Hamburg
Germany’s second-largest city is a fabulous all-rounder for families. As well as enjoying a breezy maritime atmosphere – it’s the largest port in the country and crisscrossed by dozens of canals – it offers oodles of urban flair and cultural and outdoor activities.
Hamburg is highly walkable, and has an excellent public transport system, but a weekend visit will still benefit from some planning. Staying in the commercial centre (Mitte) gives quick and easy access to many of the main sights, including the pretty Aussen-Alster lake, the beautifully restored brick warehouses of the Unesco-heritage Speicherstadt, and the slick new HafenCity district.
The Miniatur Wunderland in Speicherstadt is the world’s biggest miniature railway, with more than 1,000 trains and 260,000 figures. The wave-shaped Elbphilharmonie concert hall hosts regular concerts and has a viewing platform with sweeping harbour views. The Internationales Maritimes Museum displays model ships (including a Lego version of the Queen Mary), sextants and a copy of the first nautical atlas. Smaller kids will get a kick out of the HafenCity’s Schatzinsel Spielplatz (Treasure Island Playground) in Grasbrookpark, which has a climbing area, lawns and a pirate ship.
Alster lake is a recreational hotspot, especially on warmer weekends, with pedal boats, paddleboards and canoes for hire. There are waterside cafe terraces from which to admire the views and a circular pathway enjoyed by strollers, joggers, inline skaters and dog walkers.
Bigger thrills can be found in the adjacent St Pauli area – no, not the Reeperbahn red light district but the DOM (hamburg.com/dom, free with online ticket), northern Germany’s biggest funfair, held here three times a year (the next from 22 July-21 August), with rollercoasters, carousels and food stalls. A short walk away is the U-Boat Museum Hamburg, a fully functional submarine whose engine and torpedo rooms can be explored.
For a quieter stay, the northern Eimsbüttel district has a slower pace and a more local vibe, with the lovely Isemarkt farmers’ market, and one of Hamburg’s oldest indoor swimming pools (Kaifu Bad). Hagenbeck Zoo, just north of here, has no cages – a narrow moat separates visitors from the 200-plus animals – a tropical aquarium and a polar enclosure, plus pony rides and a tourist train.
For a picnic or a fresh-air runaround, Planten un Blomen is a central oasis where kids can cool down with water pumps, play on climbing frames and have an ice cream. There’s a separate play area for toddlers, a Japanese garden and tropical greenhouses should the weather turn.
A city tour in the HafenCity Riverbus, an amphibious vehicle that travels on roads and water, makes a fun rainy-day activity.
Where to stay
Adina Apartments (family room from €223) has two well-located hotels, one in the Speicherstadt and one in the centre. Both have spacious, well-equipped rooms, restaurants and indoor pools. For a kid-friendly lunch or dinner, Peter Pane next to the Schanzenpark serves good burgers, salads and drinks, and the park has playgrounds and sports areas.
Hamburg is just 1¾ hours by train from Berlin – so you could combine a trip here with a stop in the capital.
Paul Sullivan, Berlin-based travel writer who visits Hamburg regularly
Genoa, Italy
This vibrant port city on the Ligurian coast is often overlooked in favour of Rome, Venice or Verona, but Genoa has it all: sun-drenched piazzas, outstanding Unesco sites, the amazing food that makes Italian cities magical, as well as tons of kids’ attractions. There’s a fraction of the crowds in the more-celebrated cities, often at a fraction of the cost. Excellent train connections with Milan make Genoa easy to reach, too.
Start by visiting the Porto Antico, a beautiful, vibrant area full of attractions and a great place to walk with a gelato. This is the maritime heart of the city that gave birth to Christopher Columbus, and home to the Aquarium. It’s one of the largest in Europe, with weird and wonderful marine animals, penguins and a fascinating “behind the scenes” tour to experience how an aquarium works. The breathtaking onsite Bigo Panoramic lift, a cabin that ascends vertically to 40 metres and was designed by local – and world-famous – architect Renzo Piano, has outstanding views of the Mediterranean sparkling in the sun.
Visitors to the Galata Maritime Museum can board a real submarine, the Nazario Sauro, while young pirates should visit nearby Neptune, a replica of a 17th-century galleon that was created for the 1986 Roman Polanski film Pirates, now docked in Genoa.
To refuel, Genoese specialities include delicious focaccia and pasta with its famous pesto. Good options include the local branch of Eataly, posh snack bar Panino Marino and the historic Osteria di Vico Palla.
Another day can be spent in the historic centre. Its caruggi are charming small alleys with traditional shops for older kids to poke around in, and eateries that feel like something from the middle ages. A ride on Pippo, the city tourist train, is fun for little kids, and impressive architecture includes the Unesco-listed Palazzi dei Rolli and the Duomo, with the shell of an unexploded second world war bomb in one corner.
For refreshments, Cremeria Buonafede does a unique Genoese coffee semifreddo called panera, and nearby Titilla Papilla does wonderful homemade natural gelato. Young ones could run off the sugar at Spianata dell’Acquasola, a panoramic garden within the 14th-century walls.
Where to stay
Hotel Genoa NH Collection Marina (family room for two adults and one child from €193, two adults and two children from €246) has spacious family rooms in the Old Port area.
Marta Correale, Italian family travel writer at mamalovesitaly.com
The Hague, the Netherlands
The Hague is the royal and political nerve centre of the Netherlands, home to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and several palaces. But few outsiders realise there’s plenty of fun to be had here, too. A less frantic alternative to Amsterdam, it is packed with child-friendly museums, art galleries and shops, as well as having sandy beaches nearby and a gorgeous historic centre with leafy boulevards and canals. An efficient tram service makes it easy to get around. Getting here from the UK is simple, too – take the Eurostar and change at Rotterdam (around 4½ hours).
Plot your days to include a visit to One Planet, an interactive culture and science museum good for all ages. Older children (eight and over) interested in crime and punishment, or with a taste for the gruesome, should head to De Gevangenpoort (the Prison Gate), a museum housed in a medieval prison and displaying instruments of punishment and torture. Visitors can play judge in an interactive exhibition featuring historical crime stories. For cultured kids, Vermeer’s Girl with a Pearl Earring awaits in the small Mauritshuis museum, along with other impressive 17th-century Dutch and Flemish art pieces.
After a morning of sightseeing on foot, take a 90-minute canal cruise around the old centre, for glorious views of the Peace Palace gardens and former merchant houses along the Mauritskade.
Covering all the sights of the Netherlands in miniature and in one afternoon, Madurodam model world has interactive exhibitions, many of them outdoors. Kids can kick footballs, play with water sluices and dikes, voyage on a 17th-century ship to fire cannons in New Amsterdam (known these days as New York) and measure their weight in Dutch cheeses.
Teenagers with an interest in world politics could visit the Peace Palace, where the ICJ is located, for a tour, film and exhibitions. (The Dutch parliament is usually open to visitors, but currently closed for renovations.)
The Hague has food choices galore. Try traditional Dutch pancakes or poffertjes (little fluffy pancakes) at the Paviljoen Malieveld, then walk off your lunch in the nearby Haagse Bos woods. Ice-cream vendor Moes is part of the street furniture, so look out for his stall, which moves between prominent locations. Even Queen Máxima of the Netherlands is rumoured to indulge.
Those with more than a couple of days should have time to venture beyond the city. A sure-fire winner is Duinrell, an amusement park and indoor and outdoor waterpark in Wassenaar, easily accessible by tram from the city centre. For a day on the beach, sandy Scheveningen is only 20 minutes away by tram, and has a Legoland Discovery Centre, a pier with a Giant Wheel over the sea, bungee jumping and surfing. There are beach cafes to relax in, and teenagers might relish staying up to experience the bustling nightlife as the sun sets.
Where to stay
Staybridge Suites (from €200 for two double rooms, is in a fantastic location opposite parliament (great for an evening stroll); rooms have a fully equipped kitchen.
Amanda van Mulligen, freelance writer living in the Netherlands with her Dutch husband and three sons
Durbuy, Belgium
Belgium is filled with fun cities to discover with kids. Obvious destinations include Brussels, Bruges and Ghent, but for a city with a difference try Durbuy (pronounced Dur-bwee) in the French-speaking Wallonia region. Just 90 minutes’ drive from Brussels, it looks like a pocket-size town (by train it’s around 2hr 15min ride from Brussels to Barvaux, then a 20-minute bus journey), and has just 11,000 inhabitants, but it is a city: it was granted the title in 1331 by Jean de Bohème, Count of Luxembourg and King of Bohemia. Today Durbuy calls itself “la plus petite ville du monde” (“the world’s smallest city” – though this is far from true). But although it has grown substantially since the 14th century, the original centre remains pretty much unchanged.
For families there is a lot to do, particularly for those who love the great outdoors. Durbuy is in the green and rolling Belgian Ardennes, a great area for kayaking, fishing, cycling, hiking and more.
The sights of central Durbuy can take up a full day, followed by a couple exploring the surrounding area. The tourist office has a good walking tour, which details the history of the town and the half-timbered houses that line the narrow, cobbled streets. Le Petit Train Touristique winds its way up to a viewing tower for a bird’s eye view over the city.
Parc des Topiaires, next door to the privately owned Château de Durbuy, is the largest of its kind in Europe, home to more than 250 topiary figures crafted and shaped from boxwood plants. Lunch could be a picnic of cured meat or fish and salads from Boucherie Bodson at the Roche à la Falize, an enormous rock on the north side of town that is over 300 million years old. For a post-lunch treat, Bonbon Chic sells traditional Belgian chocolates.
Just outside of Durbuy is Adventure Valley Durbuy, the largest adventure park in Belgium. This is a brilliant day out for kids aged six and over, with ziplines, a bike park, a via ferrata, a tubing slide, bouncy bridges and more.
Chèvrerie de Borlon, a goat farm in the nearby town of Borlon, offers a taste of life in the Belgian countryside. Welcomed by the very charismatic Géradine, visitors can spend anywhere from a couple of hours to a full day with the goats, helping to milk and herd them.
A family favourite for dinner is Sept by Juliette, which specialises in sharing plates of local produce (bitter ballen, gouda bruschetta, etc). There’s also a delicious dessert tapas plate.
Where to stay
Luxury safari tents in Adventure Valley Durbuy cost from €200 a night for four .
Katja Gaskell, editor of family travel website Globe Totting
Angers, France
The phrases “great outdoors” and “city break” don’t often go together, but they combine very well in Angers in the western Loire. Its position on the Maine River, with the Loire, Mayenne and Sarthe rivers also running nearby, means its main sights, cycle trails and social life all sit happily on riverfronts and appeal to every generation.
A short break would naturally start at Chateau d’Angers: the looming walls high above the Maine are punctuated by 17 robust towers. Inside are the rather more delicate turrets of the chateau itself and the main draw, the 14th-century Tapestry of the Apocalypse. This series of six-metre-high embroidered panels in a dramatically dark gallery tell the story of the Book of Revelation, and kids can delight in spotting seven-headed Beasts, flying angels and a bit of dragon slaying.
The city’s other attractions – including Maison Adam, a timber-framed medieval house decorated with gurning wooden figures – are cleverly linked by a two-mile-long blue line on the pavement. Parents could follow that until the whingeing starts, then head down the steps from the Saint-Maurice d’Angers cathedral to Quai Ligny, where children can play in the fountains and on climbing frames.
To get out along the rivers, Espace 2 Roues hires out bikes for rides up the Mayenne or Sarthe. The village of Cantenay-Epinard, on the Mayenne, is home to riverside restaurant Le Cabane du Chat Qui Pêche. The village of Écouflant, on the banks of the Sarthe, has the open-air La Guinguette Mazette. In the 19th century, this village was a hotspot for riverside bars, or guinguettes (featured in many an impressionist painting), a trend which has seen a recent resurgence across France.
There are many other guinguettes along Angers’ riverfronts; many also offer live music, Bollywood dance classes or yoga. In central Angers, just over the Maine from the chateau, on the edge of Parc Balzac, the Heron Carré giungette has an amazing view, a simple menu of chips, steaks and salads and music events to keep teens amused until late. For a full day out, the Terra Botanica theme park is a 10-minute drive (30 minutes by tram) from the centre, with mazes, low-tech rides and boat rides, all on a plant-life theme.
Where to stay
Angers City Kamp (two-bedroom cabin from €159 in summer), a lakeside campsite just outside the centre with a pool and pizzeria. There are bikes to hire, for an easy ride into town or to the pretty village of Bouchemaine and the island of Béhuard, on the Loire.
Carolyn Boyd, food and travel writer and expert on France
