Your favourite city break with teens.

[Starsandrain]

We’ve never been on a city break with our children (12 and 14) and would like to. Wondering if you can recommend your favourite place you’ve been. We would like to go in October but may have to wait until May to save up. I think the weather will be nicer in May too. Thanks for any recommendations.

We found Vienna quite dull sorry.

Berlin was fab in May was hot lots of outdoor pools very cool. Valencia is brilliant too you have the beach and aquarium and amazing science place plus it feels quite South American and cool.

London
Liverpool
Belfast
Cologne
Milan
Budapest

London.
Venice
Paris
Rome

mine loved Lisbon - loads to do eg parks, cable cars, aquarium, river cruise, trams, zoo

he also really enjoyed Valencia

going to Berlin later this month

I have Copenhagen on my list of places for us to visit for the weekend, so it’s great to see recommendations

Rome is a great city break destination generally and I know that mine would love it

In the UK, I have Southampton and Belfast on my list. I’ve never been to Liverpool but I’d imagine that would be great too

To anyone who fancies Copenhagen- after living there here's my tips if you aren't walloped!!

Aparthotels- some amazing ones
Hostels- again some fantastic ones- with individual rooms- wake up chain is good- a lot are very funky!

Coffees- espresso house chain- at around £6 for a totally huge one- take a plastic mug with you and split them -we frequently did- same with their enormous toasties.

Meals out
Places that were more sensible Money were
Cafe Vivaldi (chain)
Broens - big outdoor food court by the river (central) with DJs etc- great for teens
Tivoli food court- indoor food hall joined to the city centre funfair
Reffen (summer) - large funky food court with music/DJs - great food stalls
Magasasa- great quality affordable oriental

Workshop- (chain) great quality orientalist with lovely interiors.

If budget can stretch to it, New York is by far and away the best city break we've had with our teens. They loved it. But it is expensive.

Short haul, Rome or Barcelona.

UK - London or Liverpool. Liverpool was surprisingly good.

Hamburg is a great city break destination. Lots to do. Good mix of cultural stuff and gritty industrial stuff in the docks. If I recall, you can also use your tourist card on the local water buses up and down the Elbe and get a good look at the containers loading in the docks. A walk by the Elbe slightly out of the city centre can be eye-opening. You are walking through fields like any British leafy riverside walk and suddenly a container ship hoves into view and dwarfs you as it passes on its way back to the North Sea. The scale of them in a rural setting is so incongruous.

Berlin..lots to see and do,
Also Krakow.

My 11+15 yo loved Reykjavik. However I would say it's not exactly a city break as you traditionally think of it - it's a tiny place so most of the activities are outdoor trips outside the city itself. Caves, glaciers, waterfalls, etc.

Berlin - good prices lots to fo
Washington DC- lots of free museums
Gothenburg - compact no more expensive than home
New York - though attractions and eats $$$
Madrid - art and shopping, less interesting if not into that.
Palma - mainly sun and eats.

I’m interested in Berlin recommendations but don’t want to derail this thread. I should start a separate one.

Barcelona was a hit with our 2 DS - include a night at rye football, it was fab !

Rye? the !

Brugge. There are lots of canals so a ride on the canal boat. Loads of hand made chocolate shops. Horse drawn carriage rides. We enjoyed a visit to a chocolate factory and a diamond tour. I went up a windmill. There are Belgian beer tours. So many little independent shops to look in.

If you go to Bar elona you could take them to camp Nou.

Had a great time in Washington DC with our teen - so much to see (a lot of it free!) and lots of recognisable landmarks!
Naples was also good!

Salzburg was also really good. We went on a boat that waltzed around to waltzing music. There are the trick gardens with trick water features that will catch you out. Prepare to get wet. The castle. I'd avoid the zoo as it only has a tiny enclosure.

I enjoyed Paris and Prague as a teenager! I used to get the £1 megabus to Paris quite often, always new things to explore although I’m sure they don’t do the £1 each way ticket anymore.

We went to the Salzburg water garden place on a very hot day when the DCs were young. Absolutely hilarious!

Thanks. Lots to look into. Bonus points for those who said what you did on your city breaks. I think we are looking at abroad although wouldn’t mind a uk break. We live close to London so won’t count that. New York would be the dream but would be out of our budget. So many to research. Thanks all!

We've had great times in Berlin, Rotterdam, Belfast, Liverpool, Amsterdam and York.

Oh, and Bristol.

Berlin and Rome were because they had learned about the Romans and WW2 at school.

Rome has the amazing buildings like the Collisseum and the Forum. The Trevi fountain is stunning and tucked down a narrow street. And of course there is lots of pizza and ice cream to eat. It is full of Italian loveliness!

Berlin is probably for older teens. It has lots of remnants of the Berlin Wall and the time that it was a divided city. Obviously the wall itself, but Checkpoint Charlie too. There is a museum that is very hands on where you can sit in a Trabant and walk into an East German flat. The reichstag is interesting as is the Brandenberg Gate. The holocaust memorial is close by.

Barcelona has a little beach, amazing Gaudi architecture including the Sagrada Familia, Parc Guell and the Casa Mila apartment building. There is a big park with rowing boats and a cable car from the harbour to the Olympic Park. There is a Joan Miro gallery there with bonkers pictures and sculpture. I've not been but there is a traditional fair at Tibidabo. Tapas can be child friendly too.

I second Liverpool as a UK option. The waterfront is very lively, there are museums about music and slavery and a Tate Gallery. Two cathedrals and the ferry across the Mersey - I think there is a science museum at the other end.