to experience the much nicer climates and holiday destinations the continent has to offer.

Whether you are a fan of a historical holiday, there is Berlin and Rome, or an old romantic who may prefer the settings of Venice or Paris, low cost flights and the freedom of movement makes it simple to indulge in your ideal holiday.

Combining this easy access to some of the best locations in the world with the strength of the pound against the Euro – there’s been no better time to take that perfect trip away.

New adventures

A hot topic in this year’s General Election, especially with the rise of UKIP, is undoubtedly going to be the issue of immigration, especially from Europe.

With more member nations joining the European Union, entitling them to the freedom of movement across member states, concerns have been raised about the number of people heading to the UK.

However, the benefit to this legislation is that we have the right to move freely across the member states and visit countries like Estonia, Lithuania, Slovakia and Hungary.

All nations, which may previously have been inaccessible, have a lot to offer in terms of history, culture and most importantly, beer prices! (0.71p in Czech Republic for those wondering!)

Music

When you think of Europe and music, your thoughts turn to one particular event which usually involves dodgy attempts at English, fake tan and plenty of glitter - no not TOWIE - The Eurovision Song Contest.

However, there is more to European music than Eurovision, with hundreds of music festivals ranging from Jazz to Heavy Metal taking place across Europe every year.

From Distortion in Copenhagen to Spring Break in Croatia, there are plenty of music festivals taking place across Europe which may take your fancy.

Otherwise, if you prefer Eurovision, it takes place in Vienna on 23rd May with special guests Australia taking place for the first time.

Sport

A huge benefit of being in Europe is the wide arrange of sport which is on offer throughout the continent and how close it is to us.

Tournaments such as the Champions League, the Six Nations and the European Championships are excellent to watch and bring together the best sporting talent across Europe.

Next year will see the UEFA European Championships take place in France and currently all four home nations are on track to qualify.

So expect a sporting party to take place in France next summer centred on football - the only problem is our European cousins tend to be a lot better than we are.

Hopefully this has shown that Europe does have something to offer rather the regular doom and gloom that is usually reported!