Travel with teens
 

We want to take a 2 week trip this summmer with our 2 girls, ages 14 & 17. I'm thinking of 2 places in Europe, maybe one classic city and one location with nice beaches. I'm sure lots of places have pretty scenery but kids don't really like to drive around looking at scenery.....any bright ideas?

HI Cactusue!

Welcome to Fodor's! :-) There are a number of us here who travel with our teens - do a search in the box to find some of the reports people have written. Some posters that come to mind: jgg, missypie, PRLCH, eeyann, dina4, ms_go and mr_go with allie_go, anamaria, kswl, and more.

I think it is a good idea to mix up the big cities with more active and relaxing stuff like hiking, beaches, smaller towns, etc... There are a zillion good choices for families wherever you go - where do you really want to go? What are your interests and those of your teens? Art, shopping, sports, history, hiking, etc...?

I have attached links to 2 of my reports with our sons (11 and 14, then 12 and 15 at the time of our trips).

http://tinyurl.com/lqkpa


http://tinyurl.com/oh6e8

I hope this helps. Happy travels and feel free to ask questions.

My teenage (16) daughter and I love to travel to Europe together. Have your daughters do some research on where they want to go. The sights in the area, art and the all important to teenage girls shopping. I love art and have been very lucky because my daughter feels the same way. We also have a trade off pact. Which is I may not really want to do what she has picked and she may not really might not want to do what I have picked but we each do each others ie. a trade off. Also, I have learned sometimes she just needs to chill for a couple of hours in the room. After awhile of getting up early, she just wants to putter in the morning too. She has been to Paris three times and is going back this summer again with the high school. Not only is there her favorite museums, there's Angelina's for hot chocolate and Paris's H & M for shopping. We have wonderful memories of our travels. Have a wonderful family trip!

My DD, now 19, would always pick shops over beach, but she has actually enjoyed museums and mountains when set off against the odd theme -park.

You are definitely right that they don't like driving around - so much so that we have more or less given up that sort of holday with them!

Rome followed by tuscan beaches would fit your bill - or how about barcelona - beach and city rolled into one!

Hi C,

You want to go all the way to Europe to lie on a beach? :)

May I suggest, fly into London (1 week), train to Paris (1 week), fly home.

I can't conceive of the most jaded teen getting bored.

((I))

I'm taking my kids ages 16, 14 and 11 to Barcelona in a few weeks. That should have old city charm and beach appeal (in the summer). I'll let you know how the kids like it.

Teenagers vary almost as much as adults do (and many would resent being distinguished from adults). You know your daughters better than any of us. Would they like beaches? Would a few days of indulging such a liking drive you mad? I can't tell you.

I think hester's idea is good: involve them in planning and make them somewhat responsible for putting together a package that they might enjoy.

Unless your family is very unusual, I suspect that you do not spend every minute of every day together. Consider the possibility of going some place where you can comfortably let them off on their own for a while.

I definitely agree with finding destinations where the kids can go off on their own a bit - even if it is just wandering through some shops in the neighborhood while you sit at a cafe and relax with a glass of wine or whatever.

I like the idea of a large city and a smaller place. I also think beaches are great, and no ira, it isn't just about lying there on the sand ;) You might also consider a mountain area on a lake as an alternative to a coastal location.

We were in Barcelona two summers ago DD was 14 at the time. We had a great time. There's art, Gaudi's works are unbelievable, lots of great shopping for teenage girls (and mom’s) and the beach. Oh, the beach, our first up close to the topless on the beach. We had been on a boat in the South of France but the topless were at a distance. We still laugh about the topless little old ladies on the beach in Barcelona. I admired their spunk! Probably, spunk to me, way of life to them. Oh yea, the man thongs are also something else.

Involve your kids in the planning, but it might help them if you narrow it down a little. For example, present a number of cities that you want to go to (offhand, and depending on which month of the summer, London, Paris, Rome, Venice)

As others have said, you know what your kids like. Art, culture, food, shopping, whatever. One thing my kids don't appreciate as much as grownups is, as you said, scenary. So on our trips, both in the U.S. and in Europe, I try to limit the travel time and number of cute little villages that we drive through. But our son likes history and places like castles, so we make sure to visit castles.

I'm not a beach person, so I can't help you there.

I agree with the recommendations of others, sit down with the kids and talk to them about which countries/cities are they interested in. I would encourage them to sit and read some trip reports and threads on this site. My 14 yo daughter loves to do that as we plan a trip.

I would agree that kids don't like to drive around too much. Tuscany had a bit too much driving for our kids.

Here are links to my trip reports:

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34599242

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34786762

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34830020

Just because you are staying at the beach doesn't mean you lay around all day. Last June we stayed 4 nights in Lerici on the Ligurian Coast. It was a great break. Although we did spend one full day at the beach, we also spent a day at the Cinque Terre, and a day exploring Carrara marble caves and Sarzana. I think it is a nice break to stay in a smaller town, but I suspect the girls would enjoy a beach town rather than a Tuscan/hill town.

My teenagers like large cities where I feel safe allowing them some time on their own. My daughter is very partial to good shopping.