Best way to travel Europe

[gogreengowhite]

My husband loves to travel but with two young kids we really haven't been able to.

They will be 4 and almost 6 next summer (2016) so I was thinking we could finally leave them with family for a week.

DH spent a summer in Germany and is itching to go back. I have never been to Europe.

What do you think is the best way to relax but also see more than one country in Europe?

ETA: would you use a tour company or just book places on your own?

[frlcb]

With a week I would pick either two cities in one country (like Madrid and Barcelona) or do two countries close by, like do London and Paris, taking Eurostar. But why don't you bring the kids with you and stay longer?

[roseflower]

Jan 18, 2015 14:04:32 GMT -5 frlcb said:

With a week I would pick either two cities in one country (like Madrid and Barcelona) or do two countries close by, like do London and Paris, taking Eurostar. But why don't you bring the kids with you and stay longer?

I have thought of this but I honestly get stressed out traveling with DD and then also miss out doing some of the things I wanted to because it's not kid friendly.

[gogreengowhite]

Jan 18, 2015 14:04:32 GMT -5 frlcb said:

With a week I would pick either two cities in one country (like Madrid and Barcelona) or do two countries close by, like do London and Paris, taking Eurostar. But why don't you bring the kids with you and stay longer?

We were thinking about taking the kids when they get a little older, 8 and 10 maybe.

I'm struggling between spending a bunch of money sooner on an experience they most likely won't remember and satisfying DH's travel bug.

[mbcdefg]

Jan 18, 2015 14:04:32 GMT -5 frlcb said:

With a week I would pick either two cities in one country (like Madrid and Barcelona) or do two countries close by, like do London and Paris, taking Eurostar. But why don't you bring the kids with you and stay longer?

Re: countries close to each other, we did London and Ireland in about 10 days and enjoyed it. I'd like to do Scotland plus London again someday, too.

[sporky]

Definitely book on your own. Use travel guides like DK Eyewitness and websites like TripAdvisor to help with the planning. 

Also, a big fat ditto to frlcb on the planning for two cities within the same country or two major cities in countries that are close by. With only a week, fitting in too many cities or countries will leave you ragged. 

Are you looking specifically at Germany or is there somewhere else that's at the top of your list?

[gogreengowhite]

sporky I'm open to other places but I think my husband is set on Germany.

[gardengal]

I've booked w europeanvacations.com before. They had good iterneraries & prices. Just double check your hotel w trip advisor.

Even if you don't book w them you can get some ideas.

Personally, we like to rent a cottage somewhere & really tour the area. It's flexible, relaxing, and you really get a feel of the place!

[gogreengowhite]

Jan 18, 2015 14:53:40 GMT -5 milsaroo said:

Plan your own, with the help of MM, of course.

It's awesome you're thinking about it so early so you have time to do research. I would make a list of "musts" and "would be nice".

I keep saying "next year we can...." when he talks about traveling. So, I'm thinking about it now so we actually do it.

Also, turns out he is not set on Germany. He just mentioned going to Italy instead since he wants to take my daughter to Germany. Woohoo!

[sicilygirl]

For a week in Italy, I would split my time between Florence and Rome. They're so close together that you would waste very little travel time between the two cities, and you can take the high speed train for a reasonable price. You could also do several interesting day trips from either of the cities. I think 3-4 days in each city is a good amount of time, too, especially with a day trip or two thrown in there. I would plan it yourself. There's tons of great information online. When we went a year ago, we rented apartments in both cities, and that turned out very well and saved us quite a bit of money too. Good luck with your planning!

[starryfish]

Also look into cruises. Very relaxing. I did an 11 day Mediterranean one and really enjoyed it.

[frlcb]

Jan 18, 2015 14:20:28 GMT -5 gogreengowhite said:

Jan 18, 2015 14:04:32 GMT -5 frlcb said:

With a week I would pick either two cities in one country (like Madrid and Barcelona) or do two countries close by, like do London and Paris, taking Eurostar. But why don't you bring the kids with you and stay longer?

We were thinking about taking the kids when they get a little older, 8 and 10 maybe.

I'm struggling between spending a bunch of money sooner on an experience they most likely won't remember and satisfying DH's travel bug.

We have been traveling with our kids internationally since they were born, and of course they don't remember all of it, but even my 3 year old will mention things that we did on trips and I am like whoah, she remembered that? I think not taking them just because you are worried they won't remember it is doing yourself a disservice.

[gogreengowhite]

frlcb

That's not really the whole reason at all. Actually, I'm an anxious traveler, so just me and DH going gives me anxiety.

We are flying to Florida in March and those logistics are stressing me out.

If they are magical amazing children on those flights maybe we will consider it.

Oh, and I'm cheap!

[frlcb]

Jan 18, 2015 16:50:02 GMT -5 gogreengowhite said:

frlcb

That's not really the whole reason at all. Actually, I'm an anxious traveler, so just me and DH going gives me anxiety.

We are flying to Florida in March and those logistics are stressing me out.

If they are magical amazing children on those flights maybe we will consider it.

Oh, and I'm cheap!

I understand the cheapness, it is more expensive, but maybe having them along would help, you would have your mind focused on them?

[kaylie]

You might want to check out tourvacationstogo.com for ideas. They compile tours from a lot of major tour companies and they have a section for family-friendly ones. Just check the minimum age requirements they list.

[UnderProtest]

Holy shit. I love my kids and all, but if I had the opportunity to take a vacation without them, there would be no way in hell I would subject everyone to a transatlantic flight with a 4 year old. Plus, I am MORE anxious traveling with my kids than without.

But back to the original question, I would do London and either Ireland or Paris. London is easier to take since it's English speaking but has tons to do and see. I loved Ireland but it wasn't nearly as exciting as places with bigger cities (but it was what I needed at the time). Paris is great and an easy train ride from London. It shouldn't be too stressful getting from place to place.

[gogreengowhite]

Ohhh, I like the Ireland idea.

Yeah, I love my children something fierce. But, I would much rather take this trip with just DH.

[gt7301b]

Jan 18, 2015 16:50:02 GMT -5 gogreengowhite said:

frlcb

That's not really the whole reason at all. Actually, I'm an anxious traveler, so just me and DH going gives me anxiety.

We are flying to Florida in March and those logistics are stressing me out.

If they are magical amazing children on those flights maybe we will consider it.

Oh, and I'm cheap!

I'm cheap too and I have been all over the world by being open to go anywhere for my vacations.  Last year we went to Iceland because the airfare was ridiculously cheap.   You might look into flying into Iceland and taking a flight to Germany from there. 

If I really, really wanted to go to Germany I'd still setup travel alerts and see how close I can get then fly to Germany.  It is cheap to fly within Europe.

I'd book on my own and use Rick Steves for tips.

[BeagleMama]

Go get (buy or library) the appropriate Rick Steves' books for the countries you may be interested on seeing.

Do whatever he says.

[badtzmaru22]

Another vote for Rick Steves! He won't lead you astray!

[orval]

We did Prague, Munich and Heidelburg in Germany. They were close to travel easily. We also took our 3.5 year old on the trip and it was great!
You could also do Munich and Austria - also close.

[tacosforlife]

Jan 18, 2015 18:47:47 GMT -5 BeagleMama said:

Go get (buy or library) the appropriate Rick Steves' books for the countries you may be interested on seeing.

Do whatever he says.

Agreed.

We actually did 6 days in Rome and pretty much only used RS suggestions. That's longer than most people spend in Rome, but it was our honeymoon so we did a combo of sightseeing and long lunches followed by naps. We also didn't have the money for train tickets between cities.

If you only have one week and you want to both sightsee and relax, I would stick to a max of two major cities/regions. So if you go to Italy, for example, I'd do Rome and one other city. Or if you go to Ireland, is spend 2 days in Dublin and then stay in a small village somewhere and rent a car. For England, I'd split between London and one other area (including Scotland...the train to Edinburgh is less than 4 hours, I think).

I think if you try to do more than 2 major areas in one week, you will a) feel like you missed a bunch, b) feel really rushed, or c) both.

[frlcb]

Jan 19, 2015 8:44:06 GMT -5 tacosforlife said:

Jan 18, 2015 18:47:47 GMT -5 BeagleMama said:

Go get (buy or library) the appropriate Rick Steves' books for the countries you may be interested on seeing.

Do whatever he says.

Agreed.

We actually did 6 days in Rome and pretty much only used RS suggestions. That's longer than most people spend in Rome, but it was our honeymoon so we did a combo of sightseeing and long lunches followed by naps. We also didn't have the money for train tickets between cities.

If you only have one week and you want to both sightsee and relax, I would stick to a max of two major cities/regions. So if you go to Italy, for example, I'd do Rome and one other city. Or if you go to Ireland, is spend 2 days in Dublin and then stay in a small village somewhere and rent a car. For England, I'd split between London and one other area (including Scotland...the train to Edinburgh is less than 4 hours, I think).

I think if you try to do more than 2 major areas in one week, you will a) feel like you missed a bunch, b) feel really rushed, or c) both.

The train between london and edinburgh is between 4.5 and 6 hours depending on which one you get. Definitely doable if you wanted to add Edinburgh as a second city, but you could even stay in London and do enough day trips to make it worth it - Oxford, Bath, Cambridge, Brighton, York, or an overnight to the Cotswolds.

[roseflower]

Jan 18, 2015 18:11:41 GMT -5 UnderProtest said:

Holy shit. I love my kids and all, but if I had the opportunity to take a vacation without them, there would be no way in hell I would subject everyone to a transatlantic flight with a 4 year old. Plus, I am MORE anxious traveling with my kids than without.

This.

To me there are family trips and vacations. Vacations do not include my kids. I want to relax, do what I want when I want etc. Family trips are different.

[dutchgirl678]

We have also been traveling with kids since they were born but I totally see the appeal of traveling without them as well. Any vacation in Europe will be great as long as you only stick to 2 places max when you have a week. If you did Italy I would do Rome and the Amalfi Coast. You can travel by train between the two and both have a lot to see and to relax as well. We went with the whole family to Rome when my youngest was 3 months old and oldest was 3. We rented an apartment via verb.com but for just 2 you might as well just book hotels. But we loved 'living' in Italy and felt more part of the community this way. Buying fresh produce and bread at the market was part of the experience.

We are going to Ireland this May. Renting a car and driving to the west coast from Dublin.

We have been to Bavaria in Germany. Booked our own B&B in a small village outside of Munich. Rented a car. We didn't drive into Munich proper but parked at a nearby train station and took the train in. That was ideal as we don't like driving in the big cities. But driving in the countryside and on the autobahn was fine. Being outside of Munich we made day trips to Neuschwanstein and Garmisch Partenkirchen.

There are so many options for a trip to Europe, it just depends on what you want to do!

[Deleted]

LOL. It seems most plane tickets to Europe are at least 1k each these days, often more. I think you're right to leave the kids at home. I also think a lot of the stuff to see in Europe isn't very kid friendly at all - like is your 4 year old really going to care about the Coloseum? Not to mention a lot of the more touristy places are super crowded. Of course there are plenty of kid friendly places in Europe (I assume) but for a first trip and not something you'll be doing regularly, I assume you'll want to do some sightseeing and it would be a lot harder with small kids for sure.

I don't really have much to add beyond that I loved Venice so much, so if you go to Italy I'd recommend that over Florence (though both are great). I took a tour and it was a totally exhausting whirlwind (though amazing!) so it sounds like my only experience there isn't what you're looking for.

[msmerymac]

I agree about choosing 2 cities/areas. I've done Berlin/Prague, London/Edinburgh and Paris/Belgium (Flanders) that way. Plan to spend 10-14 total, including travel time. So at least 5 days in each place.

Only in Germany and the Czech Republic did I really do a group/guide (it was a school thing), but for Belgium I was on a bike tour, so I had a guide then, too. Obviously going to an English-speaking area or a country where at least one of you speaks the language is going to be the easiest way to ease in to European travel. Buuuuut if you learn a few phrases and you're in major cities, you'll be fine. I know the rule is to not be the boorish tourist who assumes everyone speaks English, but most people seem to speak enough English in the major tourism cities for you to get along. My small amount of French helped in France, but it's not like I used it to get out of a jam we would have been in if I hadn't been able to speak French.

I booked all London, Edinburgh and Paris travel on my own. I used AirBnB in Paris and it went great. We got a studio apartment in the Marais (border between 4th and 3rd arrondissements) for like $700 for 4 nights, so way cheaper than a nice hotel and with a full kitchen and washing machine.

Are you comfortable with taking public transit? I love public transit, so that helps a lot. I also can't say that the major cities are "relaxing" as I end up planning and walking a lot on those trips, but without kids, that might be your interpretation of relaxing! You can always do something like a resort town in Spain or France or Greece, or a driving tour of Ireland.

[gogreengowhite]

Thank you everyone for your advice.

I've already started the "well, what if we just wait until..."

Anyone want to volunteer to schedule my trip for me?