Continental Europe is the European mainland.It is distinct from the various offshore islands, including British Isles, Iceland, the Balearic Islands, Corsica, the Italian islands, and the Greek islands.People in the islands also use it to refer to ways in which the customs and speech of mainlanders differ from their own.

Continental Europe or mainland Europe is the contiguous continent of Europe, excluding its surrounding islands. It can also be referred to ambiguously as the European continent, – which can conversely mean the whole of Europe – and, by some, simply as the Continent . Extent of the contiguous mainland of Europe, Continental Europe.