Hi Jillyperk,
We need a little bit more info in order to help you. What are your family's interests? Does 12 days include travel days? Are you wanting somewhere close to Paris? Do you want to rent a car for a few days? Do you want to only take the train? Are you willing to fly to your next destination and then fly home from there? This is called open-jaw.

There are many beautiful locations close to Paris. The Dordogne for one. Or you can fly to Venice or Rome or London on the smaller airlines. I would only do this if I could fly home from the second location. The Berner Oberland in Switzerland is another wonderful location. The Loire is fun for a couple of days. Or you can train down to Provence...so many ideas pop into my head.

With 12 days you have plenty of time for two locations. Just think about what you would like to see and post back.

Michele

Hi Jillyperk,
We are going to Paris mid-June for college grad trip for 5 nights then off to Rome, Venice and then make our way by train eventually to Zurich. We're flying on one of the low cost carriers, others have said for the "real deal" to take the overnight train, but we are getting a bit old for that maybe. Many destinations to choose from, but at least for me, Rome is very high on the list. I'm only sorry we only have 5 days to spend there.

Thanks for the feedback. We've been to the major places in Italy, as well as London, so we're looking for something else this round. I said we have 12 days, but we could go up to 14, if necessary. The 14 would include travel days.

We would prefer not to spend a lot of time in the car, and are willing to take a flight or train to the next location, if necessary. My kids favorite things in Italy were Positano, on the Amalfi Coast, and Venice. We're hoping to spend more time in 2 places, rather than drag from place to place every day or so.

We've discussed going to a second city, like Amsterdam, but are also interested in different ideas that might include some relaxation and adventure. We really don't have a specific idea in mind, but are open to suggestions. We will definitely fly home from the last location, unless it is near Paris, in which case, we'll get round trip tickets to/from Paris.

I appreciate your help. Thanks You!

What about Normandy and Brittany? You would need a car but the driving, in our experience, is not stressful and you needn't spend lots of time in the car as towns are not long distances apart. Or Normandy and the Loire. All of these destinations would involve Paris as the departure city. If you travel to the Dordogne, you could depart from Bordeaux. Another possibility is Ireland.