Destination ideas

How about Germany in summer?
Looking for hills? Black Forest, Harz mountains, Upper Mid Rhine Valley, Moselle area, Saxon Switzerland or German Alpine Road. Or choose other of top 100 of Germany (voted by travelers).

Portugal and Spain can be very hot during summer.

I have been to Lisbon, Portugal which I can highly recommend. It is beautiful and interesting with lots to do.

Lisbon is very hilly and it is compared to San Francisco but I stayed in the flat neighborhood which is the Baixa neighborhood. I have mobility issues due to age and arthritis of the knee so I have to avoid a lot of steps and hills.

You can then take buses, taxis, or uber to other areas. I heard that taxis and uber are very reasonable. Also Lisbon has four different hop on off buses.

If you. choose Lisbon, you would want to. visit Belem and Sintra. My memory is that Belem is flat but Sintra is uphill to the castles and palaces. There is a bus or you can take a taxi.

I was on a. cruise and we ported at Porto but I took an excursion to Braga and Braga is a wonderful place but hilly. You could take an excursion to Braga from Porto.

But you might want to spend some time in Porto. I did not but it came very well recommended. I had to make a choice and i chose Braga.

Thank you for the suggetions. I will need to look into Germany.

If you consider Germany, Wurzburg is a place to consider for a five day base. In addition to the city itself (good for at least two or three days), you can easily do day trips to Rothenburg, Aschaffenburg, Frankfurt, Heidelberg, and Nuremberg. Do some research and see what you think.

My elderly parents (65)

That hurt!

I agree with Germany as a potential destination. June is also a great time to visit low countries--Netherland, Belgium, and Luxembourg.

Anything specific your kids are interested in?

I agree Portugal and Spain will be very warm in June (not sure if that's a problem for you/your family). If you are looking at Black Forest as suggested above, I found Freiburg to be a great place for a base- very cute town, lots of nice restaurants etc, and an easy drive to many of the local beauty spots (I personally really liked Titisee but I remember it being one of the few places Rick Steves hated on his tv show!).

Scotland is one of my favourite places in the world, and in my opinion June is the best time to visit- the weather has turned nice and the daylight lasts forever- even in the middle of the night the sky isn't quite 100% dark. Edinburgh isn't quite flat but my parents are a similar age and don't have any issues visiting. You can visit a lot of the highlands/islands without having to walk hills/stairs too.

Anything specific your kids are interested in?

Both of the kids are pretty easy going. They would rather walk around and look at things, including beutiful landscapes, instead of sitting by the pool/beach all day.

Scotland is one of my favourite places in the world

Scottland is the top choice at the moment. Trying to figure out specific places to stay for 5 days each, with day trips to near by locations.

I would recommend Scotland as well! We visited in June 2023 and we had spectacular weather. Edinburgh isn't very hilly at all. We loved the Isle of Skye and Glencoe. We did some easy flat walks. We are in our 70's, and we had no issues getting around Scotland. If you choose Scotland, I highly recommend driving down the Loch Etive Road in Glencoe. The scenery is stunning especially in June when all the rhododendrons are in bloom.

We visited many interesting castles and cathedrals, such as Urquhart Castle, Cawdor Castle & Gardens, Dunvegan Castle & Gardens,
Elgin Cathedral ruins, Stirling Castle, and Edinburgh Castle. They were all easy to get around.

wqg3otaj, Just saw your post that Scotland is your first choice. Edinburgh is a great place to stay for 5 nights, and that could include a daytrip to Rosslyn Chapel and/or the fishing villages of the Fife Coast and St. Andrews.

You could spend 4 or 5 nights in Nairn, a seaside village about 20 minutes from Inverness. From here, you can visit Cawdor Castle, Culloden Battlefield, Elgin Cathedral, Inverness if that interests you and your family, and other places, too.

Then from Nairn on your way to Isle of Skye, you can visit the ruins of Urquhart Castle and stop to take a photo of Eilean Donan Castle. You could very easily spend 4 ot 5 nights on Skye.

And try to fit in Glencoe, too.

If you visit the Isle of Skye, here is the link to a blog I found very helpful. We followed this roadtrip itinerary around Skye that helped us see the highlights and beauty in a very orderly manner. No backtracking and wasting time.
 
https://www.ontheluce.com/isle-of-skye-itinerary/

Amsterdam or a river cruise.

My elderly parents (65)

Oh, please. I've got 10 years on your parents, use a cane to get around, and easily and happily did 2 weeks touring around Scotland last September. Plus, if you do your homework, you can find out the disability accommodations available at sites like Edinburgh Castle for those with mobility issues. Don't let a few hills and stairs stop you from visiting one of the most beautiful places in Europe.

Edinburgh is a good 5-day base. Day trips include the Falkirk Wheel and the Kelpies. Consider staying in Leith, which is charming and has loads of restaurants. Easy tram ride into the city center. Or the heartier souls can walk the Water of Leith Walkway, which goes through the very Instagramable Dene Village. If you start the walk at (the Scottish National Gallery of) Modern (Art) Two, you can see Andrew Gormley's Six Times. The first one is in front of the museum, and the last one is in the harbor in Leith. A great day out!
P.S. 65 is not considered elderly on the RS site. Not by a long shot. But people of any age can have difficulty with hills and stairs. Since you likely won't have a car (because a vehicle that seats 6 is rare and unwieldy in a left-side drive country), there is likely to be a row of shops and a comfortable pub (or tea room or cafe or whatever) where they can pass the time while the others are climbing the hills and stairs.