Help!! I have never been out of the us and i want the most bang for my buck

Get the boys involved in the planning. They will already have an idea of what they would like to do and where they would like to go and having them participate in the planning takes alot of pressure off of you. My girls (12+14) read the Rick Steves books, and made notes of what they wanted to see and do, and what they were Not interested in. We then each made a list of 10 things we really wanted to do, see, eat, buy or experience and that helped to shape our trip.

I would suggest getting a copy of Rick Steve's "Europe Through The Back Door" to start. And then perhaps his guidebook on Europe in general.

Keisha, as Frank suggested, the first place to start would be Europe Through The Back Door. It's an essential pre-read for first-time travellers to Europe! Once you've got some idea of the cities you want to visit, use Rick's country-specific books to work out sightseeing attractions, places to stay, etc. What time of year were you planning to take this trip?

If you only have 10 days in each location, you won't have time to really "get a feel for the area". Paris alone needs at least 4-5 days as there's LOTS to see! Your stops in Germany will probably be focussed on visiting with your Son's family. Which area of Germany do your relatives live? It would help also to know the ages of your Sons?

For covering "as much ground as possible", travel by rail is probably your best option. The transit systems in Europe are excellent!

Good luck with your planning!

My sons are 17, 14, 12, and 8 and the area of Germany is Berlin, I want to see everything I can in the amount of time I have off

Years ago I took my 9 year old to Finland for 3 weeks and Paris for 1 week. We stayed with friends in Finland and the BEST thing I did was when he would get bored once in awhile in Finland, I gave him the Paris books (one was Rick Steves)and had him make an itinerary for our week in Paris. I told him the sites I wanted to see. He wrote it out every day taking into account which day the Louvre was open late, etc. He revised and revised until he was satisfied.

The best part of this is that he educated himself on the locations and HE would want to stick it the itinerary and see everything. I don't think this would be the case if I had dragged him to lots of museums without the preparation. Best trip ever!

I think 10 days in each location will do just fine. I feel that 4 nights in any major European city does well to tour around. Granted, I am usually wiped out after cities like Paris and Rome. I don't know how old your kids are, but I am just going to assume teens and older (able bodied and grown for all intents). I would say Paris for 5 nights, the Alsace region for 4 nights (this will be less grueling than Paris and a change of pace), then off to Germany. Rhine River Valley for 4 nights, take 6 days to travel from Frankfurt down to Munich, sleeping in cities like Rothenburg/Nuremburg/Stuttgart. Then train it to Bruges for 2 nights, Brussels for 4 nights, and Amsterdam for 4 nights. Then head home.

thanks a million I am already incorporating them in planning as far as what they do and don't want to do I just want lots of memories and this to be the first of many family vacations all over the world

Dear Keisha,
I know we live in an internet world where everything is available...but I also go the local library and look at other guide books besides Rick's. In addition, our library has travel DVD's.(Including Rick's) Before we went on our first trip to England, I brought home several on England and Audrey decided where she wanted to concentrate our travel. (I had been there before). The boys might really love the DVD route. Best wishes from someone who got his first driver's license in Jamaica. George, Pittsburgh

The above suggestion is great--get Rick's dvds from the local library or tape them as they come on tv, then sit down with the boys and watch them. Figure out what destinations are most appealing to all of you. And like others said, sit down and read Europe through the back door.

There are also TONS of resources--books, online, etc--for travel with kids and teens.

I've become a huge fan of Cynthia Harriman's book, "Take Your Kids to Europe". It's also highly recommended by Rick Steves. I think Rick's books are great if you're only spending a few days in each place, but with the kids and taking a slower pace, I'd get Cynthia's book, too. It's got lots of information on trip planning with kids, accomodations with kids, transportation with kids, and kid-friendly activities.

If you're going to be around Berlin, I'd also suggest taking the S-Bahn out to Potsdam one day and renting bikes.