If you're interested in castles then some time in the Loire with all the beautiful chateaux would be perfect. The girls would love these.

A few days in Paris to see some of the popular sights then rent a car and visit the Loire. D Day beaches are historic and Bayeux is a lovely town. You can also see the Bayeux tapestry. Then Mont St Michel and on to the Dordogne.

With all the stops you won't have a week in the Dordogne but will have some time to explore.

Fly into Paris and home from some place in the south.

Are you interested in any museums or just want to limit the art museums? I ask because many people can't imagine that there are very interesting museums devoted to other than paintings.

Hi k,

> I have no desire to spend a full week in Paris with my kids.<

Is this because you will have grown tired of them after your week in London, or because you have a problem with Paris?

May I suggest that Paris has changed somewhat in the last 20 years? It is much more tourist friendly.

You might be keeping your DH and kids from enjoying a wonderful vacation.

I like the last idea - 5 days in London, a couple in Paris, and a week in the Dordogne. The Dordogne is a LOT more interesting - and beautiful - than the Loire, and castles are everywhere (though they are the fortified type, not just ornamental). There is a LOT more to do there than in the Loire, as well: canoeing and kayaking, festivals, great markets, caves and prehistoric sites, gardens, all kinds of outdoor activities.

Can you put your finger on why Paris wasn't a favorite?

Any option would be great, but w/ that little bit of info I'd personally stay in the UK.

6-7 days in London and a week in Scotland (TONS of castles and historic sites), or London and Kent (TONS of castles and historic sites), London and Wales (TONS of castles and historic sites) . . . See a trend here

Or London and 3 or 4 days Yorkshire and 3 days Edinburgh. Lots and LOTS of options.

Thank you for the ideas!

Thoughts on Paris - it may have been any number of factors but for me Paris was more stressful, felt less safe, felt harder to get around (and at the time my high school French was a lot more recent!) I was only there a few days though. It also seems that it might be easier and more enjoyable when the girls are older. So I am okay with a few days there to see if I was wrong and then plan to return when the girls are older.

Re museums - I am not against them! We just aren't a family to spend hours looking at paintings! Science museums, natural history, more hands on things are more what we are interested in. I also think a mix of city time and more rural would be good for us.

Loire v dordogne - with kids, it seemed that the dordogne had more that appealed to us. Medieval castles, caves (the girls are budding scientists /engineers ), canoes, etc. I am sure the Loire is lovely though. I had considered heading the other way to Strasbourg or Annecy...

UK - I loved London and can think of several things I would like to do there. And while other parts appeal, I am also being lured by the dordogne. But then traveling between countries will take up time.

I know you can't decide for me, I was just looking for perspectives I hadn't considered!

Thanks!

We loved Scotland and North Wales. Have a look:

http://ukfrey.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/scotland-highlands.html

http://ukfrey.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/conwy-north-wales-round-2.html

http://ukfrey.blogspot.co.uk/2011/05/north-wales.html

I'd do London, Paris, Dordogne.

5 - 3 - 6.

Your girls might be interested in the doll museum.

http://www.museedelapoupeeparis.com/?lang=fr

Or the Cluny - there's lots to see that does not involve paintings.

http://www.musee-moyenage.fr/

Or the Rodin Museum garden (includes some sculptures so you can see some artwork in a short time for little cost).

As someone who doesn't adore Paris herself, I'm with you! I do love London, though, so for me that would rule out your option #2. Several days in London, a few in Paris and a week in the Dordogne sound lovely to me (the trip between London and Paris is only about three hours), but if you want to keep it a bit easier, the whole trip in the UK would give you everything you've mentioned. For outdoor activities, there are tons of places to hike (it's often just called "walking"), Cornwall for the coast, or any of the combinations janisj mentioned.

I also found Paris stressful, FWIW. I never felt unsafe, and I found it pretty easy to get around, but it did stress me out much more than London or Rome or New York for reasons I can't quite pinpoint. I was there for about nine days last year and never felt like I meshed with it.

If you do go to Paris, check out the Pompidou - it's art, but if the girls are into engineering or architecture, the building is very cool.

Well, I think you should not miss a chance to start to introduce "museums" to your daughters. Science and hands on things are wonderful, but sometimes you have to lead your kids to a huge painting in all its glory. Or as is true in modern art, things don't HAVE to look like what they are. Please consider it.
I think searching out some fun things for children that young will be important or the whine zone may be in effect!! Picnics in between sightseeing could be an idea.

I wouldn;t turn off museums -

many MANY are not art museums - but museums of everythng else yuo can think of.

I can't imagine taking kids to London and not taking them to Natural Histor, the V&A, the British Museum, the Museum of London and especially the Tower and Hampton Court Palace. Yuo don;t have to do the National Gallery or the Tates if you don;t want to.

OR you can go for an hour--to "something". Who knows what will speak to these children.
I think if you just say "they are too young for museums" why are you taking them to Europe.
Maybe parents don't like museums. Do you think it is in the genes that kids don't!!

Don't worry - I am not anti-Museums (I tried to clarify in a later post)! We will definitely check out the science or natural history museums. We would most likely visit the Louvre and the British Museum (and a couple others) for a greatest hits sort of thing. I just meant that this wouldn't be an entire trip rushing from museum to museum.
(I wasn't considering Tower of London a "museum" - that would be a definite activity.)

Indy_dad - thanks, I have actually browsed some of your blog already. It looks like you are having a great time.

annhig - that is what I am leaning toward, but I start to doubt myself about going between countries. I understand that London - Paris is fairly painless. But the rest of it starts to seem overwhelming.

Thanks for all of the suggestions.

The Cité de Science in Paris is a fabulous hands-on museum. Then there's Deyrolles, the Music Museum, the typewriter museum, and loads of others that are not just "looking at paintngs." But of course there are lots of other attractions in Paris that aren't museums, too, so you don't need to feel compelled to go to museums.

One option you might not have considered: have your week in London ... and head straight for the Dordogne. I believe you can fly to Brive from London City airport on CityJet, and I know you can fly from London Gatwick to Bergerac, because that's what we did.

Just another thought. I happen to love Paris, but if you don't, and wouldn't look forward to your time there, skip it.

Whatever you decide, I hope you have a wonderful trip!

Why not use London as a base and visit Paris for a few days, then head back? Travel between London and Paris is super easy and fast with Eurostar, so you could go for a couple of days and then be back in London again. And if it's the Britisch countryside you want to visit, try the Westcountry, Fowey in south Cornwall, or Padstow, Newquay in north Cornwall, or Devon.

I recommend keeping it simple here. I would stick with the British Isles. There is so much in London, Conway and Caernarvon castles in Wales are wonderful, York is lovely, Edinburgh would be a treat, and the girls are just going to want to chill, enjoy and hang out. Enjoy!

Oh, I forgot to mention the V&A - I'm glad someone else did. It's fantastic - not so much hands on, but not many paintings either. Lots of sculpture, jewelry, textiles, furniture, entertainment. And I think a lot of girls your daughters' age would like it. They might prefer Natural History, but the museums in London are generally free, so it wouldn't hurt to stop in and see.

Thanks again! This is a tough decision.

I feel like the Museum thing kind of went a weird direction. I was simply trying to list our interests in my OP and said that an art museum was of less interest than certain other activities. We do go to Museums, and of course we will visit some. Similarly, I don't hate Paris. I just liked London better!

I do appreciate all of the suggestions. But I still haven't decided

Thanks!

Well I have taken my 11 yr daughter to Europe so I can say what she enjoyed. She loved visting Versailles, she had read the Pricess Diaries about Marie Antionette ( story books aimed at younger kids that tell the stories of Europeon princesses as if they were writing in their diairies, the one on Marie Antionette starts with her as a 14 yr old Austrian princess being told she is moving to France and will be married to Louis and how she sees her new ( somewhat scary) life in France) .So visiting Marie Antionettes Hamlet at Versailles was a highlight( the hamlet is a little pretend farm MA had made because she missed country life) its very sweet.
In Paris my dd loved going up the Towers of Notre Dame, most kids do..
At Louvre take skip the paintings, take them to see Napoleons apartments , very over the top living( gold tablewear, chandiliers the size of cars etc) ,,, also take them down to the basement level to see the Medivial Louvre, its the excavated remains of the old moat walls , and this is a fun thing to do, have the girls look for the stonecutters marks. You see, back in the day stonecutters were often paid by the stone, so each one would carve their own mark( like a brand)into a stone. You almost never see them, as they are hidden usually between stones, but since the moat stones were not expected to be seen , you can still see a few stones with the brands marked on exposed parts.. Its neat seeing them , thinking of some man hundreds of years ago marking his little brand to get paid.

I also think you should rethink your attitude to Paris, its very safe, ( i go alone and alone with kids, and I come from a small city on an island off the west coast of Canada, so not a big city person) .

I too absolutely recommend the Natural History Museum in London, loved it, and the Victoria and Albert museum is right across the street and has some neat stuff , clothes, beds, stuff like that that kids can imagine what the people were like "back in the olden days".

<< I feel like the Museum thing kind of went a weird direction. >>

That's because you can't believe the number of people who post that they do not want to go to museums. I asked for clarification and sometimes people don't read every post and may not have seen your response.

Let us know when you decide. Paris has changed since you were last there. The people are friendlier to tourists, they speak more English, and there are many more things to do, especially if you have kids.

Justineparis has given good recommendations for the Louvre. When I visited the Napoleon III apartments there wasn't another person there. Amazing. There are galleries in the Louvre that many people don't visit - they're all huddled around the Mona Lisa.

If you decide on London try to get tickets to the Ceremony of the Keys. That was one of my favorite things. You need to reserve well in advance.

Thanks. My only reason for referencing Museums was that someone replying "Well, your family simply must visit xyz because of all the fabulous art" wouldn't really hit our main interests. I was not trying to imply that we would never set foot in any Museum I didn't realize that it would become such a sticking point!

I think I have narrowed it down to:

*London 1 week (with a daytrip or two) plus York (4)/Edinburgh(3)

or

*London 5, Paris 3, Dordogne 6
(all times approximate, but that is the general ratio)

I am probably leaning to #2...

Kassel-no denying Paris is wonderful and my two kids loved it but my personal preference when traveling with kids is to try to limit the trip to one country. There is so much for you to do and see in either the UK or in just France and since you have an affinity for London then do the UK. We did several trips with our kids and it just felt more natural to have an "England trip", an "Italy trip", etc. just for the sake of revering it all-honestly when they were older teens we went to Germany, Prague, and Austria - and to this day we get a little mixed up about whether a certain museum was in Vienna or Prague! Not saying you'd get London and Paris mixed up but having a single country focus was a good way to organize for us.

So having said that- my kids loved London (yes, I'd consider the Tower an event and not a museum too). Their favorites were Westminster abbey, Madame tussuads, and climbing to the top of St. Paul's. We REALLY loved north wales. The "ruined castles" we're my kids favorites - they are like enormous jungle gyms but full of great history. When we did France, the loved the Eiffel tower, climbing Notre Dame, and the Musee d'Orsay. We all really enjoyed the dordogne, so if you decide on France spend an entire week there-again lots of ruined castles, the canoeing down the river, the caves-a very outdoorsy trip for us (bring sunscreen). In addition to Paris a trip to Normandy or Brittany might fit in. We enjoyed some beach time in Brittany and that was a nice change of pace. They really liked Normandy - and the best thing is the "museums" of d-day are outdoors - the beaches, the foxholes that the kids climb in and out of, walking both the American and German cemeteries. And one more museum not to be missed is the D Day museum at Caen. We were kicked out after several hours and hadn't seen everything. We loved taking our kids to Europe and you will too!

If in Edinburgh, make sure to visit this:

http://www.camera-obscura.co.uk

Summer in 2014: which months exactly?

<< Summer in 2014: which months exactly?>>

We have June, July, and August for school break. Dh and I can take our two weeks more or less any time in there. We normally go somewhere in August (to escape the Texas heat!) but from my reading it sounds like June would be preferable for Europe. Nothing is decided at the moment!

Thanks for the link to the camera obscura!

Atltravlr - thank you for the suggestions. I had not really looked into Normandy or Brittany. I will go look at those chapters in my books!

August in Edinburgh is extremely crowded due to the Festivals, so if you went with the UK options and want to include it, earlier in the summer would be better.

June could be preferable: holidays have not yet started, yet everything is open but not yet crowded. August can mean empty cities (except for crowds of tourists), like Paris, or cities in festival mode like Edinburgh like jent103 said. You're gambling a bit more with the weather though, in june.

When in Paris you can take a day trip to Versaille to see the palace. If you like to bike, you can do that at Versaille and then picnic there. I'd also recommend a day trip to Giverny to see Monet's house/ landscape and then introduce Monet's artwork in the museums. The kids may get a better appreciation of his work at that age if they can recognize the paintings. We felt very safe walking around Paris. We stayed at the Westin and the location was perfect. Be sure to walk into the many pastry shops on your walks, they will love it. So many wonderful things to do in Paris. At that age, they would probably love climbing Notre Dame and seeing the gargoyles up in person and taking pics while making those funny faces. St. Germaine is a short walk and very safe with kids. Enjoy your trip!

I think #2 would be just fine for an overview. I love all those places, would give London or Paris another day and subtract one from the Dordogne, but that's me.

There's plenty to see in the streets of Paris without setting foot in a museum. Maybe buzz through the (free) Carnavalet in the Marais.

We really liked Lascaux II one September with our girls. History seems to seep out of the ground in those woods. More crowded in June, of course.

I wonder whether you might consider a canoe float on the Dordogne?

We stayed in a Gluges, near Martel and on the edge of the Dordogne flood plain, at this B&B: http://www.latuilerie.akoonet.com/information1.html

There's not tons to do around there but hike, but the castle-like reasonably priced place is fun. One of the rooms has a bathroom in the turret. My husband loved this place and the tiny town of Gluges.

PS: I would not go to Versailles or Giverny with < a week in Paris. Again, just me.

London, Paris, Dordogne.

I bought a great book aimed at (I'd guess) third- or fourth-graders in the gift shop at Castelnaud: History of the Kings of France. I read it that evening and my friend and I referred to it throughout the rest of our trip, including our time in Paris at the end. Honestly, it really enhanced my visit to the Dordogne.

I should be ashamed to admit this, but oh well, I'm not.

I had had some knowledge of French history, but I had never heard of Chlodio the Longhair, Clovis II the Lazy and so on. So I guess my advice is to look for something similar when you're visiting your first castle. It might engage your girls. Or you.

Enjoy your trip.

It sounds as though you want to stay in the uk, and there is so much history there! For hiking I'd recommend the lake distict, the Peak District, or some of the Wales coastal path, which is very new but wonderful for a few days reasonably gentle walking with beautiful scenery and castles, and a nice pub supper (girls very welcome!). Or in the lake or peak districts there are plenty of oppertunities to canoe etc, or sail. The uk is full of castles etc but for something slightly different I'd recommend a day in Cambridge. Just an hour outside London by train, beautiful architecture and city centre, punting, and some of the most significant scientific discoveries ever! Normandy too is beautiful. Personally I could spend a few days exploring the peace Museam (one of the best museums I've ever been to), the d day landing beaches, the bayeaux tapestry, a whole array of castles... If that is the kind of thing your family wants, why not skip Paris completely?

If you really love the UK then stay in the UK for this trip. We spent 10 days in London the first time and never ran out of things to do with our DS who was 10 at the time.

Don't miss Hampton Court Palace--the gardens are still lovely in summer, they do re-enactments, and try to time your visit when they do the live kitchen demonstrations. My son loved that so much.

Tower of London is wonderful. Go early. We spent about 5 hours there.

Climb to the top of St Paul.


There are tons of non art museums in London--The Imperial War Museum, Churchill War Museum, the British Museum plus the Museum of London are all really good. Many more too.

On our second trip we explored outside of London and we loved the villages and towns in the Cotswolds and York. So much to do with kids.

Edinburgh and its surrounds have plenty of castles.

Have fun planning and let us know what you decide.