Italy - June - Cinque Terre or another Destination + Tuscany?
 

Ferrara and the cycle/walking paths along the Po, wonderful opportunities to meet wildlife, easy train access

If you settle on the Dolomites the obvious airport is Venice which gives an opportunity to see the city at either end of your trip if you've not been before.

You emphasized the heat issue, which has me wondering about your choice of destinations at that time of year. How hot is too hot? Where in Croatia? Where in Spain? Have you looked at weather records?

If high temps are a deal-breaker (and what about humidity?), I'd be looking farther north. Iceland, Ireland, Scotland, Norway. Not Spain in July, not Tuscany, probably not Croatia in June. The Dolomites would be pleasant, and it's a big enough area that you can avoid crowds, but it might be better paired with Austria and/or Czech Republic (google Bohemian Switzerland National Park and Saxon Switzerland N.P nearby in Germany)

With anyone who has difficulty with heat, re-consider Spain. The only way it could work is a nice air-conditioned place with a great pool, getting up early, taking long rests during the day and staying up very, very late night to early morning when it cools off. The hottest we have ever been was in Southern Spain.

Germany, Austria, the Netherlands can be good in Summer. Lots for kids too.

Hi - thanks for your reply - I should have been more clear, its more extreme heat that worries me like we experienced last summer (95-100F for like 2 weeks straight). We plan to go to San Sebastian in Spain which is pretty temperate hopefully! We did plenty of hiking in the heat last summer but not sure about Cinque Terre overall for my kids so was looking for some alternative. Will check out those other destinations you've mentioned. We're hoping to start in Croatia (Zadar or Split), go north to Slovenia, then possibly to northern italy, fly to San Sebastian, then fly to Geneva to go to Chamonix before heading home from Geneva (over a 5 week period).

Thanks! We actually went to Andalucia in November to avoid their summer temperatures. For this trip we're interested in San Sebastian and the Basque region.

I would not try to hike the Cinque Terre with children. The Dolomites would be cooler than other locations. And kids love Venice!
Airports-Venice, Bergamo, Milan Linate and Malpensa, Parma, Bologna.

I don't think there are guarantees of any sort of weather any more. For me, high humidity with moderately high temps (the "feels like" temp) is a deal-breaker and a factor I have taken into consideration more in recent years. San Sebastian is humid in summer. If you're in the water all the time, you don't notice. But if you're hiking, ugh.

It's your trip, but I wouldn't want to take 4 flights in 5 weeks. I hate airports, getting to/from them, the sitting around, the chance for delays... I'd rather choose destinations that are closer together and take trains or drive. For me, San Sebastian feels like a time-consuming outlier. Have you checked the flight options to SB from airports in Croatia, Slovenia, Italy and then flights to Geneva?

How were you going to travel from Croatia to Slovenia to Italy? You'll want a car for most of it, but a one-way car rental will incur a surcharge.

I agree, no guarantees on the weather in this time of global warming. I'll check out San Sebastian weather more closely. I hate airports too but last summer we did a similar trip ( Tuscany > Parma > Lake Garda > Wengen / Jungfrau > Provence / Avignon > Chamonix > Lucerne over 5 weeks) and didn't do any flying, and my kids got annoying on the trains / longer car rides. I also want to widen the net of places we see this summer, going back to our two favorites (chamonix and tuscany, Provence a close third) yet also seeing some new places, and I've always wanted to go to Croatia .Last year we did a one way car rental in Italy, got it in FCO, dropped off in Milan. Was planning to do a one way rental starting in Split or Zadar and then dropping off in Zagreb (if we flew to our next destination) or in Italy but haven't explored this yet. I know it's not cheap, but Croatia doesn't have transit that's as good as some of our other destinations.

San Sebastion *is* out of the way, you're right, but RyanAir or one of the low cost carriers has a direct from Florence or Pisa, I forget which, to Bilbao, and then from Bilbao I can fly to Geneva. We went to Andalucia in November and I just loved Spain and want to return and explore the north a bit, but yes it doesn't fit into the rest of the trip really, except that I do want to also check out the Pyreenes region / Biarritz as well.

Any other destinations you would suggest? Thank you all for the great advice.

You seem to like to move around and cover a lot of geography which isn't my style at all... No judgement! It's your trip. But when you widen the geography, you spend more time just moving from place to place.

I suggest you focus on the transfers, do honest time comparisons (incl. ALL the time that flying involves), etc. For example, if a flight is late morning or in the middle of the day, you pretty much lose the entire day to travel. If an airport is 1-2-3 hours from your starting point or next destination, make note of that. (Re San Sebastian, I think you mean Easyjet, not Ryanair. Ryanair uses Santander rather than Bilbao and has no flights Santander to Geneva.) Create a calendar with your plans for each day.

Do some dummy car rentals to get an idea of costs and pick-up/drop-off options. A one-way rental within one country is one thing; but a one-way rental involving two countries is entirely different. Croatia>Italy is probably not even be possible. FYI, there are ferries from some towns in Croatia to Venice.

You and your family might enjoy the German and Austrian Alps: Berchtesgaden, Garmish, Etc, followed by cities like Salzburg and Vienna and quaint (but touristy) Rothenburg.
https://www.uncommon-travel-germany....htesgaden.html.
There are so many beautiful lakes for playing, swimming, boating, beautiful views and castles. History too.
https://www.earthtrekkers.com/garmis...rchen-germany/

climate change probably not on your radar yet

Thank you for the advice, I was incorrect, it's Volotea that has flights from Bilbao direct to Italy, a new service from Florence and Rome beginning in April. I don't really consider this "moving around a lot" over 6 weeks...but that's me...guess I'm comparing it to the canned tours I took in my early 20s where we went to 4 places in 8 nights! Yes, Croatia > Italy car rentals are possible, they are just expensive :) Last year we did a similar trip with no flights, and this year I want to go to some new places in addition to some previous destinations so it just seems easier since the car or train trips ate up most of the day anyway. Thinking about this, maybe it makes sense to not go to spain, just do Croatia / Slovenia / Italy and Maybe Chamonix, no flights, and then one intra europ flight from Geneva and head to Edinburgh or Dublin for our final stop, any thoughts on those for a family? I'm trying to also pick places that have good weather in the Summer since we'll have the opportunity to do a shorter trip in November. That's why I skipped Seville and Granada last summer - too hot - and saved them for November.

I have not been to Edinburgh, must go since a Fodorite I trust says it is a favorite.

I have been to Dublin few times. I would definitely not make it a stop unless I was going to spend a few days seeing other parts of Ireland. There is a wonderful art museum, a photo history museum, church and library, and other places like that. I do not think your kids would find it of that much interest.

I don’t recall if you have been to The Netherlands. A stop in Amsterdam would be fantastic. You would not need to stay In the city. There are many smaller towns very close by, with biking and hiking, etc.

I agree with the advice not to hike Cinque Terre with children. Although one segment is tame, there are significant drop offs on the other trails.

I love Edinburgh and think kids would too. There are several walks and hikes in and around town: Arthur's Seat, Calton Hill, and my favorite -- the Water of Leith Walkway starting in Dean Village: https://www.arboursabroad.com/dean-village-walk/

The Edinburgh Castle is very interesting and they have fantastic tours. The Royal Botanical Gardens are gorgeous and the kids can roam and. play for hours.

Here is my Trip Report with photos from a few years ago: https://www.fodors.com/community/eur...019-a-1676126/

Love the Cinque Terre but agree with others that perhaps the walk from town to town isn't the safest for young kids. We are going to Alpe di Siusi this fall to hike a bit. It looks gorgeous (and flat!! ).