carolyn

Yes, the Latin Quarter is safe. It's where the Sorbonne is located, so there are lots of young people around. We stayed in that arrondissement at the Parc St. Severin on rue de la Parchemenerie quite close to the St. Michel metro station and Notre Dame.

Have a great vacation!

PalenQ

Aug-18 Haarlam>

you do means as a day trip, right because relocating to a city just 20 minutes away by train takes about a half of day packing up, unpacking, etc.

As a day trip Haarlem is outstanding - you can IME chose none better (but lots just as nice) - besides the Grote Markt - huge mrket square with the Grote Kerk on it - there is also the very famous Frans Hal House and Museum to this famous Old Dutch Master painter.

and the Corrie Ten Boom House where a courageous family harbored Jewish folks and Dutch Resistence folks for two years - the Anne Frank House of Haarlem if you have it!

http://www.corrietenboom.com/

Haarlem also makes a splendid place to rent a bike and experience that most Dutch thing of all it seems bicycling - rent a bike at or near the Haarlem train station and pedal several miles south of town on dedicated bike paths into the heart of the famous Dutch flower fields which even in August should be a pulchritudinous blaze of colors at places.

as for the train part - www.thalys.com is the best booking site for Thalys trains Amsterdam to Brussels and Brussels to Paris - book up to 120 days in advance (I believe) for some deep discounted fares - I on fairly short notice last August got an Amsterdam to Paris fare for 39 euros and Brussels to Paris for 29 euros - lots cheaper than regular fare - though discounted tickets are not changeable nor refundable however so be sure of your dates.

Paris to London is the Eurostar train that goes under the English Channel taking just over 2 hours - you gain an hour on the clock when entering Britain (which is always a bit behind the times IME from the Continent!) Again deep discounts are availble by booking way early - www.eurostar.com. For lots of good info on trains in general in these countries check out these susperb IMO sources: www.seat61.com - great info on discounted fares); www.ricksteves.com and www.budgeteuropetravel.com. There is no railpass that would be of use to you with your rather limited train travel. there are special youth fares on the Eurostar and perhaps Thalys you may look into.

AndiM

We are travelling with our younger kids (7 & 9) for over 6 weeks to some of the same places next summer. In Amsterdam, we reserved this apartment for 3 nights - http://www.vrbo.com/445183ha It's 90 Euro per night for our family. It might not work with teenagers but it's worth looking through sites like vrbo for apartment rentals. Best of luck!

PalenQ

90 euros for a flat in Amsterdam is a steal - a complete steal - you cannot even get a decent hotel room for that price - not even close!

Rubicund

For your hotel in London, (though an apartment may well be a cheaper alternative, try these websites:

www.lastminute.com
www.londontown.com
www.laterooms.com
www.trivago.com

They all allow you to choose by area, price and "stars".

zarinam

Thank you for your continued advice!!! The itinerary is really shaping up to be a great holiday.

bilboburgler - I am looking forward the Haarlem railway station now. I cannot wait to go to Amsterdam!

Lexma90 -it sounds like our experience may mimic yours. My teens will be 17 and 14 when we travel. And I am nervous about losing them to Europe for school. I couldn`t blame them, though, if they do want to study in Europe. I hope not for an undergrad degree but perhaps for a masters or a doctorate. (Like I will have a choice in the matter.) As for our hotel budget, we are hoping for $125-$150 per night and per room if necessary. Do you have a recommendation for a hotel in Belguim?

Isabel - thanks for your fantastic recommendation on the Amsterdam hotel. It is so quaint! I will try to book it. I was curious to see that it doesn`t accept credit cards. Did I read that wrong? How was payment arranged?

Carolyn - hahaha...as you can tell my research as to where things are located and the areas in Paris hasn`t begun. The hotel you stayed at looks lovely. Thanks for all your advice.

PalenQ - You are correct - we are just doing a day trip to Haarlam. Your suggestions on the places to visit and cycling sounds perfect for our family. Also, I have read your blog on Amsterdam and enjoyed it.

AndiM - Your apartment recommendation is amazing. Great price. I do wonder as you mentioned if my teens will fit on a sofa bed. hmmm...something to think about.

Rubicund - wow, the links have lots of great hotels. I will have a hard time selecting.

Once again I thank you for your collective suggestions. I never expected to get so many great responses.

Should you have any more recommendation on places to eat, and quirky places to visit do let me know.

PalenQ

If we have extra time we will try to fit Edinburgh in but as it looks now with kids no Edinburgh>

Kids may enjoy the overnight train London to Edinburgh and a day in that nice city that has things kids will love. Fly home from Edinburgh.

zarinam

Is Edinburgh possible in a day? If that is possible I will surprise my husband by taking all of us (four) there for the Tattoo or for tea and a shortbread cookie

Rubicund

The Tattoo takes place in the evening and lasts between 2 and 2 1/2 hours. Whilst it's perfectly possible to get up top Edinburgh either by train or plane, the problem will be getting back to London afterwards. the last plane will be around 9pm and you'd have to be back at EDI by around 8pm.

There is a sleeper service that leaves Edinburgh around 11:30pm and takes 7 hours or so back to london.

The best way is to stay overnight and travel back the following day and you can get to EDI from London City airport instead of dragging out to LHR.

janisj

No, Edinburgh is not a day trip from London. Business travelers may do it for a meeting or something. But tourists - absolutely not.

(A whole lot of difference between attending the Tattoo and having tea/biscuits . . . .)

If you do decide on the Tattoo, you will want to book far in advance. Not a 'surprise' sort of thing unless you can keep it secret for months.

ParisAmsterdam

Drop Edinburgh this time around... you just don't have the time.

Look into flying into London and out of either Amsterdam or Paris. Departure taxes are high at Heathrow. Leaving from Amsterdam is simplest as the airport is more friendly than CDG.

Amsterdam is one of the best places for using Priceline's Name Your Own Price. Look at the Netherlands forum at TripAdvisor.com and look for the threads "Bidding on a 5 star..." and "Bidding on a 4 star...". They are usually in the first couple of pages. You can get a 5 star room in the city center for 100 USD a night and often less. Start at the ends of both threads as they are many pages long. Rooms through PL are for 2 people so you'd need 2 rooms. Hotwire is also good and you can often ferret out the exact hotel. See betterbidding.com for more info.

jamikins

Agree, no time for Edinburgh this time...your itinerary is great, don't start adding more locations now! If you dropped Haarlem and Belgium you could fit Edinburgh in but it will be very crowded and expensive during the Tattoo...

For London be sure to take advantage of 2for1 deals here www.daysoutguide.co.uk

zarinam

Hubby`s Scottish heritage makes Edinburgh a bucket list journey but I agree Edinburgh is simply too expensive for this trip. Also perhaps, Edinburgh will not be as charming this year as the city has a lot going on, such as the Commonwealth games in July and the Tattoo in August. (Sometimes, cities get tired too which is what could happen to Edinburgh this summer.) As for cutting out destinations like Amsterdam and Haarlem I think not. With Belgium, one can make the argument to ditch it but then we miss out on the WWI and WWII activities that go so well with Normandy and Paris. And, WWI will be commemorated in 2014 with many great activities.

There will always be destinations that one wishes to see and with a little luck we will get to Edinburgh in the years to come. Perhaps, even for hubby`s special birthday next year (2015).

Great advice on hotels, the days-out-guide and even the travel to Edinburgh.

Cannot wait to see it all.

Andrew_Edwards

Why not you hired a guide, helped you to visit lots of interesting places with in your budget and time.

janisj

>>. . . and the Tattoo in August. (Sometimes, cities get tired too which is what could happen to Edinburgh this summer.) <<

The Tattoo and Festivals happen every August -- the city is used to huge crowds.

W/ the family connections, I'd definitely start planning for a future trip to Scotland when you get back from this one -- just not in August (Unless the Tattoo/Festivals are musts)

Lexma90

Late response, but the hotel we stayed in when in Brussels was Hotel Welcome, which may be above your budget. We stayed in two rooms one trip (with 4 people) and one room another (3 people). There is a 4-person room, but having stayed in the 3-person room, we felt that 4-person room would be too small for us. If you go to the hotel website, you'll see that each room is decorated with a different theme - very fun. Also, it's in a pretty, very convenient location.

arizonasus

Just returned from two weeks London, AMsterdam, Paris with family of 5. We rented apartments, so much better than multiple hotel rooms. We have done this before and use trusted sites. We had great apartments in all three cities, owners were helpful and friendly. I can highly recommend all of them.

click on my name/profile and I can provide you with the direct contact info and links if you like.

zarinam

arizonasus - thanks. I will have a look.

zarinam

arizonasus - I don't know how to send you a individual note. If you can provide thinks on this post, I would greatly appreciate it.

PalenQ

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...ns-welcome.cfm

arizonasusie's exscellent trip report mentioned above - just clicking on her name in blue brings up all the posts she has made - or he or it?