Favorite children's activities in Amsterdam, Brussels, Brugge and Paris???
 

We just booked a trip to those cities in early October (at the front end of DH's work trip to France) and are taking our 8yo DD. DH and i have been to all of those cities together (except for Brussels) albeit 10 years ago... but I could use some guidance on interesting things from a child's perspective. Saw some great ideas on another post about Brussels.

DD loves art (the Mona Lisa at the Louvre will be her first Paris stop!) and food (frites and chocolate in Brussels and Brugge, here we come!). We will definitely plan to visit the Anne Frank house as well. Any other ideas???

Any family friendly hotel recommendations? We like to have a suite so there is a little more space and privacy although I recognize this may be tough (and out of our budget) in Europe.

Here is a list of things for kids in Amsterdam: http://tinyurl.com/2vma38a

The kinderkookcafé is especially good if the weather isn't too good, and she will meet some locals too.

the Van Gogh Museum is ideal if she loves art - very accesible for kids. Buy ticket in advance to save queuing.

I think you need to consider whether your daughter is old enough for the Anne Frankhuis. If you decide to go buy your tickets online to avoid the queues. Personally I think that at 8 she is perhaps still a little young.

Plus Artis (the zoo) and Muiderslot a little outside Amsterdam. Madurodam and Panorama Mesdag in Den Haag.
A day at the beach at Zandvoort.

Pannekoeken, patat, poffertjes are all things kids enjoy eating.

Here's a link of what we did in Paris with my 6 yr old granddaughter; you can browse through it and see if some of it is helpful for you.

http://tinyurl.com/mkv9kd

Sounds like a wonderful trip for you and your family!

Thanks to both of you ... I neglected to mention that we spent a week in Paris when she was almost 4 (I'm sure doesn't remember any of it though) - her grandfather (my FIL) lives in Paris.

We are Jewish and she is aware of Anne Frank and what happened to her - we even started reading her diary but need to get back to that before our trip. She is fascinated with the hidden apartment.

Van Gogh Museum will definitely make it on the list!

Topping to see if anyone else has ideas...

If she's interested in art, you're definitely visiting the right places! Of the places you're going, we've only been to Paris (Belgium and the Netherlands are on the list for our next trip to Europe.)

My kids both love art, and have enjoyed a lot of museums. Before we go, I tell them about some of the pieces and artists at each museum. We also visit the museums' websites - many of them are quite detailed. I think it's the Rijksmuseum that has great commentary on some of their pieces; there's a picture of the painting, and as you run your cursor over it, different facts about the era and the painting pop up. If she has any favorite artists, get her some kids' books about that artist, and make sure you know which museums have their paintings or sculptures.

She may not be familiar with the teenage mutant Ninja turtles, but when we first took DS to Paris, at 10yo, he knew of them (though they weren't really popular any more). We made sure to seek out works by all four of the turtles' namesakes.

We picked a favorite (small) pastry, macarons, and made it a goal to find the best macarons in Paris. That was fun; we'd stop if we passed any patisserie that had them. (We've done the same thing with pralines in New Orleans.)

DS enjoyed the Sunday bird/small animal market - I think it's on Ile St. Louis.

We've stayed at two different hotels in Paris that have triple rooms - we weren't seeking suites, due to budget. Both are in the 6th arrondisement, in central locations to many sites and to the Seine. One was Hotel Milessime; the other was Hotel Le Regent (the one on rue Dauphine).

Tropenmuseum was a weirdly wonderful place in Amsterdam. Definitely Vondelpark if the weather's nice.

iowamom, instead of the Anne Frank house, consider going to the Jewish Historical Museum. It has a great children's section and it also touches on the Anne Frank story, but adds a lot of context and historical depth in beautiful, interesting and considerate way. Please be aware that the Rijksmuseum is mostly closed due to renovations. I suggest the Amsterdam Historical Museum and Nemo (Sciences Museum). The Planetarium at Artis may also be worth a visit. I second hetismij's suggestion of Panorama Mesdag in The Hague. It is truly amazing. I took my son there two years ago when he was 11: the gasp when he climbed up the stairs to the panorama was a huge part of my enjoyment.

I mentioned the Children's museum in Iowamom's other thread about hotels as I couldn't find this thread at the time. :)
Thanks for putting it in this thread too!

Thanks everyone - we will definitely go to the Jewish Historical Museum - and already purchased tickets to the Anne Frank house. Not sure which art museums we will go to since we won't have time to go to all of them!