Recs for a family Euro trip?

[Basil 760]

Wife and I have been through most of it years ago. Kids - 11 and 14 - have been to London. We’re looking at flying into Rome, flight to Paris and train to Amsterdam. We have two weeks so don’t see how to fit in much more. Any advice on what I’m reasonably missing?

[Mo Horn 8866]

I would say pick just one country and spend time exploring it, instead of going to multiple ones. Bit that's just my opinion. 

[956 Worldwide 34820]

I second Mo Horn. It’s a tough balance because I get the urge to see as much as you can but ultimately things will be more rewarding. You cannot get a good feeling for a place by visiting capitals.

Also, be aware that intra-Europe air travel is completely fucked right now and not looking up for a long time. Airports and airlines laid off too much staff during COVID, they are hate-selling tickets trying to discourage flying. You’ll pay more and have a terrible time and possibly miss flights, which is a great way to ruin a vacation.

I have a thread about the region, but consider going to Central Europe vice Paris/Rome/Amsterdam.  You could easily do something like Austria/Czech Republic or Saxony/Czech Republic.  It’s Old World, Europe with castles and churches. It will also be cheaper and just a bit more authentic. I’d go for Vienna/South Moravia/Prague/Salzburg myself with two weeks. 

Edited July 10, 2022 by 956 Worldwide

[Texzilla58 4745]

Agree with focus on a single country or region. With two weeks for example, you could do a very cool tour of Italy, and while you won’t get everything, you’ll get a solid trip. Ancient Rome, Vatican, Amalfi coast/Naples, Pompeii, Siena, Florence, Turin or Venice.

[Spankytoes 1743]

If you’ve never been to Amsterdam, you’re probably going to be disappointed. IMO, it’s the most overhyped tourist city in Europe. There are some pretty spots outside the city, however. I’d take the train from Rome to Geneva, spend a few nights there and then take a train to Paris. A train through the Swiss countryside and Alps is probably more enjoyable for the kids than dodging bikes in Amsterdam.
 

I would use Paris as a base and do Normandy and Mont-St-Michel instead. Take a train to Caen and rent a car. You don’t want to drive in Paris.

[956 Worldwide 34820]

Could help if you let us know what you’re looking to do. Plenty of EUR experience here and we can suggest options you might not think of.  Castles? Art? Food? Natural scenery? History? 

[Your Mom 4856]

Switzerland: Interlaken and Grendelwald area. Took my kids there a few years ago and loved it so much more than every big European city I’ve been to. 

Edited July 10, 2022 by Your Mom

[Borachio 417]

I'm normally a see everything you can see across multiple countries guy.  But a few years ago I did a week long bike trip through the Czech Republic.  Going through all those small villages with no English being spoken or tourists was amazing.

[4th&Five 41606]

We just did Paris and London in a week with our kids. You could easily add Amsterdam and Brussels to that and make it a great trip with minimal train travel. Although I’m in Budapest right now and can’t get to Vienna as planned because of a train accident so you never really know. 

[midtown 3348]

I say move around as much as possible to give your kids diverse experiences.   I also wouldnt minimize train travel.  Seeing the countryside go by and having a chance to slow down and interact with your kids would be special IMO

Quote

If you’ve never been to Amsterdam, you’re probably going to be disappointed. IMO, it’s the most overhyped tourist city in Europe.

Also disagree.   Could be overhyped but for kids that age the architecture and the museums alone I think are worth the visit.  During the right time of year its a fantastic city to wander around.    If your kids have read The Anne Frank Diaries.   The ability to actually experience the house and putting real life to a book is pretty amazing.

Edited July 10, 2022 by midtown

[Firemans4Horn 18132]

If you fly into Paris you can take a train east towards Lake Annecy

and then access the Swiss Alps and northern Italy really easily.  
 

 

[6th Street 6508]

1 hour ago, midtown said:

I say move around as much as possible to give your kids diverse experiences.   I also wouldnt minimize train travel.  Seeing the countryside go by and having a chance to slow down and interact with your kids would be special IMO

Also disagree.   Could be overhyped but for kids that age the architecture and the museums alone I think are worth the visit.  During the right time of year its a fantastic city to wander around.    If your kids have read The Anne Frank Diaries.   The ability to actually experience the house and putting real life to a book is pretty amazing.

I would agree and am big fan of Amsterdam. The kids will like the canals, museums, parks, and fries with mayo. That said Anne Frank Huis has become a headache with the lines. 

Paris Central to Amsterdam train ride via Thalys is easy and passes right through Brussels. 

[midtown 3348]

34 minutes ago, 6th Street said:

That said Anne Frank Huis has become a headache with the lines. 

Well I went pre-covid and they have time slots so I didn't really experience any line per se other than the 20 or so people in my time slot.  Maybe its different now and its just a mass ques.  The Van Gogh museum also had entry times.  

34 minutes ago, 6th Street said:

Paris Central to Amsterdam train ride via Thalys is easy and passes right through Brussels. 

I took the Eurostar directly from London to Brussels and then a night out in Bruges and then from Bruges to Amsterdam by way of Thalys.   Someone was in my reserved seat so the train attendant just told me to sit with three 20 something female Euros wearing tshirts with no bras.   Was a very enjoyable train ride

Edited July 10, 2022 by midtown

[6th Street 6508]

18 minutes ago, midtown said:

Well I went pre-covid and they have time slots so I didn't really experience any line per se other than the 20 or so people in my time slot.  Maybe its different now and its just a mass ques.  The Van Gogh museum also had entry times.  

I took the Eurostar directly from London to Brussels and then a day out in Bruges and then from Bruges to Amsterdam by way of Thalys.   Someone was in my reserved seat so the train attendant just told me to sit with three 20 something Euros wearing tshirts with no bras.   Was a very enjoyable train ride

As long as you weren't seated next to this guy. 

[DoobieWah 1468]

I'm pretty sure your itinerary is preset. 

[dcbc 14545]

6 hours ago, DoobieWah said:

I'm pretty sure your itinerary is preset. 

I've waited so patiently for this.

[dcbc 14545]

6 hours ago, 6th Street said:

As long as you weren't seated next to this guy. 

He was that guy.

[McCroskey 1491]

Nothing wrong IMO with 2-3 countries and capitals over 2 weeks...especially with kids 11 and 14.

As others have said, picking one country and staying for longer periods is always going to be MUCH more preferable but depending on how often you get to travel over there, I completely understand wanting to see as much as possible (finding the right balance and keeping the wife/kids entertained is a major trick).

What did your kids like about London and what is it that appeals to you re: Amsterdam?  I'm not sure anywhere in Europe is dealing with more significant travel clusterfucks right now...especially at Schiphol.

Check out the Italy and France threads too if you haven't, lots of great info in those.

 

[Spankytoes 1743]

If you’re dead set on flying, Barcelona is a great option. Lots to see and do and you get the beach. Easily reachable from Paris and Rome.

[tx 3 putt 77610]

Hit the northern counties 

[Jiggy-Z 3437]

On 7/10/2022 at 10:11 AM, 956 Worldwide said:

I second Mo Horn. It’s a tough balance because I get the urge to see as much as you can but ultimately things will be more rewarding. You cannot get a good feeling for a place by visiting capitals.

Also, be aware that intra-Europe air travel is completely fucked right now and not looking up for a long time. Airports and airlines laid off too much staff during COVID, they are hate-selling tickets trying to discourage flying. You’ll pay more and have a terrible time and possibly miss flights, which is a great way to ruin a vacation.

I have a thread about the region, but consider going to Central Europe vice Paris/Rome/Amsterdam.  You could easily do something like Austria/Czech Republic or Saxony/Czech Republic.  It’s Old World, Europe with castles and churches. It will also be cheaper and just a bit more authentic. I’d go for Vienna/South Moravia/Prague/Salzburg myself with two weeks. 

Can confirm central Europe is fucked. Flight to Frankfurt was one hour late. Connecting flight to Oslo was canceled and rescheduled 7 hours later. That flight was one hour late. 3 of 4 checked bags did not make it to Oslo. We filled out online reports for missing bags and never talked to a live person until the delivery guy called us....3 days later, the day before we were to leave Oslo for Bergen.

Spent first two full days in Oslo shopping for clothes. Wife was a nervous wreck even though we had carry on contingency items. This is a 3 week trip all over the country and we needed specialty gear and climbing equipment as well.

Also, Frankfurt customs had a 2 hour line. We would have missed that flight anyway, even if it wasn't canceled.

[Hermanator 7189]

Bratislava. Can party in absinthe soaked luxury for just a few American dollars

Edited July 11, 2022 by Hermanator

[EuroHorn 3272]

Brugges and Ghent are an easy one night or two night trip from Amsterdam by train. Both are cool cities. Ghent has a really cool castle that you can tour 

Edited July 12, 2022 by EuroHorn

[Sal 1088]

You can definitely fit in more than three cities unless you want to move really slowly, and you might have your reasons for doing so. If you decide to do a multi-country route, which I think is fine over two weeks, do an open-jaw flight from New York City or Boston and pick two cities where it will be easy to travel back to the United States, given the aforementioned European flight problems. If you can get back to NYC or Boston from cities like Paris, Rome, Budapest, and Prague, then you can connect domestically from there. That will minimize your connections in Europe itself. Some good "A to B" open-jaw, two-week itineraries are Paris to Rome, Budapest to Prague or Krakow, and Spain to Portugal. There is plenty to see to break up the itinerary into smaller parts. Just on the first route, there's the French wine country and Riviera, northern Italy, and Florence on the way to Rome, all accessible by train. 

[Doc Sam Beckett 5797]

Avoid flying out of Heathrow at all costs. 

[Doug E. Fresh 452]

11 minutes ago, Doc Sam Beckett said:

Avoid flying out of Heathrow at all costs. 

Gatwick is much worse, and the worst in the U.K. for cancellations. But in reality, the whole country is a shitshow now and will get much worse next week when the kids are out of school.  I won’t fly again until September.

[52-80 19271]

On 7/12/2022 at 4:24 AM, EuroHorn said:

Brugges and Ghent are an easy one night or two night trip from Amsterdam by train. Both are cool cities. Ghent has a really cool castle that you can tour 

belgium has the tastiest and most delicious cities to get plastered in

[conVINCEd 21473]

2 hours ago, Doc Sam Beckett said:

Avoid flying out of Heathrow at all costs. 

Was there when BA had their IT problems in May 2017.  Shitshow would be understating what the place was like that day.  Lounges were overflowing and turning people away, so that eliminated the possibility of enjoying this situation in some degree of comfort.  It was just a connection, and we knew we were going to be delayed, so I did what any reasonable person would do under the circumstances.  Bought a bottle of Blanton’s Gold from the duty free shop and drank a decent chunk of it out of a plastic cup. 

[Hermanator 7189]

On 7/13/2022 at 6:52 AM, Doc Sam Beckett said:

Avoid flying out of Heathrow at all costs. 

I'm not flying again this year at least. Will re-evaluate in 2023

[midtown 3348]

I've already flown 25k miles this year on vacations. So far not a single delay and that includes 3 international trips and going both in and out of Heathrow. Don't let a few bad stories dissuade you


 

Edited July 14, 2022 by midtown

[Chewbacca 7787]

I've already flown 25k miles this year on vacations. So far not a single delay and that includes 3 international trips and going both in and out of Heathrow. Don't let a few bad stories dissuade you


 

I've flown once on vacation this year. I had 3 days worth of delays. Consider yourself extremely lucky.

[4th&Five 41606]

Traveled a ton since last July and have only had one significant delay of about 3 hours. That includes London, Paris and Frankfurt. 

[Doug E. Fresh 452]

8 hours ago, midtown said:

I've already flown 25k miles this year on vacations. So far not a single delay and that includes 3 international trips and going both in and out of Heathrow. Don't let a few bad stories dissuade you


 

Haven’t flown a ton out of London this year but have been to Marrakech, Croatia, Romania 2x, Dublin and Stockholm. Most for pleasure, some for business, and it’s been fine. A few long security lines (70 minutes) in my one flight out of Gatwick but otherwise manageable. Not as easy as pre-Covid times, but not as dramatic as the news makes it sound.

But….you have to be very careful traveling around the school holidays/half terms here. That’s when it really goes to shit.