Taking your kids on the trip of a lifetime through Europe is always an exciting experience, but as any parent who has traveled with their little ones will tell you, it can also be quite stressful if you don’t put in the right amount of planning and preparation.
Thankfully, there are some top tips to keep in mind to help your family trip through Europe go as smoothly as possible and make sure that everybody has an enjoyable, memorable time without any hiccups. Whether you are planning a short trip or a fascinating adventure through the continent, keep these tips in mind to ensure that it is an adventure none of you will ever forget.
Book Travel in Advance:
The last thing that you want is to be spending time waiting around at train and bus stations to get a ticket or to find out when the next departure times are. Taking the time to plan out your itinerary and determine how you are going to get to your planned destinations before pre-booking tickets will make things a whole lot easier once you get there as all you’ll need to do is make sure that you turn up to the station on time.
Book a Tour:
Pre-arranged tours like Firebird Tours are an ideal choice for families, as everything is planned out for you, taking a lot of the heavy lifting off your shoulders when planning the perfect trip for your family. You can arrange tours for the entire of Europe or for certain countries that you wish to visit, in order to ensure that you make the most of your time there as a family and visit all the destinations, attractions and more that you want to see.
Use The Train:
Europe has an expansive train network with most services very reliable, affordable, and quick compared to car hire or getting a bus. You can find railways that span across several European countries, so it’s one of the best ways to get from one country to the next with your family. Unlike flying, taking the train is often more spacious and comfortable, and getting on the train will be much quicker compared to going through security checks at the airport. You can go from Prague to Vienna by train and between many more popular European destinations making it one of the best choices for ways to get around.
Visit Off-Peak:
If you are traveling to Europe with kids, it’s worth considering visiting during the quieter season if you can. While this might be tricky if you need to go when your kids are off school, it’s definitely worth doing if you can. Not only will a lot of things be cheaper when it’s quieter, but you’ll also find that it’s less stressful with fewer crowds and queues of people.
Plan a List of Must-Sees:
There are so many different things to see and do in all the different countries in Europe and your family would likely need years to see and do them all, so it’s a good idea to take some time to do your research into the attractions and activities that are available in the destinations you’re planning to visit, and coming up with a list of those that you definitely don’t want to miss out on. There are several ways for doing this – for example, you could get everybody to vote on a list of ten attractions, for example, or have everybody pick one or two attractions that they want to see in order to make sure that it is fair.
Book Attractions in Advance:
While you will typically pay a little more for the privilege, booking your entry to certain attractions in advance online and getting skip-the-line tickets can definitely be worth it for your family. Not only does it mean that you won’t have to worry about your kids getting bored standing around in long queues to get into certain attractions, but you will also be able to waste less time waiting around and see more during your time in a destination, which is ideal if you are dealing with time constraints. Pre-book your ticket online then all you will need to do is turn up, join the often much shorter priority queue and enjoy the attraction.
A trip through Europe can be one of the best ways to spend your time as a family, with so much to see and do and countless memories to make. Keep these tips in mind to ensure that you and your kids have the best time.