Holiday ideas for teens who don’t like beaches/heat

[LavenderLxx]

We’re starting to think about summer holiday ideas and would love some inspiration.

Our teens are 16 and 13, and neither of them is particularly keen on a traditional beach/pool holiday where that’s the main focus. They both enjoy exploring — cities, interesting sights, nature, history — anything that feels like there’s something to do rather than just lie around.

That said, our younger one would probably appreciate having access to a pool at some point during the trip — not as the main event, but as a bit of downtime alongside more active days.

We’re looking for destinations that offer plenty to see and experience (culture, scenery, activities, etc.) but that won’t be unbearably hot in the summer holidays (we’d be travelling early August).

Flying from London and we’d likely have around a week.

Has anyone done a trip that struck this balance — interesting and engaging for teens, but with a bit of relaxation built in, and in a climate that’s comfortable in August.

They might enjoy Finland - temperature is similar to uk (so varies but low 20’s is normal). Cheap flights from Stansted. Helsinki is lovely, consider taking the train out of town too, there’s historical places, museums, swim in the lakes and sea, sauna culture is huge of course and dc are perfect age. Moomin shop kept me busy for an hour

We’ve been to Sweden but never Finland so this would be an interesting experience - thank you

Somewhere mountainous.

we had a great trip to Morzine with Alpine Adventures a few years ago when our dc were similar ages

Define comfortable - I live in Scotland average summer temp is between 17-20ish which many people in the South or the UK would define as cold for summer!

How about Southern Germany/Austria?
My DC love it there - however, it can get pretty hot in August and AC is not as common as in some places in Europe

Another vote for the Alps. Mountain biking, hiking, lake swimming? I did some of this in 3 valleys but heard Morzine is also great

I'd second Finland. Also how about Switzerland? Our children loved summer holidays there. Cable cars and chair lifts up into the mountains, biking, train trips, treetops type adventure places, Swiss national day, outdoor pools (including thermal spa places). So much to do and it's stunningly beautiful. It is pricey though - doing the same holiday just over the border in France would save money.

I’d definitely consider Scandinavian countries. Denmark has a nice mix of cities and national parks.

I’ve been looking at foothills of the Alps, so lakes and mountains around Geneva. There is lots to do and cheap summer flights with EasyJet. It would still be warm but more options for adventure - hikes, lakes, canoeing, sailing, cycling, and various city excursions like to beautiful Annecy. There are eurocamps, or hire an Airbnb. Car hire also looked reasonable if booked now and there’s good public transport.

Thank you - I’ll add all of these to our list and do some research.

Keep them coming!

We go to the southern French alps. It’s mostly sunny and can be warm but more like 25 degrees. Hotter than that is unusual. Similar experience to Morzine but fewer Brits! Towns like Briançon are interesting…. Several vauban forts to see. Lots of activities and easy to pop over border to Italy.

We did this a few years ago and loved it! Stayed in both Salzburg and Munich

Going to repeat everyone else and suggest French Alps. We took ours last year (age 12 and 17) and it was the most popular holiday yet. Loads of fresh air, stunning scenery, activities if you want them, lakes to swim in, plus a real family feel (as opposed to Adults v Kids).

Just reread your post! You can easily fly to marseille from LGW (and other London airports). Explore Aix or marseille, then head up to the alps… 2 hours and you’ve got the Lac de Serre Ponçon (there are others) which is great for swimming or water sports (or looking at the view!). We will be there that week and I can’t wait. Kids are now young adults and want to come with us. Been going all their lives!

Would they be interested in a cruise? We keep eyeing up a Norwegian fjords cruise, but timing it right to fit school holidays, warmish weather and opertune Northern lights sightings is tricky.

Copenhagen seems to be catnip for teens at the moment. Not cheap but plenty to do. Stay somewhere Danish coast or countryside and combine with city break or stay near enough to capital to be able to nip in?

Or the Netherlands or Germany. Some theme parks - Parc Europa or Efteling for a day or two.

Unless you’re minted how can anyone afford a cruise!? We’ve always wanted to go but they tend to be 5k plus in the school holidays for our family of 4. And that’s without drinks. 🤷🏽‍♀️ AND every year they’re dearer and dearer it seems!
city breaks make more sense OP!

Try a different bit of Southern Germany..... the Bodensee (Lake Constance). It can sometimes get hot in summer, but you do have the lake and a number of lovely thermal pools.
Plenty of cycling and sailing, but also lovely towns/cities to explore. Also the Zeppelin Museum at Friedrichshafen. I'd make Konstanz your base, but public transport is good so you can travel all over from there.
Seenachtsfest is in early August, so lots of bands and events (although accommodation at that time does book up quickly).
Fly to Zurich or Basel, and then get a train over the border (Germany is much cheaper than Switzerland!).

Iceland. Perfect for active teens. Horse-riding, hiking, whale watching, snowmobiling, ice tubing, so much to do and then hit the spas.

We took our teens to Budapest last summer. Admittedly it was warm but there was a good mix of culture and there are plenty of spas for a pool day.

Thank you all - lots of interesting ideas!

Iceland is great in the summer, it's one of my kids favourite trips, just loads to see and do. If you've got the budget Svalbard was also super interesting, but expensive (2nd warning!).

Ireland? Scotland? Scandinavia?

Anywhere in mainland Western Europe aside from these is likely to be hot in school summer holidays.

I guess there’s the Baltic countries, Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania?

Slovenia - beautiful, active, lakes.

Brittany or Normandy. Beautiful beaches but also plenty of interest inland. Try Suisse Normande. https://en.normandie-tourisme.fr/unmissable-sites/suisse-normande/

The Netherlands? Possibly a niche choice for a summer holiday but great cycling, a lot of culture and history, really well presented and accessible, and even good beaches if wished!

Maybe the Black Forest area in Germany, or Switzerland (a bit expensive).

Pyrenees or Northern Spain.

Atlantic islands like the Canaries or Madeira don't get too hot in the summer, and there is plenty of nature in particular. What about a sports holiday like Club La Santa in Lanzarote? (Never been myself but I hear good things.)

We enjoyed Copenhagen in the summer. Oslo is also supposed to be a wonderful destination.

Slovenia would be my pick. Mountains, hiking, zip-lining, rafting. Beautiful rivers and lakes. Some pretty towns / cities to visit too.