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Southern Italy or Southern Spain with kids in June

I will be traveling with 11 and 15 year old boys (3 of us) for 3 weeks in June. We fly in and out of Paris. Tickets have already been purchased. We will likely take trains to travel in between cities.
I would like to have some down beach time for the boys of about 6 days.
We will visit a dear friend in Luzern Switzerland so here are our options:

Paris->Luzern->Venice->Puglia->Rome->Paris
OR
Paris->Luzern->Barcelona->Malorca(or Malaga -may have a place to stay)->San Sebastian->Paris

I welcome thoughts on which beach might be more relaxing and any possible safety concerns.
This will be my kids first trip to Europe and overseas.

Thank you!
Sarah

Posted by
15794 posts

I'm not familiar with Puglia (yet - it is high on my list)

In Spain, instead of flying to Mallorca and back, you could train to Valencia (interesting sights and architecture + beach) which is about 1/2 the distance from Barcelona as Malaga is. Barcelona has plenty of beaches too and water activities, which you could combine/alternating with sightseeing.

Posted by
6 posts

Thank you Chani! I have been to Valencia and it is beautiful! Good suggestion!

Posted by
1230 posts

Thats a lot of train travel. Look for flights for the longer train rides, as they can be very cheap (cheaper even) than trains. We flew from Rome to Paris for $50 for example, which was less time and money. I think either would be great, and that you should talk to the boys about the differences and what they want to experience. Same for you. Sounds like you've been to Spain--

Posted by
6 posts

Thanks Jessica! Yes, I'm thinking that we should fly back to Paris via Ryan air. Thanks again for your feedback! Sarah

Posted by
143 posts

I like your first option a lot more but it is because I gravitate towards very beautiful scenic locations. I prefer Venice and Rome over Barcelona and Malaga.

I have not gone to Puglia yet but when I do, I want to go to Matera and Polignano al mare.

In general I prefer the Italian coast line than the Spanish one; I find it more quaint and no skyscrapers.

Posted by
12315 posts

I'd go with the first option. San Sebastian is a nice beach town but it may or may not be beach weather in June. The north coast of Spain gets nice in the high summer months but is pretty rainy and chilly outside of that.