Mini Travel Guides

The snow has been falling, and people are already making their way to the mountain resorts of France for skiing holidays. Marcus has already written a post with tips for those on a budget but still wanting to go skiing in Chamonix, here I provide some tips for skiing with children in France. Far too many are under the impression that skii slopes and children do not mix. The French Ministry of Tourism now supports a scheme that recognises the efforts some skii resorts make to cater for families with children.

Photo by Fergus O’Reilly

The Famille Plus label now replaces the P’tits montagnards (young mountaineers) charter, and is awarded to those resorts that go out of their way to welcome and provide an extensive range of activities for family skiing in France.

To be awarded the new label a resort might provide a crèche to take care of tiny tots aged 6 months and over and have several flexible packages available for parents, or a ski school for three-year-olds and upwards.

The six commitments are:
1. A friendly, personalised welcome for families
2. Entertainment with visitors of all ages in mind
3. Holiday packages with prices tailored for children and adults
4. Both individual and family-based activities for youngsters and adults
5. Nearby medical facilities in the event of minor illness or injury
6. Supervision and tuition of children by professionally qualified staff

Photo by Andrew Cullen.

Anyone thinking about or planning a trip to France for some skiing this winter, the website France Montagnes is the perfect resource, with information in 14 languages. And search for ‘famille plus’ for those resorts that make an extra effort for their younger guests.

Taking the Children Skiing in France

Browse through our Europe travel tips to find the best places to visit in Europe. Content published on Europe a la Carte.

The Munich museum the Residenz was the Stadtschloss of the kings of Bavaria. One of the best ways to get there is by bicycle, set off on a sunny afternoon for a ride through the Hofgarten to reach the Residenz.

Hofgarten in Munich

Chain your mount to the many clearly indicated railings and enjoy a walk through the elaborate design, including a labyrinth, of the park and garden. A few steps away is the Residenz.

Munich loves bicycles

It’s open every day from 9am to 6pm, so it’s an ideal Sunday destination. Joint admission for museum and treasury is EURO 9 and,

My favorite is the treasury. When visiting you have to check in bags, backpacks and anything bigger than a small purse. (You can keep your kids though). Duke Albrecht V made a provision in his will that all valuable pieces which the ruler’s passion for collecting had assembled, should forthwith be given a special place and could never, ever be sold. That was the beginning of what today can be admired in the treasury. His successors continued to add and the treasury was first opened to the public in 1897.

An elaborate crown in the treasury

I love the intimate atmosphere of the ten rooms where the secular and  the ecclesiastical pieces are lovingly exhibited. It’s more like visiting the family treasures that a very rich uncle keeps in his mansion as opposed to visiting a museum of the magnitude of say –  Istanbul’s Topkapi Palace. Crowns, necklaces, artifacts and religious objects as well as a few bejeweled weapons are each displayed in their separate glass cases and bathed in dim light which brings out the sparkle.

Part of the royal insignia

The museum shop offers a great selection of books about the history of Bavaria, the kings and queens and the provenance of the treasures. As the Residenz is conveniently located in the center of Munch, the museum trip can easily be ended by a walk or cycle to nearby Odeonsplatz or a coffee in the Hofgarten cafeteria.

Other Munich attractions worth visiting are the BMW Car Museum and St Peter’s Church tower.

Munich Museums – The Residenz

Browse through our Europe travel tips to find the best places to visit in Europe. Content published on Europe a la Carte.

After packing, booking child-friendly hotels, finding a suitable hire car and thinking about the long flight from Australia to Europe, all with my four-month-old baby, I have good news for all of you who have asked me: we all survived the trip! In fact, as far as European trips go, this was one of the easiest I’ve ever done and actually a lot of fun with our baby in tow.

So, what worked well on our trip? Here’s a summary:

• The car hire worked perfectly – I’d never rented a car from Frankfurt Airport but it’s superbly organised there, whichever agency you choose. Our rental included a baby seat which was clean and safe and was in fact liked much more by our baby than his car seat back home!
• The hotels we used were friendly and accommodating when it came to our baby. In a small one I ended up having the run of the kitchen to boil up water and whatever else I needed to do. Any baby equipment supplied like cots were already in the rooms when we arrived and were of great quality.
• We didn’t pack too much! Thanks to some crazy “summer” weather which had the temperatures ranging widely during our stay, we even had our baby wear all the clothes we’d brought for him. It was also easy to buy extra supplies of things like nappies in Germany, as I’d expected.
• The long haul flight was easier for our baby than us – he had the benefit of being able to lie down in the bassinet provided and he slept most of the way. Lucky thing!

And what went wrong? Not too much! But just in case you need to learn from my mistakes:

• Pack some larger clothes for your baby. We were away almost a month and by the end our poor baby boy was a bit cramped in the clothing we’d packed – he’d grown so much!
• And if you’re taking a baby to visit relatives, make sure there’s enough space in your suitcase to pack all the presents you receive for him! We had a bit of juggling to do as we packed for our return trip.

Surviving European travel with a baby

Browse through our Europe travel tips to find the best places to visit in Europe. Content published on Europe a la Carte.

Like many parents, we’re constantly dragging our children along to art museums. And like many parents, we are accustomed to groans of  “Oh no, not another museum!”

Museums are starting to realize the importance of courting their future visitors and, as parents, it’s nice to see how many art museums have started to put together age-appropriate information and activity guides for children.

The Van Gogh Museum (on the left), with the Rijksmuseum in the background

One small museum that gets it right is the Vincent Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. Chances are, Van Gogh admirers would take their kids along on a visit  to this excellent museum anyway, but it’s even nicer to know that parents can request the activity guide to make their visit more enjoyable for young children.

Wheatfield with crows, 1890

The activity guide was filled with interesting information and asked children to record their observations about certain artworks and about Van Gogh’s shifting techniques, his use of thick brush strokes and his preference for vibrant colours during his years in southern France.

The bookshop sells an excellent publication for children, Vincent & Theo: Brothers in Art. It is geared towards elementary school and middle-grade readers and chronicles Van Gogh’s struggle as an artist and the special relationship with his brother, Theo.

So on your family visit to Amsterdam, my European travel tip would be to take your kids along to the Van Gogh Museum as it’s a very child friendly Amsterdam attraction.  They will be certain to enjoy it as much as you do.

The Vincent Van Gogh Museum is open daily from 10:00 to 18:00. Fridays it has extended hours, 10:00-22:00. Adults are 14 euro, children and teenagers under 18 are free.

Child Friendly Amsterdam Attractions: The Van Gogh Museum

Browse through our Europe travel tips to find the best places to visit in Europe. Content published on Europe a la Carte.

I visited the Sensation Science Centre in Dundee in August 2010 during my Summer 2010 Scotland Blog Tour.  It’s a great all weather Dundee attraction for families. This is the sort of place that our twin sons loved in their youth, where kids get involved in the hands-on exhibits as well as various fun, educational activities.

Exterior of Sensation Science Centre Dundee

My favourite was the Magic Mirror, where if you stood still you’d disappear from the monitor but as soon as you moved you were visible on screen.

Magic Mirror at Sensation Science Centre Dundee

It must be an adventure climbing in the large head in the Taste and Smell section.

The “One Small Step” space exhibition runs until 30 September 2010.

One Small Step at Sensation Science Centre Dundee

In Mindball you control the movement of a small sphere with your brain waves. Two people, with monitors strapped on their heads, sit at opposite ends of a long table with the sphere placed in the centre of the table. The winner is the person who is most relaxed, as the ball will move towards their less relaxed opponent.

As my visit was during the school holidays, there were several shows and events on offer throughout the day. I watched a film about the planets projected on the top of the Planetarium tent while lying on a mat on the ground.

If you’re looking for ideas for other things to do in Dundee, I’d recommend the Verdant Works and Discovery Point.

You can see all my Sensation photos and videos on Flickr. Have you been to the  Sensation Science Centre in Dundee, which exhibit/activity did you most enjoy?

Sensation Science Centre, Dundee: Great fun for families

Browse through our Europe travel tips to find the best places to visit in Europe. Content published on Europe a la Carte.

If you’re already living in Europe and decide to take a European family holiday, you’d be unlikely to take a flight of more than a few hours. I envy you! For my trip to Germany with my four-month-old baby, getting there will take close to 24 hours, coming from Australia. You can probably understand I’m a little bit nervous about a long haul flight with a baby.

However, I’m hoping that good Europe travel planning and some helpful advice will keep me, my husband, our baby and our fellow passengers sane. I’m sure the benefit of hindsight will give me some more ideas to add here, but so far, these are my ideas for minimising the problems of flying to Europe with our baby:

• Be prepared. I’ve talked about packing before and especially taking the right stuff in your carry-on luggage, and I think it’s also to take extras for the flight, that is more nappies (diapers), more changes of clothes, more milk if necessary and so on, in case of delays or simply the regular baby disasters! I’ve heard that most airlines stock a small supply of emergency supplies for babies but it’d be far better to have your own, I’m sure.
• Book the right seats. Make sure you book as far ahead as possible and talk directly to the airline to get the seats with the bassinet if you’re travelling with a baby. I even tried to book before our baby was born (because that’s when we booked our tickets to get a cheap fare) but the airline wouldn’t issue a ticket without a name and birthdate. Fair enough!
• Figure out the logistics. Will the airline let you bring your pram on board (mine would, but only if my pram weighed 10kg instead of 11kg), will you need to make a stopover (we will, sans pram), will getting your baby used to being carried in a sling help (I hope so!) and will there be a car with a baby seat waiting for you at the other end?
• Relax. My husband is worried about being the family that every other passenger dreads sitting near. Maybe we will be, but we’ll do the best we can. Our little boy is as about as quiet and well-behaved as babies come, but we can’t predict how he’ll react to being on a strange plane! I read some good advice somewhere: the plane trip might seem to take forever but it’s really only a small part of the trip.

Fingers crossed that our flight goes well and apologies in advance to our fellow passengers. Please leave me your best tips in the comments.

[Photo from caribb via Flickr CC]

On a recent visit to London, I looked forward to a day trip to nearby Oxford. Although I had not planned specific child-friendly activities, it was a pleasant surprise that my young children stumbled across so many entertaining things to do in that charming university town. As parents traveling with children know well, this is always a welcome surprise.

Here are some kid-friendly activities to incorporate into your Oxford visit:

Harry Potter’s dining room at Hogwart’s

This is the actual dining hall for students at Oxford’s Christ Church College , but the kids were more spellbound at the realization that this was the set for the Hogwart’s dining room in the Harry Potter films. The dining room has another point of interest for children. Alice Lidell, the young daughter of Oxford’s Vice-Chancellor, inspired author Lewis Carroll to write “Alice in Wonderland”. The dining hall’s stained glass windows contain beloved characters from the story.

Treasure hunt at Christ Church Abbey

Parents know that nothing dampens a child’s enthusiasm more than the dreaded words “Let’s go visit this church.” Luckily, the Christ Church Abbey offers a treasure hunt for children: drawings of images or sculptures with hints about their general location. We picked up the treasure hunt map at the entrance and then made our way around the church so that my kids could find all of the hidden objects. I even had a few moments of peace and quiet to admire this pretty Edward Burn-Jones stained-glass window as my children examined it carefully for the hidden object within.

Oxford Museum of Natural History

I was bound for an exhibition at the Pitt Rivers Museum – a fascinating anthropology museum, which also houses collections of special interest to children (African masks, weapons, sporting equipment from cultures worldwide) – when we stumbled across the attached Museum of Natural History .

Although not as extensive as London’s excellent museum, the smaller scale and thinner crowds were real advantages of our visit. The exhibitions are nicely displayed in this stunning Victorian-era museum.

Hands-on activities and knowledgeable, enthusiastic staff members offered fun and educational activities for all age levels (adults, too – I learned more than I ever cared to know about bugs and spiders).

Dragging the kids away proved the most difficult challenge of the day. Oxford is clearly a great European destination for both adults and children.

Oxford is an easy daytrip from London by car, train or bus. We used the Oxford Tube , a direct bus with convenient pick-up stops around London and frequent departures throughout the day. Kids travel for free.

Packing for a European trip used to be easy for me. Now that I’ve got a small baby to deal with, I’m actually writing my packing list well ahead of time. I’ve travelled overnight with my baby on car trips and was astounded at just how full the car was of stuff he “needed”, and the thought of getting all that organised for a plane trip is pretty scary.

[Pic of how not to pack with children from danorth1 via Flickr CC]

As I’ve said in recent weeks when I’ve talked about car hire and hotel booking, I may be an experienced budget traveller but I’m a novice when it comes to European travel with a baby – so I welcome your advice on packing for travel with a baby. So far, my research and contemplation on packing for my baby’s needs during our three week stay in Germany and Switzerland has led me to these tips:

• Make a list. For a start, babies and children need a lot of stuff. Secondly, if you arrive somewhere and don’t have it, that could be much more of a problem than when an adult, say, forgets their toothbrush.
• Make said list ahead of time. I started my list a couple of months before my trip, keeping a piece of paper handy to add items to when they came to mind – I’ve been surprised how many baby travel needs I forgot when I first made the list.
• Find out what you must take and what you can get there. For example, I’m taking enough nappies (diapers) for the first couple of days, but will buy more there – they’re far too bulky to pack. However, if you need particular medications, formula or other baby items that may be different or difficult to find, pack them. Obviously most places in Europe will have nearly every baby requirement – things could be different if I were travelling elsewhere.
• Focus on keeping the baby comfortable and happy, because if they are, you will be too. I’m especially concerned about the long flights from Australia to Europe so I’m being careful about what I’ll pack in our carry-on luggage to make sure the baby is as comfortable as possible. No doubt the passengers around me will be grateful if that works, too!
• Try to minimise. This sounds like a contradictory piece of advice, but while you must make sure you have everything you need with you, you also don’t want a huge load of luggage to lug around while you’re also carrying a baby, right? For example, just take a small number of favourite toys rather than half the toy box.

They’re my thoughts on Europe travel planning for a  trip with a baby or small child so far – please let me know in the comments what else I should think about. Thanks in advance!

As you know, I’m in the midst of Europe travel planning for a trip to Germany with my four month old baby, and right now I’m busy with booking some hotels. Luckily, we can stay with family most of the time, but I still need to book a few nights in hotels.

Now I have to admit that in the past, my travel focus has almost always been on budget hotels and backpacker hostels, so this time round I’m a little in the dark about where to stay – perhaps readers can help with me some Europe travel tips on family-friendly hotels you’ve stayed in? So far, my experience in booking hotels in Germany and some tips I’ve already received have led me to consider these key points when finding child-friendly hotels:

• Big chain hotels and smaller pensions both have advantages when you’re looking for kid-friendliness, I think (or it sounds like it as I try to book them) – the larger hotels generally have all the equipment on hand, while the smaller pensions and bed and breakfast style places will go out of their way to help you, even if they don’t have everything immediately available. So take your pick!
• Book directly through the hotel (rather than an agent or booking site) so you can communicate directly with someone who works there about your requirements (a cot, for example, or any other special needs).
• Be clear in emails or telephone calls about any special requirements – I can imagine that turning up to a hotel and having nowhere for my baby to sleep would be quite a problem. I speak German so I have been able to talk to small pensions and hotels in person, but if there is a language barrier it might pay to shop around for hotel staff with good English skills.
• Allow plenty of travelling time between destinations to allow you to check into your hotel at a reasonably early time. This is my plan, anyway! I’m hoping this means that if my baby has a meltdown on the way and it takes us twice as long to get to the next stop, we won’t end up arriving at midnight, plus if we’re able to get there early instead, there’s plenty of time to get set up before the baby’s ready for a bath and bed.
• Look into the restaurant or meal arrangements that might suit children. Obviously, my baby is too young to need this (another reason for the timing of our trip) but if you have toddlers or older children this could be important.

I’d love to hear some more Europe travel tips from readers about their experiences with hotels and children, so please let me know in the comments.

[Photo from Lisa Sunde via Flickr CC]

I’ve got a new Europe travel planning challenge coming up: organising a trip to Germany with my new baby to introduce him to his relatives. At the time of our trip he’ll be about four months old (hopefully an ideal time to travel) and over the next few weeks I’m going to use this experience to share some Europe travel tips and advice on travels with a baby or young children. And perhaps I can get some good advice from readers, too!

First up is renting a car. In contrast to my previous car rental experience on holidays, this time I’m not going for the bottom-of-the-range budget option. We need enough space for three adults, a baby, and a lot of luggage and baby paraphernalia, and decided on a station wagon of some kind.

I hit the web to compare prices from some of the major rental car companies represented in Germany: Hertz, Budget, Europcar and Sixt. The good news is that all four of them had user-friendly websites and it wasn’t too hard to get the information I was looking for. The bad news was that after all that effort, the price differences between companies was minimal! However, my tips would be:

• If possible – that is, if you have the money available, and if you are reasonably sure of your plans – pay for the rental up front. The savings can be large, up to 25% or so. And the rental I chose had a small cancellation fee of around 50 Euros if I did end up having to cancel, which was cheap compared to the amount I was saving.
• If you’re travelling with children, definitely go for a bigger car than you think you’ll need – you don’t want to be squeezing the last suitcase in on top of somebody’s lap, and the extra cost will make your holiday run much more smoothly.
• Before you sign up for extra insurance, check if your credit card offers you any coverage. My Gold Visa covers me for any excess I may have to pay in the event of a rental car accident, so there’s no need for me to pay extra at the car rental company for insurance to cover this.  There’s also the option of purchasing car rental excess insurance.
• Try to rent any extras you need – for example, a baby or a child seat, or a portable DVD player to keep the kids amused – from the same car rental company. Combining these generally makes it cheaper.
• Make sure you can pick the car up from the airport, and that the rental desk is open at the time your flight arrives. Obviously a 24-hour service is the best in case your flight is delayed.

[Pic of many cars from torley]