Sabbatical in Europe with two small children?

I don't have great advice, but wanted to say I am SO jealous! I really hope to be able to do that with my family someday before they are too big. One thing to think about is the weather, since Australia is in the southern hemisphere. I'm not sure what the weather is like in the region you are considering during that time frame, but it may not be what you expect. Personally, having only dreamed about this, I would probably pick two homebases so the kids could have some sort of routine and feel at home instead of just being on vacation for two months. I'd personally pick Lyon or Paris in France (because I'm a total Francophile), and then one in another country I'm interested in. I might do Vienna, or Madrid or Barcelona because my husband speaks Spanish and has taught a little bit to our girls. Oh, or somewhere in Scandinavia, even though it's very expensive. I'd try to find a city I'm interested in with good connections. In addition to being a Francophile, I do think that basing in France is easy. Paris and Lyon both have large airports and are easily accessible by train to lots of other destinations, which could be fun daytrips/weekend trips. I feel like you could get a lot of bang for your buck so to speak.

Let me say that when I was a year old (in 1952) my parents went to Europe and took me. It was, I think, their "last chance" to do so before starting a family that grew to four children. They were not well-off, but neither was Europe. I've been to Australia, as well as much of Europe. I think they would remember more about Europe, but I don't think they'll remember that much anyway. I personally think it would be easier in Europe (for example, all the trams and busses with a spot reserved for strollers, etc.), while the distances in Australia are much greater. I think what's important is what you two want to do with the two months. For example, art museums aren't a big hit with children that age. Alligator/Crocodile Farms (just kidding, but I also saw one on the way to Mont St. Michel last year) are! But cable cars up mountains, swimming pools, and train rides might be fun for them. Are they picky eaters? Can you change that in time? I would hate to hear that you spent two months trying to get Chicken Fingers at every dinner. And dinner can be late in many countries. Have you considered two or three long-term rentals, with babysitter referrals?

My family moved to Paris when I was 4 yo and I remember all of it and I loved every bit of it. My son's been going to Paris often since he was young, and he loves Paris as much as I do. Paris is very child-friendly. The Luxembourg Gardens have an amazing playground, marionette shows, a carousel, donkey rides, live music, two cafes, a crepe stand. The Jardin d'Acclimatation in the Bois de Boulogne is an old fashioned amusement park for young children. It's wonderful. It's clean, has little rides, a little train, animals, clowns that make balloon animals, etc. Boat rides on the Seine, many more wonderful parks (Parc Monceau, Tuilleries, for instance), street entertainers on the pedestrian bridge behind Notre Dame, child-frienly cafes, walking along the Seine river... And, of course, Euro Disney. Our last trip to Paris we rented an apartment on Ile St. Louis for a month (you get the best rate when it's for a month). Great to have an apt with kids, plus you get a washing machine and sometimes a dryer. We never ran out of things to do (both in Paris and day trips) and we loved every minute. Hated to leave. Transportation is great and you have lots of fun day trip options. What child doesn't like castles?.. thinking of Vaux-le-Vicomte, Chantilly or Versailles.. Have fun choosing! What a great opportunity for all of you!

What a great opportunity for your family. I would split the time between France and Germany. Not move around too much, but I would do two weeks in Paris, with a few day trips, two weeks in Provence at some place small and find a great place in the countryside/village. Then I would do two weeks in Germany in the south for the castles, RR, Munich and Salzburg for a day trip... and actually as I am thinking about it I would have to add two weeks in Tuscany at a small place in the countryside. I think the ages your kids are at they should be able to handle a move after two weeks. I would definitely choose Europe over Australia for this trip.

Hi, How about setting aside the 60 days in Europe? You have a great and most envious opportunity time wise and linguistically in front of you. I would suggest spending most of the time in Germany and Austria, ten days in France. This is your chance to see the rest of Germany northwest, east, north, south, southeast since your travels there have been thus far limited...Hamburg, Kiel, Cuxhaven, Schwerin, Leipzig, Dresden, Wetzlar, Magdeburg, Bamberg, Frankfurt, Munich, Goettingen, Stuttgart, Heidelberg, Celle, Freiburg, Potsdam, etc. I would include getting a rental car to go out to villages, say around Berlin, or seeing the Spreewald, Lübben and Lübbenau all in one day, or getting out to Schloss Pillnitz from Dresden. Mostly I suggest taking the train. You can spend the whole two months in France, (IMO) quite easily, same as in Germany trscking down the sights by train and car.

Since it would be winter in Southern Hemisphere, I'd consider Europe. Preferences vary much among families. The 3-year old won't remember much from the trip, I think. I'd pick up a strategically located small town, from where it would be easy to take many small trips, yet there would be plenty of things to do with the kids around. Since I like mountains, I'd rent a flat in some Swiss alpine village.

I am so envious.. perfect time to travel with kids.. and one good thing, kids at that age can play and mingle with local kids in parks etc.. once they get older its harder. I would split trip into two or three bases,, obvious choices France and Germany I guess, but as you know you will manage fine with english. I would mix some country/beach stay with city visits.. kids need to just play too.

One of your base areas would be to consider the Normandy beaches. My 2 year old grandson's parents rented a house for 2 weeks and he loved playing on the beach. The adults appreciated the slower paced living in the area.

I too would suggest Europe, and Becca's suggestion about staying in an apartment in two locations would be good advice for anyone. Then you can have some interesting day trips. And yes, a routine is important even when away from home for kids. As far as where to go, there are so many European cities that are interesting places for young children, with good parks, etc. Munich and Amsterdam are my favorites for big towns, and I absolutely love Tirol and the Austrian Alps. Outside Salzburg would be another great place to stay for a month. There are family friendly cities close by with less expensive accommodations outside bigger cities.
My suggestion is go go as early as you can to avoid Summer tourist traffic as much as possible. Temperatures are also more moderate earlier.

I am so grateful for all your responses. Thank you for taking the time to help us. I love the idea of having a few home bases throughout the trip. Does anyone know of good websites where we can look for home and apartment rentals? At the moment, we are targeting France, Germany, Italy, Switzerland. Has anyone stayed in or near Lucerne? Is Lucerne the "best it gets" or are there even more-utopian lake/mountain towns in that region of Europe? Thanks!

Murren in the Swiss Alps (Berner Oberland) is utopia for us. Mostly car-free small town 5000' elev with wonderful walking paths up/down, through meadows with flowers, cows with bells grazing, creeks, a waterfall. You can take cable cars up and walk downhill. Views from Murren are incredible. You feel enveloped by the Alps. Amazing place. Some apt websites: VIP.com, ParisBestLodge.com, VRBO.com, AirBnB.com, Homeaway.com. Just Google rental agencies and read reviews.

vacationinparis.com is a great site for Paris apartments. They are based here in the U.S and for most apartments they send you the key before you leave. What a great experience for your family!!!

I've lived in Germany for 6 years, we have elementary/middle school aged kids, but have traveled since they were babies. I suggest you split it in half, one month in one spot, the next in another spot. It may seem like a long time, but it will fly by and you'll really enjoy living in an apartment versus hotels with kids. My first thoughts are Heidelberg and Innsbruck for home-bases. Both German speaking for the average German speaker, as opposed to many parts of Switzerland where even though technically they speak German, other Swiss can't even understand the language. I think you'll be able to get along fine in both towns. Heidelberg has loads of Americans and other international peeps, so even the non-German speaker will do fine. It's central enough to go to Brussels, Alsace, Mosel region, Stuttgart, Zurich, Koln, etc. for a day or just an easy overnight (while still keeping the apartment of course). Innsbruck is a good location. While it's not the most fascinating town itself (worth a day's sight seeing), it's really centrally located to Munich, Venice, Bolzano (Ice Man!), fabulous resort towns like Lech, Kitzbuhel, Serfaus, and loads of great towns in the Dolomites. It's a lovely town to settle in for a month. Lucerne (mentioned before) is also a good choice and there's plenty to do in both cities and mountains, although I think you'll have more options in the above towns. Have fun!