London, Paris and Germany

SoHo is in New York.

Soho in London is known for its very lively nightlife.

Woops! Never been to NY only for about 6 hours during a layover in which I saw Time Square.. That's good to know! Have you been yourself? Any recommendations?

http://www.timeout.com/london/hotels/soho-london-hotels

I'd love to help, but unfortunately, your question is much too broad to answer. You need to start with reading some guidebooks (both Rick's and others) and watching some videos (Rick's are here: https://www.ricksteves.com/watch-read-listen/video/tv-show).

Start by answering some questions for yourself. There are no right or wrong answers, but only by figuring these things out can you start to plan your trip, or can anyone else help. Which airports can you fly out of? Which part of Germany are you looking at, and why (you said "hopefully Germany," so you seem to have something specific in mind)? What kinds of things do you want out of Paris and London - museums, restaurants, theatre, walking tours, architecture, history (and which period)? Are you looking to do day trips to get a change from large cities, or to see something special (like Versailles)? What do your kids want out of the trip? (Be sure to involve them in the planning!) For restaurant advice, what is your budget, are there any diet restrictions, and what kinds of cuisines did you want? For places to stay, what is your budget and what are your requirements (elevator, how many beds of what sizes, etc); and, do you all want to be in one room, do you want separate rooms, or can you work with either option?

If you get back to us with some of these answers, people can then do a better job of answering your initial questions. I'll repeat myself about guidebooks; you'll learn the answers to questions you didn't even think to ask.

I recommend purchasing some guidebooks for the cities and/or countries that you plan to visit. Rick Steves has some excellent guidebooks that can provide advice for example: Paris for three days or Paris for four days.

The guidebooks can also assist with hotels, restaurants, tours, etc.

Germany
By Rick Steves
So much to see, so little time. How to choose? To help you get started, I've listed my top picks for where to go in Germany, my plan for your best three-week trip, and tips on when to go.
Depending on the length of your trip, and taking geographic proximity into account, here are my recommended priorities:
3 days: Munich, Bavarian castles
5 days, add: Rhine Valley, Rothenburg
7 days, add: More of Bavaria and Tirol, side-trip to Salzburg
10 days, add: Berlin
14 days, add: Baden-Baden, Black Forest, Dresden
17 days, add: Nürnberg, Mosel Valley, Trier
21 days, add: Würzburg, and slow down
More time: Choose among Frankfurt, Cologne, Hamburg, Leipzig, and the Martin Luther towns (Erfurt and Wittenberg).

If you have specific questions after doing research and reading, we are glad to assist.

Since no one's mentioned it yet, pick up a copy of Rick Steves Europe Through the Back Door Even if you and your wife have been to Europe and doing most of the logistical planning, it's worth having the kids read sections, even though much of it won't be relevant for them.

Guidebooks are fine, but even though I'm a dinosaur, I use the internet much more for planning, especially sightseeing. I like to use Frommer's destination websites for "attractions." They list the major sights and a lot of minor ones with brief descriptions and rate them. All 4 of you can get an idea of what sounds interesting. For London and Paris, look at the London Walks and the Paris Walks websites. They are both good companies (I would rate London higher, but Paris is good too). Even if you don't take any of them, it will also give you ideas of what appeals to each of you. One way to start is for each of you to make a list, then compare them. You may find splitting up a good idea for some things - but it may be girls vs boys, or sibling pairs, or even a 3-1 split. As long as everyone understands they won't see everything they want to (none of us do, that's why we all go back!), you'll all have a great time. I haven't traveled with kids, but friends have many times and they are often surprised by how much the kids liked things they expected them to be bored by. Lastly, leave some free time. You may come across something or you may want to go back to something.

In both London and Paris, sights are spread out and you'll need to use the underground (tube) in London and the metro in Paris to get around some of the time. The best place to stay is near a "good" station, which is one that has preferably at least 2 lines that take you close to some of the main sights/areas. Are you looking for one room for 4 people? Then look at hostels (hostelworld.com, hostelz.com) or apartments. If you want 2 rooms, be sure that there are 2 twin beds - most double rooms have one double bed.

In Paris, I recommend Fat Tire Bike tours. They also have Segway tours which are lots of fun.

Since you are travelling for two weeks, I would suggest that you pick only one or two locations to stay at in Germany, preferably one. Whether you travel by train or air, expect to lose more or less all of your travel day to the journey, especially since you aren't familiar with European cities.

Definitely use the Eurostar train from London to Paris, flying is a waste of time unless you are connecting from a transcontinental flight to London and going to Paris immediately without leaving the airport. From Paris to your German location is variable, somewhere like Cologne or Stuttgart is best by train but the train journey to places further east like Berlin or Munich is long enough to consider flying.

Oh, and don't stay in a hotel in Soho, the street noise all night will make it impossible to sleep.

Since you are all very young (in my eyes) you may benefit from looking for answers from Rick's son: http://www.wsaeurope.com/blog/andy-steves-travel-tips-series

One thing you need to establish before the next set of questions is your budget: Is this a 5 star hotel or a hostel trip? Are you looking for gourmet meals or picnics? ...

We find it helpful to look at the routes for "Tauck Tours, to wherever you are planning to go. We have taken 6 Tauck tours and enjoyed all of them. Their tours always stay in very nice and safe hotels also.

Here's an idea to make sure the 15yr olds are bought in to your plans. When I took my daughters recently I made a list of all the possible big sites/events we could see in each city (London, Paris) with a rating scale of 1-10. Then I had them rate things separately and I did too. I was disappointed to find they didn't want to see the Churchill rooms of course but at least I didn't drag them through. Now,I also noted at the top of the survey the non negotiables (Westminster Abbey for example and the hoho bus) that I felt were a must, I couldn't leave it all up to their Instagram mindsets! This just helped me plan with then in mind. And yes,a Rick Steve's guide book helps immensely.

No matter what, just plan your trip than be ready to subtract one thing each day from your original plans so that you can slow down and smell the roses...or take an impromptu side trip down a new street! Enjoy

Chris, it would be really helpful to know how much experience you have with European travel so people here do not have to "re-invent the wheel" for you and tell you what you already know.

Have you ever been to London? If so, why did you choose Soho as a good neighborhood?

Are you familiar with train travel,mince it is the best way to get fro. London to Paris, and Paris to. . .Germany, at lleast some of Germany.

And why would you like to add Germany? Anything in particular you would like to see there?

A nice trip for two week would be 3 cities, like London, Paris and Munich. But I don't know if Munich or anyplace in Germany is good for tourists in March.

What is your budget? Lodging could be a challenge because of the sleeping arrangements. When I was 15 there was no way I Would share a private room with a boy my own age, even if he was my cousin. A family room for 4 with a double bed and two twins all in one room would be OK. Better yet a hostel room with four bunks. Best would be an apartment with two bedrooms no a sofa bed in the living room.

I will show a place we stayed in London even tho it is nowhere near Soho. It is near the Tower of London, the Globe Theater, and the Golden Hind ship replica, and lots of good restaurants. It has two bedrooms with double beds so you would have to ask Karen if the boy could sleep on the sofa. It is around 155 pounds a night in March.

https://www.ownersdirect.co.uk/accommodation/p8128770

For Paris apartments, look at VacationinParis.com

We had one near Rue Cler, one bedroom and a daybed with trundle bed in the living room. If it is still like that, you could separate the two beds far apart in the living room and the kids should be OK with that. I will try to find the link for that apartment and you can look at others with the same company. Bit is an American company so you pay in dollars with your credit card and it is easier than dealing in French and paying by wire transfer.

The Paris apartment we had has been re-furnished ( not surprised) so it just has a double sofa bed in the living room. But this one would work, cuz it has an extra folding cot for a "young adult" in addition to a sofa bed and the double bed in the bedroom.

Just a housekeeping item -- you may need written (notarized ?) permission from each child's parents to take them out of the U.S., plus authorization to get them medical treatment if needed. And, of course, they need passports.
For things to do, at 12 my daughter loved our evenings at the London theater but that's just her.

They definitely will need that letter of authorization from the parents, so it is good that Laura mentioned it.

The OP hasn't been around for a couple months now. Looks like he's figured it out or he's changed his mind.