Attractive European cities, not too hot, not too big

[JustAnotherManicUsername]

Thinking waaaay ahead to summer 2020 when DC will be 14 and 11. I think cities might be the way to go for us. Where's:

1. Not much over 30 degrees max in August
2. Small enough that you can stay in the centre and be close to several things to do (i.e. not Berlin, I gather) 3)Attractive / historic with interesting minor things for the adults to do in an hour or so while the kids refuse to leave the apartment
3. And large enough that there are enough local interesting bits of culture / foodie stuff etc. to keep us interested for 10 days or so, and some more major things that we can drag the kids along to.
4. Have good outdoor public pools
5. Ideally, allow Segwaying by under 16s (Spain does, I know, other countries I'm not sure).

I'm not keen on Paris in August. I'm not sure somewhere like Heidelberg would have enough in the minor pleasures category, although Germany is good for outdoor pools. Scandinavia sounds great but is probably too expensive (especially post-Brexit, if we do...). Amsterdam would be great but maybe weather a bit too dodgy? And it's very mosquito-y in August, I know.

Any ideas?

Girona

San Sebastian is not cheap in August. You could get a better deal put of the city but it wouldn't be the same experience. I had a lovely apartment but had to pay a fortune after a previous one I booked was cancelled. I guess it was my first August holiday, so prices were a shock! It was over £250 a night. We needed parking so that pushed up prices, and I'm picky about having a king sized bed and a dishwasher . A smaller place with no parking in the old town would be less but I didn't see any bargains.
I think as veggies you could have some tapas. Things from memory are Spanish omelette, roasted peppers, cheeses, olives. Otherwise it was very meat and fish based diet. We toured between Bilbao and San Sebastian for two weeks and it was a wonderful holiday. So green, clean, friendly and easy.

Krakow? Amsterdam? Lots to see.

No way to Copenhagen. Sickeningly expensive! €30 for 2 coffees a coke and 2 small cakes

Berlin would be perfect - loads to do; easy to get around; excellent veggie and vegan food options; lakes and forests; lovely weather but not stiflingly hot.

Not all Spanish cheeses are vegetarian though.

Leeds.

I went to Berlin end of May and it was at least 35 degrees!

I don't know who told you Berlin sights are not close together - most things in the central Mitte district are walkable and for everything else there's a public transport system the Brits can only dream of. There's plenty to do for 10 days, and a good mixture of culture and activities for teens too.

There certainly used to be Segway tours of the centre, not sure if they've now been banned. You can certainly hire Segways in the Tempelhofer Feld park - the one that used to be an airport. Belting down the runway is particular fun.

There are now a huge selection of veggie and vegan places to eat out - we were at a great vegan one in Kreuzberg last week.

Do bear in mind that renting an entire AirBnB property is quite restricted - used to be completely banned, but now you'd just need to check your host has a license.

The big problem is the heat - in August it's often as high as 38 degrees, and few buildings have air con. Any city in Central Europe is going to be miserably hot at that time of year. I felt like combusting this summer and have now installed ceiling fans in the upstairs rooms. Berliners spend a lot of time at the nearby lakes and outdoor pools in summer.

Amsterdam weather is similar to the UK. Definitely no more dodgy than here. Last August was glorious.

As for mosquitos - only if you're staying in more rural locations or right on one of the out of city canals. In the centre almost certainly not.

No Segway tours but get on bikes!!

I'm an Amsterdam blogger and posted these posts with suggestions and ideas for tween and teens this week

Let me know if I can help with anything x

amsterdamwonderland.com/kids/10-best-things-to-do-in-amsterdam-with-teenagers/

amsterdamwonderland.com/kids/10-best-things-to-do-in-amsterdam-with-tweens/

Oh and LOADS of new vegan and vegetarian restaurants

Edinburgh or Salzburg

Krakow has a couple of outdoor pools and a really big indoor one with loads of slides etc. It's a really pretty city but not sure on 10 days. There are a couple of vegan restaurants but not loads.

I think August is hot most places in Central and Southern Europe.

What about Scotland or Ireland? Loads of history, beautiful scenery etc. Lots of extreme sports for teenagers etc.

Lille, Bruges, Antwerpen, Brussels, Manchester, Tallin, York

I love Berlin. We did an outstanding holiday a few years ago where we flew to Berlin, stayed a few days there, drove to my dad's village in Poland just a stretch over the Czech border, then back to Czech Republic and Prague before returning to Berlin to fly out again.

Or you could combine Berlin with a Spreewald trip- look up Spreewald Luebenau. This is just beautiful. It is literally canal/forest living. You travel by canal boat and it's just heavenly. Berlin is fantastic. It's a buzzing, energetic city, rich in history and so vibrant.
I love Central/Eastern Europe. Another one could be Helsinki>Tallinn> St.Petersburg (ferries).
Stockholm- a city stay combined with an archipelago stay.
Lisbon- we did this last August. Rented a villa in Seixal with a pool (communal but it worked out really, really well) and hired a car, driving into the actual city itself for day trips. Lisbon is heavenly and our 16 year old DS LOVED it. There was a lot to see and do.

On the question of Segways in Germany we were told you need to be 15 as you need a driving licence and that's the earliest you can get a driving licence. The instructor let us rent one anyway with a warning that we may be fined if the police stopped and checked. We have done family Segway tours in Valencia, St Petersburg, Cologne and Lyon.

We cruise with teens for similar reasons to you give, it delivers us into a different town / city every day or two.

Have you thought about Gdansk/sopot/gydnia on the Baltic coast of Poland? weather is good but not too hot in early Aug (then wetter, cooler), all connected by cheap local transport, lovely beaches at sopot, sea in warm. in Gdansk there is fabulous ww2 museum, surprisingly good solidarity museum, lovely rebuilt Dutch looking centre, day trips to places like largest castle by land area in europe/world. all inexpensive. lots of parks, open spaces an hire bikes segeways etc

WIth those ages I’d go Valencia as they have both city and beach, it’s beautiful, you can hire bikes to get around on a traffic free park from city to beach.
Or maybe Bucharest because of the baths, the history and it’s cheap.
Annecy is also fabulous because you can swim in the lake, hire bikes to go round the lake, go up to the mountains.
Salzburg was lovely but not for more than 4 days or so.
Reykjavik has to be up there. Swimming In geothermal heated pools and baths. Whale trips, geysers, hot dogs, just brilliant place.

Biarritz is fabulous too. Surf or non surf. Fabulous restaurants.

How about nice? You can travel along the coast on the train v easily.

If you dont mind getting a bus/driving to city centre I’d recommend the Irenaz apartments in San Sebastián, or if you’ve a healthy budget the hotel Londres is in an amazing location!

In terms of food, if you book far enough in advance you can eat at the basque culinary centre and have Michelin style food for very low prices - it’s the food university. Also Eme Be Garotte which is Martin Berasateguis new restaurant - hasn’t got the stars yet because it’s not been open long enough. For pintxos you don’t have to stand if you go out of the old part - especially gros. It’s also brilliant if your kids would like to try surfing, and in August it has its week long festival with incredible fireworks 🎇 over the bay every night!