I just saw the above post by dugi, that's what I was suggesting, also, but I don't think you need one base in Switzerland.

I like the new plan better but could you do it where you start in London and end in Switzerland. That way you do the cities while everyone is fresh and excited and end with calm and peaceful surroundings. I have done that route twice and it worked great.

CarolA: That 'new plan' wasn't posted by the OP. I think dugi_otok was just proposing it as a possibility for the OP to consider.

We don't know if delhivijay has read any of our responses or has refined their itinerary.

If it was me traveling w/ mobility impaired seniors - I'd do two cities (three maximum) and slow waaaaaaay down. Rent apartments - hotel rooms can be very small and not comfortable places to lounge around if the 'oldsters' have a down day and just want to kick back.

"Where would you suggest that the OP and family go"

Where the family - and that means essentially the parents - really want to go. Spaced out to meet their parents' comfort needs.

Vijay's presumably from Delhi. That doesn't necessarily mean his parents are Hindu - and it's perfectly possible they've wanted to see St Peter's in Rome all their lives. Or Lord's.

They may all think Venice is simply a Srinagar where people eat risotto rather than pulao.

Age tells us little. My description of Venice is an only slightly more colourful version of that given us by Mrs F in law when we took her there at roughly my age today. Infinitely fitter, on paper, then (and possibly still) than I am now, she hated Venice because it was impossible for her to get around: I've just come back from one of the best holidays there of my life - in spite of endlessly walking up and down stairs just to get from the city's poshest hotels to St Mark's.

Only Vijay really knows what his parents want and what they're able to do. All we can do is state some of the problems: re-writing his itinerary for them is self-indulgent arrogance.

It also isn't remotely clear how much walking these folks can do. Restricted walking could be can't do 10 mile hikes to someone really young. People are assuming they can barely walk a block and they have impairments. So who knows. It could just be walking a couple hours a day will be enough and they can't be on their feet for four hours straight.

and 75+ could mean 76 or it could mean 95. I suspect it is closer to 75 or it wouldn't have been worded that way.

All we can do is state some of the problems: re-writing his itinerary for them is self-indulgent arrogance.>>

oh, thank goodness i didn't fall into that trap. I couldn't bear being accused of being self-indulgent.

Thanks a lot folks for all your efforts and suggestions. Oh Ya, i have reworked the itinerary and am going with the suggestion of dugi.Cutting out Italy, although my dad really wanted to visit Rome and Vatican !
This now appears more of a slower paced program with seniors !

Good news! And if the enjoy this trip, you can take them to Italy another time,

annhig, perfecto. :-)

good plan, vijay.

Save Italy for the next trip.

I hope that this one's a success!

vijay
Glad we could help.
Please excuse the self-indulgent arrogance.
Yikes!

Hi ad,

>Ira - look again - they have to get from Switzerland to Rome which will take most of a day and then the next day move on to Venice so there will be a few hours in Rome.<

That's even worse, in'it?

((I))

At their age, if your parents really want to see Italy, I would keep Italy and ditch some other place, because they might not get another chance for Italy, or this kind of trip, and you probably will. So seriously, take them to their dream places this time. What a shame it would be if it were your Father's last trip to Europe and he did not get to Rome or the Vatican.

You could do Paris and Italy or Switzerland and Italy.

Make sure to get hotels near the major sights, so parents can return to their room for rest in the afternoon if needed. DH and I have no trouble walking in Venice, but often do only one major sight, then stop for a rest and snack.

Do not do any stops of fewer than 3 nights. You must calculate accurately your travel times, not just the train time, but getting from hotel to train and to next hotel, checking in, etc. That one day in Rome would be impossible.

Count on using taxis to/from hotels to trains. Your parents might be up to dragging luggage, we sometimes do it, but better to save their energy for sightseeing, rather than exhausting them getting from place to place. The older we get, the more we hate hoho busses, and find them exhausting; much easier to grab a taxi and go to a specific place, wander about there, then taxi (or metro - depending on how we feel and what is available) back to hotel or to next place for sight seeing.

I agree with Sassafrass--if your parents really want to see Italy, go to Italy. Take taxis if necessary.

My spouse has bad knees and so we've had to slow up a lot on our recent trips--one or two major things a day--and take a lot of taxis. Rome is her favorite city in the world, so even with all the hassle, tufa, hills, etc., she'd go again in a minute.

I 100% agree - if your parents dream of Rome you really should go to Italy. Just drop Switzerland and/or Paris. If it was me and my elderly parents wanted to see the Vatican and w/ just 15 days I'd lean to spending the whole time in Italy.

But you could tack on a few days in either London or Paris if need be.

You (OP) have your life in front of you. Your parents want to go to Italy. Do Italy and Switzerland (this seems to be the absolute place in Europe that folks from India HAVE to go to).
Italy, some days in Switzerland, and Paris. Not difficult--and it is more to the parents' likes.

Since it's your parents first time, and Dad wants to see Rome, and they are 75+ years, I'd stick with London, Paris, and Rome, and take trains between these three. Flying into London and out of Rome. Or the other way around. These three cities are places people really want to see (with good reason!) and considering their age and the fact that they have NEVER been to Europe, there's probably good reason to believe this may be the first and the last time.

I'll tell you the hardest part on mobility, young (with bad knees, busted ankle, whatever) or old, is public transportation, like the Metro or the Underground, or the upper level on a double decker bus. Just walking around can be tiring, but it doesn't kill you, because you can stop and rest, vs. getting half way up the stairs of the subway and just having your whole body give out.

I've been going with my now 85 year old mom on trips for the last 25 years. We were in France and Switzerland when she was 83, and I had busted my ankle. So it was me holding everyone back, not her. Yeah, she was a little slower than she was in years past, but made it up the mountain pass to the viewing platform once off the Gornergrat Bahn and back down without losing her breath, while I had a cane! And she couldn't run up and down to the Metro platform as she once could, but held her own.

I think now at 85, she had a harder time with the NYC subway when we visited a few months back, than she did anywhere in Europe, so we paid the extra bucks and did a lot of taxi trips that were too far to walk.

With your parents, you just need to understand their limitations, and be prepared to take things at a slower pace. And also keep in mind that since this can get a little tiring for you, make sure you make some time for yourself and spouse or partner -- go some places on your own so you can keep your own pace! It makes for a much better holiday.

Your mother sounds like she's related to me! I can hold my own and have done so for over 80yrs but at a slightly slower pace now adays. vijay-- If the folks want Rome then absolutely go there..Paris is wonderful and the hop on hop off does the trick in Paree but not in London..Grid lock causes chaos!! However the river portion of the London hop on hop off was great..A different take on the views. Same applies to the batobus in Paris..things look so different from the unobstructed view of the sites and sights from the water. Time for your interests are important also as stated above..

Your mother sounds like she's related to me! I can hold my own and have done so for over 80yrs but at a slightly slower pace now adays. vijay-- If the folks want Rome then absolutely go there..Paris is wonderful and the hop on hop off does the trick in Paree but not in London..Grid lock causes chaos!! However the river portion of the London hop on hop off was great..A different take on the views. Same applies to the batobus in Paris..things look so different from the unobstructed view of the sites and sights from the water. Time for your interests are important also as stated above..

Your mother sounds like she's related to me! I can hold my own and have done so for over 80yrs but at a slightly slower pace now adays. vijay-- If the folks want Rome then absolutely go there..Paris is wonderful and the hop on hop off does the trick in Paree but not in London..Grid lock causes chaos!! However the river portion of the London hop on hop off was great..A different take on the views. Same applies to the batobus in Paris..things look so different from the unobstructed view of the sites and sights from the water. Time for your interests are important also as stated above..