‘By handing over some planning to the kids, I could relax': readers' favourite trips with teenagers in Europe
Our favourite family holiday was to the Netherlands: taking turns playing captain guiding electric hire boats on canals; tilting our ice-cream cones at windmills at Zaanse Schans; cycling to the broad, clean beaches for mocktails in cabanas; Amsterdam for the colourful Pride parade counterpointed by a quiet, calming visit to De Poezenboot (which teen could resist a cat sanctuary on a canal boat?). And staying in Haarlem in an apartment with speedy wifi kept the teens happy while we indulged in morning strolls through medieval cobbled streets to Grote Markt for coffee and people-watching. Annette
Guardian Travel readers' tips
Every week we ask our readers for recommendations from their travels. A selection of tips will be featured online and may appear in print. To enter the latest competition visit the readers' tips homepage
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When I saw the picture of Ostello il Castello di Santa Severa in the Guardian in 2019, I thought it was too good to be true, but it's genuine. We have been twice with our teens, and sent friends too! A mile-long beach where teenagers can roam and paddleboard, an easy train journey to explore Rome, lunchtime pizza slices with locals cheering on the footie at L'Angolo delle Crepes. Plus the opportunity to sleep in a castle at hostel prices. Fluffy white towels aplenty, but also a gleaming kitchen if you want to cook. Don't miss the nearby necropolis for an Indiana Jones-style adventure. Fireworks over the castle and a hilarious Italian Beatles cover band were the ciliegina sulla torta!Margaret
The best European trip with my teen (so far) has to be Romania. We stayed in Brașov, booked an apartment with a pool and had the best time. There is so much to do and lots of easy public transport. We ate outdoors at little cafes on the street, took a cable car up the mountain, went on a trip to see bears in the forest (up close and personal!), had a tree-top adventure at Adventure Park and visited Dracula's castle. The town itself is historic and beautiful, and the people are so welcoming. It's not your typical British tourist destination but it makes for a fabulous adventure.Kate
Rome in October half-term. Coliseum and Forum tours gave the right balance of interesting history, fun facts and a bit of gore that most teenagers would be entranced by! Walked a lot without seeming to walk a lot. A two-hour Vespa tour was the highlight. You hang on to the drivers and they negotiate the traffic, show you a different Rome with local knowledge and attitude. To complete the adventure: guaranteed great food, gelato and, for weary parents of an evening, vino cheapo!Ruth
Saalbach-Hinterglemm in Austria in the summer meant hiking, ebiking and waterparks. Take advantage of the Joker card for free or reduced-price access to lots of activities. Hire a car to make the most of local resorts with lakeside beach clubs, alpine zoos, glacier visits and summer toboggan runs. Plenty to keep teens entertained. Hilary
Last summer I went with my two children on a trip north through Scandinavia, then back via the Baltic countries. This turned into an epic 5,000-mile train journey, which we each took part in planning. The 10-year-old's focus was on cycling, swimming, play parks and cat cafes. The 14-year-old took us to the KGB headquarters in Riga, a tour around Berlin, and a visit to the Deyrolle taxidermy shop in Paris. By handing over some planning and responsibility to the kids, I could relax; they were engaged in activities away from their devices and their geography knowledge improved!Sarah Patel
Antwerp by Eurostar was perfect. Coffee and buns at Pakt every morning, cool galleries like MoMu and Fomu every day, kilo vintage shopping, art nouveau streets, incredible Korean, Vietnamese and Nepalese restaurants, and bikes! Perfect October break.Georgia
A brief holiday for us this year with our 15-year-old son but it was plenty – five nights in a gorgeous apartment on the edge of Belleville, Paris, not far from Buttes-Chaumont. He's the age where we can enjoy both Disneyland and then take in the Hockney retrospective at the stunning Fondation Louis Vuitton. Back at base we watched city life unfold from our French windows and then sampled Lebanese, Laos and French meals in the bustling streets around. Nearer to town, the family-run Eats Thyme is a standout.GingerGigolo
A two-centre holiday to Munich and Garmisch-Partenkirchen in Bavaria, Germany, is a must with teenagers as there is so much to see and do. In Munich they loved the atmosphere in the beer halls – eating pretzels and listening to the oompah band and watching the Rathaus-Glockenspiel in the square. A visit to the Olympiapark is also recommended. In Garmisch-Partenkirchen there is a toboggan run, which is great fun, and nearby is the beautiful Zugspitze mountain and cable car, with boating on Eibsee lake. Bavaria has plenty to keep teenagers entertained and active, for a very enjoyable holiday.Richard Watkins
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Not so long ago, before the advent of cheap package holidays to the Costas, Jersey was a popular destination for Brits seduced by the island's exotic French names yet reassured by its familiar culture. Inspired by the South West Coast Path and the Wild Atlantic Way in Ireland, the newly launched trail aims to appeal to a different type of visitor — one attracted to activities such as walking, surfing, kayaking and cycling, and those drawn to the island by its rich heritage. I snaked my way around the southeast coast, watching the sea mutate from a steel grey to a Caribbean blue as the skies cleared. I passed empty beaches and quiet bays fringed with tamarisk and Monterey pine and the fortifications that are a constant reminder of the island's turbulent history, from its 18th-century watchtowers to the concrete bunkers of the Nazi occupation. The trail is as much about stopping as it is about walking, and eight miles later I spent a glorious hour exploring Mont Orgueil Castle, the medieval citadel that towers over the pastel-painted cottages of Gorey Harbour, where fishing boats swayed on the outgoing tide. This eastern coast felt like south Cornwall without the crowds — its wooded coves scented with pine resin and quiet beaches where the occasional swimmer or family were enjoying the late afternoon sunshine. Shady paths and lanes passed neolithic dolmens, standing stones and burial mounds that are remnants of Jersey's prehistoric past. • This gorgeous island trumps Cornwall — and is a one-hour flight away At Rozel Bay, after 14 miles of walking and as the level east coast tipped towards the rocky north, I tucked into fish and chips at the smart Rozel gastropub (mains from £17; before a well-timed bus carted my tired legs back across the island to St Helier. Rather than overnighting along the route I divided my four-night stay into two centres, making use of the excellent bus network (and the occasional taxi) to ferry me between the endpoints of my walk and my accommodation. Turning right out of my hotel the next morning I headed west along St Aubin's Bay, with views to 16th-century Elizabeth Castle, stranded off the coast by the high tide. Jersey has some of the cleanest beaches in Europe and the pristine bay spread before me, its sand the colour of unrefined sugar. An hour later I paused for a coffee in the fishing village of St Aubin, set against a backdrop of woody hills. With its tree-shaded cobbled squares, pantiled roofs and pavement cafés, St Aubin felt more Breton than British. 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This five-mile-long, west-facing beach is a surfer's favourite, the austere wartime structures of Hitler's Atlantic Wall having been repurposed as a surf school, a quirky holiday let and a seafood restaurant — delightfully rustic Faulkner Fisheries at L'Etacq, where I lunched outdoors on succulent barbecued sardines served with butter-drenched Jersey Royal potatoes as the wind lashed my hair (mains from £12; It was near St Brelade, overlooking St Ouen's Bay, that I stayed for the next two nights in understated elegance at the Atlantic Hotel, high above the beach. After a dip in the pool to rinse off the 14 miles, and a long G&T, I strolled through the hotel gardens in the warm evening air to watch the sun dip over the ocean. If my first day's walk was about sheltered coves and wooded bays, and the second day wild, windswept beaches, my final walk along the northern coast was all dramatic granite headlands washed by blue-green seas, secretive bays, hidden caves, ruined castles, beach cafés and narrow cliff paths punctuated by long flights of steps — those familiar with the north Cornish coast will feel at home here. • 20 of the best hotels in Jersey I started the morning at Les Landes, a ten-minute taxi ride from my hotel in the northwest corner of the island. Within the Jersey National Park, this empty, windswept heathland — scattered with vestiges of human activity dating from prehistory — is a haven for wildlife. Unlike on the north Cornish coast I passed few other walkers and was alone on the path with the purpling heather, yolk-yellow gorse, butterflies, dragonflies and the endless vistas of serrated headlands unravelling into the horizon. 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This article contains affiliate links that will earn us revenue Gail Simmons was a guest of Visit Jersey ( the Grand Jersey Hotel & Spa, which has B&B doubles from £140 ( the Atlantic Hotel, which has B&B doubles from £190 ( and Jet 2 ( Fly to St Peter • Jersey Walk Adventures offers specialist guided beach walks, including bioluminescence night walks and an oyster trail ( A Discover Jersey pass allows unlimited travel by bus (from £10; Book an electric taxi or luggage transfer with Ryde ( A seven-day Heritage Pass gives you access to many of the most important historic sites (from £50; Much of the Tidal Trail can be walked as shorter circular routes, making use of Jersey's Green Lanes network, which gives priority to pedestrians and bikes • If you're walking along the beach, check the tide times. 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The Guardian
a day ago
- The Guardian
‘By handing over some planning to the kids, I could relax': readers' favourite trips with teenagers in Europe
Slovenia! We started in Lake Bled. Teens loved the Dolinka ziplines, the summer toboggan run, hiking in Vintgar gorge and swimming in Lake Bled. You can hire paddleboards and boats. If you have the money, there is rafting and canyoning too. After seeing the incredible Postojna cave, we went up the Vogel cable by Lake Bohinj. Half-board at the Bohinj Eco hotel kept the teens amply fed and it also has an aquapark, bowling and plenty of games to boot. We finished the trip off with shopping in Ljubljana and the best ice-cream ever at Romantika. Three happy teenagers. Sue Our favourite family holiday was to the Netherlands: taking turns playing captain guiding electric hire boats on canals; tilting our ice-cream cones at windmills at Zaanse Schans; cycling to the broad, clean beaches for mocktails in cabanas; Amsterdam for the colourful Pride parade counterpointed by a quiet, calming visit to De Poezenboot (which teen could resist a cat sanctuary on a canal boat?). And staying in Haarlem in an apartment with speedy wifi kept the teens happy while we indulged in morning strolls through medieval cobbled streets to Grote Markt for coffee and people-watching. Annette Guardian Travel readers' tips Every week we ask our readers for recommendations from their travels. A selection of tips will be featured online and may appear in print. To enter the latest competition visit the readers' tips homepage - When I saw the picture of Ostello il Castello di Santa Severa in the Guardian in 2019, I thought it was too good to be true, but it's genuine. We have been twice with our teens, and sent friends too! A mile-long beach where teenagers can roam and paddleboard, an easy train journey to explore Rome, lunchtime pizza slices with locals cheering on the footie at L'Angolo delle Crepes. Plus the opportunity to sleep in a castle at hostel prices. Fluffy white towels aplenty, but also a gleaming kitchen if you want to cook. Don't miss the nearby necropolis for an Indiana Jones-style adventure. Fireworks over the castle and a hilarious Italian Beatles cover band were the ciliegina sulla torta!Margaret The best European trip with my teen (so far) has to be Romania. We stayed in Brașov, booked an apartment with a pool and had the best time. There is so much to do and lots of easy public transport. We ate outdoors at little cafes on the street, took a cable car up the mountain, went on a trip to see bears in the forest (up close and personal!), had a tree-top adventure at Adventure Park and visited Dracula's castle. The town itself is historic and beautiful, and the people are so welcoming. It's not your typical British tourist destination but it makes for a fabulous Rome in October half-term. Coliseum and Forum tours gave the right balance of interesting history, fun facts and a bit of gore that most teenagers would be entranced by! Walked a lot without seeming to walk a lot. A two-hour Vespa tour was the highlight. You hang on to the drivers and they negotiate the traffic, show you a different Rome with local knowledge and attitude. To complete the adventure: guaranteed great food, gelato and, for weary parents of an evening, vino cheapo!Ruth Saalbach-Hinterglemm in Austria in the summer meant hiking, ebiking and waterparks. Take advantage of the Joker card for free or reduced-price access to lots of activities. Hire a car to make the most of local resorts with lakeside beach clubs, alpine zoos, glacier visits and summer toboggan runs. Plenty to keep teens entertained. Hilary Last summer I went with my two children on a trip north through Scandinavia, then back via the Baltic countries. This turned into an epic 5,000-mile train journey, which we each took part in planning. The 10-year-old's focus was on cycling, swimming, play parks and cat cafes. The 14-year-old took us to the KGB headquarters in Riga, a tour around Berlin, and a visit to the Deyrolle taxidermy shop in Paris. By handing over some planning and responsibility to the kids, I could relax; they were engaged in activities away from their devices and their geography knowledge improved!Sarah Patel Antwerp by Eurostar was perfect. Coffee and buns at Pakt every morning, cool galleries like MoMu and Fomu every day, kilo vintage shopping, art nouveau streets, incredible Korean, Vietnamese and Nepalese restaurants, and bikes! Perfect October A brief holiday for us this year with our 15-year-old son but it was plenty – five nights in a gorgeous apartment on the edge of Belleville, Paris, not far from Buttes-Chaumont. He's the age where we can enjoy both Disneyland and then take in the Hockney retrospective at the stunning Fondation Louis Vuitton. Back at base we watched city life unfold from our French windows and then sampled Lebanese, Laos and French meals in the bustling streets around. Nearer to town, the family-run Eats Thyme is a A two-centre holiday to Munich and Garmisch-Partenkirchen in Bavaria, Germany, is a must with teenagers as there is so much to see and do. In Munich they loved the atmosphere in the beer halls – eating pretzels and listening to the oompah band and watching the Rathaus-Glockenspiel in the square. A visit to the Olympiapark is also recommended. In Garmisch-Partenkirchen there is a toboggan run, which is great fun, and nearby is the beautiful Zugspitze mountain and cable car, with boating on Eibsee lake. Bavaria has plenty to keep teenagers entertained and active, for a very enjoyable Watkins
