How familiar are the parents with travel?

12 is a good age to go adventurous. No need to stick to mainstays. What are his interests? What do the parents like?

Anonymous wrote:London with day trips

Yes - my son still talks about the white cliffs of Dover and how beautiful they were (but he is 13, the walk would be too difficult for little kids). There is a castle, too.

We made day trips by train- to Windsor, Dover and Stonehenge. And visited 2 musicals in London. Kids loved the red buses. It took us 50 minutes by a red bus from our apartment (airbnb) to some place in London, but it was always interesting sitting on top, looking around. Not too long at all.

Oh and the Harry Potter Studios!

We plan to go to London for another week as we missed all the museums and want to visit some other towns like Oxford, Bath etc. Would go to some 2 other musicals, too.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ireland or Germany would be perfect

Not the OP, but also thinking about doing Germany as our first international family trip with an 12
year old.

Wasn’t sure how fun it would be? Will take any suggestions as to why Germany would be a good option!

Food! Castles! Fascinating cities! History! I first went to Germany when I was 12 and I loved it. We were in Bavaria (we were tagging along to a talk my dad was giving in Munich) and visited like four different ones, all amazing.

On a more serious note, my parents also took us to Dachau which made a lot of things real in a way that my history classes never could and I’m glad we went.

OP here. I like the idea of Germany and will look in to it, Dublin and London are other likely options. For those asking, one parent has been to Canada and Mexico, the other has traveled more extensively but not recently.

Germans in my experience are very family-friendly and like children. It was so much more relaxing to have a (little) kid in public there than in the US. I was shocked because their reputation is uptight. Granted I am a German speaker so maybe that helps, but it was such a nice atmosphere.

I am really surprised to her this!! I've been to Germany a lot but not with young kids.

We loved LEGOLAND and Playmobil Funpark with small kids in Germany.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think Paris is a great first trip.

No not for young kids. Paris is dirty and was a total let down for me when I was a teen.

Hm, I visited Paris when I was 14 and totally fell in love with it.

Then spent there 3 weeks when I was 18 and still loved it.

My children loved Amsterdam (#1) and London (#2) the most of European cities.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What’s a good first trip out of the country for a family of 3 with some limitations:
6-7 days max
Must travel on school schedule
Budget around $7,000 but decent number of hotel points available
We generally prefer city to hiking
Thank you!

-Quebec City
-Mexico City
-Vancouver

Of course there’s Europe too, but the options above are closer to home and easier to manage in terms of jet lag.

What seas are you going over to get to QC, MC, or Vancouver?

Le sigh. The poor reading comprehension on this board is astounding.

OP did not mention anything about overseas. Her question was “What’s a good first trip out of the country?”

Last time I checked, the above suggestions are out of the country.

Yes, but the subject line is "Good first trip overseas" so I can see the confusion. Regardless, I would evaluate your family dynamics. We have members that are great and very flexible, and others that are very routine and schedule orientated. When we travel we look for places and a style of travel that works for the entire family. Its so great to explore new places with your family - Quebec City is a great starting point if you want to go somewhere near by, no time change and yet different language and cuisine - same is the case for Mexico.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What’s a good first trip out of the country for a family of 3 with some limitations:
6-7 days max
Must travel on school schedule
Budget around $7,000 but decent number of hotel points available
We generally prefer city to hiking
Thank you!

-Quebec City
-Mexico City
-Vancouver

Of course there’s Europe too, but the options above are closer to home and easier to manage in terms of jet lag.

What seas are you going over to get to QC, MC, or Vancouver?

Le sigh. The poor reading comprehension on this board is astounding.

OP did not mention anything about overseas. Her question was “What’s a good first trip out of the country?”

Last time I checked, the above suggestions are out of the country.

To be fair, it says overseas in the title but that's ok, I'm not the only person to have this question and it will help some people either way.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What’s a good first trip out of the country for a family of 3 with some limitations:
6-7 days max
Must travel on school schedule
Budget around $7,000 but decent number of hotel points available
We generally prefer city to hiking
Thank you!

-Quebec City
-Mexico City
-Vancouver

Of course there’s Europe too, but the options above are closer to home and easier to manage in terms of jet lag.

What seas are you going over to get to QC, MC, or Vancouver?

Le sigh. The poor reading comprehension on this board is astounding.

OP did not mention anything about overseas. Her question was “What’s a good first trip out of the country?”

Last time I checked, the above suggestions are out of the country.

Anonymous wrote:I think Paris is a great first trip.

No not for young kids. Paris is dirty and was a total let down for me when I was a teen.

Mexico with young kids? Absolutely not. You can’t even drink the water there. I vote Switzerland. Clean, safe and tons of kid activities.

Anonymous wrote:How old are any kids? London is easy because it’s close and the time difference is a little smaller. We also loved Portugal with little kid and it is a bit less expensive than London. We took our kids at 1, 3, and 5 to Mexico City and everyone loved it, but we speak Spanish at home and had friends there so I’m not sure we would have otherwise had such a successful experience.

Mexico isn’t considered “overseas” lol

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What’s a good first trip out of the country for a family of 3 with some limitations:
6-7 days max
Must travel on school schedule
Budget around $7,000 but decent number of hotel points available
We generally prefer city to hiking
Thank you!

-Quebec City
-Mexico City
-Vancouver

Of course there’s Europe too, but the options above are closer to home and easier to manage in terms of jet lag.

What seas are you going over to get to QC, MC, or Vancouver?

Anonymous wrote:What’s a good first trip out of the country for a family of 3 with some limitations:
6-7 days max
Must travel on school schedule
Budget around $7,000 but decent number of hotel points available
We generally prefer city to hiking
Thank you!

-Quebec City
-Mexico City
-Vancouver

Of course there’s Europe too, but the options above are closer to home and easier to manage in terms of jet lag.

Many good answers already on location. I would just add to think about what it is your family likes to see and do. If you are a museum family, select a city with museums you are interested in, or cultural sites. Our family doesn't like spending much time in cities - they prefer hiking, and active vacations. Getting away from cities often means using trains, or renting cars. Which can mean more logistics to consider.

My son's first international country was The Netherlands. It was so easy to get around, we stayed in Amsterdam, then escaped to a smaller town easily accessible by train. Very easy to navigate and get around. Although thing to concern is the time of year you are traveling - summers can be hot and families get testy - especially if you are used to A/C in hotels. August can be an exhausting time to travel to many European cities as tourism increases and so do the temperatures.

London. Take the train for one day in Paris—early train down & late train back. Great trip for kids that age.