Musetta

Hi Fodorites,

I am going to a wedding in early August of a close family friend. We are planning to bring our 2 kids (active boys aged 8 and 10) along with my brother and his family (girls 4 and 6) and grandparents (including 79 year old grandpa - but he does not have to do everything).
The wedding is near Dusseldorf. We are planning to be in Europe for about 2 weeks. I would welcome ideas of some high level itineraries that might be appealing for young children. My husband and I already did a small tour of Bavaria a couple of years ago so we probably would not do that again. Some family members had mentioned Berlin; others had mentioned the Netherlands and Belgium or possibly Switzerland. I don't know if Denmark or Eastern Europe would be too far?? I know I am all over the map here . . .

All 4 kids enjoy the outdoors and would be up for some moderate hiking (Grandpa would be OK with skipping any heavy duty hikes). We would want to mix things up so that there is a blend of cultural sights and some outdoors/active stuff too.

Help! I'm not used to traveling in Europe with little tykes in tow . . . I know that we will need to choose several hubs and not hop around to too many destinations given the size of the group and age spans involved.

Thanks so much, in advance!

sparkchaser

<i>My husband and I already did a small tour of Bavaria a couple of years ago so we probably would not do that again.</i>

I am willing to be that there was a lot that you did not see in Bavaria so don't be so quick to dismiss going back to Bavaria. Besides, the kids would probably love a trip to Legoland (fun for adults too) and perhaps Playmobil Funpark as well.

sparkchaser

Also, Belgium has a WWI trench museum near Ypres that the boys would love running around in.

quokka

There is heaps and heaps to do in closer surroundings of Düsseldorf without having to cover long distances. The castles along the Middle Rhine gorge, bike tours in Münsterland to its water castles, the industrial heritage sites of the Ruhr district, the ancient Roman sites and theme park in Xanten, hiking in the forests of Eifel or Sauerland, Fantasialand fun park in Brühl, climbing the spires of Cologne cathedral, the excellen zoos of Cologne and Duisburg, boating on Ruhr river or the reservoir lakes, etcetera etcetera. You could easily fill two weeks in that area and keep everyone busy.

honeyhead

We live near Düsseldorf and love to go to Amsterdam and the near beaches with our 2 year old son. We base ourselves on the coast in Zandvoort in a rental home or at "Center Parcs De Eemhof" (great for children) and do daytrips to Amsterdam. With older children like yours you can do a sail boat trip on the "Ijsselmeer" which is really typical for the Netherlands.
From Düsseldorf it is only 2 hours by train or car.
For August it is very important to book well ahead as everyone has summer vacation!
If you need hotel recommendations just send a PM.

traveller1959

As others have said: Stay in the area!

Düsseldorf is a quite attractive city and there are many first-rank attractions nearby. Just a few suggestions:

- The Neanderthal Museum in Mettmann (near Düsseldorf) is outstanding. The kids will love it. There are excellent full-size displays of Neanderthal people and stories are told via headphones in English. They also have kid's programmes. And there is a park with ice-age animals. http://www.neanderthal.de/en/home/index.html

- Köln (Cologne) has many attractions, including the magnificent cathedral with a rich treasury, the shrine of the Three Magi and the huge spires (you can climb them). The kids will also love to go underground into the ruins of the Roman palace and walk through a 2,000-year-old sewer. The Roman-Germanic Museum is outstanding and the Chocolate Museum might be a diversion from "high" culture. And there is a zoo. http://www.cologne.de/what-to-do

- Monschau is Germany's most picturesque historical town. http://monschau.de/tourist-informati...hp?bereich=Rur

- Aachen is another magnificent old town. See the cathedral where Charlemagne was crowned in 800 A.D. with its treasury and the medieval City Hall. http://aachen.de/EN/ts/170_sehenswue...ten/index.html

- For the kids, there is a really good theme park, the Phantasialand south of Cologne: http://www.phantasialand.de/en/home

- You can do a boat trip on the Rhein and see all the old castles from the boat. Board the boat where the scenic sections begin, e.g. in Remagen.

- Belgium and the Netherlands are in easy reach. Maastricht is a wonderful historic city, Brussels is easy to reach by high speed train, Amsterdam makes an easy daytrip by train from Düsseldorf.

- As said, you include a day on the beach in the Netherlands, e.g. in Scheveningen, Katwijk, Nordwijk or Zandvoort (near Amsterdam).

- In the Münsterland, an hour driving time from Düsseldorf, you find a lot of castles from various eras, e.g. Burg Vischering as an example of a medieval castle (http://www.burg-vischering.de/) or Schloss Nordkirchen as a splendid baroque palace (http://www.schloss-nordkirchen.de/Sc...rdkirchen.html).

- Xanten is a picturesque historical town with a large archeological park that displays replicas and originals of Roman buildings. With a lot of kid-friendly staff. http://www.apx.lvr.de/

- Trier has a lot of Roman heritage: the impressive Roman city gate, a perfectly preserved palace, a theatre, ruins of the thermal baths and, of course, a museum. Besides, you are in the heart of the wine country along the picturesque Mosel river.

And there is much more...

I almost forget the link to Düsseldorf itsself:

http://www.duesseldorf.de/eng/touris...er/index.shtml

BTW, you wrote "near Düsseldorf". Where exactly will the wedding take place? I could give you more tips.

Musetta

Thank you so much for all these terrific tips -- very helpful. I will certainly get to work in exploring your suggestions.
In response to the question re. where exactly the wedding will be -- it will be at schloss krickenbeck in Nettetal.

Again, thank you -- much appreciated!

quokka

I see! So you will be right on the Dutch border, and a hop to the Netherlands is easy.

traveller1959

I once had a conference in Schloss Krickenbeck - it will be a stylish place for a wedding.

Nettetal is right near the Dutch border - you will be close to Xanten, Düsseldorf, Aachen, Maastricht.

The nearest beach is in the South Netherlands, on the Vlissingen peninsula. Towns are Middelburg and Domburg.

Or you drive through Belgium to Blankenberge beach, after a visit to lovely Brugge.