you could still have Euro summer without the expensive international plane ticket.

I didnt really leave California (or the country) until college.

Budget sprees in Italy, Ireland, and France soon followed.

view of flowers in the foreground and in the background a windmill with blue sky

Flowers in front of Solvang windmill in Solvang, California.Credit:YaskoCreative/iStockphoto/Getty Images

It wasnt a luxe European tour, but I was grateful for and inspired by the experience.

Here are eight towns in California that look just like Europe.

Catalina Island

Matthew Micah Wright/Getty Images

Californias Channel Islands are more than 20 miles off its coast.

aerial view of harbor filled with boats and a large lit building in the bottom of the image

Catalina’s Avalon harbor and it’s famous landmark, the Casino.Matthew Micah Wright/Getty Images

Travelers usually reach the island via the Catalina Express ferry.

Solvang

Haizhan Zheng/Getty Images

Danish immigrants foundedSolvangin 1911.

Today, one of the oldest structures in town is the Bit O Denmark restaurant, constructed in 1911.

european styled store fronts with a tall windmill in the distance at sunset

Store-lined street in the town of Solvang, California.Haizhan Zheng/Getty Images

Pop in for an open-facedfrikadeller(sliced meatball) sandwich or a plate offlaeskesteg(roast pork).

TheElverhj Museum of History and Artfocuses on local Danish history and heritage and is well worth a visit.

When I bring my children to the area, we like to go windmill hunting.

landscape of a small dock by a lake with snowy mountains in the background on a sunny day

Picturesque view of Mammoth Lakes in Central California.Patricia Elaine Thomas/iStockphoto/Getty Images

In California, youll find (arguably) equally splendid summits in the Sierra Nevada Range.

Mendocino

halbergman/Getty Images

The walkable village ofMendocinolooks out onto the Pacific Ocean from a misty blufftop perch.

Our top picks includeCastello di Amorosain Calistoga, which is modeled after 14th-century Tuscan castles.

aerial view of white buildings with green palm trees dispersed between the buildings

Aerial view of Santa Barbara, California.Alexander Spatari/Getty Images

Book a seated tasting, which includes a flight of five wines and time to roam the castle.

Then, about 20 miles away in Kenwood, theres theChateau Montelena Winery.

There are three tasting rooms, each representing one country from that trio.

aerial view of mountain side coastal town

Mendocino, an idyllic small town on the California coast.halbergman/Getty Images

view of fountain surrounded by small garden and a small house in the background

The courtyard of the Carmel Mission, in Carmel-By-The-Sea, California.Ian Philip Miller/Getty Images

view from above of vineyard landscape from a stony castle wall in the forground

Castle like structure in Napa Valley, California.melastmohican/iStockphoto/Getty Images

green vineyard with a yellow stone house in the distance

California spring vineyard in the Temecula Valley, CA.Ron and Patty Thomas/Getty Images