stephendsmith

Hi all,

I am looking for suggestions for European cities that would be suited for a 3-4 week stay for a family with 2 young kids. Main things would be reasonable walkability and/or public transport, enough things to keep us adults interested, good green spaces and playgrounds/activities for young kids plus some a few easy days trips. Bonus if its not too expensive.

In 2018 we travelled with 1 child and stayed in Rome, Florence and Bologna for one week each. It was fine, but we'd like to find one city and stay there for the whole trip. My wife and I also spent god chunks of time in Paris, Munich, Berlin and Prague - so maybe not there.

I am fairly well travelled in Europe, but most of this travel was long ago when I was single, poor and would sleep on the floor if need be so Im a little unsure.

Some thoughts we have had include Copenhagen Madrid and maybe Lyon.

Thanks in advance

bilboburgler

Depends on time of year.
Barcelona
Amsterdam
Bologna
Toulouse
Bordeaux
Bilbao
London
Bristol
Hamburg
Ulm
Just some ideas

crellston

London should be pretty close to the top of your list. Superb public transport and just so much to see and do for all ages. Rent an apartment in one of the less touristy areas , say in north London and you can be in the centre of things in minutes and out to other parts of the uk fairly easily.

we Spent a lot of time near Malaga which would also be a pretty good option. A nice city in its own right but easy access via the rail system to places like Sevilla , Granada etc

hetismij2

Try to find cities you can easily travel to by train rather than spreading yourself all over Europe and needing short, polluting flights. In the end it takes little more time than flying., and is generally a more relaxing experience. Look into night trains too.

Or stick to Scandinavia and use trains/ferries.

hetismij2

Just saw this in the Guardian. Interesting cities for you.

https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2...sleeper-travel

lavandula

When my daughter was young we spent several weeks in Vienna. There is a lot for families there (the Viennese like children) including a children's museum, aquarium, bike riding, a butterfly house, the Prater, and in summer the Danube has swimming. You can also use Vienna as a launch pad for Prague or Bratislava, or closer to home the Wachau Valley (Melk) or the Heuriger in the hills outside Vienna. We had a flat on the Ring, right near a U-Bahn station. We went for long walks and introduced our daughter to cathedrals (we are not religious but do not have churches like this easily accessible where we live, and it was an eye opener for her). She would have been a bit young for some things such as the Imperial Apartments and some cafés, but there are many that are child-friendly (google kinderfreundlich + Wien). I think we pretty much did Vienna, I don't need to go back for a while now, but we enjoyed our time there.

Lavandula

bvlenci

I suggest Rotterdam. I lived there in 1986 with my two young children. A few years ago I returned to see my old haunts and enjoyed the visit very much. It's a fascinating and vibrant city. There are lots of great day trip possibilities. It's also easy to visit other countries from the Netherlands. Nearly everyone speaks English, but I would encourage your kids to learn a bit of Dutch. It will increase their skill at learning other languages in the future.

Rotterdam is not too expensive. It has perhaps the world's best public transportation. It's also a biker's paradise. There are many great bike excursion possibilities, where you take the train to another town, and rent a bike at the station. My children and I enjoyed many such trips.

Amsterdam has already been suggested, but for a family I would prefer Rotterdam.

Christina

Rotterdam sounds good. I also think Toulouse is a good idea.

Personally, I wouldn't do it. I wouldn't put all my eggs in one basket that way. That's a long time, and I would want to see other things in Europe unless I already knew a place I loved and wanted to be that long, which doesn't seem to apply here. If you are staying in some rental somewhere, you can't be traveling anywhere except locally pretty much. Well, yu could but then you'd be kind of wasting your rental money.

I'd do at least two places, in other words, somewhat far apart to get different parts of Europe. LIke Spain or SW france versus Rotterdam wouldn't be a bad idea.

stephendsmith

Thanks for all the suggestions.

Vienna is sounding like an option, I have been there but think it makes sense with a family. I will look up Rotterdam, Hamburg , Bordeaux and Toulouse, these were not on my radar!

I should have mentioned not London. Im a UK (dual) citizen, and didn't enjoy my brief time there.

stephendsmith

Thanks, I get that its not for everyone but I have been to almost every country in Europe. I dont want to move around with prams and 4 bags or be restricted with a certain number of days in a city. I dont need to see all the must see stuff again. Hence my post, and also why we loved a week in Bologna last trip - no big ticket items. Thanks.

Traveler_Nick

I don't think you ever mentioned time of year nor budget.

Some of the suggestions are less budget friendly than others.

Weather can be a big issue both winter rains and summer heat. You wouldn't really want southern Spain mid July bug you might the month of May.

Sassafrass

Vienna is a lovely city for walking.

stephendsmith

Thanks, very good point. This is for next September next year when children here get longer school holidays. If it goes well we will likely do it every other year, alternating with Asia/Pacific. Budget isnt a major issue, 2 bedroom apartments in most of the cities we have discussed is within budget based on Airbnb searches and my experience in Italy a few years back.

WeisserTee

Another vote for Vienna. Lots to do, good public transport network (within the metropolitan area and across the country). Plenty of places to daytrip to or do overnight visits -- Graz, Salzburg, etc.

hetismij2

If you decide on Vienna then add Ljubljana - you can see a lot of Slovenia from there. You can get the train between the two.
Then perhaps move into Italy from there. Again you can take the train.

Jean

If Vienna, I'd pair it with Salzburg. 2.5 hours by train, no connection.

In Salzburg, there are some museums the kids would enjoy... toy, marionette, Christmas and, depending on the age of your kids, a good Natural History Museum. There's a zoo, and the "trick" fountains(Wasserspiele) at Schloss Hellbrunn are fun and particularly nice if it's a hot day. The town has several gardens and parks to wander, including the park on top of the Monchsberg that you can reach by funicular. Day trip options, too.

jeffreycwuk

Girona as it is not far from Barcelona. It has a bus network serving the coastal towns.

Ljubljana is a good destination. Train networks across the country are affordable.

Brno is a student town and capital city of Moravia.

Portugal offers some good options. Porto and Lisbon.