<p>We have a high school graduation, a college graduation and a 25th anniversary all in the span of two weeks next year. As a celebratory present we are taking what is likely our last “big” family vacation (these are harder to do once kids are no longer kids…they’ll be 22 and 18) There are a lot of places we’d like to go, but are having trouble focusing in on location. Anyone want to weigh in? Here’s some info/guidelines:</p>
<p>-About 2 - 2.5 weeks beginning in early June
-Not in U.S.
-Europe would be preferable (not Italy or France though), but open to other locations
-Price: while not exactly a “money is no object” scenario, we are not looking at budget travel either.<br>
No place TOO hot
A bonus if United or a Star Alliance airline flies there.</p>
<p>Some places that we’ve toyed around with: Portugal (but not sure where), Santorini, Ireland, Netherlands, Norway, Belgium,possibly UK, Vienna/Salzburg. Two locations/countries would be good (or even three, if they’re not too far apart.) As I said, I’m very open to suggestions!</p>
<p>Obviously we are all over the place here. Anybody want to tell me about a great place you’ve been that would be good for late teen/early 20’s young men and their middle aged parents?</p>
<p>Vienna, Prague and/or Istanbul. All three are pleasant in June. Things (politically) have seemed to settle down in Istanbul. It’s a fascinating city and much of it is modern, hip and geared towards the young. I LOVE IT. My D is there now and will be making her way to Germany to live in a few days.</p>
<p>I would keep in mind the ages and preferences of your children when picking your destination. We did Norway and Sweden as part of our honeymoon many years back and loved it. But that would not be my first choice for teenagers. I have teenagers and most family vacations during the summer months have to involve a beach. They simply do not enjoy museums or walking tours. They are also exhausted from the school year and like to sleep. YMMV.</p>
<p>Now Santorini might do the trick. While you wouldn’t spend 2 weeks there, you could tour some of the Greek Islands. Plenty of sun and beaches along with an interesting culture, great food and nightlife. Most of the greek villages have a sort of town center where the restaurants/shops are located. This area really comes to life at night and would be perfect for teenagers to hang out.</p>
<p>I’d second Istanbul and agree with the comments about Scandinavia. My family loves Barcelona and I’d highly recommend it for a combination of good food, street life, fun architecture and approachable museums. We were there with teens a few years ago.</p>
<p>If you’re looking for or something really different, how about Marrakech? This may be a bit too much of a stretch for the trip you’re envisioning but it’s a fascinating city if you want to think outside the box.</p>
<p>I would suggest something my parents did and loved…it would be a dream of mine to do also.</p>
<p>You mentioned Portugal. I would go to Portugal, The Canary Islands, Spain, Morocco and Monaco. There are gorgeous cities in Spain, in the North & South. Barcelona was mentioned…Madrid, Toledo, Malaga in the South…</p>
<p>Have you discussed what “kind” of trip…something like Ireland is going to be more homey, outdoorsy and pubbish than an island (I hear Mallorca is AMAZING btw) or the glitz of a Monaco…</p>
<p>There are many options in European river cruises - if you haven’t checked them out do an online search and see the many trip configurations you can take. I haven’t taken one but the reviews sound facinating.</p>
<p>IMO Barcelona has lots to offer: beaches, architecture, Olympic sites, food, nightlife, etc. i was there in June six years ago and the weather was great. </p>
<p>I think you need to pick a region (Iberia, Scandinavia, BeNeLux, etc) and then fill in the details. United flies to all these places from Newark.</p>
<p>Are you the type of family that goes on monument tours and to museums, wanders on their own or tries to include physical activities like biking or hiking?</p>
<p>You could do Paris, head over to Strausborg and then drive the Black Forest and south to Munich, see the Disney castle(starts with an N) and then to the Salzburg. </p>
<p>Have you considered an Iceland stop on the way to Europe or maybe a 2 day Fjord cruise up the coast in Norway (or Bergen Norway is great). It is very easy and very affordable to fly between European cities if you book in advance and directly with the airline - like Ryan Air, etc. Our family is in love with Copenhagen and find it comfortable to let the kids go on their own during the day and then meet up for dinner. Then again…my teen boys and H loved the topless beach in Copenhagen Eeeeek</p>
<p>There is usually a nice fee for returning a rental car to a different country, but is is still less expensive than 4 airline tickets.</p>
<p>These are some great suggestions! DH and I want to do a river cruise someday (I heard about one in December that does the Christmas markets…that’s the one I would love to do!) but agree that it might be a little too staid for the boys (though the endless food for them is appealing) We’re not super outdoorsy, though some nature, hiking, etc would be good. They would both like a beach. So all the suggestions are getting my wheels turning and making me think about what kind of trip we really want.
Iceland came up from my husband a while back - so the idea of making it a stop on the way is a good idea that hadn’t occurred to me. But really, everything sounds good! Istanbul is one that I had even considered; going to look into that.</p>
<p>BTW - geeps20: We already got the MP Explorer cards this year - both of us at 55K each. We’re trying to load everything on them this year to also get not only the miles from purchases but also the additional 10K bonus miles. Hopefully we can get either a couple of free or low cost tickets or upgrades (which truthfully, I prefer if it’s a long flight.)</p>
<p>There’s no such thing as a true African safari anymore. Those days are as gone as the days of log cabins on manhattan island. Biking thru Tuscany or Provence would be my choice. Or walking tour around the Lake District in the cuomo area.</p>
Eeeeek</p>
?</p>