Kid-friendly Europe
Stay on budget by planning a detailed itinerary and sticking to it.
F ive cities, four weeks, three countries, two kids and one modest budget. This summer, my two children (ages 12 and six) and I embarked on a monthlong European holiday.
As with many travel adventures, our goal was simple: to experience as much as possible while spending as little as possible.
Since my girls and I were travelling alone for the first two weeks (my husband joined us later), the key to ensuring a fun, smooth trip was organization. (Wandering the city looking for a place to stay may be palatable when backpacking alone or with friends, but not with two exhausted children at your side.) This meant planning nearly every detail well in advance — also helpful for budgeting purposes.
The itinerary was simple. Fly into Paris, make our way south to Rome, then head west to the French Riviera and Barcelona, where we would meet up with my husband, then eventually back to Paris for the flight home.
At its best, Paris is enchanting and magical. At its worst, it is incredibly expensive. Fortunately, we found a tidy onebedroom apartment in the 15th arrondissement, about a 15-minute walk from the Eiffel Tower, for $120/night through Airbnb.
We also kept our budget in check with many impromptu picnics of baguettes, brie, croissants, fresh fruit and chocolate picked up at bakeries, farmers’ markets and grocery stores, enjoying these mini-feasts at spectacular sites such as the Champ des Mars and Tuileries Gardens.
Since Europeans are much more likely to eat dinner at 9 p.m. than 6 p.m., we adjusted our own schedule and did our best not to be trapped by my six- year- old’s usual 8 p. m. bedtime.
For us, this meant heading to our room in the late afternoon for a brief rest, then out for a walk and maybe a pre-dinner drink in the early evening, before sitting down to dinner at 7 p.m. or 8 p.m. Though still considered early by European standards, this was a perfect way to end our day.
Dinner was always a leisurely affair, and an outing in and of itself.
Post-dinner, there is always time to grab dessert at a bakery or gelateria and take a short walk around the neighbourhood before getting ready for bed. Thanks to the daily siestas, this seemed to work for all of us.
As predicted, our visits to the Arc de Triomphe, Louvre, Versailles (all free for kids under 18) and the Eiffel Tower dazzled and overwhelmed with their beauty and history, but a surprising highlight was Paris Plages — a Seine-side resort in the heart of the city.
For about four weeks every summer, part of the Seine is transformed into a beachside oasis, complete with golden sand, beach toys, deck chairs, a playground, water sprays, and pop-up cafés and entertainment.
During the day, young kids are led in games and songs by local children’s entertainers. On our afternoon there, the children were singing the French version of Let it Go. At dusk, it’s a completely different scene. The area becomes a thumping outdoor nightclub with a live DJ and dance floor.
After many days of site-hopping, Paris Plages was a delightful retreat and one that was desperately needed before flying to Rome the following morning on one of Europe’s many discount airlines.
Rome
Our three-star accommodations at the Hotel King were basic, reasonably priced ($90/ night including breakfast) and boasted a spectacular location just down the street from the Spanish Steps.
We descended upon the iconic landmark from behind and, though slightly embarrassing to admit, didn’t realize we were on the steps until about halfway down, when we saw flocks of visitors posing for photographs.
Following the adage, “when in Rome,” we found the closest gelateria and joined the other wide-eyed spectators, comfortably lounging and taking in the whirlwind of activity in the sticky August heat.
When the sun goes down and the temperature cools, the Spanish Steps becomes even more of a natural hangout providing its own brand of entertainment with guitar-wielding buskers and hawkers pushing everything from sunglasses and purses to toys and cold beer. This is where we whiled away our evenings with our post-dinner gelato, catching all the action against the backdrop of the Fontana della Barcaccia and glitzy, outof-reach stores such as Prada and Gucci.
During the day, we paced ourselves and took it slow — key when travelling with young children — hitting just one site per day.
For our visit to the 2,000-yearold Roman Colosseum, we packed creatively: snacks, sketch pads and pencils. The following day was spent among the ruins of Palatine Hill. (Both free for kids under 18; one ticket gets you into both sites over two consecutive days.)
A quick tip: Get tickets in advance online, saving yourself hours-long lineups. This is savvy advice for many spots in western Europe.
Other key points to tick off on any Roman itinerary, including ours: the Vatican, the Pantheon, Piazza Navona and Trevi Fountain.
After nearly a week in Rome, it was time to board a 45-minute flight to Nice and the glittering Cote d’Azur.
Nice
When I last visited this part of the French Riviera 14 years ago, Nice was a quaint town. It’s now a crowded metropolis and the fifth most-populated city in France. Walk down the main drag of Jean Médecin, and you could easily be in bustling Paris or Lyon. Indeed, our one-bedroom apartment (about $100/ night via Airbnb) was just off Rue Jean Médecin, which was lively enough in the evenings for après-dinner strolls, windowshopping and dessert-hunting.
Though Jean Médecin is a bright, busy street that could exist in any modern city, very little seems to have changed in Old Town — a web of narrow alleyways and streets dotted with old churches, baroque architecture and charming shops. Here, it’s easy to spend an afternoon among the aromatic lavender soaps, Herbs de Provence and fresh produce in the colourful Cours Saleya market edging the sparkling Mediterranean.
From there, it’s a quick walk to the rocky beach and some fantastic views of the sea and the city. The beach, along with the free children’s water park along the nearby Promenade du Paillon, is one of the best ways to spend the day here.
Barcelona
Sun-soaked and appropriately waterlogged, it was time to meet my husband in Barcelona. We rented a spacious two-bedroom apartment for under $100/night in the cultural district of El Born.
El Born is known for its beautiful boutiques, hip cafés and the famous Picasso Museum. The only drawback to our apartment was it was on the fourth floor and there is no elevator.
Barcelona is a blend of Los Angeles and Portland, Oregon. While the city’s sunny climate and sandy beaches are solidly reminiscent of Southern California, it also carries Portland’s quirky edge and that same genuine hipster vibe.
Though the sandy beach was a definite highlight and an instant budget-friendly activity, it was the art nouveau architecture of the Sagrada Familia church, designed by Antoni Gaudí, that captured our attention.
Already more than 130 years old and still more than 10 years from being finished, this UNESCO World Heritage Site is an unparalleled artistic structure, simultaneously Gothic, Medieval and futuristic.
Our self-guided tour of Gaudí led us next to the magical Park Güell, a few minutes by taxi from Sagrada Familia. Another UNESCO Site, this surreal Dr. Seuss-esque 18-hectare park above the city may make you wonder whether you’ve entered an alternate dimension or a reallife fairy tale, surrounded by oversized mosaic lizards, Gothic columns, spiralling tunnels and some of Barcelona’s most breathtaking views.
Thanks to Barcelona’s expansive metro system and affordable taxis, it’s a breeze to get from one sight to another in the same day.
At dusk, seemingly every person in Barcelona is out for a walk, enjoying delicious seafood at one tapas bar, some cured ham at another, or a refreshing glass of cava at yet another.
With numerous plazas scattered throughout the city, it’s easy to find a place to sit and relax.
Canet-plage
Our time in Barcelona at an end, we stepped onto a sleek, high-speed train to visit CanetPlage. In less than two hours, we were back in southern France, this time in the Languedoc region near the Spanish border.
If you’re looking for a stereotypical French experience, this isn’t it. What Canet lacks in ambience, though, it makes up for with affordable accommodations (about $75/night for a one-bedroom apartment a block from the beach), vibrant markets hawking everything from steaming paella and savoury olives to leather purses and handmade jewelry, and plush sand with towering crystal-blue waves that roll and crash in their own fierce rhythm.
Among the constant sun, sand and sea, the days roll by lazily and much too easily. Our evenings were equally relaxed and occupied with rounds of minigolf, strolls through the cosy night market, and twirls on the beachfront merry-go-round.
This sweet atypically French beach town offered some muchappreciated downtime — and kid-approved playtime — before we boarded a train to Paris and one last flight, headed for home.