tomboy

Here's MY take on your ideas:

• Omit Switzerland, or any other mountain. Believe me, once you're at the top of a mountain, they all look the same. Pike's Peak/Matterhorn.....grey rock, 45 degree angle....mononotous. save your (and the kids') monotony for another trip another time, maybe Colorado. VERY few people can tell the difference between a photo of one mountain and a photo of another one. They are STERILE sights!!! My characterization of driving down from St Moritz in the Alps was...."like driving 90 minutes in a gravel pit"
• We've never been to Venice, but in my teens/20s/30s/40s I would have enjoyed lots of things in Europe MORE than being paddled in a gondola, and what else is Venice good for?
• Munich? well, it might be a base day trips to: Neucshwanstein (castle-Disneyland modeled after it); Rotherbur ob der Tauber; Munich is a "Fort Worth" compared to "New York City"----meaning its attractions are not notably attractive, compared to other cities....but it would be a good base for day-tripping to the quintessial Bavarian tourist sites
• Paris: 6 weeks before the Olympics...OK.....Paris beats the socks off Munich in appeal for ANY age. 1) Think of a DAY ONE tour bus, or a hop-on/hop-off bus, just so you can say you saw the Louvre, even if you don't go in it; 2) Eiffel- I assume you've (and family) never been up in a skyscraper. The Eiffel is one. So one enters the tower base (seems like a building), one goes up in an elevator (can't see the lights from inside the car), get off at the top and look at other buildings. Alternative: take a Bato-Bus boat down the Seine, one which arrives at the base of Eiffel at 8:55 PM---just as you get off the boat, Eiffel's light show begins....(Hoo-Rah...the Texans have arrived!!!!). It's dramatic!!! An alternative, rarely spoken about: there's a park/complex called Trocadero, across the Seine from Eiffel. Great view of the tower, night or day, just costs a bus ride and a walk. 3) If family wants Dachau, maybe they have enough interest in history to squeeze in a day trip to the Normandy D-Day sight.
• Paragliding? You can do that in the USA, without wasting a day in Europe doing it. If this is truly your "one and only" Euro-trip, you wouldn't waste a day checking out a German shopping mall, would you? Of course not-you have the same thing at home.....toilet paper is toilet paper. Same with paragliding. Do stuff you CAN'T do in the USA

Let us know,, maybe with a trip report, what you decide and how you liked it.
That feedback gives people on this forum positive reinforcement to keep contributing their ideas

Michael

There is one paragliding and hang gliding location I know of, but it is not within your itinerary or time frame



The location for either gliding is the same. You probably would meet up with the instructors at the base by the lake.

Michael

Omit Switzerland, or any other mountain. Believe me, once you're at the top of a mountain, they all look the same. Pike's Peak/Matterhorn.....grey rock, 45 degree angle....mononotous. save your (and the kids') monotony for another trip another time, maybe Colorado. VERY few people can tell the difference between a photo of one mountain and a photo of another one. They are STERILE sights!!! My characterization of driving down from St Moritz in the Alps was...."like driving 90 minutes in a gravel pit"

That's like telling the European tourists not to visit Yosemite or Glacier or Olympic because aside from the few animals such as hoofed ruminant ungulates and bears, which you can see in any decent zoo, mountains are mountains. But I do not think that the OP has the time to enjoy driving in the alps:

FTOttawa

Not entirely clear on what is set in stone for you, but if Venice is a must and Munich is a must, do you have time (as in, all of a long day) to take the train from Venice to Munich through the Brenner Pass? Change at Verona. It ticks the “I have seen the Alps” box. Or you could get out at Innsbruck and see a bit more mountain with an extra overnight.

MalakiHebert

My family once traveled to Europe with teens and it was a wild ride. We juggled sights and surprises, like stumbling upon hidden gems in Munich's outskirts or getting lost in Venice's maze-like streets. Maybe swap out one big city for a quaint countryside stay?

JohnEW2912

There’s a train every day direct from Venice Santa Lucia to Munich at 13.35, taking just under 7 hours. On Saturdays and Sundays there’s a second direct train 2 hours later. As FTOttawa says you can also go via Verona through the day. Seat61.com is as always the bible on train travel anywhere.

Personally I wouldn’t go near Venice in Summer - hot, smelly and packed. My preferred time is November - misty, atmospheric, much less crowded. I’ve been several times and have yet to set foot in a gondola, although I have taken the much more interesting traghetti a time or two. Venice is so, so much more than gondolas. How anyone can think that is completely beyond me.

tomboy

Poster: I can understand the avoidance of museums, history, et al.....BUT

Bear in mind that the significance of a city has a lot to do with its history.
Granted, teens might be bored stiff with history in school
They do NOT realize that history is taking place every day of their lives.
Can you imagine some teenager in the D-Day invasion not paying any attention to what was going,on? It was HISTORIC.
If the kids are as bored with history as I suspect, I force them to read a thin history of Europe before the trip, so that at least they knew France had a revolution, same as the USA; that Germany didn't used to be Germany, but rather a bunch of duke-doms; that before World War 2, there was a World War 1. (& who won, who lost, what outcomes)

lavandula

OK, what about this:

Sat 1 June - arrive London, get bearings, jet lag
Sun 2 June - London
Mon 3 June - London
Tues 4 June - London
Wed 5 June - fly into Venice, night in Venice
Thurs 6 June - Venice
Fri 7 June - Venice
Sat 8 June - Venice
Sun 9 June - train to Munich via Brennero / Brenner Pass (will see Dolomite mountains), night in Munich (this is actually a good day to be travelling, as many businesses are closed in Germany on Sun)
Mon 10 June - Munich
Tues 11 June - day trip to Dachau, night in Munich
Wed 12 June - day trip to Neuschwanstein, night in Munich
Thurs 13 June - Munich
Fri 14 June - last day in Munich - night flight back home.

So from here you could start filling in the detail of what you might do on each of those days, or you can adjust days in locations up or down. You could also as mentioned above stop in Innsbruck on the way to Munich to experience real mountains (there is a cable car from Igls, just above Innsbruck, that goes up the Patscherkofel and you can walk down or catch the cable car down). I do think something has to give and that might be Paris this time. Paris is special enough that you should devote a separate trip to it when you are not pressed for time.

Lavandula

Sassafrass

Hfraymond, I do hope you are still reading and following this thread. Among advice that may not fit this trip, there will be a lot to help you. I think people feel sad and frustrated when they don’t see a way of helping to make a trip work for someone. I have also noticed that when I try to soften a negative, it is pretty much disregarded, so people come on stronger when they believe firmly that something should be changed. We all do see and appreciate different ways of travel and experience teaches a lot, but you will still see different opinions.
Perhaps we need to add reasons for our opinions rather than, “do this” or “don’t do that.”. For example, a lot of people recommend the HOHO busses in London and feel they give a nice overview of the city. You might be thinking if doing that. I personally really dislike them. If you are inside, you might as well be on any bus. If you are outside, on top, you are exposed to the fumes of all the traffic around you and it can be bad. It is noisy and you cannot understand the audio. The get stuck in traffic and you are trapped, just sitting there, unable to get off until you are at a proper stop. That is just a start, and I stupidly tried it on a two different trips. London seems made for walking.
Another thing is how people feel about Gondolas in Venice. I know they are expensive, cheesy, touristy, but I don’t care. I love them! Teens I took on school trips also loved them. I will elaborate on choosing one when you return.

Lavandula suggested an itinerary very similar to mine. I think that would work beautifully for you. If you are still following, let us know what you have come up with and you can get good relevant advice. Particularly, you might want advice about hotel locations. So, when you have two or three picked out, opinions will be useful. Do stay in Venice, not in Maestre. With a short stay, you don’t want to waste time going back and forth, plus, Venice is lovely at night, when many day trippers have left.
Please do return, people do want to help.

gomiki

(Minor highjack: Sassafrass, you are one of my favorite posters. Your responses are always so reasonable, well thought out, helpful and kind. I look forward to reading them when I see your name).

Madam397

We'll be looking forward to hearing how it all works out. It's been a long time since I was in Munich but I recall that is has one of the most memorable astronomical clocks in all of Europe as well as one of the great art museums in Europe, the Alte Pinothek.

shelemm

First timers to Europe very often want to hit Paris and London because they are iconic destinations and sometimes folks don't know much more than the major capitals. But that doesn't really fit your profile. And I know folks from Texas who hated Paris. They'd rather be out in the countryside. The good news is that there are so many exciting things to do in Europe that involve a bit more action and adventure whether it's climbing around centuries-old ruins, underground rivers, and villages with twisty lanes perched on a cliff. The landscape is dramatically different from anything you could possible imagine in the US. But it's best to rent a car in those situations.

Sassafrass

Gomiki, What a very nice thing to say, Thank you.

joto

Instead of Switzerland, go to Austria instead, which still has plenty of mountains, and it can be reached from Munich, as can Neuschwanstein Castle. Get everyone to write down their 3 must see places in each destination, and do a pick for each one. I've been on the JtR walk in London. OK, but I think I was expecting a bit more to it. St Pauls cathederal is interesting and go down to the crypt. The Tower is a must see, but I think you need to pre book now. Venice, is lovely, but a huge tourist trap. Eat where the locals eat, and try not to buy an overpriced coffee in St Mark's Square. I might want to miss out Paris, as anything decent will be booked out and overpriced, unless you have booked somewhere already.