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Use our Travel forum for recommendations on everything from day trips to the best family-friendly holiday destinations.

Original poster

City break in July with 13 yo DS

16 replies

TwigTheWonderKid · 10/03/2018 20:54

It's DS1's 13th birthday in July and I've decided to start a family tradition of taking newly teenage sons on a mum-and-son-13th-birthday-mini-break.

We live in London. Can anyone please recommend a British or European city for us to spend a weekend in? DS1 is very easy-going and likes walking, being outdoors, and architecture (that doesn't really narrow it down, does it?!

OP posts:
milkjetmum · 10/03/2018 20:56

Copenhagen, Venice or Barcelona? Maybe tie it in to an event eg theatre tickets or sports event?

Lifeaback · 10/03/2018 21:10

Berlin- plenty to do, lots of outdoors walking and interesting architecture which is different to England

Or Amsterdam? Cheap and quick to get too, really lovely architecture and so much to do.

Wherever you pick enjoy, sounds like it will be lovely for you both- he's lucky to have such a nice mum and I'm sure this tradition will go well Smile

Original poster
TwigTheWonderKid · 10/03/2018 23:02

Thanks for the suggestions (and for being so lovely Lifeaback) . We have family friends in Copenhagen so will cross that off the list and we've been to Venice and I know Amsterdam really well but neither of us has been to Berlin nor Barcelona so it would be lovely to explore one of those together. I'll buy a guide book for each and we can choose together :-)

OP posts:
Teenmum60 · 10/03/2018 23:49

Barcelona would be lovely in July (but maybe hot)....how about Krakow- a stunning city with lots of history - you can maybe do a Segway tour...or Croatia - Rovinj is lovely although crowded in the summer...Loads of wonderful Italian cities to choose from too or maybe somewhere different like Riga.

NorthernLurker · 11/03/2018 00:07

I went to Rome wth dd1 after her a-levels. It was great. Barcelona would be great too though. Does he like football?

Ricekrispie22 · 11/03/2018 08:42

We went to Rome with my my newphew who was 13. He loved all of the history but his highlights were:
'Scavi' tour underneath St Peter's (need to book early)
Climbing St Peter's
Cappuchin Crypt
Catacombs tour
Pizza and Gelato making workshop
Day trip to Pompeii
Gladiator show a Guppo Storico Romano (it wasn't as cheesy as I thought it would be!)

mummymeister · 11/03/2018 13:50

We enjoyed Rome, Barcelona and Athens. lots of good places to stay and easy to get around which my teens prefer.

androbbob · 11/03/2018 13:55

We did four days in Rome in October with a 10 year old and 15 year old. Both loved the Colosseum tour (underground and up to 4th and 5th level). Quite a compact city to walk around. Lots to see.

Floralnomad · 11/03/2018 14:03

My ds does city breaks in the Feb half term with my dsis an dtheyve particularly enjoyed Bucharest ( plus a visit to Bram castle) , Budapest and St Petersburg . They went to Lisbon this year which was also lovely and very cheap to eat if you go off the tourist track .

MelonKim · 11/03/2018 14:04

Omg Berlin

RemusLupinsBiggestGroupie · 11/03/2018 15:13

Definitely Berlin, if he is interested in history in the slightest.

bornonvalentines · 11/03/2018 15:14

Stockholm is really interesting. And Seville is incredibly Spanish.

juneau · 12/03/2018 16:53

July is really high season in Europe and it's hot. Much though I love places like Rome, Athens, Florence and Barcelona I wouldn't want to be sight-seeing and traipsing around city streets there in July. Lisbon is nice, because you get a bit of a breeze off the Atlantic, Berlin is fun, Edinburgh is good in summer, Valencia is lovely and a lot less touristy than Barcelona (if you really fancy Spain), and Paris has tons to do (but will be rammed with tourists in July).

memyselfandmoi · 12/03/2018 17:50

I wouldn't do Rome in July to be honest, we went there in October and it was quite busy and reasonably hot. I can't imagine what it would be like in high season.

Have you thought of Split? I went there with my partner last year and it's incredible. You can hire a car for a day and go to the waterfalls and drive around some of the other seaside towns, take a ferry to one of the Islands (we went to Hvar and hired an ancient VW, such fun) and just wander around the Roman palace you're staying in. It's like nowhere else I've every been.

notacooldad · 14/03/2018 09:39

Oslo is fabulous! It's a compact city with so much to do.

The sculpture park is about a 40 min walk or short tram ride from the city and lovely for warm evenings. In the day you can relax or swim in the sea - there's showers to wash off afterwards ( at the Astro Fearnley Museum of Modern Art. )It's a short bus ride to the Fram museum which is amazing.. There are all the main cafes and restaurants that teenagers often like, such as Hard Rock as well as local ones. Every time I've been to Oslo in the summer the weather has been great- not too overbearing. You can get a ferry to the surrounding islands as well which is good.

tracelab · 14/03/2018 15:13

Please consider Amsterdam. Such an amazing city at that age. I'm an Amsterdam blogger and have loads of advice and suggestions on my blog

www.amsterdamwonderland.com

Please let me know if I can help with anything. Always love to share all that's best about the city x

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