At wits end - help me plan our family holiday!

[googleismyfriend]

Planning our family holiday has been lumbered on me! again

We're 4 adults - 2 in late 40s/early fifties and 2 in early 20s (one of these is me).

Budget of £5k if possible for as close to 2 weeks as we can on our budget. Our budget would probably restrict us to Europe I'd imagine.

40s/50s couple prefer a relaxing holiday, 20-something year olds like sightseeing. So we're looking for maybe a few days in a city and the other days somewhere relaxing.

We've done Spain- Barcelona, France- Paris, Portugal- Lisbon and Madeira, Lanzarote, Switzerland, Malta, Turkey, India, Kenya, Dubai, Mauritius.

Throw your suggestions at me for our multi-city holiday please!

Verona and lake Garda/como?

It's gotta be Greece, surely? So many islands to choose from, and the mainland.

Cyprus

Sicily. There are some incredible beaches to the north of the Island, you’re able to drive to some fab cities and culture and you have the added volcanoes (Aetna) and volcanic islands which you can go and visit on a boat trip from Palermo either for a day or you can stay on them.

The area in the north which is totally beautiful is called San Vito lo Capo and the Zingaro nature reserve.

Croatia

Morocco- hotels are often just outside the cities, such as Marrakesh, so you can shop in the souks or have a hamman scrub or relax by the pool.

@singlenotsingle Any Greece recommendations please?

@Freaking0ut We won't be able to have a hire car unfortunately, so we're looking for somewhere we can travel to using public transport or a car transfer if it's reasonable

Germany:
Munich & Tegernsee area?
Black Forrest, Freiburg, area?
Lubeck & the Mecklenburg lake district?

Any ideas for a combo with Rome? Somewhere we can travel to with public transport/a reasonably priced car transfer

Ah ok, that does make it a bit tricky. You could still fly to Palermo, get your city fix there and then boat out to the Aeolian islands for beach/volcano action

just seen your update on a hire car issue.
Most tourist destination in Germany have a special travel scene where you get a travel card for local public transport.

Last year we (2 50 year olds, 2 20 year olds) flew to Bologna and had a couple of days there, train to Florence for a couple of days, train to Viareggio on the coast for a more seasidey few days, back to Bologna for a night and then flew home. Very easy to get round Italy by train, not expensive. I imagine it wouldn’t be difficult to do something like that flying to Rome, it’s not very far from the coast at all so you should easily be able to a multi centre trip.

How about a cruise? Then those that prefer relaxing can relax, those that prefer sightseeing can see a different place every day, meet in the evenings for dinner?

Crete was amazing ..

Whilst it is a great idea, no cruises for us as I get seasick

From Rome you could either go south to Sorrento/Capri/Ischia/Amalfi coast or over to Umbria/Tuscany such as Siena, Florence, Pisa or Montecatini.

Crete strikes me as a place for partygoers/people who want a beach, is there much by way of sightseeing?

My friend did the Amalfi coast and took the train to Rome for a couple of days.

@LIZS Lots of great options there, thank you very much. I'm a bit concerned about our budget stretching to Sorrento/Amalfi Coast, which of the others you have mentioned are the most reasonably priced off the top of your head please?

Go to Channia end has an airport...
The maze of the maze of the minator... Is there...
Lots of old history and the other end is the party one....
Channia harbour was lovely and the market was small shops, and you can go by bus all over the island...

There are reasonably priced hotels in Sorrento or on the train line just outside which will still enable you to get you to Pompeii etc and have views across the bay to Vesuvius.

Seville - Seville is amazing.

Rome - can go to Tivoli by train for the Villa d'Este which amazing. Or train out to Ostia.

Do not bother with Villa Adriana which we did because apart from the one bit they show on all the documentaries it's shit. Spent our whole time moaning we should have picked Ostia

Or mooching about at the weekend down the Appian Way.

Or going to the Borghese Museum in Rome - relaxers spend day wandering around the garden, sightseers get the bus and go on to another museum.

Seriously there is so much to see in Rome that those who want to relax can do a couple of churches and a nice cafe and meal + wine in a piazza and those who want to see everything can compile a spreadsheet and get walking.