3year old & 6 month old kids-where to go in Europe for 1 month?
 

Looking to plan a visit to Europe-but having trouble finding a good place/country/city. Need proximatety to beach for kids but day trip activities for the 3yo as well (so we need both) any ideas? Also 1 hour from civilization for my husband (just in case he needs to work) any ideas? for "summering" in Europe?

If you are inclined towards Italy, Puglia is great, the Salento is the region of Sun and Beaches.

Hi joaneijd,

the west [atlantic] coast of France is very nice. the are lovely beaches, towns to visit, cities like La rochelle and /bordeaux, and boat trips. further north, there are many suitable places for a family holiday in Brittany.

also the north of spain [the well-named Cost Verde] is beloved of spanish families for their summer hols.

you might also think of visiting Cornwall, which also offers beautiful beaches and lots of family activities. Though I must confess to being biased in its favour as i live here.

regards, ann

If u are looking to go in JUne and you want a beach that's good for parents of todddlers, Look into St. George Beach, Naxos Island, Greece. Sandy beach, shallow (so water warms up earlier than elsewhere), plenty of "apartment-type" units facing right on the sand, so infant could nap in room, you could sun on patio and keep eye on toddler digging a hole.

This beach gets crowded by July but in May-June it's just sprinkled with unclothed scandinavian tots, plenty of playmates for your 3 yr old.

Also, this beach is directly adjacent to Naxos town, so with strollers you could take the tot to see a lot--- yachts in harbor, ferries in & out etc. Beach has playgrounds as well.

PLUS you can walk to cafes and restaurants at night & dine while kids run around and then snooze in their strollers -- i see it happening every May. This also means you do not always have to be getting in and out of a car, with carseat & Stuff.

Airfield is 20 minutes from beach and Olympica Air is 50 minutes to Athens --only 1-2 flights daily. PLenty of internet cafes and many hotels even the small family-run places have free internet lobby hook-ups now.

A couple of websites with typical St. George Apt.hotels pictured are:

http://www.thegreektravel.com/naxos/hotels.html
http://www.naxos-island-greece.com/n...os-hotels.html

Remember, you need a place ON the beach, not "near", or it turns into endless to-and-fro, not relaxing. I have been there; I know!

Finally -- I would advise if you are thinking of the Med, think June. In July & August it is very hot, and children will be fretty all the time. Also, all of Europe will climb into Airbusses & descend on you, wherever you are!

Good luck!

joaniejd, when you say you are having trouble finding a good location what was wrong with all the locations suggested on your original thread where you got many many good suggestions. I still like Plage de Pamplonne outside St Tropez for an amazing Caribbean style beach, calm clear water, luxurious villas, super restaurants, world class shopping, lots and lots of sightseeing etc...luxury at it's finest with an amazing beach.

Perhaps if you are more specific as to what was good or bad about some of those places you could pin this trip down. You are asking pretty much the same question over and over to the point where you will not get responses any more. People like to help but they need you're feedback to help you. Ask questions on your same posts so the generous fodorites can respond to you.

Ok. for the beaches aspect-we'd prefer uncrowded beaches (ones not lined with beach clubs-unless that is just how its done in Europe?) so uncrowded beautiful beaches are a main requirement. & we need to be "on"the beach so we arent carrying all our gear down to the beach every day...any other ideas?

What month are you referring to? The beaches in the South of France do not get busy until July 1 when French kids get out of school. Then then JUly 15th and after it will be very busy pretty much all over Europe. I love the month of June in the South of France when it's not yet busy but the weather is great.

The Plage de Pamplonne does have some beach clubs but many many public (no beach club) and quiet stretches of sand. And any time before July 1 it is very quiet. There are rentals directly above the beach in this area where you can easily walk to your spot on the beach.

joaniejd

you are now approaching a record for the number of new threads opened on one subject - they all same the same thing and I think the last count was over 10 - I would help everyone if you used the same thread as all the other posters do!

Thank you !

I am amazed at how many threads you have started on the exact same subject and then it seems like you never come back and give feedback like lemidi pointed out.

You say you are "having trouble finding a good place/country/city". You need to spend some time doing basic background research on your own (like looking at the map of Europe and narrowing down where you think you are interested in going or going to the library and getting a travel book on Europe and seeing what appeals to you).

It doesn't help anyone (including yourself) if you keep starting a new post on the same topic. Fodorites are a great source of knowledge and help but no one here is going to be able to pick your destination and plan an hour by hour itinerary for you which is what it seems like you think you will get by reposting the same question over and over. Stop wasting everyone's time and do a little research on your part so you can ask intelligent questions and get good help on specific things.

No need to get snippy SicilianSailor. This isn't a forum to badger people if you don't like their questions

Openroads2-if you read he/she's other almost 10 postings all on the SAME question you would know why we are asking the poster to give us some more information or do some more research. They keep asking the same thing over and over again and never seem to go onto a more refined questioning about something.
The poster keeps asking about a beach location in their posts in Europe,Carribean,etc. They said they don't have a problem with any price in hotel,etc. so I am thinking that perhaps they should go to a travel professional if they don't want to take any Fodorites advice or information.
I really don't think that Sicilian Sailor,Markrosy,myself or the others on other 10 posts that have commented on how many times this poster has asked the same question should be made to feel as they we were snippy.

duty free

I answered 4 posts - took the time to do it - before I realised it was the same poster asking the same question!

Actually, I count 13 threads asking the same question!

joaniejd-- posting 13 times the same question in an open forum is not only annoying,but it does not really speak well of your own research skills. I am not been snippy, I am keeping it real.

Please specify what month are you going; otherwise, this whole speed-posting will be an exercise in futility for you. I know of a gorgeous beach in a town called Efife in Portugal that is not crowded in May-early June (decent weather), but you can not get nowhere near in July-August.

In all honesty, you need to sit down with a book first and get a feel for Europe's geography and weather patterns. You may be able to narrow this down on your own and then ask for specifics.

And - how old are these kids?

They seem to change ages as often as the OP changes destinations.

And what kind of a day trip does a 3 year old need?

Or is the child perhaps 13?

my question is as above...

why in the world does a 3 year old need "day trip activities"? a little young for that, don't ya think?

Joaniejd-my suggestion for your next vacation is to take your children down to Disney World and let them enjoy the magic of the place. You will have opportunities to take "daytrips" over to the coast and do your beach activities AND if you and your husband want "that European flavor"-you can get a babysitter and have a drink at Epcot. Clearly,you don't have any type of clearcut plans so Disney World might be your best option. Save basking in the sun on the beaches of Greek Islands for later when your kids might understand "daytrips".

Before answering you might want to check out this posters other posts where her children are 2 & 6 year old and another where she has 3 children.

I posted a New Topic where I stated there was something fakey about joaniejd. No bad language, just some facts taken from his/her posts like inconsistencies on # of kids, flights booked vs. looking for city ideas, etc....

It got pulled out in no time by the Fodor's Travel Forum Editors.

My guess...joaniejd is the fake name used by a travel writer who goes fishing for ideas that need to be validated or documented with real life experiences.

Forums are about opinions. I just stated mine.

Your thread is back now, I just read it.