2 weeks w a 2 and 4 yr old in June. Where would you go?

It depends where you live. West coast - Hawaii, east coat - Caribbean. Little kids like beaches - to play in sand, build castles etc., when hot, cool in water.

After 2 weeks with a 2 and 4 year old I would go as far as I could. Ohhhhh, u mean with them? SORRY, I Can't Image it.

James were they your kids?

I'd honestly go on a staycation--going nowhere. I cannot imagine dealing with two very young children that are even too young to make it at DisneyWorld.

Lol David. We want to travel and we would miss them too much. We have traveled with them before and it's fun! We have also been to Disney :) they are never too young to explore the world.

I travel with my kids - they are elementary school age now but I certainly traveled a lot when they were even smaller.

A lot of people say go to rural areas with kids. Maybe, but not in my experience. My kids get bored at "cute towns" and when they were younger didn't seem to get the difference between an Alp and a molehill. The "stuff" in cities and bigger towns held their interest more. Now that the older one is 9, nature trips with hiking and such are on the table. At 2 and 4? No.

So yes, my kids loved cities. London was a hit (double decker buses! Tower of London with a jester! Museums that they enjoyed. Ferris wheel! Lots of pubs are kid and parent friendly. Good parks - if you can stay near Kensington Park, that's a great place for them to run off some energy. That same trip, when they were 1.5 and 4, we went to Paris. Also a hit, same type reasons. The 4 year old learned a few French phrases and everyone loved him.

Other ideas that I can speak to with experience: Barcelona. I've found Spain to be very child-friendly. Italy, as well. But I haven't done Florence or Rome with kids - these strike me as a bit more challenging for young kids.

Ideas that I am not sure of (haven't done), but might be interesting and that friends with kids enjoyed: Costa Rica (technically North America, though), Amsterdam, Venice (boats are fun).

One hint - if you are traveling with a partner, split up one half-day - one takes the kids, the other goes to his or her #1 attraction sans-kids. Could be an art museum (my kids will visit them, but not as in depth as I like), shopping, a wine tasting, whatever. Just so that each parent gets a few hours of adult time. We do this every several days on longer trips, once on week-long jaunts.

Another hint - rent apartments. Air BnB or through local services, or "aparthotels" (just like it sounds). Having the space for downtime, and being able to access a fridge, is priceless. And usually does not cost more than a hotel - family rooms in regular hotels are difficult to come by in Europe and cost a fair bit more.

I honestly admire those that can have a good time with children in tow. Its been so long since I had kids that age don't remember what entertained them. Find a location with great zoos, parks, changing rooms, colors and ...... hmmmmmmmmm Actually the flight over can be a little tedious so why not look at Canada or Costa Rica or .......

mariajmonroy, when my kids were that young we were so desperately poor that I never had to deal with this question. When the time did come when we could afford to do something, anything, outside the house we were pretty ready and willing to do it without them. They survived and are now semi-productive members of society.

Mariajmonroy, okay, a serious suggestion. Not that there aren’t other places as good, but this is one I know about.

Fly to Budapest, rent an apartment so you have all the flexibility that apartments can provide. Make sure the apartment is properly located in the heart of the city.

Now without car seats you can reach two major parks, one with a zoo and one with large play areas, pedal cars, flowers and trees. Within walking distance are plazas with long sight lines (kids like that), buildings with lots of detail and color (more kid friendly stuff).

In the afternoon the theaters have child friendly performances. Even suitable for the smallest who are stimulated by the music.

If you hit a day where there is some special event going on in town, a substantial part of every event is child friendly.

It is something I could help you plan.

I would pick either Vancouver (sorry, still North America but I can't resist in case you've never been there) or a Scandinavian/ Nordic country (even Iceland). Very easy to get around, stress-free and child friendly...and as a bonus, they don't get hot in the summer unlike other places and have plenty of scenic outdoor options.

I applaud you for involving your kids in travel early on instead of hunkering down at home.

James you are funny! We have 450,000 aa miles so that's how we can afford this. I'm sure the kids would be fine back home with grandma but we want to take them. We are pretty attached to them and we honestly wouldn't have fun without them. If they were older I'm sure it would be totally different. I do wonder if this is crazy and maybe we just shouldn't do it. We have traveled before with them but always within the U.S. I'll look into your suggestions and see what my husband thinks. I am strongly considering not just staying in Paris the two weeks or maybe even trying Madrid. The littlest one has a dairy allergy/intolerance and if he doesn't fully outgrow it by then then there is no way we can go anyways.

We don't have the easiest children so maybe it's worth waiting on this trip.

I was thinking London as well, Mira. Besides the parks (they'd probably enjoy the playground in Kensington Gardens or a row on the Serpentine in Hyde Park), the beauty of this city is that many of the museums are free. This is an enormous bonus. IMHO, with little ones as you can pop in and out as desired, and don't need to feel like you've wasted a ticket price if your child has an unexpected meltdown 15 minutes into the visit. Flexibility is a wonderful thing to have when traveling with little folks!

They'd probably enjoy the Tower as well; not free, unfortunately, but lots of interesting things to look at.

Off top of my head, the V&A Museum of Childhood, London Transport Museum and HMS Belfast might be good choice as well. Lots to do in London, and some of the museums provide age appropriate activities so do a little reading up?

London is lovely in June---long days with twilight lasting well into late evening, lots of people out walking with children even at 10 pm. The parks are a real joy.

We will be there in late May and our son and his wife are joining us with children who will be 4 and almost 2. They travel a lot with their children---the older one has already been to Ireland and Paris, before his little sister was born. I have rented a nice apartment just off the South Bank Thames Path, so we can walk a traffic-free path a long way along the river.

London buses are stroller-friendly and easier to access than the Tube. There are river boats that can transport you to various points up and down the river as well.

And in an English-speaking country you will have an easier time reading labels to find foods appropriate for the little one with a dairy allergy.

Without knowing your departing airport, I would have to agree with Mira regarding London, and add Paris as well. Both cities have lovely parks and entertainment for little ones. I always found art museums entertained my pre-schooler as well, particularly sculptures so you might be surprised what keeps them interested. As a grade schooler, she loved historical and massacre sites. I think 2 and 4 are good ages to start traveling a greater distance from home, although I would try to stick to direct flights if possible. I only traveled once without my daughter, when she was one year old, and I felt an emptiness that I didn't want to duplicate as our complete family was missing! She always had a responsibility as well. When she was young she was in charge of counting the pieces of luggage/purse/daybag to make sure we always had everything in transport (of course, invisible oversight was there). After that she went everywhere with me until approximately ages 12-14 when she didn't want to go anywhere with me...LOL. She's now much more traveled than I am... So do it! Wray

As others have said,what's wrong with Canada? Your dollar will go really far right now and the language isn't an issue. Even if you go to Quebec where French is the main language,you will not have any problems since in the tourist areas,they speak English.

Frankly, since you have said that one of your children may have some issues (dietary),then this makes even more sense to travel to Canada where the labels are clearly understood. My dh and I never travelled on our own until the "kids" were 7 and 4. That was a big mistake. Everyone needs a "couples only" vacation if it's in their budget which you clearly do since you have so many points. So why not do both? JMO

I will say that if you can afford it, go! Go where you want to go (within reason). My philosophy on this is twofold - 1. Your kids will travel better in the future if they start young and 2. You can't put off your own life just because you have kids. Life is short, and the time when your kids are young is even shorter. Enjoy when and where you can. If travel is important to your family, and affordable, then go. Yes, you will see less than going alone. You will also see more - seeing it through the eyes of your kids, plus having kids allows you to meet locals and do more "local" things. Before kids, my husband and I would stay in nice boutique hotels, eat at nice restaurants, and enjoy museums and bars. Now we stay in apartments in more residential areas and go to the market to shop and eat as local families do. We will go to the museum, but we will also seek out parks and playgrounds filled with local kids, and kids of other family travelers from all over. We do occasionally leave the kids at Grandma's for 7-10 days max, which is nice too, but on those trips we still sometimes do the stay in an apartment, more relaxed style.

One of my children is not the easiest. He is on the autism spectrum, has food allergies and needs a set schedule. We make it work, but it does take lots of planning. PM me with specific questions.

Honestly, to me, western Europe is no harder (or easier) than a trip to a farther away US city. We live near Chicago, and going to Seattle is not much easier than going to Barcelona. The language barrier is obvious, but that's not going to affect kids that much - as long as you can handle it and don't get stressed. The strategies are the same - the way you help your child enjoy a sight in the US is the same way you do it in Paris.

One thing I did when my kids were that age - I made a picture book of what we would see. There would be a picture of a train, of the eiffel tower, of a mummy at the British Museum, of a double decker bus, of the Mona Lisa, etc etc etc. So they would be excited to see what was "in their book!".

If you do want to stay in the US/Canada, let me also suggest Hawaii. It's far (especially if you don't live on the west coast), feels exotic, but is also familiar as part of the US. On one hand, it's a good way to try out a "big trip" without leaving the country. On the other hand, depending on your kids it may be nerve wracking - lots of water safety concerns. I like it because I like beaches but can't stand too long on a beach at one time - if that makes sense. There are wonderful beaches, but unlike some of the Caribbean, there is a lot to do with kids besides the beach.

mariajmonroy; go have a blast. I would think staying in one town with an apartment would be the easiest way to do it. I would have done it if i could have back then.

I am certain you are excellent parents and that they are great kids; but do keep your activities sort of age and activity appropriate. European children are much more sedate in public settings than are American kids (I know, it’s a gross generalization, and I hate gross generalizations) so be cognizant of that. I have a close business associate in Budapest that jokes that he can tell where the people come from by how often and how loud their kids scream. He thinks only the British kids can compete with the American kids volume and frequency; but only American parents will take the screaming kids into the Opera House. Certainly more (false) perception than reality.