Interest in prepping is gaining traction in Europe.
In my article on the best bug out locations in Europe, I had the chance to cover the major traits on what does it mean being a prepper in The Old Continent – pros and cons included.
As I already stressed, being part of the European Union doesn’t mean being united. In fact, we’re not united. At all. Far from being polemic, it’s the sheer truth. The deep differences between each country is in their roots, the discrepancies of cultural, historical, political, ethical and – last but not least – linguistic backgrounds.
Prepping Commonality
What I notice either by travelling, spending time on the web, talking with potential partners, students, or collaborators, is that the above mentioned differences are nonexistent when it comes to prepping. In fact, every single time I have a conversation with anyone who declares – with undeniable pride – to consider him/herself a prepper, I realized that… we have much in common.
We have learned to think, act, and face any potential SHTF situation in the same way. From a certain perspective, this is quite obvious. European preppers learned almost everything they know from their American counterparts. This makes sense. They watched videos on YouTube, purchased prepper books, read articles, and all of this taught fundamental lessons beyond the pond. However, there are obvious differences between Europe and the United States.
Lessons from Prior Generations
European preppers go back with their mind to the valuable lessons provided by their grandfathers and grandmothers during WWI and WWII. After all, they were real preppers. They just paved the way to the concept of prepping in their own way and during those tragic years, focusing on:
- calculation of risks
- stockpiling food
- giving zero credit to false promises
- nurtruring a solid community
If you have the occasion to sneak a peek into some European prepper Facebook groups, you will quickly notice many posts related to:
- cutting tools (knives, axes, but also old pruning knives)
- foraging and wicker basket making
- processing and preserving meat, especially game
- gear and garments
- hammocks, tents, tarps
Firearms and Bushcraft
Firearms? Nope. As I already described in my previous article, laws on firearms are extremely strict in Europe. So very few talk about firearms. You may find conversations on weapons other than firearms, however.
On the other hand, there’s no doubt that all over Europe the borders between prepping and survival/bushcraft skills are extremely blurred, and we are witnessing a real come back in style by bushcraft disciplines, starting from United Kingdom, where they actually never disappeared at all.
European Prepper Websites and YouTube Channels
Let’s now take a quick tour of the best European prepping websites and YouTube channels we may come across.
United Kingdom / Ireland
Among the Facebook groups mainly focused on sharing information with a “return to the origins” of prepping, let me point to several English groups I am in and I find convenient:
Even if these sites rarely use the word “prepping,” being prepared is the fil rouge of the posts populating the groups. I got nice information from all of them.
UK Preppers & Survivalist’s is 100% related to how to become a self-reliant prepper. With its more than 10,000 members, it is a referring point for all English people (experienced and neophytes) out there.
Other recommended pages:
Spain / Portugal
Spain is surely a country which really surprised me with several good European prepper websites, mainly Facebook pages. The biggest is Preppers Espana. The members are very active, but surely limited to Spanish speakers.
The reality of Portugal is pretty much related to a big and solid entity like Portugal Preppers. They have a Facebook page as well as a YouTube channel. Again, the combination of survivalism, Bushcraft, and prepping seems to be standard among European prepper websites and YouTube channels.
Italy / Switzerland
The most inspirational and educational website on Italian soil is surely Prepper.it, managed by Divisione Prepper Italia. They have the symbolic prepper ant in their logo, and translated, this says it all: an eye on the past and one on the future.
For another Facebook page, I recommend Prepper Italia. A great platform, but also only in Italian.
What about Swiss preppers? Well, probably most of you do ignore that the Swiss have always have a thing for bunkers. The title on this discussion topic underlines it loud and clear “The Swiss are all preppers.”
France, Germany, The Netherlands, Belgium, Austria
The good website is NoPanic.fr, which provides accurate news and information about the state of prepping in France. There are also some (although limited) groups on Facebook:
- Prévoyants Preppers Survivalistes
- Doomsday Preppers France
- Réseau Preppers France (a podcast)
- Preppers Hauts de France
What about their big neighbor, Germany? I reckon that every activity related to paramilitia – and, consequentially, prepping – is strictly monitored by the government, due to their legislation on weapons and their view that “doomsday preppers” and neo-Nazis are the same.
A Facebook page that deserves to be mentioned is surely Preppers Germany, along with Belgium Preppers/Survival/Kamperen, and United Preppers Austria.
Give a watch also to the Survival Ser YouTube channel. He explains the main differences between European and American Preppers.
Scandinavia
As Finland has been recently defined “Prepper Nation of the Nordic” by N.Y.Times, I found on YouTube channels a lot of educational videos on how Scandinavian people have always considered themselves preppers. Here are some of the most valuable videos:
Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, The Balkans, and Greece
Surprisingly – or perhaps not so much! – Poland owns the most enlarged and united community of Preppers under the well-renowned Facebook page “Preppers Poland.”
Worth mentioning also is the YouTube channel Preppers Poland.
I had a hard time finding – due to linguistic barriers – pages on prepping in Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, and The Balkans. After several researches, I came across this interesting blog: Preppers Balkans.
The YouTube channel Bushcraft Hungary sometimes include posts on stockpiling and preserving food.
Last but not least, out of Greece, is the freshly born Prep.gr reference point for Greek preppers.
Summary
Prepping in Europe is gaining in popularity. There are more websites and YouTube channels coming online as that popularity spreads. I am certain that more will come.
If I missed any sites, YouTube channels, etc., I will be glad to read your recommendations, so feel free to drop your comments below!
4 comments
For potential update about czech republic webs are: http://www.postapo.cz and http://www.rozpad.cz
Nice. Could you do the same for preppers in the Americas?
There are sooooo many. Here is a good link for websites: https://www.homesteadandprepper.com/top-101-prepper-survival-websites/
You should really add https://prep4war.com to your list. Great site with a lot of interesting articles.