Traveling with 14 and 11 year old next summer - where to go from Nice?
 

Fodors is always my lifeline when planning a trip! Last summer, our family trip to Italy was such a huge hit in large part because of the advice I received on this site. We celebrated my 40th birthday and we took our sons, then ages 9 and 12, for the first time to Europe. We loved Rome, Positano, Tuscany, Venice and all points in between!

Next summer, I will be traveling with my 14 year old son (The Scholar) to London, Paris, Normandy and ending the trip in Nice with his French class.

DH and our younger son (Lunatic Maximum)will join us in Nice. We will be able to travel for another two weeks.

Big question ... where to go? From Nice, we could go in almost any direction. If it was just a trip with DH and I, I would love to tour wineries throughout France, but it's a family trip. Cinque Terra? Lake Como? Switzerland and Germany?

As always, I welcome your input and suggestions! Kimi

Switzerland's a fabulous country.

Train down the MED to

San Remo

Santa Marguerita Ligure/Portofino

then into the

www.cinqueterre.com

Manarola my fav

www.torrettas.com

From CT

Pick up the

www.cisalpino.ch to Milan

www.stresa.org

up into Switzerland

Done this a bunch wonderful journey

on one of the most scenic trains

in europe

Have Fun,

Were it me, I would want that newly acquired French to get more of a workout.

How about staying in France? If you want great scenery, head for the Pyrennes, with some historic pit stops along the way.

Another idea might be to head for the Spanish border, zigzagging a bit to see the important sights, then slipping into Spain for Dali Museums and Costa Brava fun and sun, finishing up in Barcelona.

My vote would be for them to see more of the variety of European culture, and to practice speaking a foreign language.

Hi KimiG,

Sounds like an awesome opportunity. When our two boys were 11 and 14, we loved our trip to Switzerland and Northern Italy. They are now 14 and 17 and still consider that one of our favorite trips. In case you are interested, I am providing links to a couple of my reports (but don't feel obligated to read them all!). There are also pictures.

Trip Report:

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34831749

Last summer (with just the 13 yo), we spent a week in the Dordogne and surrounding areas which is an awesome family choice - just depends on whether you'd like to stay in France.

Trip Report:

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=35043096

On our "short" list still is Spain. And, we went to Greece this past June which was also an awesome family trip.

I hope this helps.

No matter what you decide, you will have a great time. Good luck and happy travels! :-)

That time of year and with those kids I would do Switzerland and either southern Germany or part of Austria.

Lots of outdoor things to do - hiking, small boating, biking - mixed in with boat rides, castles and some museums - as well as ascending mountains. And some great food.

Hi, Kimi,

I agree with Zeppole. I'd stay in the South of France, perhaps go to Carcassonne and head for the Spanish border. Another option is to head for Montreaux, where the Jazz Festival occurs in June. We took the kids and then took trains from there to Gstaad, Lucerne and back around to Zermatt to see the Matterhorn. We wound up in NW Italy sipping barolos.

We have traveled with our three kids for nearly 15 years and some of our best times were a result of letting the kids each plan a day on our itinerary. For example, my little guy was 8 when he decided that our first stop in London should be the British Museum to go see the Mummies. Then he scheduled a double decker bus ride around London to a late lunch/early dinner at a pub (Cheshire Cheese) on the way to the London Eye. It was NOT how I would have planned it, but it was a blast following his plan! Oldest son, 12, planned another day of sight seeing and daughter, 10 planned an entire day of shopping (duh - I know it's genetic,) starting out in the food court for breakfast at Harrod's and picking up a picnic lunch while there. I wouldn't have thought of that either.

So, I'd say let the kids help plan it. You guys have been before and you'll see many things in a different way with them.

One more thing... We have not done this yet, but there are barge trips (bareboat or charter) you can take throughout several rivers in France and even along the southern coast. Even if you're not boaters, it looks like a great summer trip for travel with kids. The one we're considering also rents bicycles, so we can drop the kids on the bikes so they can ride along the banks on lovely bike paths(should quell Lunatic Maximum's boredom.)

There are several suppliers of this service, so if you google french river barges, you will find a number of them. Check TripAdvisor for recommendations on the barge companies.

Have fun!!

As always, you guys totally rock! Thank you! Over the weekend, I will review trip reports and I am so grateful for the fantastic, creative and fun travel suggestions! I am always happiest when planning a trip! Thank you again! Kimi G