Chryssy919

Help please, I'm looking to plan our first Europeon vacation for next August. Traveling with young girls ( 12 and 9 yrs old). My husband is not interested in travelling to London or Paris. I'm open to seeing places that will be educational and visually inviting for my girls. We dont want to have alot of down time, we would be happy with a jammed packed itinerary (since who knows if we'll back again) and not on a group tour. I would love to hear your ideas. Thank you in advance.

Kathie

You have 9 days - is this a true 9 days, that is, 10 nights on the ground in Europe? You have listed 4 countries. Really, if you want to see/do/experience anything of these places, you can't do it in that amount of time. Also, you have chosen places that will require some flights rather than the easier trains. You will have to figure at half a day to most of a day is lost each time you change locations.

Only you can decide what you would like to do/see/experience on this trip. But I can recommend that you choose three cities relatively close to each other so you can take trains between destinations, or, choose just two cities even if you have to fly. Taking trains is more time efficient, as train stations are located near the city center. For flights you have to arrive one to two hours before your flight and you have to allow an hour to/from the airport from where you are staying.

Your daughters are old enough to contribute to the planning. Check guidebooks out of the library so that all of you can begin to decide where you want to go.

Robert2533

There are a number of places that will provide the educational experience and be visually inviting for the girls, but with only 9 days, you have to plan your time carefully. I would stick with one main destination.

It will be very warm in most of Portugal in August, so you may want to consider heading to Germany, the Netherlands or Ireland.

nytraveler

Assuming you have 9 full days on the ground (10 nights) then I would go with 2 cities easily linked by trains. If you really have only a total of 9 days - so 7.5 days actually IN europe - I would pick just one city and make 1 or 2 day trips into the countryside.

The problem with trying to get to 4 places in 9 days, besides that you will spend a very large part of your time just in transit, is that you will be moving every other day to a new country, new culture, new language new transit system and a completely different area/neighborhood. A whole lot of time spend just getting organized and very little actually seeing/doing anything - either fun or educational.

Agree to get your kids involved and then have the family each make a list of their favorite places or things (Eiffel Tower or whatever) and then see which of them match Use that as a start and come back here with more details and people can help you maximize your very limited time.

Chryssy919

Thank you for your quick response. I noted 4 countries of interest but I dont plan on traveling to all four. They are only tagged as a possible interest . I dont want to spend most of the trip traveling between destination. Hoping to land somewhere and drive or take a train to see other parts of the same country or travel by land to another country. I have about 9 nights. Thank you again

Tony2phones

Ireland is a fair option, you can see about 1/2 the island in 9 days and have lots of options for scenery and history.
Unfortunately that's about the only Ireland vote you will get from this forum If you do decide on Ireland then ask a new question or all will be lost.

pariswat

9 days.
I'd do Moscow and St Petersburg.

kleeblatt

Tony, Tony, Tony.

I second Ireland due to its love of Americans, its scenery, its villages, its pubs, its islands (Aran), its peninsulas (Dingle), its cities (Dublin, Galway), its history (Belfast and Derry, etc.), its music and its beer.

I think I would put Ireland as the most American welcoming country in Europe.

Chryssy919

Ireland is at the top of the list! Is it too much travelling to go to Ireland and scotland in one 9 day trip?
THANK YOU AGAIN

Tony2phones

You can "go" to Ireland and Scotland in 9 days but that's 8 days because even flying you have 6 hours spoken for (trust me I've done that a lot!). I would also avoid Edinburgh in August (but only in August) as it is Festival fever and silly prices month.

As far as Ireland goes there is Dublin and then there is Ireland so Dublin and Edinburgh in 9 days means you will have to come back and see Ireland and Scotland some time in the future.

9 days for Ireland breaks down to 3 Dublin, 3 Galway/Clare and 3 Kerry/Cork or 9 days above or below an imaginary Dublin to Galway line. I would go for Connemara & Clare with Kerry and Cork (south of Killorglin west of Kinsale)

kleeblatt

Listen to Tony. He's spot on. You don't really have time to take full advantage of Ireland and Scotland in 9 days but you have enough time to fully enjoy Ireland.

jaja

I would never say that Tony is wrong, but here is my vote for Ireland! I have had some lovely visits in as little as 7 or as many as 10 days on the ground.

Here are a few: http://travelpod.com/members/jjarnold

Gretchen

I don't know but MY personal experience with children is that they can get caught up REAL quick with seeing what adults call "beautiful scenery" and "pubs", vistas that go on and on,
None of you have ever been to Europe but your husband isn't interested in two iconic cities which have wonderful experiences for adults and children.
Choose one of these and do day trips from them.

Kathie

If Ireland is at the top of your list, then visit Ireland - and Ireland only. For Ireland, you need to get out and see the countryside as and Tony says, you can see maybe half of the island in 9 days. Don't dilute your experience by trying to add on anywhere else.

kleeblatt

Gretchen, I really don't understand your post.

nytraveler

You could easily make a very nice trip in Germany. Start in Berlin (fascinating city with great museums and very easy on the budget) then train to Munich to spend4 days there and in Bavaria south of the city (charming villages, wonderful palaces by Mad Ludwig and the Zugspitz to get a feel for the Alps).

You can easily train form Berlin to Munich in about 6 hours (and see some countryside) rather than having to trek to and fro airports with all of the security and waiting involved.

And fly open jaws into Berlin and back from Munich to avoid wasting time returning to starting point.

Fussgaenger

"Germany , Ireland , Netherlands , Portugal"

Whatever you do, your time is short, so your travel time once there should be short as well.

I'd do a Netherlands/Germany two-fer. A little more exotic than Ireland, IMO - you'll hear different languages, for one thing (but in these countries, almost everyone can do English too.) A'dam for 4-5 days would be great... canal rides, great museums (Rijksmuseum, Anne Frank for starters) and do a windmills outing (Zaanse Schans.) The train ride into Germany is swift (about 2.5 hours to Cologne for its amazing cathedral) and then a short scenic ride south along the Rhine to the Middle Rhine Valley (40 medieval castles in 40 miles of river, old-world villages, river day cruises...)

Zaanse Schans: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractio..._Province.html

Cologne: http://hdlatestwallpapers.com/wp-con...ern-Bridge.jpg

Middle Rhine Valley: http://www.welterbe-mittelrheintal.d...php?id=274&L=3

Bacharach: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...arach_BW_9.JPG
Braubach: http://www.romantischer-rhein.de/upl...ltstadt_02.jpg
Marksburg Castle (tour) - "unchanged from medieval times" - https://dreabobea.files.wordpress.co...urg-castle.jpg
Rhine Cruise: http://www.bingen-ruedesheimer.de/wp...t-Objekt-1.jpg
Other area Castles:
Ehrenfels and Mäuseturm: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...ngen_Rhein.jpg
Rheinfels (tour): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxFF80wORNQ
Burg Eltz (tour): http://de.best-wallpaper.net/wallpap..._1920x1200.jpg
Rhine Castle Trail (Rheinburgenweg): http://www.romantic-germany.info/Rhe...eg.6751.0.html

Fussgaenger

And hey... the Irish drink a lot but they have no monopoly on beer!

Cologne pub guide: http://www.europeanbeerguide.net/kolnpubs.htm

Heineken Brewery, Amsterdam: http://www.amsterdam.info/heineken-experience/

weekend_celebrations

I second Germany trip for this family (Berlin-Munich-Castles/Alps). easy and quick transportation (we did a road trip but trains are great in Germany), affordable, convenient, lots of things to do for teens and adults alike. I totally understand @Gretchen because I have a teen myself- and that is my only problem with Ireland for this family (might be "boring" for the girls, if I may). Germany is also more diverse for a first time European "exposure": there are vibrant big cities with world class art museums, cathedrals, squares etc, there are medieval little towns, there are Castles, and there is beautiful scenery (Alps, lakes). Don't get me wrong- Ireland is on my list for an empty-nest times.

Tony2phones

I also understand that kids don't always want to do what the grown ups want to do or see what the grown up wants to see. My kids understood the contribute and get a say upbringing but they were never short of things to do and there is as much anywhere in one European location as there is in another.

At this time I will apologise for the lack of high speed wifi for gaming but then I imagine its hard to concentrate on an ipad when riding a bicycle or horse, abseiling, zip wiring, catching some surf or the other sorts of stuff I used to get up to, and the grandkids now enjoy @ sub 12yrs old.