sfo to europe
 

Somehow I've reached middle age without ever going to europe. but now is the time! this summer my husband, 8 year old daughter and i hope to spend three weeks there. we were thinking barcelona, but i just realized there are no direct flights. maybe we could fly from lax to amsterdam? anyway, i am just looking for ideas. where would you go with an 8 year old? suggestions? i feel so shamefully clueless.... THANKS

There is a direct flight to Paris.

Barcelona can be rather crowded in the summer with all of the cruise ships and other tourist. If you want to go somewhere interesting, then head for the Basque country of Spain and France, and enjoy a beautiful time relaxing.

With an 8 year old, you may enjoy cities with lots to see and do. You could easily fly via Amsterdam (stay there a couple or three days - amazing canals and Anne Frank house- your child might enjoy that) to Madrid and explore Salamanca, Segovia, Seville, etc before heading to Barcelona by high speed train. Lots of castles, parks, great cities to walk around in.

It will be very hot in Spain in summer .. you know that, yes?

Another suggestion - with a child in tow, it's nice to consider renting an apartment in any city you will be spending more than a few days in. Great to have the space and a kitchen!

You can fly directly from SFO to Amsterdam, London, Paris, Frankfurt, Zurich,Istanbul, Copenhagen, Dublin and Munich. Most places in Europe can be reached with one connecting flight.

sfo ?

On the line of thought of scdreamer: start in Amsterdam, slowly get to Barcelona by way of bigger and smaller places in Belgium and France, and fly back from Madrid. You've got three weeks and there is no need to hurry. Having a few days in various cities and train rides in between will be great fun for your 8-year old.
To get an idea of what's possible(and for prefun) take the pan-European train planner of the German railways http://www.bahn.de/p_en/view/index.shtml. (The timetables for June are not available yet, but it'll give a rough idea.)

Is there a compelling reason, why it has to be a direct flight destination? While it is "nice" not having to do layovers, direct flights have pros and cons.

Pros:
No layover hassles.
If there are off season promotions (summer is NOT), then carriers tend to promote low occupancy planes on destinations they don't have to use codeshares = direct flights.

Cons:
It limits your destinations.
If the carrier has a monopoly position on direct flight, they would extract a premium for the convenience when there is no direct flight alternative and there is a demand for seats (high season.)
If you chose the direct flight and the flight is cancelled, they are allowed to put you on an alternative flight with layovers while they get to keep the premium you paid for the direct flight provided they can get you to the destination within the allowed delay allowance.

1) it's a long way which will be tiring for all concerned with a high level of jetlag expected.
2) If you've not been before then you need to chose your timing carefully. Hard to believe but Europeans have long holidays and often take them Mid July to Mid August in the south of the continent.
3) In most tourist cities people speak a fair bit of English, but some more than others speak a lot

For me, I'd start with Europe lite, which is basically UK or the Netherlands, this normally breaks down to London or Amsterdam. I'd have a week here, then move to another city and finally a country location.

Let me suggest some options

Amsterdam/Strasbourg(Rhine)/Paris

or

London/Mosel/Paris

or if you like the heat and avoid the high season

Rome/Tuscany/Seville(Cordoba & Grenada)

or Rome/Barcelona/Strasbourg (flying out of Paris)

this use of to city airports save you from back tracking and if you book the cheepo flights now the prices will be low. (note that cheepo airlines really hit you for luggage costs) but if you have appartments you get a washing machine.

Not for the first time, I find myself in agreement with bilbo. London or Amsterdam would make great gentle introductions to Europe both for you and your DD. there are lots of things for children in Amsterdam - the hands-on science museum, the zoo, the floating Chinese restaurant in the harbour [next to the science museum] the trams, boat trips on the canals, day trips out into the countryside, perhaps hiring bicycles...

Then, depending on your tolerance of heat, you could either head south to Spain or Italy, or stay in more northern climes - Germany for castles, Belgium for its beaches, Normandy and its beaches for scenery and some history, - but I agree with taking it slowly and using a few bases rather than chasing about - kids seem to prefer that and if your DD is happy, you'll be happy.

"to" two (feel like an idiot)

Hi Anne, 50mph winds in Yorkshire today, huddled round Maine Coon.

Take a look at Belle Epoque Donostia/San Sebastián, a favourite for the Spanish and French elites since the mid 1800's because of the cooler summer climate and some of the finest city beaches on the continent. Also world class gastronomy, beautiful landscapes and European Capital of Culture 2016. http://www.euskoguide.com/places-bas...stian-tourism/

San Sebastián with kids: http://www.sansebastianturismo.com/e...-with-children

sfo ?

Me too !

OK ...... Must be San Francisco Airport.

I would not do summer in southern Spain at all - and definitely not with a child. Highs of 100 degrees are usual and 120 are not unknown. We have traveled there in April a couple of times and that has already been beach weather - already well up into the 80s.

Most of Italy tends to be very hot and humid in the summer. And in both countries AC is NOT universal as it is in the US.

If it were me with an 8 year old I would start with the basics of London, Amsterdam and Paris. All are very accessible, have tons of things for a child to see and do, have cooler weather (although Paris can be hot and I would not take lodging without AC).

But I think all 3 of you need to start doing some research in guide books and tour brochures (for the pix and itineraries, not to take a tour), to determine which places or sights are your must sees.

With an 8 year old I would not go hopping around but would stick to 3 or at most 4 places (city or smaller town or whatever) which can be less challenging, keeping in mind that each time you move it means getting used to a new language, culture, transit system and way of doing things. Easier for new travelers to adapt to these less often and with less pressure.

Our first trip to europe with DDs was when they were 11 and 14 and we just did London and Paris in 2 weeks and we got them very involved from the beginning - so they already had selected sights, activities and even some restaurants/shops (they loved Covent Garden and also the Cluny Museum of the Middle Ages in Paris). They also loved a chance to practice their French but not sure if your daughter will be taking a language in school yet. If not I would make sure she learns a few basic polite phrases in each language - it makes kids much more comfortable to be able to communicate even a little with other people.

If after you look at some guide books/brochures you have other ideas for must sees, come here with a list and people can help you develop an itinerary.

As for non-stop flights I encourage you to do them if at all possible - and especially from SFO TO europe, since it will allow you to arrive not so totally exhausted from the flights. And there is no need to fly roundtrip - look at open jaw options (into the first and back from the last place). This will be listed as multi-destination flights on the search engines and should cost no more than 1/2 of the RT to each place.

First things first: How are you researching airfare options? I suggest starting with www.itasoftware.com, a Google company that serves many (not all) airlines with information. It's the best source of options but doesn't sell tickets. You can use that info to search the commercial sellers, both on-line agencies and the airlines themselves (which I prefer.)
Second: Consider a multi-city or multi-destination route, flying into one city and back home from another. There are many possibilities crossing the Atlantic, and they can save you time while adding little or nothing to the cost. For Spain, you probably will have to change planes either on the east coast of the US or in a European gateway (Paris, Amsterdam, London etc.) I prefer taking the long trans-Atlantic flight first going east but the internal European flight first going west. Please understand that this arrangement is not two one-way tickets; you use the multi-destination search function offered by many on-line agencies and airlines too. Apologies if I'm repeating what you already know....

I doubt most 8 year olds would "enjoy" the Anne Frank House, but I would take an 8 year old to Amsterdam and Venice, and then to the Mediterranean seaside for the final week, probably the Italian Riviera.

(From Venice, it can be worth an overnight in Pisa, which kids often really enjoy both in the daytime and at night. Then it is a short hop to a coastal town. You can also fly from Pisa back to Amsterdam very cheaply, or if you want to do open jaw, Pisa has got a lot of flights to "hub" cities that will take you back to the US with a one-stop. Personally -- and this is just me -- I think it fun to go to places in Europe that are really very different from places in the US, in terms of language and local landscape and geography and architecture. London wouldn't do it for me as a European experience.)

I think London for a week is a great starting point for first time travel to Europe. There are also plenty of non-stop flights from SFO (yep, San Francisco) from there and they are often slightly cheaper than flying to other destinations. From there it is easy to get to Paris (Eurostar train) or a cheap flight to another interesting city. If you are going earlier in the summer then Spain and Italy won't be quite as hot. If you need to wait until late July/August, I would save Spain and Italy for another trip.
Amsterdam is great suggestion. Switzerland (the Lautenrbrunnen valley) is a personal favorite and would make a nice contrast with two other major cities. There are so many possibilities. Has your daughter studied about any European countries? Do you or your husband have European ancestry? It can be fun to visit your places of origin.

One thing I forgot. While a round trip flight to London can be cheaper than flying elsewhere (not always) an "open jaw" flight often makes sense. Flying into one country and out of another, while sometimes slightly more expensive, saves you the time and expense of returning to your original landing city.