How We Planned a Trip to Europe with Our Kids (and Why You Should Too)
Have you ever dreamed of taking your kids to Europe, but felt overwhelmed by the idea of planning, budgeting, and traveling with them? Well, we did it with our three daughters, without breaking the bank or losing our sanity. How did we manage to pull it off? In this blog post, I’ll share our Tips and Tricks to help you make it happen.
Why We Decided to Travel to Europe with Our Kids
When my wife and I started dating, she convinced me that traveling was an essential part of life. She had studied abroad in college, and backpacked around Europe with friends so she was hooked on the excitement and thrill of seeing the world. The first European trip we planned together was Italy (Cinque Terra, Florence, Venice, Rome - all stories for another day). We splurged on slightly better accommodations than the hostels my wife was used to, but we were still poor, college grads who appreciated that the restaurant let us take home their “house red” wine in an empty plastic soda bottle! Within the first day, I fell in love with the food, culture and romantic cobblestone streets.
Now, back to the question: Why Did We Decide to Travel to Europe with Our Kids?! The answer is simple, because WE wanted to go to France – the kids are just along for the ride! In all seriousness, when we started a family, we didn’t stop traveling. We wanted to expose our kids to the locations we love as young as possible. We believe that traveling is not only fun, but also educational, enriching, and eye-opening. It allows our whole family to see different cultures, places, art and architecture. We want our kids to see history and experience unique cuisine. We want to see things through our kids’ eyes and to create unforgettable memories as a family.
Will they remember it all? Most likely not, but they won’t remember kindergarten either and we aren’t letting them skip it!
How We Planned and Budgeted for Our Trip
When we started having a family, our budget shifted for daycare bills and diapers but we always kept a percentage for travel and a family trip doesn’t have to break the bank.
Here are some simple steps we took:
We started looking for flights well in advance, and were ready to ditch our destination if prices were too unreasonable. We prefer to use Google Flights as our primary search engine because you can do an open search on locations and dates to find the best price. As soon as we saw domestic round-trip flights to Florida were the same price as non-stop flights to Charles de Galle, we knew it was time to BOOK!
Before we finalized the budget for our trip, we researched accommodations. Nightly rates vary, especially between big cities (Paris) and rural towns (Bayeux) so we had to splurge a little more in Paris but made up for it at the other places.
We opted for Airbnb/VRBO instead of hotels to give us the flexibility with space and amenities. We like to have a kitchen for those early morning breakfasts and late night snacks (good old jet lag). The lack of separate living/sleeping space is another reason we ditch hotels and stick with Airbnb/VRBO - it isn’t fun to put the kids to bed and sit, wide awake, in a dark hotel room. We have even tried hiding out in the bathroom to play cards (trust us, it isn’t fun or comfortable).
We booked a car ahead of time, but only for the days we needed it. It was cheaper, and less stressful to use public transportation in the city. We took a taxi from the airport to our first Airbnb and opted for the metro while we were in the city. Bonus – the metro has stops every few blocks, so you don’t have to worry about parking a car and the kids loved it!
We converted some (but minimal) American dollars to Euros. Once we were in Europe, we always used our credit card so we can easily track what we spent (and get the rewards). In the rare occasion of needing cash, we used our debit card to make withdrawals.
We gave our daughters an allowance based on the activities for the day. If we went to an open market, they each got five euros to pick their treat. Sometimes it was a long-drawn-out decision, walking back and forth past the same vendors, and other times they grabbed onto the first baguette in sight and gnawed on it like the local kiddos
We created a high-level itinerary, knowing that we wanted 4 days in Paris and the rest scattered around France. My wife and I each listed our must-see/must-do destinations and activities and left flexibility in the schedule so we could talk with our Airbnb hosts and the locals.
Five Things to Remember
Keep it simple. When our youngest daughter was 18 months, we took an international trip with my in-laws and it was a FULL TRAVEL DAY. We landed, got the rental car, buckled in and set off to see the main attractions. Within 20 mins into the car ride, my daughter was extremely agitated and restless. We had been rushing so fast from the plane, to the car that no one (including me) had a chance to stretch their legs and get fresh air. My mother-in-law spotted a random park and we immediately pulled over. My daughter wobbled up the stairs and slid down the slide, over and over. She giggled as she played in a sandbox with other kids, none of them old enough to form sentences and even if they could, they didn’t speak the same language. Even with this pit stop, we still made it to the attaction we wanted to see, and we were all in a better mood. For many reasons, this day is a core memory. There can be so much you want to see on vacation, but sometimes immersing yourself in the local activities are the simplest and most memorable.
Bite off what you can chew. There are a million different itineraries out there, ranging from weeks to months in France. We only had 10 nights in France and we knew we wanted to show the kids the contrast between the City of Lights and the small, rural towns. We knew it wasn’t realistic, or necessary, to pack up every morning and drive hours to the next destination so we found 3 different accommodations and scattered in day trips.
Take a chance. If there is something that you really want to see, don’t skip it because you assume your family won’t be interested. Our kids were so fascinated by a piece of cloth in Bayeux that we had to drag them away after two hours. And we thought we were the cultured ones (that’s a story for another day).
Don’t stress the long flight. Our friends always ask “how did the flight go?” They seem to stress about anything over 4 hours but we all survived quarantine back in 2020, right? The flight has plenty of toilet paper, shows to binge watch and even friendly flight attendants serving up your favorite soda. We have plenty of tips and tricks to keep all ages entertained, and we even got a handle on my daughter’s motion sickness (there’s more than one reason we travel with extra clothes in our carry on).
Make the memories: Will my daughters remember every single detail of this trip? No but I will. If given the choice, would they pick a trip to Florida or France? It probably depends on the day! When the big trip finally comes, we have spent hours of planning so we are fully invested to making each day count. We disconnect from work, the kids get a break from school and we all escape the mess of the toys back home. On these vacations, we spend every waking hour together, and sometimes we are too exhausted to change into pajamas BUT if we let the logistics or fear hold us back, we wouldn’t have gone to places like this:
Planning Out the Metro Stops - never lines as long as Disney, but sometimes just as exciting.
Starting the Morning with Freshly Squeezed Orange Juice - the store bought OJ will never taste the same.
Playing at the Park - it’s a busy city but you can gain your bearings by looking for the Eiffel Tower.
Taking a break at Our Airbnb in the 15th Arrondissement
Closing the Night at the Eiffel Tower - what’s not to LOVE!
To Wrap Up
Traveling to Europe doesn’t have to be hard or break the bank. If there is something you really want to see, don’t skip it because of your kids. You might be surprised by how much fun they have. We will prove it in the next post Why Paris is the Perfect Destination for Family Travel: Our Tips and Tricks for a Four Day Itinerary (and Why We Never Said No to Crepes and Macarons) so follow along, comment and let me know if you have any questions. I’d love to hear from you!
