Family holiday in the mountains - your recommendations please!

[Cakebaker35]

Dh and I have always enjoyed being in the mountains, we've been on lots of holidays over the years including to the French alps several times as well as the Pyrenees and Dolomites. Dd is now just over 2 and we'd love to go to the mountains with her this summer (mid June) but are a bit stumped about where. We are keen on self catering and do not want to fly long haul but other than that we are open to suggestions. I'd love to hear your recommendations please...thank you

French Jura region, on birder with Switzerland and Italy? We drive there from dover (450 miles approx), and you can break the journey with a stopover. Many mobile homes in the area - we went with venue holidays ......and the are all fairly cheap in June.

If you can afford it Switzerland, zermat is beautiful but expensive.

I was going to suggest the Canadian Rockies until you said no long haul ...

Austria every time! We have been 4 times as a family and love it. Zell am See, Seefeld, anywhere really!

Grindelwald in Switzerland is just beautiful. Fly to Zurich. You can get the train easily or hire a car (it's about 2hr by car). Dd will be free on trains. Also it's close to Jungfrau joch mountain that you can get a train to the very top. Loads of lovely walks with easy to follow signs and usually a playground at the end of the walks. Some like Mannlichen (I think that the correct spelling) have children's trails with different activity station as you walk down the mountain. Lovely open air swimming pool in Grindelwald too. Mini golf with a view of the mountains
If you stay in the area you can get a card for free local buses.
Alternatively Austrian Tyrol can also be very child friendly. We went to Serfaus and it was lovely. Cable car up to the top of the mountain. Children's trail at the top, with Marmots to look at, a water play area and also a summer sledge run. It was lovely. We stayed in a kinderhotel. But I expect there are lots of self catering places as it is a popular ski area.

Another vote for Austria here too! Innsbruck is fab, as is Ellmau. So many children's activities up the mountain and in the valleys. Every town seems to have an amazing pool with slides and diving boards. My kids love it!

Love the mountains around Annecy too. We based ourselves there which was a great place.

Apologies OP for jumping in on your thread.

What is the weather like in mid summer in the mountains?

We are looking for our second week in France and want to try somewhere new.

I like it hot?

Thank you all so much for your suggestions, really helpful.

princess it is usually cooler/a lot less humid in the mountains which is why I like it. I've never really enjoyed the heat and having had surgery for skin cancer last year I actively avoid the hot places now, just too much covering up needed. However when we were in the Dolomites 2 years ago in June it was over 30 degrees, a bit of a shock and the locals said it's unusual, more normal is mid 20s which is perfect for me.

Def Austria. We stayed a week in Zell am See, not far from Innsbruck. They do a fab leisure pass which is excellent value for money. It includes entry to various mountain spas, a castle, musuems, boat ride in Innsbruck, etc. There is so much to do there, we didn't stop all week! We camped, static van, was very nice.

Grossglockner mountain drive was amazing, seeing the glacier, riding down the old miners slide in the salt mines, then an underground boat ride, spas in the mountains while the kids played on a springboard. Climbing the Krimml falls. It was probably the best holiday we've had with the whole family.

We have booked a week at Lac Du Chalain in the Jura. I love Austria too. Switzerland is £££££s We spent 3 days at Lake Brienz and visited the Reichenbach falls and Grindelwald. The cablecar cost was a bit eyewatering. I have my eye on Morzine for the future.

That sounds like a nice climate in the summer then OP. thanks for the advice.