As a kid growing up in Malta, I remember awesome, fantastic, scary thunderstorms piercing our winters.

But in 15 years living abroad, I barely saw any thunder and lightning. I missed the displays snaking across the sky. So if I wanted to become a thunder-tourist, where should I head?

Summer is peak thunder season across the Alps, the Balkans, and much of Central and Eastern Europe. As the sun heats the ground, warm air rises fast and clashes with the cooler air above, such that the atmosphere gets unstable enough to spark a storm. Spring and autumn are quieter, shoulder seasons, and by autumn the action has drifted south to Greece. Winter, meanwhile, mostly leaves the continent's landmass in peace.