Europe in April with small kids

Not very warm yet in April. But you might look into meeting them in the Netherlands. Tulips are hot then - see Keukenhof Gardens. Madurodam is good too. It's being redone and reopens in March: http://www.holland.com/us/Tourism/article/madurodam-holland-at-its-smallest.htm There are castles you can visit - http://www.castles.nl/nl/nl.html and Zaanse Schans is great for families - http://www.zaanseschans.nl/ And generally speaking, there are lots of attractive towns, like Delft, Volendam, and Marken, travel distances within the country are short, and the Dutch people speak lots of English and are very welcoming.

3 under 5 ? It might be better to stay in your area. There are a ton of things to see & do for day trips. We lived in K'town for several years in the dark ages (early 80's ) with 3 little ones and saw plenty. Heidelberg, Trier, Belgium, northern France, etc. Feel free to PM.

I was wearing shorts by late March last year. If next spring is anything like the last one, it could be quite warm. I'm not sure if it's open in April, but Taunus Wunderland is an amusement park for younger kids near Wiesbaden. If you want to drive a little further, Legoland is near Ulm, Phantasialand is near Köln, and Europark lies between the southern Schwartzwald and the Rhine. If the kids have any interest in a Sommerrodelbahn, there's one by Wald-Michelbad in the Odenwald... but I'm going to guess there's one closer to Frankfurt in the Taunus mountains.

I think your biggest challenge is not the # of children you'll be traveling with, but the diversity of their ages. Have you considered spending the time in Paris with them? There are some things you can do as a group- Seine River Cruise, Hop-on/Hop-off bus tour, Eiffel Tower, and visiting gardens (although the older kids won't want to play in the little kid areas). There's also plenty else to do such that you can divide up during the days and meet up for meals. The other place I would recommend would be going to a beach area on the Mediterranean. There's tourist stuff to see, but there's also the beach. If you're lucky, the weather will be warm enough and the kids can swim. The other problem could be getting hotel rooms at the same hotel. Rooms for five are few and far between (BTDT - we're a family of 5) and it's entirely possible that your party of 10 would need to rent 3-4 rooms at some hotels. You could try finding apartment rentals at a residence (they'll have multiple apartments to rent) or a vacation home. If you do chose somewhere in France, I must give you the heads up that Spring Break doesn't start until after Easter here. It could be crowded and/or expensive.

wow thank you all for your advise:-D Hotels are a big issue for my Friends so we are now pricing up house rentals. I have heard the Grand Canary Island is a place for beach side. And the main island is better for families. None of us have been there so any tips would be great.. Traveling with kids isn't to hard if your prepared. And having 3 kids life is always on the move and a bit crazy so traveling is a no problem ;-D..Thanks again for all your input please keep them coming... Have a great day

Nicole One idea you might consider is renting apartments in the same building. If you work through an apartment rental company, they often have places together. You can search on this site for highly recommended ones. Another idea is to see if you can bring an older teen from Germany with you to watch the younger kids when they take their naps or you want to go out in the evening. And depending on how good she is with the kids, she could manage the older ones as well. In the evening, for instance, you can wait until after you put the little ones to bed to go out, and then she can watch the 2 older ones. Good luck in making your plans! Bobbie