Of course, you can't take the bungalow tent with you and you have to do without your own caravan. But there's no greater pleasure for children than travelling by train! And there are good alternatives to travelling with a tent or your own caravan as told by Walter, Thijs, Jaap and Edwin. Here is their report and some more good tips.
"We were on holiday with teenagers. They loved it. We didn't take too much luggage, because what do you need when its 30 degrees Celsius? We took books with us and downloaded series for the journey. For our time in the Ardèche, we hired a car in Lyon; there are a few agencies next to the station. By the way, Lyon is really worth a visit.
In the Ardèche, we had a nice little house. I was really surprised by the speed with which we arrived in Lyon: we left Nijmegen around 9 o'clock in the morning and were in Lyon by the end of the afternoon! You can change trains in Paris or Brussels. In Paris you take the metro, in Brussels you stay at the same station catch the TGV to Lyon, which is somewhat easier.
Taking your own car can sometimes be cheaper. But on the other hand: what were we going to do in Paris or Lyon with our car? And a few days of parking in the city will cost you a fortune."
"It was the summer of the World Cup. Albert Heijn gave out those wuppies. I can't remember the exact name, but we stuck them on the front of the TGV and on the windows. And then we hoped that they would stay on.
In Marseille, we stayed a week in an appartment and walked a lot. Very cool city, with lots to see and do. Too bad the Netherlands lost against Argentina. With the TGV, we went to Montpellier and there we rented a car at the station. We stayed in a house nearby and made a canoe trip on the river Tarn.
It was fun that we had a different route on the way back, Montpellier - Paris - Amsterdam. We don't have a car, so the combination of the train and hiring a car locally was very convenient."
"My mother, brothers and I wanted to do everything: see Madrid, go to Paris again and spend a week in a cottage in the countryside.
We started with four days in Paris. We went to Versailles, among other places, and on the way back we saw the Tour de France arrive! On day 5, we took the morning train to Madrid with a layover in Girona.
We rented a flat in the centre and explored the city on foot and by metro, which was great fun and easy to do. After almost a week in Madrid, we took the train to Salamanca and hired a car there."
"We went to Paris, the boys were 4 years old at the time. The train journey was fun: nice to look outside and many visits to the toilet.
In Paris, the boys had a card around their necks with their names and the name of the hotel. It was the first time we had been abroad with the whole family, so we mainly went sightseeing. We went to the Eiffel Tower, looked at the Arc de Triomphe, Sacre Coeur and the Palace of Justice.
"The boys especially enjoyed travelling by metro!"
I asked Jaap why he prefers to go on holiday by train rather than by plane:
‘The nice thing about travelling by train is the views along the way and that you're relaxed and comfortable. You have more freedom of movement than in a car! You also don't have to deal with the constant humming that you get in an aeroplane. You're really en route and not 'suddenly' in another place. Sure, you're on the road longer, but the journey is part of the holiday.
It starts when you shut the door behind you and get on the bus on your way to the station."
By travelling by train, your weekend getaway will be a party for the while family from start to finish. On the way you can play a game or read a book.
On holiday to the South of France with the kids. Very enjoyable and super-fast with Thalys.