Amsterdam & Brussels trip

Three days is okay for Amsterdam. Two Days at the most for Bruges, and one day is good for Brussels. Use the extra days for either Paris or London.

These are all very personal decisions. I do not believe that there is such thing as "too much" time at these great destinations. Still you could cover more ground, at the expense of some depth.

My own personal priorities for such a trip would be something like this. Fly into Amsterdam,
8/25 - 8/28 Amsterdam,
train to Brugges, 8/29 - 8/30 Brugges,
early train to Paris possibly with a stop for sightseeing in Brussels,
Paris 8/31 - 9/3, fly home from Paris 9/4.

Probably you have good reasons to favor the destinations that you do. I do think that an itinerary like mine is feasible and not too rushed.

Whatever you decide, you might consider ways to consolidate your travel time. With only ten days, it's a shame to have to double back to Amsterdam--much better to fly home from your last destination, whether Brussels or Paris.

I hope this is helpful!

Brussels, in my opinion, could merit 2-3 days, but you have to get away from the Grand Place and Mannekin Pis to see all the city has to offer. If you trust the kids, you may want to let them explore Leuven some evening, sans parents (zonder ouders, in Dutch). They may enjoy the youthful crowd that gathers on cafes of the Oude Markt nightly.

You don't necessarily have to add a third country. Why not visit some other places in the area such as Deflt, den Haag, Haarlem, Ghent?

I love Amsterdam, but it took a few visits. I enjoyed what I've seen of other towns in the Netherlands from the first. Rick Steves offers a tour of the same area. Take a look at the itinerary he's offering to get some ideas for yourself.

There is certainly enough to see in the Netherlands and Belgium without needing to go to other countries. Antwerp and Ghent come to mind, or Oostende on the North Sea is only a 15 min. train ride from Brugge. If you take the Coast Tram, it goes past the German bunkers and gun emplacement left over from the war, stuck up in the sand dunes. Get off and walk the dunes for a while. The beach there is lovely.

The Netherlands too have great beaches and so many lovely towns to go with them. One of my favorite things there are the old farmhouses with the thatched roofs that come almost down to the ground. Antwerp has the harbor and a wonderful Maritime museum along with the Diamond district, and the market place. If you like art Neuveau stuff, Brussels has a lot of this style of art and architecture. The Botanical Gardens there are great too.

We just returned from a month long trip in Europe and spent one day in Amsterdam, one day in Bruges - did not go to Brussels. Amsterdam is quite unusual and one get lost very easily due to the criss-crossing of streets & canals (have a good street map handy). I think that one day in each place is actually sufficient. My favorite was Bruge - smaller, much more quaint & charming - less of a big city atmosphere (which is Amst.) As for Paris, both mine & my husband's favorite place in the world (and we've been MANY places), you would definitely need a few days to take it all in. Plan on Paris!!!
I have no hotel recommendations for you, since we tend to stay in overly expensive places, and for a family - probably not a good idea!! I hope I helped in some way.

Thanks to everyone who responded - very helpful advice. Do you have any recommendation on hotels, B&B or rental apartments?