FAMILY RAIL TRIP (Kids 12 & 14) Creating our own amazing race
 

HELP WITH FAMILY FUN!
Leaving for Europe May 25th for a 2 week rail trip.
AMAZING RACE IDEAS to captivate our kids (12 girly girl & 14 "I'm over this" teenage boy) We have most of our train schedules set because of events or places we are set to. But otherwise open to restaurants, activities, places to do things & visit.
NOTE: We are going to see enough museums & historical places... so we are really looking for FUN! ie, making pizza, making carnival masks, finding historical objects etc.
*We have a global rail pass

ITINERARY (WORKING)
May 26th Fly into ZURICH (1 adult 2 kids)
*Will have a car for 2 days while we wait for husband to arrive.
*Plan to go to Black Forest/Zipline/cable car?
NEED: places to go & stay for 2 nights. 1 adult & 2 kids... want under 100 euros. willing to do family hostels/B&B/small inn etc.

May 28th Husband arrives in ZURICH
*Drive to Nueshwanstein Castles/Leichtenstein/Western Austria?
NEED: things to do, restaurants, places not to miss (other than the obvious sites)
*Train from Munich to FLORENCE (overnight)

May 29th train to CINQUE TERRE
NEED: things to do, restaurants, places not to miss (other than the obvious sites)
CAN overnight here if neccessary. suggestions for a neat B&B?

May 30th open for TUSCANY adventure
NEED: things to do, restaurants, places not to miss (other than the obvious sites)
Want to make a pizza, sample wine, make olive oil? swim?
CAN overnight here for another day if needed. suggestions for a neat B&B?
* Late train to ROME (or stay another day in TUSCANY**NOTE: we have secured inexpensive hotel in Rome for 4 nights)

May 31 POMPEII morning & ROME night (spanish steps - trevi) (OR stay another day in TUSCANY)
NEED: things to do, restaurants, places not to miss, historical artifact to discover (other than the obvious sites)

June 1st VATICAN CITY morning (Have tickets to the morning mass)
NEED: things to do, restaurants, places not to miss, historical artifact to discover (other than the obvious sites)

June 2nd POMPEII morning & ROME night (spanish steps - trevi) (OR open day)
NEED: things to do, restaurants, places not to miss, historical artifact to discover (other than the obvious sites)

June 3rd Morning train to VENICE
VENICE ALL DAY
NEED: things to do, restaurants, places not to miss, historical artifact to discover (other than the obvious sites)
*overnight train to D-Land Paris or Paris itself

June 4th D-LAND OR PARIS all day

June 5th DisneyLand Paris

June 6th PARIS all day or D-Land

*overnight train to Amsterdam is what we are thinking
**We have been unable to find ANY place to stay in Zurich that is reasonable for the night before our trip home. So... we have been looking into overnight trains anywhere else. We are really open on this evening.

June 7th ZURICH flight home
I know this is a crazy way to sample Europe... but we really want to get as much in as possible. Need to make it fun & not just museums. So... chime in with your suggestions! We are VERY excited!

I was very tempted to not respond to your thread because I know how most will respond to your itinerary...

With that said, have you and your family been to Europe before?

The first time we took our kids to Europe (for a month), we only visited three cities (London, Paris and Lisbon). Our kids were 12 and 8 at the time and travel extremely well but even with numerous days in each city, they eventually went on "strike" saying they needed some down/relaxing time.

Is your schedule set in stone because I would honestly reconsider changing it? You are moving around way too much and not leaving any time to really see much of anything or take in the surroundings.

I really don't know anyone who would get a global pass for 2 weeks, or squeeze such major destinations into that time frame, or try to emulate a TV reality show with their vacation time and $. Or anyone who would select destinations without some clear idea of what they wanted to do in those places. Or would consider 3 days at Paris Disney. I'm not one of those people either. You have your pass, you have your own interpretation of fun, and your trip is mostly planned, so I'll just wish you bon voyage.

I know this isn't the response you want, but I'll also vote that I think you are moving too much. My experience is that each time I move a city, I lose at least 1/2 a day if not more.

Honestly, your kids will remember the trains, planes, and automobiles and not much else.

For reference, we took a trip to London and Paris last year with 3 kids - ages 6, 8, and 10. We spent 4 days (if you include arrival day) in London and surroundings and 6 days in Paris. It was great! click on my username for my trip report.

In Switzerland, are you doing any of the Bernese Oberland ? I would think that would be a fun area to explore.

If you do Cinque Terre, you must hike between the cities. Between meals and stopping for breaks, that will take most of the day.

Read this thread:
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...n-for-kids.cfm

She really has some fun ideas planned -

I'm exhausted just from reading it. And I am a very hyper person. I love the Amazing Race, but I think they do get some down time. But, to each his own! As for as a hotel in Zurich, I have stayed at Hotel St. Josef for years. www.st-josef.ch It is near the train station-not sure about parking. There are parking spaces at the front of the hotel, but I never see an open one.

Overnight from Paris-Amsterdam---I didn't find a one. It's only about 3-4 hours by Thalys. Remember Thalys requires a supplement to your rail pass. I assume you mean a 15-day Eurail Pass?

Oh... and please spend a little time in Paris. The kids might like going to the top of the Eiffel tower. I do!

My advise on Cinque Terre: train to Monterosso then walk to the left out of the train station and up to the ferry dock. Take the day pass to all the villages. Beautiful and lots of photo ops.

Rome-can't help you-not a big fan.

I'm with your son...I'm over this.

It is true that your trip is very busy. But as always I'm amazed at the rude way some people try to make their point.

"You have your pass, you have your own interpretation of fun, and your trip is mostly planned, so I'll just wish you bon voyage."

...that's just pathetic. Russ...did she come in here an try to personally offend you? Your response is much more offensive than her busy trip.


Anyway...magical4u...one thing our children love (8 and 10, boys) is geocaching. You may never have heard of it so check out geocaching.com. Basically you are using a GPS device to find hidden packages that are spread all over the world. It's a great way to bring some excitement to any place for kids.

Good luck in your travels. You will be very tired when you are done...just like the Amazing Race contestants. :)

Our kids are really into history and museums, so I probably have a slightly different perspective. But I think that fun, for them (they're now 15 and 12) is seeing and experiencing a different culture; they didn't need to be making a pizza or carnival masks to be having a good time. Even sitting at a cafe, having a kind of drink that they might not have at home (like a shakerato in Italy) and people-watching is fun for them - and you may well find the same about your kids.

So, you may find that they're having a great time just being there, noticing and experiencing things that are different from their life at home.

Little things we've done on trips: Gelato-guessing game; I'll buy a 3-flavor cup of gelato for DD and I to share, and she tries to guess the flavors.

Macaroon sampling in Paris, at every place as pass that sells macaroon, to find "the best."

At the market in Florence, we bought 4 different kinds of fresh pecorino cheese, and tried to decide which we liked the best.

Some specific places that our kids enjoyed, that you probably won't have time for:
- San Zacharia, in Venice. Has lower-level crypts that house some of the early doges of Venice. The last time we visited, this level was a bit under-water, which made it even more spooky.
- San Clemente, in Rome. A church built on a 14th-century church, built on top of a Mithraic temple and an ancient Rome residence; as you go lower and lower, you see the different eras.
- The Pantheon, in Paris. Not on everyone's list, but DS was really into Victor Hugo, who's buried here. There might be places like this, that have a special meaning or attraction for your kids.

I do agree with others that you are cramming many, many places into a finite time period. You have roughly one day in many of these cities; I can't see how you could include museums, fun activities and historical artifacts to discover in one day. I know there are so many wonderful places to visit that it's very difficult to narrow down a list, but I would suggest that you do so, so you and your kids have time to experience the locations, and perhaps have some fun, rather than racing for the next train.

I thing you are trying to cover too much

The idea of "experiences" as opposed to lots of museums is great but I would skip the Cinque Terre, maybe stop two nights in Forence or two in Venice.

If you have four nights in Rome, I would plan Pompeii for day 2. It's a full day.

For the overnight trains are you booking couchettes or sleeping compartments? I hope so because sitting up all night is pretty miserable. Been there, done that. Not sure there are overnights from Paris to Amsterdam but if you are flying out of Zurich, how does going to Amsterdam help?

Wekiva writes, "...that's just pathetic. Russ...did she come in here an try to personally offend you? Your response is much more offensive than her busy trip."

The poster did not provide all those trip details just to ask about "things to do, restaurants, places not to miss, historical artifact to discover (other than the obvious sites)" in those cities. He or she was indirectly asking for feedback on those details. The whole thing is thoroughly off the wall and unrealistic, a plan that only one in a thousand posters here might embrace; magical4U has a right to hear HONESTLY expressed feedback like this.

And I think your opinion on my feedback does nothing for the poster and is simply off topic. As far as your post goes, I will refrain from using pejoratives or offensive language (like "rude", "pathetic", and "offensive") as I did with this poster, and as I always do.

Point taken...but when the OP states "We have most of our train schedules set because of events or places we are set to." That is clear indication to me that they aren't asking for your opinion on how many things they are seeing...or if you think the pace is hectic.

I do think it's appropriate to kindly state you think the trip is too busy in a helpful way. I just didn't see your input as kind or helpful. It was just another "you're seeing too much and you're crazy" type response that is all to common around here when new travels come in full of excitment and with overly ambitious itineraries.

"I just didn't see your input as kind or helpful."

Well, you've had your say, and I disagree. It's a ridiculously "overly ambitious" plan, and I think its helpful to hear this. And you simply aren't in charge of what I think is helpful or what I post.

And you aren't the OP and don't need the feedback. If the OP feels like you do, well, s/he will probably survive my honest assessment and is totally free to ignore my comments.

CLARIFICATION: We have been to Europe many times. Visited the museums, And this time wanted to concentrate on the "GAME"... not museums & historical sites. We are stuck to where we are going because of specific events and/or seeing family. We have already seen most of these historical sites & museums. We are revisiting the ones we WANT to see again and ONLY those. So where we are going... is where we are going UNLESS... I listed an option. (I really didn't feel it was neccassary to list the "why's" in the original post. my goodness.... I was ONLY looking for ideas!)Kids are extremely well traveled as are we... and we know what we are getting into.

I posted the trains ONLY to show where we would be and our time restrictions. not to cause anyone a heart attck. (And yes... we have sleeping beds on every overnight train)
remember... this is OUR adventure. we KNOW it is alot of time on trains & we KNOW it is alot to pile into one trip... but this is what we WANT to do this time.

LEXMA 90 - GREAT! THis is what I am looking for. simple things...
I was hoping someone had a contact for a restaurant that alowed patrons to prepare pizzas... or a olive farm that alowed pressing or a winery that allowed us to harvest. something fun, interesting, finding something unique in a local market... different than just visiting a painting or a museum (of which we have seen already)

RUSS - We have a GLOBAL RAIL PASS... not because we are ignorant... but because it was free. I DID want just the ideas... not a critique of my itinerary... just as I asked. there was no implication there. And if you don't have any suggestions... then kindly leave your personal opinions off the thread.

WEKIVA - thank you for your kind defense. you hit the mail on the head. & as for geocaching... I read about that! IT seems interesting and may be great fun on our adventure. thank you for the website.

SURFMOM- Thanks for the thread. I will read it.
SCATCAT & SURFMOM -no worries! We have been to Paris and climbed it, boated it, ridden it... etc. Just need a 1/2 day really to sit in a cafe on the Champs elysee & enjoy. really... the ONLY reason we are going to France at all is to go to Disney. We love the parks and have to go every trip.

EVERYONE - THank you so much. Maybe with this clarification... there will be others that will want to offer great advise! I look forward to it!

FYI - The ONLY reason we have a car for the first two days is because we can't activate the train passes until my husband arrives. So... we are stuck with a car.

This seems geared more to a six and eight year old, not a twelve and fourteen. I can't imagine older kids wanting to do most of what you listed especially Disneyland and searching for historical artifacts. FWIW, I've taken group of 12-16's to Europe. Your list just seems too childish.

I think you need to look at some travel times. It will take 2-3 hours just to get to Pompeii from Rome and you mention doing it twice.

Your train rides in Italy won't be free. Your required to purchase seat reservations on all but the slow R trains.

kybourbon - Thanks for your opinion... but we love Disney. And it is not just for kids. We ADULTS love it to. The kids are the ones that have requested the ideas as well as I... so we are requesting what we want to do.
I mentioned that I could do Pompeii on either of those days. And we plan on a very early day... with an EVENING of Steps to the Trevi.
Train reservations are done... so... as I mentioned.... I am not looking for help with trains. it was simply to help with letting people know where I am restricted to.

If you have ideas... that you would be willing to share from the tips you planned for your 12-16 year olds... I would LOVE to hear it.

magial4u-did you find an overnight train from Paris to Amsterdam? I looked on bahn.de but was unable to find one. I take overnight trains occasionally. Many people are unable to sleep, but I have no problem. You are probably booking the 4 couchette cabin, that works out great. I travel solo most times, so I get a single cabin with a shower. Almost as good as a hotel!

<<or a olive farm that alowed pressing or a winery that allowed us to harvest. something fun, interesting, finding something unique in a local market... different than just visiting a painting or a museum>>

I can't imagine anyone pressing oil in May (there won't be olives to press at that time of year) or harvesting grapes (they'll be hard and the size of peas, months away from harvesting), nor a restaurant wanting to launch a pizza-making gig (though I suppose that is slightly more realistic than the other things).

As for local markets, they'll all have unique items. So will co-ops, which exist all over Italy (but you'll likely have to ask locals to find them)

Again... not looking for criticism...
just trying to give examples of ideas to help trigger memories, ideas etc.
Again - if you have HELPFUL ideas... not criticism... it is welcome.

Sorry. I actually thought it might be helpful to clarify how some of your stated interests would be impossible...and why. And to suggest you might look into coops

I'll refrain from offering further information, as you clearly are determined to do this trip YOUR way anyway.