October / November half term suggestions

[DibbleDooDah]

After your suggestions for a 10-12 day trip for a family of four (children 14 and 11 and well travelled) at the October half term. Not a beachy holiday as we are going to Asia at Christmas on a long awaited covid cancelled holiday.

We were thinking of potentially flying somewhere in Europe and then travelling around by train. Like the idea of Switzerland but worried that given the time of year it could be very rainy and misty and we wouldn’t actually be able to see the scenery. I am an amateur photographer so love a view.

How easy is it to travel round the Greek islands that time of year and are things still open?

Looked at Jordan but honestly the flight times are really putting me off (they all seem to land in the very early hours of the morning).

We like walking around places, finding cafes and restaurants to take a break, a few museums / galleries, things to see and do. It’s definitely a “doing” holiday we are after.

Been to Slovenia which we all loved. Thought about Iceland but husband and I have already been for a week. We have actually visited lots of European cities pre kids but happy to revisit some of them.

Would be nice to have temperatures in the teens but not essential.

Have considered a cruise but I get sea sick. I kind of want to try a mini cruise before I commit to spending that much time on a ship. Anyone else have the same problem and been fine on a cruise?

I just feel there’s so many options that I am struggling to hone in on something.

The weather in Switzerland at that time of year is sometimes very nice but like most places, it's a lottery. If the weather is a deal breaker you'll have to go somewhere more certain like Greece. I think it would be nice to fly to say, geneva then train through Switzerland, perhaps down past the Italian lakes, down through Italy stopping in various cities? Or what about travelling through Croatia?

How about Egypt? https://www.seat61.com/Egypt.htm

Oct half-term is a great time to go to the US east coast. Have you done that? NYC, Washington DC, Boston, fall leaves.

@maranella Yes, done a lot of the east coast USA. My kids go to a summer camp In Pennsylvania and we usually have a family holiday afterwards. Haven’t been to DC with them yet though.

@Fivemoreminutes1 Egypt has never appealed. Ditto Morocco. They should both be on my list though as they tick all the boxes.

I get sick on ferries but am fine on cruises, they’re 10x bigger and have stabilisers.
Of you want to stay inland how about train travel between Prague-Budapest-Vienna? Venice-Verona-Milan?

Yes, Switzerland / Italy by train were one of the main ideas I had.

There was a cruise that looked good going from Barcelona to Rome with various stop offs.

@roundcork It’s been mainly long haul. New York, Maine (can highly recommend the area around Ogunquit & Perkins Cove), Miami, Key West, Barbados, Vancouver, Whistler, Maldives, Mauritius, Portugal, Dubrovnik, Montenegro and Slovenia were highlights. We also spend a lot of time in Belgium as we have family there - in the Flanders region. Plus lots of the U.K.

We haven’t really done European city breaks with them yet, although husband and I have been all over. We toured around Slovenia a couple of years ago and it worked for everyone so looking for something along those lines.

Porto and Lisbon could be an option for us. None of us have been and weather would be reasonable. I do also like the idea of getting the train around. I almost feel like there’s too many options!!!!

Morocco would be great at that time. Not sure why it’s never appealed? My kids loved it.

Cyprus works weather wise. Turkey might well too.

Southern Spain - Granada, Seville, Jerez etc.

Greek islands are shutting down then. The bigger/more year-round ones (Crete, Corfu, Santorini) less so. You could maybe combine Athens with an island?

May I ask about your Slovenia holiday - did you book it all yourself or go through an agent (if so who please?) Any particular highlights?

@minipie We actually flew into Ljubljana from Montenegro as we tagged a week in Slovenia onto the end of a week there.

Spent a few days in Ljubljana. Had a day trip out to Postojna Caves and Predjama Castle (booked at the tourist information office once we got there.). The House of Experiments and House of Illusions were good fun with the children. Otherwise we just wandered around - saw the oldest musical instrument in the world.

Then got a cab back to the airport and picked up a hire car (was easier than in the city centre as a lot of streets are pedestrianised). Driving was extremely easy. Roads quiet and well maintained, even in the height of summer.

Drove up to Kranjska Gora and used it as a base for a few days. Saw Lake Jasna, drove the Vrsic Pass, Lake Bohinj, did some hiking and took the bobsled down from the top of the mountain. Then drove to lake Bled, stopping off at the Vintgar Gorge.

Finished off with a few nights in Bled. We timed it with the Festival of Light where thousands of egg shell tea lights are launched into the Lake at night. Pretty cool. Dinner in the castle was lovely, as was going to the church on the lake and again, just pottering around.

Absolutely loved it all. Would liked to have visited Piran too but ran out of time. The scenery is absolutely stunning.

This holiday sounds great! I’m looking for ideas for October half term. Can I ask what kind of budget this would need for a family of four? Not looking for high end accommodation, mid range. Never been to this country so no idea where it sits price wise. Thanks

I was going to suggest Granada, Seville and that sort of area. It can still be quite warm but a nice temperature to do sightseeing to the Alhambra etc.

@Bluehands87 We went in 2019 so prices would be different now. Food was very reasonably priced. A pizza about £8 In Ljubljana. Beers about £4. Car hire was £280 for the week. We stayed in higher end hotels. Hotel Skipass and Vila Bled were amazing but pricey

Thanks for all your help and suggestions. We have booked a week in Seville. Will do day trips to Cadiz, Cordoba and Grenada whilst there. Really quite looking forward to it!!!!

You really like to pack it in. That doesn't sound like a week itinerary in Slovenia although I've wanted to go for a while. I'm surprised you had time to potter.

@ZenNudist It was actually a very chilled holiday. Slovenia really isn’t a very big country. The longest drive we did was 1.5 hours. Helped by basing ourselves in three different hotels. We did three nights Ljubljana, two nights Kranjska Gora and three nights in Bled (ok, it was 8 nights not 7). It really didn’t feel rushed at all.