Ann

I'm planning my first trip to Europe for myself and my two teenage boys. A) Trying to decide between Italy and Spain. My son and I both speak some Spanish. B) I'm wondering what kinds of things teens enjoy. I would appreciate any advice or anecdotes about successful trips with teens. They are great kids, can go weeks at a time w/out tv etc. and we enjoy the out-of-doors. Thanks!

???

Why wonder what kinds of things "teens" in general enjoy? Hopefully, you know what your own children enjoy, unless you are noncustodial and rarely see them. In that case, a trip to Europe might be a stressful way to get to know them.

Rex

From time to time, I post under the anonymous "xxx" label. But the post above is not me, and it is uncalled for. Nothing about your question suggests that you don't "know" your boys. <BR> <BR>I have made three trips with kids - - one with a class group (not including any of our own kids), and two other trips with our kids (and others). <BR> <BR>You have so many wonderful possibilities. I would buy a "major" (Fodor's, Frommer's, plenty of other choices) guide book for Spain and one for Italy for their Christmas and then let them decide (with you). <BR> <BR>All other things being equal, I recommend that you choose Italy - - with the inclination to "get along" in Spanish, you can almost bet that the "next" trip to Europe will include Spain - - perhaps it will be on their own, and perhaps it will be an "extended" trip (with other friends, or cousins or other family members) once you have some experience under your belt. <BR> <BR>Please feel free to write to me directly for further correspondence, if you wish. This is not a thinly veiled attempt to "sell" you my services. Yes, I do plan and lead trips, including one or more options that might be a fit for you. That doesn't make this posting an "advertisement" to "sell" you or anyone else anything. I'd be delighted to share free ideas with you or anyone else about your trip. <BR> <BR>Best wishes, <BR> <BR>Rex Bickers <BR>Westerville, Ohio

Kathryn

Ann, I just took a trip with my fourteen year old daughter and her friend and the friend's mother. It was one of the best travel experiences we've ever had. I will send my post about our trip to the top for you--the full trip report is posted on a web site that you can locate from my Fodors post! <BR> <BR>Kathryn

Tessa

Rex, considering that at least half the people here probably post under xxx or zzz or abc or other anon letters, why would you need to explain that someone else's xxx doesnt happen to be your particular xxx? How would anyone know which xxx is yours, but if you want us to know a certain xxx is you why not just use your name in the first place. And also, sorry but I thought it was pretty strange for a mom of teens to ask what do teens like! But that comment of mine being out of the way, I think Spain and Italy would both be good choices. Italy may be a lot more varied and packed with interesting things but in Spain there's the advantage of the kids using the language they have studied which would be wonderful for them.

gb

I've never been to Spain, but my two teen daughters loved Italy. We arranged to meet a family with teenage girls. The girls were very compatible, and show my daughters a nice slice of Italian life. Rome was very interesting, especially in the historic sense. World History classes now have new meaning to them. The Forum and other ruins were fabulous. And the Amalfi coast was a great beach trip. Despite the fact that Pisa was a bit out of the way for our trip, my one daughter insisted we visited. We did, and enjoyed it. Maybe people suggest skipping Pisa, but I'm glad we didn't. We also had a couple of days in Venice. While personally, I would not go to Venice again, it was worth a visit. (loved Rome, Venice-so,so). The teens in Italy seemed to like to social more than anything. Just walk around. I didn't notice any great preoccupation with "things" as in US.

xxx

I went to Italy as a teenager. I loved most Florence and Sicily, and any small towns we stopped in where we seemed to be the only foreigners and where the architecture, geography and lifestyle were as different from home (US) as they could be. I also remember enjoying the beauty of Venice, Siena, the Amalfi coast. I enjoyed the artwork and ruins but not the atmosphere in Rome, and I hated Milan. But all teens are different and what yours like will depend on who they are.

Bill

Well, I went to Spain as a teen, as part of a combination language study and travel trip. My favorite memories: going to a small flamenco club (we were based in Malaga for 2 weeks for language study); going to a bull-raising farm in Southern Spain where you could get out in the ring with a cape and a very young bull; hanging out on the beach at night, sampling the fresh-fried seafood and soaking in the exciting vibe and interacting with Spanish teens (this was 1968!); taking the ferry over to Morroco and wandering around... (Damn! Which city was that?)

nancy

GB, <BR>you said you arranged to meet with a family with teens, while in italy. <BR>How did you go about that? <BR>Is there some sort of site, or did you have friends, or friends of friends? <BR>Any info or clarification would be appreciated! <BR>nancy

gb

Believe it or not, I found them on the eurotrip site. I know it sounds risky, but I got to know the family during the year proceeding our trip. I noticed that an Italian family had placed (mistakingly) an advertisement to exchange homes with a family in another part of Europe. The message said that both he and his wife were teachers, and he had two daughters. And he was from a city within an hour's drive from the town where my grandparents were born. I work in a school, and my husband works in a college. I wrote and found that his daughters were the same age as mine. So, we began exchanging information, asking questions about the region, family life, comparing notes of cultural habits and food passed on to me from my grandparents, etc. We found amazing coincidences in our lives, almost as if their family was a sort of duplicate of ours in another country. They offered their cabin for our visit, which turned out to be very near my grandparents hometown. They have not yet come to the US because the wife does not like to fly. But, maybe someday. We got a lot of travel assistance from them. Last summer, we took the trip. Of course, we all had a bit of uneasiness when we met. The adults spoke enough English to communicate, and we all had dictionaries. In an unusual turn of events, the plumbing in their cabin broke down, so we could not use the cabin. It was a blessing in the disguise. The family offered our daughters to stay with them in their daughters room. By this time, we were fully comfortable with them (in terms of safety). And my husband and I stayed in a B& B just a few blocks away. It turned out to be a wonderful experience for all our daughters. They were excited as my daughters were. Their daughters took them to meet their friends, and showed them what other kids their age do for fun. They live in Pompei. You would think with the runis nearby, the local people would have much contact with forgeiners. But, strangely, most tourists don't venture too far away from the ruins, and local people don't socialize with the tourists. Pompei is usually a day trip on a tourist bus, not an overnight stay. The girls wanted my daughter to come to their school to put their English teacher "in her place". We found many more things in common, and they very generously became our personal tour guides. They assisted us in finding my family's hometown, and with some information I had from an US aunt, we located direct relations to me. We would have never found them, not knowing enough Italian. We spend 4 days with them, and then, we went to Rome, where they joined us for one day and gave us another personal tour. I don't think I could have bought such an experience if I had unlimited funds. Now, we are hoping they will come visit us someday, maybe this summer. I know this situation was a lot of luck, yet it happened.

Paulo

You don't say how old your boys are, Ann. <BR> <BR>Anyway, in my experience you should involve them in the trip planning. If you do so, if it'll be Spain or Italy will unfold naturally (group decision). You should get some general reference material on Spain and Italy (maybe something like the Eyewitness Guide for both countries) and let them "study" a bit to have an opinion of their own. Once you guys have decided which way to go (and have a draft plan on which cities to visit) I would single out some of the smaller cities for them to be completely in charge (get some extended reference material for those cities) on what concerns sightseeing. <BR> <BR>In our experience, what our girls loved most was being able to take off on their own, here and there. Whenever possible, instead of lodging them at our hotels, they stayed in youth hostels nearby (for example, to name a few, in Venice, Rothenburg, Salzburg). They would meet us at our hotel's breakfast room and we would sightsee together. Around 6pm they were off on their own (including dinner), either by themselves or with other youth they met in the hostels. In smaller cities (e.g., in Siena and Pisa), even if staying at our hotel, we would also set them loose around 6pm. At the time they were 15/16 years old. <BR> <BR>Paulo <BR>

leo

Our teenage boys enjoyed both Spain and Italy, but my husband and I like Italy more. One thing the boys enjoyed was hiking the Cinque Terre trails. We all hiked from Monterossa to Varenna and had lunch and then they took the boat back why we explored. I agree with the other posters in that they enjoy being in smallish cities where they can explore by themselves. Venice, Siena, Bath were all compact enough that in a few days they felt they really knew the place. My son loves to tell of his experiences riding the vaporetto in Venice. <BR> <BR> Usually we do something as a family in the AM (museum, church, hike etc.) then break up to explore on our own. Sometimes they head straight back to the hotel to watch TV, but other times they surprise. They always manage to find the internet cafes for emails home to friends, and the video game arcades. I just try to be really flexible, have multiple suggestions for the family activity, accept that they will not agree to do everything I want to (so I do them by myself) and we all have wonderful memories.

nancy

GB, <BR>What a lovely story and a serendipitous meeting! <BR>It sounds like you have been able to develop a lovely relationship, all initially due to the web! <BR>I hope you continue with this, even if you are not able to meet in person again for awhile. <BR>I always thought that(computer) was a strange way to "meet" people, but I have had the luck to meet a woman on this site, when we both discovered we were renting the same apt. in Rome, (we being there the week following her and her family) We have corresponded, found a lot of coincidences in our lives, and are maintaining a cyber-correspondence that I treasure! <BR>Someday, I hope to meet her. <BR>So, anyway, thank you very much for responding to my inquiry.And thanks for your story. <BR>Nancy <BR> <BR>

gb

Thanks Nancy. It has been fun. But, it is especially exciting to see my kids enjoy it. They both have taken an interest in other countries, and ancient history. In three years, when my oldest daughter graduates from high school, we hope to do a trip to Sweden to see where my husband's family originated. I have been scanning web sites, but have not had such luck.