Are you considering packing the whole family up and giving them the trip of a lifetime to the European continent? Well, then you have come to the right place because below you will find plastic of strategies and tactics that can make the whole thing a lot more enjoyable from start to finish.
Read on to find out more.
Read on to find out more.
Documents and permissions
First off, before you even leave the States, you will need to make sure that you have all of your documents and papers in order. Families traveling around Europe for less than 90 days will need valid US passports, and do be sure that they are correct for your return back to the States as well, and not just your departure date, or you could get into some trouble!
For those families and groups wishing to go on a more extended tour (and with so much to see and so who can blame them?) things are a little different. In fact, even though most of Europe have signed the Schengen agreement, staying for over 90 days will require you to apply for a visa.
Of course, this sounds super simple, but it's actually not because to get a visa you need to show you're not planning on staying for the long term. To do this, you need to have evidence of your return flights which mean you need to book them before you have even been granted access to the place you wish to go! Luckily, you can find some travel agents that will provide a flight itinerary for visa applications on a reserve basis. Something that can help you to ensure you're not risking a large sum of money on flights you may not get to use.
Picking your locations
The shorter your trip, the less you will be able to see, and that means you will have to make some pretty tough decisions about where to visit and where to leave out. Of course, as it's a family trip it is always a good idea to get the kids involved with your selection, as if nothing else, it stops that bored teenager vibe kicking in too often when you are there.
Now, the physical location of the county you will visit may also have an impact on what you can fit into a single trip. After all, traveling between countries that border each other is much easier and usually cheaper than having to fly or take a ferry.
Although, if you plan on visiting the United Kingdom you will need to use the previously stated forms of transport to get there unless you travel on the Eurotunnel. A tunnel that is sewn out of the rock under the British Channel that connects the UK to the continent. Individual seats can be purchased on the Eurostar train service, or you can choose to take your hire car across with you as well. Something that it may well be worth doing as distances between cities are much smaller in the UK than in the US, making it a great place to explore by road.
Prevent device withdrawal
Next, if you are taking teenagers or kids of any age away from home, it's crucial that you don't encounter the disaster know as device withdrawal. That's right if they can't take pictures and post them to Instagram, or Google the places they are in to find out their history, instead of reading the plaques on the wall, your kids may just have a breakdown!
To that end, taking mobile powers packs for days out and longer journeys is a good idea. Oh, and don't forget to invest in a few European plug converters so you can get everyone charged up as soon as you get back to where you are staying for the night!
Pay for tours or DIY?
Lastly, you will find that in most major European cities there are organized tours that you can pay to be a part of. These will take you around the key places and show you highlights, as well as informing you about the history of your location. The great thing about these tours was that there are many different kinds on offer from walking ones, to Segways, to bicycles, to food tours, and even wine tours for the adults.
The kids are bound to love doing a Segway tour.
Of course, paying out for these in each location can add up to quite a lot of money so they may be times where you would prefer to explore on your own. Luckily, this is entirely possible as well, as you can find out the best places in a city to visit online, and even use Google maps to guide you while you are there. Just member to make a note of any areas that aren't tourist safe, and you will be ready to have an enjoyable family trip to Europe.
Disclaimer; this is a contributed post.
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