Help! I'm in charge of planning family vacation to Europe. 3 kids ages 7,15,and 18 Want to go to Italy and 1 or 2 other countries Trying to decide between cruise (looking at Norwegian Epic out of Rome ) or just booking hotels and trains to get from place to place. Any advice or suggestions would be helpful!

Well you could start by saying how much time you will spend on this trip, what your budget is and what your individual interests are. Otherwise, you are just asking people to take a shot in the dark.

Also, when, december is different from august

sashat, welcome to fodors,

while the OP has given us little to go on, giving planning advice is sort of what this site is about.

On this website, the trip reports (as opposed to Q&A posts) are marked with the little orange globe. Look for those on Italy, or input Italy into the search field, and read previous posters' experiences.

Well, you've given us precious little to go on. When are you going? For how long? What kind of budget? What interests you about Italy? And why are you in charge? The kids are plenty old enough to do some research and offer their input.

There are countless good guidebooks available, and maps, and official websites for every village, town, and city in Europe. Start with those.

SORRY - going the end of July for 8-10 days.Budget is around 3000$ per person

guidebooks, maps... you're showing your age !
The greatest maps I've ever used are military maps : they are so detailed (huge scale) that everything shows.
Absolutely everything. A must for your own neighbourhood.

So Mr or Mrs Smith :
when
Where from (just to have an idea about how jetlagged you might be)
how long
budget (to have an idea)
your tastes


My personal input at this stage is to include the 'kids' - at 18 and 15 they can, and probably should contribute.

Does the $3000 (and is that US dollars, Aussie, Canadian?) include airfare?

If you have only 8-10 days, I would stay in Italy. If it's 8 days you could see 2 cities or 1 city and some countryside. If it's 10 days, you might squeeze in another venue. But there's no way you could add another country or two. This is why maps are important, among other reasons. It takes time (and money) to move around.

Yes, WoinParis, I'm showing my age, but you also know very well I'm young at heart

Hi Friendlysmith,

Have you been to Europe before? Have the kids been? Are you wanting the kids to experience a bit of culture, history, art, food, etc. of another country, or mostly a family vacation?

Norwegian Epic is our family's favorite ship for a vacation. It has great entertainment, nice pools, quiet areas, pretty good food and excellent kid's programs. Throw in seeing some interesting places without changing hotels or worrying about transportation, and you have a great trip. That is not a bad thing.

However, if you want more than a kind of movie experience, a cruise is not a good way to experience Italy or any other part of Europe. You have a very short time. To make the best of it, choose one or two places in one country and explore in depth. You could spend evenings eating in piazzas, listening to music and fountains. You could experience local foods, the sounds of a city waking up, and the busyness or quiet of evening.

If you choose a cruise, besides cost, look carefully at the itinerary. How much do the ports interest you and how much time would you have to see them? Some cities, like Rome and Florence, are actually quite far from the ports, so require a lot of time getting back and forth from the ship. One way that a cruise works really well is if you have 3 or 4 days in ports at the beginning and end of the cruise. Rome for 3 or 4 days, followed by a 7 day cruise, then 2 or 3 days in Barcelona gives the fun of a cruise with some time to experience more of a country. If you can stretch your time and money for that, it would be great!

A land based trip gives you more of Europe.
A cruise vacation in the Caribbean in winter would cost less than the same in Europe in summer.

The more info you provide friendlysmith, the more relevant responses can be. You still haven't said nearly enough.

Budget including airfare as already asked?
Interests of each individual?

I also agree that your kids are old enough to have their own imput. Tell them to do their own research

With only 8-10 days I also agree that you have time for no more than 2 places and should forget other countries.

Do your eight to ten days include just days "on the ground" or are your arrival and departure days included? Where are you flying from?

I agree with the others that there is no way you can do Italy and one or two other countries unless you only visit one place in Italy and one location in another country.

Ah cruise liners, are they the ones that just poop everywhere, don't pay for any local services and just cruise away? Certainly from an environemental point of view I have to shudder.

Ok, end of July is high season and high heat. Much as like Italy I'd be looking to stay in the mountains or hills as much as possible and with kids I'd want easy access to a pool for at least half the holiday.

Using trains is the easy way to do stuff as a couple (the economic argument gets harder as the numbers mount) but at least they go city centre to city centre which, in Italy, cars do not. It also does depend a little how much into the country you end up in, the country needs a car.

So look at the Dolemites and Piedmont if damp heat is a problem for you, so Turin maybe and a holida cottage. There are also agriturismo.it type accomodation like a B&B on a farm and they can be low end or high end, often with a pool, borrow bikes, etc etc