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Long weekend trips in Europe - where would you go?!

Our family (2 adults, 11/13 yo kids) are in Europe for an extended period with a home base, and looking for recommendations for a few 3-4 night long weekend trip suggestions this fall. It's a dream come true for us!

We love history, food, unique experiences, weird sights
(eg atlas obscura), wandering little streets, nature/national parks, science and the arts, and scheduling in some downtime.

We don't feel we need to see everything in a given place, because we know we will be back :) so we're looking for places that will be fun, eye opening, evocative and memorable given relatively narrow parameters.

Most likely they have to be cities or somewhere we can get relatively quickly from an airport to spend as much time as possible on the ground.

We are experienced travelers in Europe and beyond, and kids are intrepid and curious, but our trips have always been much longer (2-4 weeks).

On our preliminary list in no particular order (some we have visited without kids, others we have not visited yet):
Prague
Porto
Seville
Berlin
Rome
Paris
Stockholm
Vienna
Malta
Marseille
Amsterdam
Warsaw
Dublin
Ljubljana
Somewhere in the Alps?

We will probably have time for 5 of these trips. All options are on the table :) Please chime in with any suggestions!!

Posted by
28247 posts

It would be useful to know your permanent base, because even for a long weekend I'd want to limit myself to places with non-stop flights (or not-too-long train rides) from my temporary home.

The date range would also be helpful.

I've been to all the places you list except Malta and Dublin. The ones I'd consider toward the bottom of the list for 3 or 4 days are Dublin, Marseille (I'd prefer Nice) and Porto (there's more to see in and around Lisbon).

There are places I'd add for consideration, but I really need your starting point.

Posted by
10288 posts

Here is the thing: with a little planning and thinking, any of these would be worthwhile weekend destinations. There are things to see and discover in all of them — so in a sense, you can’t go wrong.

So it goes back to the ease/convenience of reaching any of them and if that is important to you , or whether you don’t mind a more involved journey to reach any given one of them.

What a wonderful opportunity! And the autumn is an absolutely great time to travel.

Kim

Posted by
7052 posts

I agree that it would be helpful to know where your base is. And also what time of the year you are there.

Posted by
3135 posts

Birmingham
Belfast
Minsk
Coventry
Manchester
Liverpool
Nantes
Catania

These cities have plenty of culture, fine dining, and history, and are relatively speaking off the beaten path. They are non-sheep destinations.

Posted by
10674 posts

Secondary cities that require airplane transfers or long train trips aren't a good choice.

Posted by
150 posts

Time frame is August through February! I will research direct flights from our home base and come back with nore specifics. But in the meantime, any dream destinations are appreciated!!

Posted by
3135 posts

Sorry about Minsk in today's environment. Had a mental lapse there. But it has museums, castles, and a spectacular WWII museum, or The Great Patriotic War as they call it.

Catania: Basilica, Mt. Edna (unbelievable!), Ursino Castle, great food and culture, ruins... I don't know where to start, and best of all it was not nearly as crowded as the usual tourist sites.

Posted by
150 posts

Ok, new list: all nonstop flights!

Paris
Prague
Rome
Amsterdam
Vienna or Salzburg? (Maybe in December?)
Venice or Verona?
Krakow, Gdansk or Warsaw?
Porto (been to Lisbon already, love port, Douro Valley is on bucket list, maybe cool during harvest?)

Posted by
1230 posts

On that list (and having traveled with kids that age recently to several of these) I would pick the first 4 on the list above for sure. Not Venice. Lots to do in Rome, Paris, Amsterdam. Of course, smaller places can be fun too (thinking places with water like an island or coastal town, which might still work in the early Fall weather-wise)

Posted by
20469 posts

Budapest of course. Budva comes to mind as well. Maybe someplace in the Tatras.

The answer to your question relies on the train connections and discount airline connections from your home base. If home were Budapest then WIzz and Ryan could take yiu to 100 fabulous destinations.

Posted by
4071 posts

You can’t go wrong with any on that list so pick a city in which you can fly directly from your home airport in Europe to prevent wasting valuable time on changing planes on your long weekend trip.

Posted by
15020 posts

Given the time of the year and the shortened new list, I still pick Paris....it's the place.

Posted by
3050 posts

Well living in Europe (but not staying here permanently) I try to pack as much travel in as I can, and they're often 3-4 day trips due to my husband's work schedule so this is essentially how I travel with a couple 7-10 day vacations thrown in as well.

You still don't say where your home base is, but depending, don't rule out trains. Better for the climate and IMO way easier with kids even though yours are older. You have to factor in that airports are madness right now which may subside by mid-September but will pick up again by late November likely, and so even if your flight time is 90 minutes, let's assume 30 minutes to get to the airport, minimum 2 hours before the flight (right now 3 is a lot safer), flight, and getting from the airport to your destination, let's say 90 minutes. That's 5 1/2 hours minimum. From where I'm at in Europe I can reach many major cities by train in significantly less time.

Another tip is to find the Facebook expat community of the place you'll be living (assuming it's large enough to have one, but all major cities will) and ask for travel tips from them.

Outside of the big four at the top of your list, I'd say Vienna and Salzburg are both great in December, both have fabulous Christmas markets. Salzburg has a Christmas museum, even. You also might want to look into the Krampus events for something really unique (assuming your 11 year old isn't easily frightened). We loved the Hellbrunner Adventzauber market in Salzburg at a palace. Vienna's a great museum and palace city which makes it great for winter travel.

Krakow in Poland is a fantastic weekend trip. Just about the right size to see everything in depth with a couple days.

Venice is a must-see but it's extremely crowded with tourists and can flood in winter. I'd consider late October if we're not having an overly wet autumn. Otherwise maybe January but again, rain-dependent.

I haven't been to Porto yet (Lisbon twice though) but everyone I know has loved it and the Douro valley and harvest would be a good time to go. Harvest will probably be quite early this year due to the crazy hot summer, so I'd start looking into that right away.

Posted by
10288 posts

Paris
Prague
Rome
Amsterdam
Vienna or Salzburg? (Maybe in December?)
Venice or Verona?
Krakow, Gdansk or Warsaw?

From the list you’ve found of non-stop flights, I think any of these would be great. Venice or Verona would fall at the bottom of my list for my personal preference. Krakow is absolutely fabulous, and really repays a visit. the first four are all must-dos, and yes Vienna and Salzburg too (and yes December would be fabulous in either or both of them).

Like I said earlier, you can’t go wrong, as long as you do a little research into where you’re going. There are things to discover and enjoy in all of them.

I’m just back from Denmark, and would add Copenhagen to the list. Love Stockholm and Oslo too. Tallinn is a gorgeous jewel. I was there in October and it snowed, it was so gorgeous. Would love to experience any of the Nordic capitals (or even secondary cities) during cozy fall and winter months.

IF you want to come to Paris, maybe wait until January. It gets crazy expensive in December, and I think the Germanic /Austrian / Scandinavian places have a more “special” feel at Christmastime. Paris in January means museums, restaurants, and indoor sites, concerts, etc. It’s the cultural season without the extra expense and frenzy of pre-Christmas.