Danielle811

Hi all, I need some expert advice. We're in the discussion phase of planning a trip to Europe with my in-laws who are in their mid to late 70s. It would be the two of them and my family of 5, with kids ranging in age from 6-12.

We're trying to come up with a destination or two that would be fun for all, while also being fairly easy for them to navigate in terms of mobility and/or ease of public transport. They're both able to walk some distance, but I think that endurance may be a concern, especially for an extended trip. We like to see a lot of historical sites, museums, parks, etc when we go, and my in laws appreciate nice restaurants, and soaking in the atmosphere. We're trying to be realistic that we have different travel styles, and will not all do the same things each day.

MY family's most recent trip was to Madrid and Barcelona last fall, and while we had a wonderful time, we would like to go somewhere we haven't just been. We were supposed to go to Italy in February, but due to some unfortunate airline issues, that trip was cancelled the day before we were supposed to leave. We've considered just doing a modified version of that trip with them (Venice and Rome), since it was fully planned.

​​​​We're going to sit down to discuss destinations this weekend, but, as I'm the designated family trip planner, I would like to go in with some solid suggestions.

​​​For reference, we're looking at going either February or April of 2024, but I'm leaning towards April mostly because of the weather.
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I know this is a fairly broad question, but any input would be appreciated in terms of places to go or avoid. Thanks in advance.

yorkshire

I see no compelling reason to consider anything other than the Italy trip--sounds perfect, with locations that are easy to differentiate in term of activities and transport. April for sure!
I think the two key things are to consider doing different things when you feel like it--already mentioned--and to choose accommodations carefully. Grandparents (as well as everyone else) might want to have somewhere comfortable to rest in the afternoon.

Traveler_Nick

February would be Carnevale in Venice. If that appeals it'll be a plus. It will mean higher room rates than normal for the winter and of course crowds.

April will be Easter , the 25th long weekend and even the May 1st long weekend. Obviously how many of those you'll hit will depend on the length of the trip. All three will mean larger crowds and high season prices.

Gardyloo

How long would you have for this trip? Two weeks? Three? More?

What about language skills? Do you need someplace where English is widely spoken, or can you get along with other languages, and if so, which ones?

Throwing darts in the dark, some ideas that popped into my head... (I know, so many metaphors) -

In February, southern Andalusia (Cadiz, Tarifa, Gibraltar) for lots of variety, decent weather, and decent prices. White villages, Roman ruins, maybe day- or longer trips to Morocco.

In April, someplace in or near Amsterdam. No, it won't be warm, but the tulips will be waiting, everybody speaks English, and of course there's no shortage of museums, historical sites, all that, plus very easy access and transportation. Maybe pick a smaller city like Delft for the best of both worlds.

For April, an idea that came to me, maybe one that gets nixed right away, but still... a Mediterranean cruise, maybe a 7-10 day one preceded or followed by some nights on shore. Why? Because cruises can be quite affordable, given they're all-inclusive, the cruise lines are generally very kid-friendly (most with kids' programs and dedicated spaces.) Logistically they're a dream - unpack once, a comfortable hotel room with a water view, everyone speaks English, food for even the pickiest of eaters, and lots of options for organized or DIY time in ports of call. Maybe one that goes through the Greek Islands, or one that starts in Rome and ends in Barcelona, or v.v. - again, many options, depeding on how much time you have.

Danielle811

​​​​​​We're looking at just 10 days, give or take, as we're at the mercy of the school calendar. Regarding language, English is everyone's primary language, though I can get by with a bit of French and Google Translate.

I think we're on the same wavelength, Gardyloo. My husband and I have discussed the ease of a cruise, but unfortunately, the itineraries I've looked at so far don't sail until late April, and we'll be looking at the Easter school break. If we went that direction, we'd likely have to consider summer sailings.

Amsterdam is on my radar for the reasons you mentioned, as well as because it is a city none of us have visited previously.

We hadn't considered Andalusia for this trip, but perhaps that should change. Is it doable without a car? With 7 people plus luggage, I know it would be a challenge to get us all in most rentals.

Danielle811

We're looking at either the week of February 19 or Easter week (we're at the mercy of the school calendar). I think that means we would miss Carnevale by a week or so if we went in February, but April would definitely be busier.
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yorkshire

Andalucia is a snap by train, sometimes supplemented by bus depending on your choices, but I found the buses plenty comfortable, and I would prefer that over a van rental. Unless you can fly into Sevilla or Malaga, you'd have to incorporate Madrid. It's not a huge deal, just hop on high speed train on arrival, but it puts a slight damper to have to return to Madrid for a night for outbound flight.
Easter would be a major consideration for that area as well. A friend took her teen to Rome, Venice, and Florence this spring break and said it was a perfect time of year to go.

k_marie

No specific recommendation but more a practical suggestion from a grandmother who admittedly does not move with the speed and energy of the rest of the family: Are there direct flights to cities in Europe from your home airport? With ~10 days for this trip, I’d want to eliminate transfers to minimize the time and effort needed to get to my destination. (Our airport has recently added direct flights to Lisbon, which is now on on radar for next year.) I would consider those cities, then others easily reached by train, ideally from an airport train station.

Also, you might consider requesting wheelchair service in the airports for your in-laws.

bakerstreet

Go to Italy! You already planned it and it's wonderful!

Yorkshire, I'm very interested in your comment that Andalucia is a snap by train. I'm interested in going to Andalucia and traveling by train. We'd like to see Sevilla, Cordoba, Granada, Jerez, white villages... if you have done a similar trip and know the order/trains, would you mind sharing? Should we fly into and out of different cities, like fly into Madrid, train to Sevilla and then go along to the towns of Andalucia, then fly out of Valencia or Barcelona, or return to Madrid for the flight out, or what? Your knowledge would be MUCH appreciated.

Gardyloo

I think especially with only 10 days, A'dam makes a lot of sense. There's service into AMS from most big-city airports in the US, and from Schiphol the train services radiate throughout the country and beyond. It's about as soft a "soft landing" in Europe as there can be. Between Amsterdam and other Dutch towns within easy day-trip reach (Delft, the Hague, Haarlem, Utrecht, the list goes on...) you could fill 9 days or so from one base, using public transportation, and not at break-the-bank prices. Boredom would not be an issue.

yorkshire

bakerstreet, it's best to start a fresh thread, but if you go to the website Renfe, you can see train connections.
Flights depend on options from your city, budget, etc., plus how much time you have, but suffice to say you have many options. I always play around with a map to start so I can pinpoint airports. Madrid is a beast of an airport, so it's definitely worth it to me to fly directly where I want to be when possible!

coral22

How fun to do a family trip together!
Is there any chance you could do this this trip the second the children are out of school? We have had great luck with our trips with our kids then, still not crowded and the weather is more favorable for a lot of locations.

If not, I think Italy at Easter would be challenging with crowds and hotel prices.
If in April, maybe an Amsterdam/London combo, Amsterdam/Paris, or London/Paris? I love the possibility of Amsterdam, very unique and memorable.

I think the advice to look at the nonstop airline possibilities is wise, with such a large, diverse group, the easier the better.
Also, where have you been, what are your dreams?

bilboburgler

Taking a cruise is both a cop-out and environmentally hardly a soft option

Like others I'd look at train centred travel rather than more internal flights, seat61.com explains it all (like flying only faster as the dread security lines etc are just not there for most train journeys and all journeys start in a city centre and end there).

Southern Spain or Northern Italy are perfect for this sort of stuff and if you have to do the last miles by taxi, so be it.

Between Venice, Ravenna, Lucca and Urbino is a zone of such delight and fun for all the family it is hard to imagine you cannot find something to do. Down load a map of the railway system and plan away. Italy is especially good because the family is a core to how it all works, small children are appreciated in restaurants and space is made for older people. Try and stay outside a big international hotel to get a feeling for the warmth of the place

Equally along the coastal zone from Cadiz to Sevilla to Valencia is a similar but perhaps slightly less interesting area.

jpie

Another idea for the April timeframe could be Paris and Bordeaux. Bordeaux is a really lovely flat walking town with great tram service and an easy 2 hour TGV to Paris or even directly to CDG in just under 3hours. With 10 days it would give you time to visit Paris for a few nights and go on to Bordeaux. My DH and I are just about the same age as your in-laws and Bordeaux has become one of our favorite places to visit.

rosetravels

Lots of good options. If you go to Italy I'd consider Bologna. We were there for a week at Easter and it's relatively flat with good pavement, and excellent train connections. Day trips to Ravenna, Modena, Ferrara, or even Florence are options.

umretdd

I think the Italy trip is a great idea, I have been there a few times and I would definitely visit it again. I really enjoyed Venice in particular, it was really lovely and I would definitely recommend going there.

menachem

Easter will be very busy, especially if the tulips are in bloom. Dutch public transport is excellent so I would advise to stay in Leiden, Utrecht or Haarlem also to avoid crazy hotel prices. For tulip viewing (Keukenhof, the tulip fields if you're lucky in your timing) Leiden and Haarlem are best. Haarlem is 15 minutes from Amsterdam by very frequent train (6 trains per hour) and Leiden is 30 minutes away. Leiden also gives you an excellent base to visit Delft and/or The Hague.

macdogmom

With kids your age I think London would be fun (Harry Potter, Tower of London etc) and then perhaps the Eurostar over to Paris. Moving around a lot sounds tiring especially with a 5 year old and first day or so you’re battling jet lag. Good luck and have fun.

Danielle811

Thank you for all of the input-it has definitely given us some options to consider. I will update when we land on the best course of action!

raincitygirl

My husband and I just did this for two weeks in early June. We live in Vancouver so our flight went from here to Frankfurt, then a flight to Seville. We had six nights there, then took the train to Granada, 3 nights there (two would have been enough), then train to Malaga for five nights, then we flew from Malaga to Zurich, Zurich to Vancouver.
I booked the trains on the Trainline app. The trains were punctual, comfortable, easy to board-no steps up. You have to put your luggage through a scanning thing and they check your passports and tickets before boarding.
I had thought we might do day trips by train to Cordoba and Jerez maybe Cadiz but we ended up not doing that. If you wanted to though it would be easy enough. Or there are plenty of bus tours to some of the other places.