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1 Month Europe (June 2015) with 3 children, ages 6-11

1 Month Europe (June 2015) with 3 children, ages 6-11

Old Nov 25th, 2014, 05:14 AM
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1 Month Europe (June 2015) with 3 children, ages 6-11

We are travelling from Canada to Europe for the month of June 2015 with kids, ages 6, 9, and 11. We are looking for any travel advice, where to stay, what to do, how to get there.

Must-see places are London, Paris, Venice, Rome.

We would also like to spend a bit of quieter time in smaller places, and perhaps a bit more time in Italy than other countries.

Other places of interest would be Scotland, Spain, or Switzerland if there was time to go to any of these countries.

Any advice for an itinerary or if we could cover all this ground would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance!
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Old Nov 25th, 2014, 05:26 AM
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Well with a month you can definitely see London, Paris, Venice and Rome - but with 3 children I would not attempt to visit a large number of other places. Certainly you could take 1 or 2 days from each of these cities and pick a spot of natural beauty - perhaps an agriturismo in Tuscany with pool and animals - or a stay at Lake Garda - with a lot for kids to see and do,

But with 3 little ones I would rent an apt versus a hotel - to have more room so kids can sleep at different times - and the ability to do breakfast and snacks in your apt. Definitely find a place near a public park or garden, preferably with playgound, so kids have a chance to run around and just be kids - not looked into being tourists all the tim.
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Old Nov 25th, 2014, 05:46 AM
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Thank you! What places would you recommend staying for a few days to a week that would be close enough that we could do day trips into Paris, Venice, or Rome?
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Old Nov 25th, 2014, 06:57 AM
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First, buy open jaw plane tickets, say, into London, out of Rome or some other such pair. These are called multi-city on airline web sites and should cost about the same as round-trip. And they save you the time and expense of backtracking to your arrival city.

What form of transportation will you be using? If you stick to cities, a car is impractical. Between London and Paris, the Eurostar train under the channel makes the most sense. You can save a lot here by buying the tickets early, preferably about 3 months early. Easyjet flies from Paris Orly to Venice.

But a car is good in the countryside, NOT for trips into cities. If you take nytraveler's excellent suggestion of staying in an agriturismo in Tuscany between Venice and Rome, you'll want a car for that. But maybe locate near a train station and daytrip by train into Florence.

Once your itinerary has gelled, get the kids involved in trip planning. Borrow guidebooks and travelog DVDs from the library. Watch Rick Steves on TV. And let each child pick a sight to see. They'll get more from the trip if they're part of the planning.

The consensus on this site from people who have traveled in Europe with children is that kids like staying in one place, getting to know the neighborhood or the town, the bakery, the gelato seller, and so on. And they remember these kinds of trips fondly when they're older. Whereas the fast 3 days in London, 2 days in Paris, must-see-everything trip just fades from their memory.
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Old Nov 25th, 2014, 07:05 AM
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If you are traveling with children I wouldn't plan to stay "out" and daytrip "into" the large cities. The commute can be long and boring. And too long to go back and forth for naps. And there are many city places that are family friendly with parks, playgrounds, etc. right there.
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Old Nov 25th, 2014, 07:27 AM
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We have travelled with our boys since they were little and when they were younger stuck to the rule of sightseeing in the morning and 'chilled' things in the afternoon - going to a park, swimming, playing sport with the locals, cycling etc
Out of interest - our boys don't remember many of the sights they saw when they were younger but they do remember all the activity / adventure things we did.
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Old Nov 25th, 2014, 07:29 AM
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My children are all 6+ and don't nap, and they could all put in relatively full days of travelling about, but yes, I agree, I don't want long and boring trips into cities.

We had hoped to travel mostly by train (and short flights if needed) and avoid renting cars, but I understand that it would be difficult to stay 5-6 days in a tuscan agriturisimo without a car rental.

The main concern of staying in big cities is that there are 5 of us. My husband and I have traveled just the two of us to London and Paris and our hotel rooms will understandably small. I'm curious as to options in cities for larger families.

Thank you for all your help!
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Old Nov 25th, 2014, 07:30 AM
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Kaapie, good point about the activities and adventures vs. the sites they see!
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Old Nov 25th, 2014, 07:34 AM
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I agree with the open jaw flight idea but be aware that some cities can be more expensive to fly into and out of than others (London comes to mind). You also need to figure out how you are going to get BETWEEN these places. Car rental can be economical and give max flexibility BUT there are often big drop charges for renting in one country and dropping in another; there is also the fuel, insurance, and potential parking charges to consider.

Rail travel has the advantage of taking you from city center to city center and can sometimes be faster in the long run than using a budget airline (and there are several possibilities there, too, but the earlier you book the cheaper the fare).

Rail passes might work if you get one that includes the two kids at some reduced rate BUT the economy of passes is based on the amount of trips and just getting from A to B to C probably means rail point to point tickets would be better.

You can buy and often print out at home rail tickets using the various country national rail sites; www.bahn.de (the GermanRail site) is a good choice to simply view rail schedules in almost every European country.

Geography!!! I cannot tell you how MANY people come here asking how to get from here to there and it is OBVIOUS they have no clue as to where some of these countries actually ARE in relation to one another. Googlemaps.com is your buddy on that one.
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Old Nov 25th, 2014, 09:01 AM
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No - you don;t want to do day trips into these cities - you want apts IN these cities - within easy access of major sits - that are also need public parks (yes, there are quite a few parks in these cities). If you do a little work with a map and look at this site for tips on trips with kids.

I would do some time either at a lake or an agriturismo - just to visit that area - not linked to any of thee major cities. For that part of the trip you might want to rent a car - but reco train between cities for other travel.
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Old Nov 25th, 2014, 10:15 AM
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For me the issue of travelling with kids is always the difference in interests. Frankly, I can't see kids aged 6-11 being interested at all in London, Paris, Venice and Rome. They might find a ride on a gondola fun but other than that, those are not destinations to exit a kid. They are destinations YOU as adults want to visit. Ask your kids if they want to go to the Louvre for the day or to Eurodisney and you know what the answer would be. Cities generally suck from a kid's point of view.

I think you either drag the kids to where you want to go or you go to where the kids want to go. That's part of what you could call the cost of being parents.

Here's my suggestion. Rent a 'self-catering' apartment in a village on a Greek island for a month. You'll also need to rent a car. Staying in one place for the month will in fact result in both you and the kids absorbing far more of the local culture than dragging them from city to city will and will probably cost you less as well.
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Old Nov 25th, 2014, 10:36 AM
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>>Frankly, I can't see kids aged 6-11 being interested at all in London, Paris, Venice and Rome.LOVE London and Paris. And most kids I've known have enjoyed Rome. Haven't taken any children to Venice so don't know about that.

London is probably one of the very best destinations for children anywhere. Sooooooo much to see/do. The list is endless.
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Old Nov 25th, 2014, 10:41 AM
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children that age can find lots of things they like in those cities IF the adults include things that are especially kid-friendly in their itinerary.
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Old Nov 25th, 2014, 11:08 AM
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Thanks for all your suggestions. I think it totally depends on the children. My kids are all very creative and would be happy to plunk themselves down in a square with a treat and draw in their sketch books for an hour. They would also love to picnic and play in a park in Paris or get lost with their family in the streets of Venice. It's been my experience that kids love to travel if they are kept fed and get a good night's rest and enjoy spending time with their family, and have a day or two of rest on a beach or by a pool, wherever they are. I have been to all of these cities without my children and have often thought, "They would love to see this." So I do believe they would enjoy a trip that would include both the Louvre and Eurodisney and it's part of the JOY of being their parent that I get to take them there.

I have been searching for apartments in these major cities and see that there are many options. We are leaning towards 5-6 days staying in each of London, Paris, and Rome, with a more leisurely 5-6 days in the Tuscan countryside and hopefully a few days in Venice (not in that order). Thank you for all your help!
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Old Nov 25th, 2014, 11:19 AM
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My 4 year old loved London! He is 12 now and still asks if we can go back so he can make memories since time and aging have greatly diminished his.

Cities, especially London and Paris, provide kids of all ages with numerous activities. My DS loved to go each morning to the boulangerie in Paris to pick up croissant and pan au chocolat for breakfast. He enjoyed the Napoleon rooms at the Louvre and the playground at Jardin du Luxembourg.

I think you could do OK in 4 cities but would urge you to drop one and make a week's stay in the country in either France or Italy. Renting a house and car for a week to explore castles, villages, etc is one of our favorite activities. We tend to rent something with a pool and the kids are very happy to spend evenings swimming even after a day of site seeing.

Sites like Homeaway and VRBO are good starting points for both houses and apartments.
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Old Nov 25th, 2014, 11:53 AM
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My kids loved London and Paris when they were small, and my granddaughter loves both London and Rome so much that she can't decide which one she wants to live in when she grows up.

I imagine that when Sojourner was a little tyke, he didn't like any of those places.
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Old Nov 25th, 2014, 12:29 PM
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>> I imagine that when Sojourner was a little tyke, . . .)
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Old Nov 25th, 2014, 02:50 PM
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>

Geez, someone has lost touch with their inner child. I can see kids 6-11 being interested in going back to London time and again just to visit Hamley's.
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Old Nov 25th, 2014, 02:56 PM
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We (2 adults, 4 12-year-olds) stayed near Covent Garden. It was an ideal location and there were two things that were really great--it had three toilets, which saved our lives when three of the four all had to "go"--immediately, right now!--the minute we arrived, and the road in front was closed to traffic, so they enjoyed playing hackey-sack outside in the evenings.

SO much more room than hotels, and they could stretch out and play cards and board games. The weather was bright and sunny while we were there, but if it had been rainy, this place would have been so much better than small hotel rooms.

Here is the link: http://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p842669
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Old Nov 25th, 2014, 03:34 PM
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That looks beautiful, evecolorado, but we're looking to spend about 180 euros per night on an apartment per night in London, Paris, and Rome. I found some in Paris, but haven't looked in the other locations yet.
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