4 month rough itinerary in Europe with two teenagers

It looks like you are well aware of the Schengen area rules/regs. I often see a caution about making sure that you count the entry day and exit day as full days and that it is wise to build a day buffer into the plan so that if an unforeseen circumstance comes up you have a little wiggle room.

I think you have a wonderful trip planned for your family that you will all remember for years to come.

Yes, we did count entry and exit days as full days and if needed, would cut time off of France to ensure exiting on time.

My only suggestion would be to cut one day off of Paris or somewhere in Schengen so it is 89 days. You never know what can happen and having a one day buffer will help in terms of unforseen circumstances like the current strikes in France.

How wonderful to have that much time! I hope you don't plan to cover the length of Spain in 12 days, because that will not allow you to fully appreciate what is there. Perhaps just no farther south than Madrid/Toledo/Segovia, or skip Barcelona this time except for the cruise stop and just do Madrid/Toledo/Segovia and Andalucía.

I suspect you're going to be very, very short on time in Berlin. It's a spread-out city with a lot of good and large museums, plus a number of very interesting historical sights from the WW II and Cold War eras. I found six days too short by a considerable margin.

I'm confused about what you're planning in France, because you mention the south and Normandy, but then allot 10 full days to Paris. Ten days isn't enough for all three regions once you allow for travel time. If you really do have 10 days for Paris, I'd move at least two of them to Berlin.

I've been taking summer-long trips to Europe the last few years, and I've learned a few things:

• When you're on the road that long, you're likelier to get sick that you are at home. Two fairly common US over-the-counter remedies that seem to be unavailable in Europe are high-zinc-content lozenges (Cold-eeze) and Pepto-Bismol. I've learned to take lots of the former with me for those summer colds that I never get at home. I'm sure every country has something that more or less serves the same purpose as Pepto-Bismol, but I haven't found anything that substitutes for the zinc lozenges.

• Be sure everyone's up to date on vaccinations.

• A trip of that length is tiring. A pace that works for 10-14 days cannot be sustained for four months. Just keep that in mind. You don't want to crash and miss your very highest-priority sights. The second cruise will probably help a lot, because it seems to have several at-sea days.

• Four months is long enough for socks to wear out if they weren't new at the beginning of the trip. Shoes can break down significantly in that amount of time, so I wouldn't take heavily-worn shoes as my primary pair.

• Three months (not counting the cruises) can do a number on suitcase wheels, especially if they are attached to low-cost spinner bags. You'll be driving a lot, though, so this may not prove an issue for you. (But if you use the same bags for another long trip, watch out.)

• Be brutal about reducing suitcase bulk and weight. On a long trip, even an extra pound can be maddening, and you don't want to have to pay to ship unnecessary items home. You know you're going to be accruing souvenirs as you go.

Where do I sign up for your kind of job that a) allows 4 months vacation and b) pays well enough to do so?

Looks like a fabulous trip. Sure hope your kids appreciate the treat you are providing them.

The poster above me covered most everything but the only thing I'd add is allow your children to have some free time without you. Spending four months 24/7 in a foreign country with my parents and my siblings as a teenager would be torture no matter how much I loved them. I'd look into getting a cell phone plan for Europe.

Also, plan for some down days, every week or every other week where the you and kids can sleep late, work on the computer or just relax. As Rick tells people, you and especially your children will probably get back to Europe someday. Enjoy!

@joe I'm a business owner having shed a lot of blood, sweat and tears over the last 15 years to get to where I have a great team and the liberty to have the business running while I travel...plus I can work from anywhere with an internet connection. My husband just left his shift job to be home with me running the business...something we didn't plan on happening for another five years. It just has all come together. I also sure do hope this is an amazing and memorable time for the kids and that they will appreciate it!

The more replies I'm reading, we are taking everything into consideration to have longer stays in places and definitely plan to have days "off", sleeping in, etc.

Enjoy your well earned and deserved vacation. Be sure to include some 'vacation' days in your travels.

No idea how closely you follow RS, but in the tour itinerary for the Best of Italy tour,it includes Cinque Terre as a "vacation from your vacation" stop.

I havne't pored over the whole itinerary, but I want to emphasize acraven's point about Berlin. It's got enough sights for many days, and if one has any interest in history (and you specifically said your husband and son did), you could spend a full day in the German History Museum alone. I'd definitely add days to Berlin, and cut from somewhere else (where, of course, is up to you - but don't shortchange Berlin).

Sounds like an awesome trip! One item I noticed, though: picking up a rental car in Switzerland and dropping it in France might be an issue. Others have mentioned this in other posts, I believe. Might be something to check on.

I think it is too fast a pace. Sure sounds good for 14 days. Travelling with a 12 year old, we found it best to have a down day about every week. Surprise them with stuff explicitly for them. As a poster above stated, give them some freedom. We found a water park and spend the day there. It really brightened her mood for the rest of the trip. There is a gelato shop in Rome that has 150 flavors, "get lost and keep walking by and trying new flavors" Make them order from the menu. Have them pick sites and restaurants. It brings their interest up.

Also, when are you planning on doing laundry?

It is supposed to be a vacation. Insist on a no MCdonalds Rule!

Most of all have fun!

Athens to Venice, aren't there any flights? Time saved could be spent in Venice.
Krakow- there are excellent free walking tours that meet in Rynek Growny Square, a variety of different ones. We took the one about the WWII Jewish Ghetto which ended at the Shindler Museum which we toured on our own.

Ooh, I missed the Athens-Venice bit. I just assumed the cruise ended somewhere in Italy. If it does not, that's a problem. Riding the rails between Athens and Venice would be a nightmarish experience. It's fine to slog through the Balkans if you have lots of time to stop at the many fascinating places along the way (allow many weeks), but over 40 hours on a train without such stops--no way.

If the cruise ends in Athens, you'll need to fly out. If flight options to Venice are poor, reconfigure the itinerary to insert a different city right after Athens.

The cruise disembarks near Rome, Italy so we would take the train to Venice.

I have taken the liberty to imagine that I was in your place, and consider what I would do, with the time available given the set dates of the 2 cruises.

Day #
1..Barcelona - 5 nights
6..Provence - 5 nights
11..Cote d’Azur - 4 nights
15..Florence & Tuscany - 6 nights
21..Amalfi Coast - 4 nights
25..Rome - 5 nights
30..embark in Rome to CRUISE - 12 nights
42..disembark in Rome, to Venice - 3 nights
45..Munich & Bavaria - 5 nights
50..Salzburg & Tirol - 4 nights
54..Prague - 3 nights
57..Berlin - 4 nights
61..Hamburg - 1 night
62..embark in Hamburg to CRUISE - 7 nights
69..disembark in Hamburg, to Amsterdam - 4 nights
73..Belgium - 4 nights
77..Normandy - 4 nights
81..Paris - 8 nights
89..London - 5 nights
94..England - 8 nights
102..Scotland - 8 nights
110..Ireland - 10 nights
120..Home

....The cruise disembarks near Rome, Italy so we would take the train to Venice......

The cruise disembarks at Civitavecchia about an hour from Rome. You would take a train to Rome Termini and change to a train to Venice. There are three or four trains an hour from Civit... to Termini.

Other things that are hard to find in Europe (without a prescription) are Tums and Ibuprofin. Easy to take along.

Also double-check all passports to make sure none are close to expiring. I'd want 6 months left on each on day you leave for trip.

I've also brought my teens to Europe and these are things I'd highly recommend:

In Berlin, you can take a free tour any day at the Brandenburg Gate. Google "Sandeman's free Berlin". They also offer other tours which are good.

While in Prague you can take a 45 min train ride to Kutna Hora, with it's famous Bone Church. Google image it. You can take a taxi from the station or just take the 20 min. walk (to your right) and see the Bone Church on your right.

Munich/Austria: my kids enjoyed Hitler's Hideout in Berchtesgaden, the ice cave (Eisriesenwelt) in Werfen, and the Sound of Music tour in Salzburg.

Munich (and Interlaken Ost): my kids enjoyed browsing in the local Aldi stores. Lots of inexpensive foods and items you don't see in the USA.

Geneva: you can rent bikes for free. See www.geneveroule.ch

Normandy: I highly highly recommend taking a tour with a great guide. Well worth the money. We used Alan Bryson of firstnormandybattlefieldtours.com and he was great but there are other good ones as well. Check the France forum on here or Tripadvisor for other recommendations.

Berner Oberland: I've got a page listing our dozen fav hikes in the area, with maps and pics. Click on my name to send me a private message if you'd like that info.

acraven's given excellent advice on what can happen in long-travel! I would add to bring Benedryl if you use it, as well as Ibuprofen. Benedryl is hard to find (impossible in Italy) and Ibuprofen can be frighteningly expensive. Replacement socks and tee-shirts are easy to find. :-)

Socks and T-shirts are indeed easy to find, but the socks I bought (in a French store, not a cheap market stall) were the most misshapen things I've ever seen. It's not going to happen again; I asked everyone to give me socks for Christmas last year!

What a cool trip! Some thoughts:

-Definitely add time to Berlin. 3 days is fine if you're moving at a 2-week trip pace, but not for this marathon. I'd try to do at least 5 there.

-10 days for Munich/Bavaria/Austria, assuming you're hitting the standard Berchtesgaden/Salzburg highlights, is good. Munich has some great museums, but otherwise the "sights" can be in a full day unless you want to do two palaces (I find it's easy to overdose on baroque palaces, myself. They all start to look alike after a while.) So 3 -4 days in Munich is probably sufficient. I would consider basing the rest of your time in Bavaria in a smaller town in the alps and doing day trips with a rental car.

-The French portion of the trip makes my head spin. 10 days for the South of France, Normandy, AND Paris? This is way too much coming at the end of your trip. Save time and exhaustion and take a high speed TGV from Geneva to Normandy, and then rent a car and spend 5-6 days hitting Normandy and northern Brittany (Mont St. Michele, St. Malo at least). Then return the car and take a TGV to Paris. Trust me, did an 8 day trip driving from Germany to Normandy/Brittany and I really regret wasting the time driving and not having more time once I got there.

Our (first) trip to Europe last year was from the beginning of April until shortly before Thanksgiving. We took a transatlantic cruise both ways, two weeks each. We are slow movers, impulse power or thrusters as opposed to warp speed. I would have to agree with the poster who said too much and too fast. You don't seem to have a whole lot of down time. You don't seem to have any room for the unexpected, such as transportation issues or illness. Denis got sick three times, one of which required medical care. I got sick twice and then again on the return cruise. Illness can totally trash your plans. You also don't seem to have any room for any "il dolce far niente". Rick suggests building in a vacation into your vacation. We took that advice seriously and were glad we did. Another mantra is to assume you can/will return. We leave again in two weeks. :-)

I'm glad you've said you'd like to do some apartments. I think you'll appreciate the freedom to eat in, to leave the laundry on the drying rack, to just chill.

Whatever you decide, have a great time!

Since your husband and son are interested in WWII history, have them check out a site called thirdreichruins.com It shows many places in Germany during and right after the war and what they look like today.

With regard to "...going to TRY to plan carry ons to make flying easier...", we go on cruises with an "American Size" carry on. But most of the airlines in Europe have smaller size restrictions. But then we've traveled in Europe for three or so weeks with a "European Size" carry on as well. So it can be done. Let me know if you need our packing list.

Oh, if you've not already done so, get the kids really involved in the planning. Much less likely to have "unhappy campers" if they have some skin in the game.

Your trip looks amazing!!

Just a few points ...

our last trip to Europe with our kids (8, 10 and 13) was Spain. We were there for 16 nights and struggled to fit everything in. And we didn't make it further north than Barcelona. We did Barcelona 3nts, Sevilla 4 nts, Granada 2nts, la Carihuela (on the beach near Torremolinos) 3 nights and Madrid 4 nights. Even then we wished we had a few more days at the beach, a chance to visit Valencia and a chance to visit the Basque region. Just make sure you figure out what you wish to see and use that to realistically state the number of days in each location.

As others, I don't see 10 days in France working with the areas you wish to cover. You did visit Paris before but what do your son and husband wish to see. Our first visit was 5 nights but our second visit was with my mother in law so she wanted to see many of the sights we already visited. It was four nights and there are many things we still haven't seen.

We've spent extensive time in Switzerland. It is one of our loves in Europe. We visited the Bernese Oberland on our first visit and definitely plan to return. Look at Chalet Fontana. In Murren, inexpensive and perfect for our family. Four nights there and two around Lake Geneva (consider Vevey) is wonderful. But if you have a few more days, maybe visit Basel or Lucerne. Both are lovely and very different from the areas you plan to visit. You don't need a car in Switzerland. The trains are amazing and you can't bring a car into Murren if you plan to stay there. Take the train to Lake Geneva.

Your time in Rome looks good. We had six nights but we did a private daytrip to Pompeii.

My husband and I took our two kids on a 4-month European sabbatical trip a few years ago (first two months in Germany, 3 weeks in Austria, a week in Paris, a month in UK). Obviously, everyone is different, so I would never assume our way is best for everyone. But we learned some pretty universal truths that year.

1. PACK LIGHTLY. We thought we did, then sent back 2 suitcases, sticking with backpacks only. On the road, less is definitely more.

2. We traveled by train using our family EURAIL pass and loved every minute of it. We never rented a car. German trains are spotless and punctual, a great way to explore.

3. Highly recommend HOMEAWAY.com, AirBnB.com and SabbaticalHomes.com. You hear the occasional bad luck story, but we have been very fortunate with all 3, great experiences with landlords and accommodations.

4. LEAVE A FEW SCHENGEN DAYS FREE. We bought round trip tickets to Frankfurt, then wanted to switch our departure airport to London's Heathrow. No go. It cost less to fly back to Frankfurt and stay overnight in Germany than to change departure tickets, so we were happy we had a few Schengen days left.

5. LESS REALLY IS MORE. Moving from city to city every few days is exciting. And exhausting. After several weeks, we dropped our bags in "our" apartment in Munich and let out a happy sigh. An entire month in one spot was just what we needed and the best of both worlds -- the excitement of being abroad combined with the feeling of "home." Sounds like you will recharge on some cruise ships, but there's still something to be said for longer stays. We rented bicycles in Munich and really got to know the city. We once stayed in Florence for a month, which still wasn't long enough but was glorious all the same. There is nothing better than feeling like you "live" in a city you've fallen in love with.

6. PEOPLE ARE HELPFUL. When confused about trains, directions, language, whatever it was, someone always (every time!) stepped up to offer help. Yes, there are occasional grumps out there, but they are far outnumbered by helpers. And, just as an aside, it really is amazing (and somewhat embarrassing to us monolingual folks) how so many people in other countries speak flawless English.

7. QUALITY over quantity. I once overheard a tourist (looking up at the Duomo in Florence) say, "Well, there's the Dome. We don't have time to go in but we can at least say we saw it." Go in. The view from the top is spectacular.

8. Bring your RICK STEVES travel guidebooks; they really do enhance the experience. Watch the DVDs before you go. (Thanks to Rick, we added a few stops which ended up being favorites). We downloaded Rick's free audio apps for an audio guide in the Uffizi Gallery. He also took us on a walking tour of Paris where we discovered many new (to us) neighborhoods and sites.

At the end of our 3 Schengen months, my kids were travel weary. We Googled "pretty coastal UK towns," then ended up in Falmouth, Cornwall, England, because we found a row house available for the entire month of June. Beautiful cliff-side beaches, bustling harbor town, ferry boats to other quaint towns, and lots of friendly people made this the best way to wrap up our travels. There is something to be said for taking leaps of faith on the road.

When we got back to the U.S., the comment we heard most was: "Oh, you must be so happy to finally sleep in your own bed again!"
Nothing could have been further from the truth. I missed the trains, the languages/accents, specialty foods, church bells. Mostly I missed being in our little family bubble, just the four of us, discovering the world together, far from our ordinary lives. There were mishaps and missteps, but those turned into some of our best stories. We've had other awesome trips, but none quite as epic as that sabbatical one.

Wishing you all a fantastic adventure. Happy trails to you!

And just to address some specific questions:

You asked if 10 days was long enough in Munich/Bavaria/Austria. If you are looking to squeeze in as much as possible, you could probably see quite a bit of the region in 10 days. We met a couple of people (while we were staying in Munich) who only had three or four days in Munich; they had decided to use one of the days for a day trip to Salzburg. We met them on their way back into Munich. They said the day trip was all you really needed to "do" Salzburg. We later spent a week in Salzburg. We walked up to the Castle one day and discovered the Nonnberg Abbey along our path (we were invited to join a private tour - one woman and her guide -- into the basement to see frescoes not available for public viewing, a wonderful bonus.) We rode bikes along the wide dirt road where Julie Andrews and the Sound of Music movie kids shot their bicycle scene, then found other Sound of Music sites throughout the week (gazebo, fountain, etc.) Salzburg is beautiful. The old town is full of quaint shops and character. You can walk/bicycle along the Salzach River, Alps in the distance. I didn't want to leave. So I guess it all depends on what kind of experience you want.

7 days in Florence/Tuscany. Best to get tickets to the Uffizi and to David's Galleria dell'Accademia purchased ahead of time. Lots to do in Florence!! Sink into Renaissance art (Pitti Palace also has a nice collection). Walk or bus up to Piazelle Michelangelo for gorgeous scenic views of the city. If you want to sit and eat dinner (have an aperitif or gelato) with a view, head up the hill (a steep hike or a quick bus ride) to Fiesole, a cozy village overlooking Florence. More gorgeous views, a British pub and other restaurants, a smattering of stores. There are many great day trips from Florence too. Our favorite was to Siena. Lucca was beautiful too. We went to Pisa to climb the leaning tower and take iconic photos; a lot of fun, but glad we only spent a day there.

You've gotten a ton of advice from lots of people, but I think the best thing you could do for yourself would be to try to minimize actual travel/road time, doing it as efficiently as possible. Have the cruises already been booked? Are you working the itinerary around those? It would be great to start in southern Italy and work your way north since you're going to end up in the UK. But looking at length of time at each stop, the pace isn't too rigorous. It is nice to have a week per stop. What you want to avoid ist moving from place to place every couple of days, because the logistics start overshadowing the travel in between. I think your trip sounds pretty awesome!!!

The weather is very different in these places. UK and Ireland tend to be wet and cool, sometimes 50s/60s in summer, chance of rain frequently. I'm assuming further north (Norway) would be cooler (I haven't been there). Italy, summers are steamy with lots of bright sun. Greece is probably the same. So pack a variety of clothing.

For WWII historical sites/interests, Nuremberg is really interesting. We saw the courthouse where Nuremberg trials were held (couldn't go in to the room because a trial was in progress), and we went to the Documentation Center (museum and grounds where Nazis held massive rallies). Nuremberg itself is a walled city, rebuilt after being destroyed in WWII to look exactly as it was before the war. Walking through the cobblestone streets feels like traveling back in time -- but with modern cafes and shops. (One of my favorite Starbucks is in Nuremberg.) Lots of WWII associations there, plus Albrecht Duhrer Museum, a Medieval Dungeon tour, etc.

Enjoy the planning. I love getting ready to travel. Have fun!!