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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

AIBU to find city breaks absolutely exhausting?

179 replies

lightnesspixie · 20/04/2025 22:10

Just that really. We are in our late 50s and relished the thought of European city breaks once the kids had left home. But we are finding that the reality - while nice - is utterly exhausting even if we try to pace ourselves. I’m certain it takes a week to get over them! Interested to hear how other fifty somethings find them …

OP posts:
greengreyblue · 23/04/2025 07:49

Bethknee · 22/04/2025 17:56

I have been to many of the European cities and I have to say, of all of them, I find London the best! I stick with that now and just mooch around my favourite places.

Love London too. Family are there so I’m a frequent visitor. Still finding new places.

FrenchandSaunders · 23/04/2025 08:02

I love a city break both with DH and my girlfriends.

Four of us friends do one every year round about our birthdays. We’re all mid to late 50s. The friend I share with is an early riser like me. However she loves to run, I don’t! So she goes off for a run, I’m ready when she’s back and we spend an hour exploring the city before breakfast when we meet the other two who prefer a lie in. It seems to work perfectly.

We then do a mixture of sight seeing, lovely food and wine. We get plenty of steps in, 15K plus, but also lots of down time and come back quite refreshed.

Crikeyalmighty · 23/04/2025 10:06

@greengreyblue yes that’s my kind of day - city’s can be relaxed if you make them so - went to Amsterdam in March- been many a time so didn’t do any site seeing at all - we dropped on with the weather so sat by canals with a drink, pottered round my favourite markets, H pottered round record shops - lovely breakfasts out and some excellent dinners- spent an hour in the biggest branch of Rituals ever -walked round vondelpark , went on train to lovely Haarlem 15 minutes away . The secret isa good quality hotel that’s nice simply to hang round in with a good bar , comfortable shoes and not trying to cram in loads of ‘sights’ unless you are very much the person ( or both of you) that enjoys doing so

wwyd2021medicine · 26/04/2025 00:22

@greengreyblue
Sounds lovely
I went to Seville for city breaks in November last year and again in March.
I still had naps despite how relaxing I found it!

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