Need help with a 4 week itinery starting and ending in Barcelona
 

We are flying into and out of Barcelona, Spain mid June to mid July with our 3 teenagers. We would like to see Spain, Italy and France but do not have an itinery planned yet. Any ideas would be appreciated. We are fairly easy going and enjoy to go off the beaten path. Thank you.

Spain, Italy and France are big countries.
You might wish to narrow it down a bit.
Beaches? Driving? Museums? Attractions? How old kids?
off the beaten path...towns, hiking,beaches, ????

Regardless of wanting to go off the beaten path, you do realize that you'll be traveling in high season and need to tie down your reservations as early as possible. And as danon mentions, there is a lot of area to cover if you want to include all three countries in four weeks.

Flying into and out of the same place is often not the best idea because you will have to backtrack, loosing a day or two.

Why into and out of Barcelona if the plan is to cut a large swathe across three countries? Can you get multi-city tickets?
What are you interested in visiting in the three countries?

Driving I presume and if so check on potentially steep drop off fees if returning in a country other than the one in which you picked it up - often the case.

Let's say your split your time into thirds - 10 days in each country:

Barcelona 3 days
Madrid 3 days
Day Trip to Toledo from Madrid
San Sebastian 2 days
FRANCE
Paris 4 days
Avignon area 3 days
French Riviera 3 days
ITALY
Florence 3 days
Rome 4 days
Venice 3 days

then it is a 2 day drive back to Barcelona!
Suggestion - cut Italy from this trip and spend more time in Spain and France - perhaps more beach areas kids would like.

If considering taking the train then that would work over those itineraries and you could quickly get back to Barcelona by an overnight ferry from Livorno Italy (near Pisa - a must site for kids and adults) to Barcelona - another treat for the kiddos. This type of train trip you'd want to investigate railpasses - for lots of great info on European trains I always spotlight these IMO fantastic sites - www.seat61.com; www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.ricksteves.com.

Since each of these countries is quite large, I'd encourage you to think in terms of cities or other specific destinations, rather than whole countries. For example Barcelona, Paris and Rome? Beach destination? A week in a Tuscan farmhouse? It is always difficult to balance the desire to want to "see it all" with a pace that is comfortable and enjoyable. Even people who live in these countries can't see everything, so narrow down what specific spots would interest your family.

Most folks find that reducing the number of times they change locations increases the enjoyment of their trip. Remember that in most cases a change of location kills either a half or a full day. So with four weeks, maybe plan on 5 locations for 5 days each (with a little time for travel added in)? And if you haven't already purchased plane tix, take the advice above to fly into one city and out of another, using the "multi-city" option on most airline websites.

a four week grand circle or Spain or the Iberian peninsula might also work.

To whet your appetite:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mksfca/...7633030475108/

Thanks for the quick responses. It seems my question was a bit too broad. We have never been to Europe and was able to get a good airfare into and out of Barcelona. So this is a late decision. Our oldest heads for college in the fall and we thought this was a great opportunity for a family trip. The other two are 14 and 16. It is not necessary to visit all three countries, just some ideas that were brought up. We do agree that lesser stops would be more enjoyable.

I would stick with exploring Spain, the north in late June-mid-July, which will allow you some time in the south of France. You could loop around, Barcelona to San Sebastian-Donostia, through the Pyrenees and return through the Castilla y León (where you could loose yourself for at least a week) and Aragon, before finally retuning to Barcelona.

I agree with Robert...northern Spain and southern France.

Thanks so much-northern Spain and southern France sound perfect. We were able to book a week in Mougins right in the middle of our trip. As this is not exactly how we thought of mapping it out, the opportunity arose. We have 10 days betwee arriving in Barcelona and Mougins, then 10 days after Mougins until we fly home from Barcelona. Any suggestions on which routes would be best? Many thanks again for all the advice.

Since you're tied to Mougins, you can work your way up the coast, staring with a few days along the Costa Brava. After Mougins, you will need to head west toward Toulouse, about a 5-hour drive, then onto the area south of Pau (2-hours), or to the Val d'Aran (a 2-hour + drive). From either place the options are open for the next week before you have to be back in Barcelona.