In summer 2024, our family spent two weeks in Merida, Mexico, exploring its vibrant neighborhoods, cultural events, and nearby beaches and cenotes with our kids (ages 6 and 9). We combined remote work and kids’ Spanish camp with visits to local attractions like Plaza Grande, Paseo de Montejo, and Parque de La Plancha. We found Merida a safe, family-friendly city brimming with culture and welcoming locals.
Our family visited Merida, Mexico, in summer 2024 for a two-week trip, combining remote work with a half-day Spanish camp for our kids, and city exploration with a nearby family. To balance the kids’ activities, we incorporated a realistic itinerary with half-day excursions to cenotes, beaches, and playgrounds while exploring Merida’s cultural sites and neighborhoods. This visit was enriched by the welcoming locals, affordable dining, and the ease of local transport, creating a relaxed and immersive travel experience.
In summer 2024, our family returned to Mérida, Mexico for a two-week adventure, balancing remote work with our kids’ Spanish camp and exciting day trips. Highlights included exploring the ruins of Uxmal, swimming in Cenote Mucuyche, and relaxing at beach clubs like Silcer Club De Playa, all of which made for an unforgettable family trip filled with fun and cultural immersion
Trip Motivation In October 2024, we took a Fall break trip to Southern California. We visited some family in LA, met up with some Nashville friends for a day of adventuring at Joshua Tree National Park and enjoyed family hotel life at a lovely resort in Palm Desert, CA. For more on our long weekend, see posts here: Joshua Tree National Park Joshua Tree National Park is in southern California. Its an easy drive to LA, Anaheim, and about 2-2.5 to Palm Springs/Joshua Tree. You can also fly to the Palm Springs Airport if that works with your home airport. Joshua Tree National Park has several entrances. The main entrance for Joshua Tree National Park is the West Entrance Station off of Route 62. Further down Route 62, there is also the North Entrance Station. Both of these stations have little education areas, park rangers, shops, and info about the park. We actually visited both. Going from West to North or North to West is a good way to see lots of different sites and stops in a full day. The drive is around 35 miles. Further south, there’s also the Cottonwood entrance near Route 10. Tips for Visiting Cost. A Joshua Tree park pass costs $30 per vehicle. We have a 4th grader and were able to get a free pass at this website. Obama started this program where all 4th graders are eligible to get a national park pass valid for a year good for the whole car. At the website, there’s like 2 questions and then a paper to print out with a unique barcode. So fun! Water. Be sure to park water and hydration. We had 3 12 oz bottles per person and 4 electrolyte drinks (Gatorades). The only places to get drinking water are at the visitor centers and entrances of the park, so fill up! It may also be worth packing a backpack water carrier if you anticipate long hikes. Sun protection. Sunscreen, hat, sunglasses, and long sleeve clothes are highly recommended out here. Food. Pack snacks as there are no stores or restaurants in the park! Trail mix is always a fave along with fruit snack bribes Cell service. There’s no reception so its a good idea to download maps ahead of time. Maybe even walkie-talkies if you get separated from your group. For trips with lots of car time, I always have a car charger. Be respectful. The vegetation, especially the famed Joshua Trees, are highly fragile. Do not touch or climb on them and don’t attach or hang any sort of ropes off of them, such as those for hammocks. Remember to leave no trace and pack in what you pack out! Hike to Arch Rock and Heart Rock Starting off from the North Entrance, we drove 15 minutes to our first stop, Arch Rock trail. This is definitely a must-see. The trail to the rock is half a mile and a little tricky to find. A good idea to download maps ahead of time. Its gorgeous! After our visit to Arch Rock, we found my favorite rock sculpture, shaped like a heart!! There are also signs to the rock and its a quick flat hike. Altogether these hikes took about an hour. We took a water break and headed to our next spot. Rock Climbing near Split Rock and Skull Rock While the Joshua trees are obviously the highlight of the park, our kids favorite activity was scrambling up and down the rocks and treating nature like a giant playground. We didn’t do a big hike near this area. Across the main drive, we also made a brief stop at a beautiful old Oak tree. Skull Rock is one of the most famous rock formations in Joshua Tree. It’s found right off Park Boulevard shortly after the Jumbo Rocks parking lot, and can be seen right from the road. There will be plenty of cars and people so it’s impossible to miss. This iconic rock feature attracts a lot of people, so patience is key and you might have to wait a bit to get your picture unless you’re able to get here earlier in the morning or late evening after the crowds have dissipated. More Family Hikes in Joshua Tree: Hall of Horrors and Discovery Trail We ended our Joshua Tree visit with a pair of short hikes. The Hall of Horrors is a one mile trail with some slot canyons to explore if you’re feeling brave. We didn’t squeeze into the canyons but just enjoyed the varied landscape of Joshua trees and boulders. We also drove up towards the West Entrance to visit the Hidden Valley Trail. If we had more time/started our day a little earlier, we also had planned to see the Keys overlook. Both hikes were easy with the kids and it was so cool to get close to the trees and rocks. Final Thoughts It is a family goal to see more National Parks and Joshua Tree was such a unique adventure. It is not very easy to get to from Nashville, but it was worth it. I’m so glad we went! <3 For more on our long weekend, see posts here:
Trip Motivation In October 2024, we took a Fall break trip to Southern California. We visited some family in LA, met up with some Nashville friends for a day of adventuring at Joshua Tree National Park and enjoyed family hotel life at a lovely resort in Palm Desert, CA. Flying: BNA to LGB: 4.5 hrs We purchased tickets from Southwest Airlines. Because we visited family in LA, we flew in and out of Long Beach Airport. This is a great airport and much more manageable than big LAX. Highly recommend if you’re planning a trip to this part of the country. Its an easy drive to LA, Anaheim, and about 2-2.5 to Palm Springs/Joshua Tree. You can also fly to the Palm Springs Airport if that works with your home airport. You can fly using Southwest points from Southwest credit cards or by transferring Chase points using the Chase portal. Read more about tips for airline trips here. When traveling with layovers or to new cities, we always check the local airport website and the Priority Pass Lounge website prior to the trip. The Chase Sapphire Reserve card (in addition to others) comes with Priority Pass access. This card gets you access to various airport lounges. It is much more common internationally. In Nashville, there is a Minute Suites lounge in terminal D. Another perk you can get from several credit cards we have used is Global Entry/Pre-Check. This is always helpful for avoiding long lines and spending as little time as possible with others. After you activate your credit card, you’ll use it to pay for the Global Entry fee and get reimbursed immediately. If you want more on this particular benefit and how to use a credit card to receive it for free, check out our tips here. Grand Hyatt Indian Wells Resort We loved our stay at the Grand Hyatt Indian Wells. The hotel is in Palm Desert, about 20 minutes from Palm Springs. It is about 2 hours from LA. Prices vary and can get expensive. There are lots of convention visitors as well as families. When we stayed in Oct, prices were $400/night. The price came with a ton of perks, some available to all guests, and some because of our hotel status. Unfortunately, we were not able to get a free suite upgrade on this stay, which is usually a nice benefit from our status. When sleeping with kids, extra space to spread is always a great perk. We were able to get a double King bed room and it was plenty of space for us to spread out and conveniently near the pool. This hotel has a lot of suites and villas. some have extravagant living rooms and even private pools! Chase Sapphire Preferred Apply Here Chase Sapphire Reserve Apply Here Chase Hyatt Apply Here You can earn Hyatt points from Hyatt stays, the Hyatt credit card and Chase points, which can be transferred to Hyatt. Learn more about points here. When we stay at nicer resorts, we try to make sure we have lots of time to enjoy the hotel activities. Its not worth it if we leave! We spent 3 days at the hotel. Read on to learn more about what to do in this hotel. Water Slides and Lazy River!! The waterpark at this resort was incredible! There were two 3- story slides, a small slide, a glorious lazy river, and a kid’s splash area. We had an absolute blast. The kids did races and the adults joined in on the fun. We spent hours floating along the river. Even though it was over 100 degrees, it was well-shaded and there were lots of water jugs surrounding the pool areas. When we visited, the waterpark area was open from 10a-7p. Kids need to be 42in to ride the slides and 48 in without floatation on the big slides. Both kids passed! All the Pool Time Even those hours of pool time weren’t enough for our little fishes. Before and after hours, we spent time in the other pools around the resort. We packed goggles and dive sticks and had a blast. The other pools were open from 7a-10p! My favorite kind of vacations involve pina coladas and sitter-vising. Virgin with cherries for the littles. Hotel Recreation Although not as large a property as others we’ve stayed at in Orlando, Maui, Lost Pines, or Coconut Point, there were still some resort amenities to enjoy . There was a yard game area, and free bikes to use to adventure around the resort. We also did some evening s’mores! Eat, Eat, Eat! Hotel breakfast: Our kiddos are becoming spoiled from hotel breakfast omelets! As a perk of our hotel status, we were able to enjoy free breakfast buffet with omelets, bacon, French toast, birria tostadas and more! the resort had many delicious foods. The poolside restaurant had several options, such. as salads, and sandwiches but we did not eat there. For lunch and dinner options, we left the resort area. within ten minutes there were several options. on one evening we had Mexican and on another, we had ramen Final Thoughts It’s not very easy to get to from Nashville, but it was worth it. Similar vibes to Coconut Point in Florida if that’s closer to your home destination. I don’t know that we would make a special trip here again but I’m glad we went! <3
Trip Motivation We have family who live on Oahu and love to mix our family-focused trips with some fun just-us family adventure and resort time. It had been several years (decades!) since I’d visited Kauai and the Hyatt there was often mentioned on travel groups that I follow as a fave. For more on other island highlights, see here and here Kauai: The Garden Isle Kauai is nicknamed the “Garden Island” for a reason and is so green and gorgeous. Many movies are filmed here and it is gorgeous. The contrast of the mountain to the sea is very dramatic and the island as a whole has a weird mix of rural life of locals and extravagant resorts. It gets the most rain of all the islands and is a spectacular place to visit. Many people often combine Kauai with Oahu. I think 3 days is the perfect amount of time to spend here. Flying: HNL to LIH For the short inter-island flight from Oahu to Kauai, we flew Southwest. The cost per person RT was $120. We used travel funds from past trips and American Express benefits to reduce our total cost to $70 total for all 4 of us. The American Express Business Platinum (and a few others) come with a flight benefit. Typically, this is meant for flight extras and not actual flight costs, there is a small loophole where flights less than $100 can trigger the credit. Alternate options for this flight would be using Southwest points. You can earn these from Southwest Credit Cards or by transferring Chase points using the Chase portal. Chase Sapphire Preferred Apply Here Chase Sapphire Reserve Apply Here Chase Southwest Apply Here Hotel Stay We stayed at the Grand Hyatt Kauai for 3 nights. This hotel is on the south side of the island about 40 minutes from the airport. We rented a car and used points to get free parking at the resort. In Kauai, the north and south side generally have the fancy resort hotels with Lihue by the airport having cheaper basic options. This hotel is not cheap. Prices were going for $850 a night when we stayed. But we didn’t pay that, we used points and free night awards! Hyatt points cost 30k/night. You can earn Hyatt points from Hyatt stays, the Hyatt credit card and chase points which can be transferred to Hyatt. Learn more about points here. Chase Sapphire Preferred Apply Here Chase Sapphire Reserve Apply Here Chase Hyatt Apply Here Getting Around Lihue I highly recommend a car for this trip unless you really want to take a taxi to a resort/condo and live at the resort/beach. We always use costco travel for our car rentals (with our chase sapphire reserve for extra insurance) There’s a lot to see on the island. On this trip, we decided to save the North shore for a future visit and mixed some exploring of waterfalls, hikes, and viewpoints, and a good amount of hotel Day 1- Arrival, Wailua Falls, and Kuilau Ridge Hike We spent the first half of the day loosely following the path for the East side of the island set out in this shaka guide itinerary. After getting our car, we drove to Wailua falls for a gorgeous viewpoint. Absolutely beautiful. We then drove to Konohiki seafood for some plate lunches and ate by the beach at Lydgate park. Ben went for a run (crazy!) while the kids played at an epic playground nearby. So fun! In the afternoon, we continued a drive a little farther north towards Kuilau ridge hike, a 3.6-mile out-and-back trail near Kapaʻa, Kaua’i. This trail was very muddy but pretty easy overall and the views were gorgeous. (When I say muddy, I mean muddy. Definitely recommend kids be at least 6 or so and wear real shoes!) Hotel Check-in We checked in after a full day around 4pm. As globalist members, we had access to the club lounge which had included breakfast, daytime snacks, evening hors d’oeuvres, and evening desserts. This is a perk that is offered to those who book rooms with club access or those with globalist status. We did breakfast here daily (fruit, pastries, eggs, etc), snacks (cookies, granola bars), and even managed to put together some dinner from the evening menus. (kalua pork nachos, teriyaki sticks, noodles, mac and cheese). Plus desserts and drinks at other times in the day. We would stop by multiple times to grab some drinks and snacks to take to the pool. This is definitely a huge benefit. If you’re paying for an upgrade, you’d have to calculate if it was worth it but note that food at the resort is very pricey. Even in soft drinks alone, we probably saved $50! For dinner on our first night, we drove 10 minutes to the town of Koloa and ate some pizzas at Kauai Island Brewing. They have a nice patio space and it was definitely a lot cheaper than eating on-site Day 2: All-Day at the Resort and Poipu Beach In the morning, the hotel fitness center had a group walk and we walked to nearby Poipu beach and back. We decided we wanted to go back in the afternoon to hang out with the turtles and swim. We stopped by the lounge for breakfast and then spent some time at the pools! Prior to our stay, I emailed the general manager ahead of time and told them it was my birthday and they gifted us blow-up tubes and wine!! Winning! The hotel pools were amazing! A lazy river, slide, and 4 gorgeous pools! We packed goggles and dive sticks and had a blast. My favorite kind of vacations involve pina coladas and sitter-vising. Virgin with cherries for the littles. We make a point to save time for pool and hotel time when we get pricier resort stays. No point in paying big bucks if you leave all day. The kids enjoyed the included activities at the
Background For Winter Break 2023-2024, our family visited Germany and Austria! This has been at the top of our family wish list for a few years. Planning this big multi-city trip was so fun. We saw Christmas markets, snowy villages, ice-skated in 3 cities, and loved loved loved train rides with gorgeous scenery. European travel is quickly becoming one of my favorite things with family-friendly towns, easy navigating with trains and so much history and beauty. Traveling internationally with kids can be daunting but with a little preparation and research and tips from other travelers, we had a successful trip! This post covers our 3 full days in Innsbruck, Austria. The small towns of the region were so cute and different and had such a wonderful vibe. Read all of our European Christmas Market posts at the following links: Our 2023 Germany and Austria Trip: Flights and Logistics 2 days in Munich, Germany with Kids Day Trips from Munich with Kids: Nuremberg & Neuschwanstein Castle 3 days in Salzburg, Austria with Kids 3 days in Innsbruck, Austria with Kids Getting around Salzburg From Salzburg’s main station, it was an easy 2 hour trip to the main Innsbruck station. On our trips between cities, we generally booked tickets the night before and were able to get really inexpensive tickets. The price for all 4 of us was 44 euro and it was a double-deck train (Ellie was so excited!) I love how easy train travel is in Europe. We used the website seat 61 to get some guidance but it was really straightforward. In Innsbruck, we had the Innsbruck card for bus travel around the city. Where we stayed: We booked a 2-bedroom apartment on booking.com right in the middle of the city. Primarily because we thought we would walk home after NYE celebrations. However, we didn’t stay awake till midnight anyway. Either way, this was an awesome location and made it very easy to adventure out and about in the city. We used the Innsbruck card for 3 days (more below) which came with public transport which made it really easy to get around daily. We stopped at grocery stores for breakfast and evening snacks and had a wonderful stay. Innsbruck Card Tips When exploring highlights of cities, we often like to look at cards that include multiple museums and attractions. The Innsbruck Card was a great deal and included many of the attractions we were most interested in seeing. I included in our itinerary below if it was part of the card. We purchased a 72 hr 3 day card to give us more flexibility but could have been more efficient/squeezed it in 2 days. Definitely make a plan to do non-included things outside of the window if you’re there for a little longer. Our 3.5 day itinerary in Innsbruck Day 0: Transit to Innsbruck, Ambras Castle, Evening Light Show We arrived in Innsbruck in the early afternoon after arriving by train from Salzburg. After settling into our hotel, we wasted no time in grabbing an Innsbruck Card. We went to the information center near our hotel to get the physical passes because the online options weren’t working. With our sightseeing pass secured, we hopped on a bus and made our way to the majestic Ambras Castle. This castle sits high on a hilltop overlooking Innsbruck and has some fun things to see such as armor, weird wacky collections, and fun art. We also explored the outdoor garden areas a little and found a fun bridge to a cave. Off the beaten path! We spent around 2 hours at the castle and then headed back to our apartment. From our spot near the golden roof, we heard a fun little concert at sunset. I looked it up online and found that there is usually a band that plays throughout November and December on the roof. It was a lovely surprise! The Golden Roof is one of Innsbruck’s most popular tourist attraction. The small roof sticks out from a building and is covered with 2,657 fire-gilded copper tiles. We didn’t explore the attached museum or do a lot of history things in the area but the location was really convenient. As part of our innsbruck card, admission to a light show at a nearby park was included. Lumagica was a fun walk-through light sculpture show that was really well done. Lots of different themes and fun areas to see. To complete our evening, we had dinner at Stiftskeller. This was our favorite spot, maybe of the whole trip. We had schnitzel, stew, fish sticks and returned here multiple times throughout the week! Day 1: Top of Innsbruck cable cars, Zoo, Sound Museum Top of Innsbruck Our first full day in Innsbruck began with a fun ride on the Nordkette cable car, which whisked us up the mountainside in style. The rides were all included as part of our Innsbruck card. We walked from our hotel to the nearby park and started our journey at the Congress station. Congress – Hungerburg This is the first leg of the ride, from the Congress Station in Innsbruck city center to Hungerburg, a stop where you can find the Alpenzoo and stunning mountain views. The ride on the Hungerburg Funicular takes about 8 minutes. It was a little squished but super awesome to see the city shrink beneath us. Alpenzoo We stopped at the Alpenzoo, Europe’s highest zoo. Our favorite animal was the ibex, a majestic mountain goat with impressive horns. We spent about an hour and a half at the zoo, following the path and pointing out birds we recognized from wingspan, our favorite board game lol. Hungerburg – Seegrube The second stage involves a cable car ride from Hungerburg to Seegrube, a scenic plateau at an altitude of 1,905 meters. This leg offers panoramic views of Innsbruck and the Inn Valley. The ride takes approximately 6 minutes. At this spot, we were excited to see all the skiers! We oohed and
Background For Winter Break 2023-2024, our family visited Germany and Austria! This has been at the top of our family wish list for a few years. Planning this big multi-city trip was so fun. We saw Christmas markets, snowy villages, ice-skated in 3 cities, and loved loved loved train rides with gorgeous scenery. European travel is quickly becoming one of my favorite things with family-friendly towns, easy navigating with trains and so much history and beauty. Traveling internationally with kids can be daunting but with a little preparation and research and tips from other travelers, we had a successful trip! This post covers our 3 full days in Salzburg, Austria. When people think of Salzburg, many think of Mozart and Sound of Music. We did those things and so much more. Read on to learn about our favorite spots! Read all of our European Christmas Market posts at the following links: Our 2023 Germany and Austria Trip: Flights and Logistics 2 days in Munich, Germany with Kids Day Trips from Munich with Kids: Nuremberg & Neuschwanstein Castle 3 days in Salzburg, Austria with Kids 3 days in Innsbruck, Austria with Kids Getting around Salzburg From Munich’s main station, it was an easy 2 hour trip to the main Salzburg station. On our trips between cities, we generally booked tickets the night before and were able to get really inexpensive tickets. On the train, operators stopped by to scan our qr-codes and give us a receipt. We used the website seat 61 to get some guidance but it was really straightforward. The Bayern ticket is a family ticket that is a great deal for unlimited travel in Bavaria (Munich and surrounding areas) on regional trains and is good for Salzburg day trips or even one-way trips like ours. In salzburg, we had the salzburg card and it included public transport Where we stayed: We stayed at Hotel Europa near the train station. Prices were a little high in the old town area due to the holiday season and we prioritized access to public transport and basic needs over some of the fancier options nearer to the main square. We used the Salzburg card (more below) which came with public transport which made it really easy to head to the old town area daily. The hotel gave us some small welcome drinks and had a nice (while expensive) breakfast that we did on one of the days. We would stay here again. Salzburg Card Tips When exploring highlights of cities, we often like to look at cards that include multiple museums and attractions. The Salzburg Card was a great deal and included many of the attractions we were most interested in seeing. I included in our itinerary below if it was part of the card. We purchased a 72 hr 3 day card to give us more flexibility but could have been more efficient/squeezed it in 2 days. Definitely make a plan to do non-included things outside of the window if you’re there for a little longer. For itinerary planning, the salzburg info website was really helpful. Our 3 day itinerary in Salzburg: Day 0: Salzburg (Christmas Eve): Transit to Salzburg, Austria, Silent Night Chapel in Oberndorf We arrived in the afternoon on Christmas Eve, and after checking in to our hotel, we went back to the train station to head to the city of Oberndorf for a Christmas Eve event. This cute Austrian village is the town where the composer of the song Silent Night lived and debuted the song for the first time 200 years ago.On Christmas Eve, the city puts on a service with readings, carols, and a group singing of the song. We enjoyed the little market shops and snacks and stood on the hill near the small church to listen to the music. It was very fun! Definitely worth a trip if you’re there on Christmas eve. At other points of the year, you can still stop by to visit the church and museum but there won’t be the same level of festivity Day 1: Salzburg (Christmas Day): Cathedral, Christmas Markets, Dom Museum Salzburg Cathedral One of the reasons why we organized our trip in the order that we did was because the Salzburg markets stay open longer. After googling dates of Christmas markets, we decided that Germany before Christmas and Austria after made the most sense. On Christmas morning, we started our day with a church service at the Salzburg cathedral. You can tour at various times of the day (with a small donation) but we loved going to the mass service. We were able to listen to the German service, try to sing along and ooh and ahh at the ceilings and paintings. The Roman Catholic Salzburg Cathedral was founded in 774, but the current Baroque structure dates to the 17th century. Christmas Markets After the service, we explored the cute Christmas market right outside the Cathedral in the main square. This was our favorite market. There were excellent Austrian Christmas treats like Salzburger Nockerl (a fluffy soufflé dessert), gingerbread cookies, Lebkuchen (spiced honey cakes), and Kiachl (fried pastries dusted with powdered sugar). We loved the pretzel and soup stands as well. Of course, we had to get a cute mug of Glühwein (mulled wine) and hot chocolate to warm up as well. The market stands had familiar items and new items. The nativity scenes and ornaments were gorgeous and the whole environment was really charming. Dom Quartier Museums In the afternoon, we visited the DomQuartier museums. This collection of museums was right next to the Cathedral and is included as part of the Salzburg card. The Residenz was the official residence of the Prince-Archbishops of Salzburg for centuries. The staterooms were beautiful with traditional staterooms and impressive ceilings. We used the included audio guides and there were kids stories in each room. There were also several kids focused activities along the way such as seek and find and puzzles. This was a really
Background For Winter Break 2023-2024, our family visited Germany and Austria! This has been at the top of our family wish list for a few years. Planning this big multi-city trip was so fun. We saw Christmas markets, snowy villages, ice-skated in 3 cities, and loved loved loved train rides with gorgeous scenery. European travel is quickly becoming one of my favorite things with family-friendly towns, easy navigating with trains and so much history and beauty. Traveling internationally with kids can be daunting but with a little preparation and research and tips from other travelers, we had a successful trip! This post covers our 2 day-trips from Munich to Nuremberg and Nueschwanstein. Read all of our European Christmas Market posts at the following links: Our 2023 Germany and Austria Trip: Flights and Logistics 2 days in Munich, Germany with Kids Day Trips from Munich with Kids: Nuremberg & Neuschwanstein Castle 3 days in Salzburg, Austria with Kids 3 days in Innsbruck, Austria with Kids Easy Day Trips from Munich by Train Munich is a great spot to day-trip from. The main Munich train station, Hauptbahnhof, was well-labeled and easy to navigate. From our hotel, it was a quick trip to the main station and there were numerous options to various sites all around Germany and beyond. We generally booked tickets the night before and were able to get really inexpensive tickets. On the train, operators stopped by to scan our qr-codes and give us a receipt. We used the website Seat 61 to get some guidance but it was really straightforward. The Bayern ticket is a family ticket that is a great deal for unlimited travel in Bavaria (Munich and surrounding areas) on regional trains. Day trip #1: Nuremberg On one of our days in Munich, we took an all-day trip to Nuremberg. This city regularly makes lists of top Christmas markets in Europe and it lived up to the hype! The city transforms into a winter wonderland with its renowned Christkindlesmarkt, festive atmosphere, and gorgeous historical churches and buildings. Getting to Nuremberg Just an hour away by train from Munich, Nuremberg is the perfect day trip. It was really easy to find directions on google and buy a train ticket! Easy trip! The kids loved their kindle time and it was a beautiful trip. Sightseeing in Nuremberg From the train station, we walked towards the main Christmas market areas and oohed and ahhed at all the cute buildings and cobble streets. We passed by Frauentorturm, the old tower at the corner of the city walls and stopped briefly at St. Lorenz Church (Lorenzkirche) which is a gorgeous Gothic church from the 15th century. We then headed to the central market square, Hauptmarkt. The Church of Our Lady (Frauenkirche) is one of the most impressive churches in Nuremberg. At noon every day, the Männleinlaufen glockenspiel (a mechanical clock) puts on a display. Mechanized figures come out from just below the church clock, with princes dancing around the Holy Roman Emperor. The main square is also where the Christmas market is located. After watching the glockenspiel, we back-tracked towards the Children’s market Christmas Markets! Our next stop was back to the main Christkindlesmarkt. The main attraction is the Christkindlesmarkt, one of the oldest and most famous Christmas markets in the world. It dates back to the 16th century and boasts over 180 stalls selling traditional Christmas decorations, handcrafted gifts, and delicious treats like gingerbread, roasted chestnuts, and Nuremberg sausages. In the middle of the square is the Gothic Schoner Brunnen (Beautiful Fountain), a replica of a fountain from the 14th century. I read a story that spinning the rings in the fence of the fountain three times brings good luck! Our next stop was the Nuremberg Toy Museum or Spielzeugmuseum . The adults were interested in some of the nostalgic toys and displays. The kids were more interested in playing! On the top floor, there were several puzzles, wooden games, and fun play areas. On the walk back towards the train station, we stopped for some yummy schnitzel at tucher mautkeller. On the train ride back, the kiddos read a little but also just rested after a big day. This was a really fun and full day trip. I’m so glad we were able to make the small side trip to experience the Christmas festivities. If you visit at non-Christmas times, be sure to look up other things to do as well such as the Nuremberg Castle, the DB train museum, dungeon tours and other historical sites like the Nazi grounds or trial areas. Day Trip #2: Neuschwanstein Castle If you’re interested in another fun day trip from Muncih, Neuschwanstein Castle is gorgeous! Getting to the Castle There are several bus tours that run with stops at multiple castles but we decided to take public transport. The kids love riding trains and reading books and we were able to follow google maps along the route and transfers. It did take about 3 hours from Munich Central station to get to where we were going so plan for a full day of adventure. Castle Views! Built in the 19th century by Ludwig II, King of Bavaria, Neuschwanstein is the most iconic castle in Europe. With its fairytale appearance, it served as an inspiration for Walt Disney’s logo. If you’ve ever done the Soarin ride at Disney, it flies over the castle! We took several trains and a bus to the cute little town and were immediately greeted by gorgeous views and cute shops. We didn’t visit the inside of the castle but we did do an hour hike to the Neuschwanstein Castle bridge. We bought some hiking snacks and made our way to the bridge, also known as Marienbrücke. The hike took about an hour to the bridge and back. There is also an option for a horse-drawn carriage. The bridge is a must-see for any visitor to the iconic Bavarian castle. Situated directly behind Neuschwanstein Castle, offering breathtaking
Background For Winter Break 2023-2024, our family visited Germany and Austria! This has been at the top of our family wish list for a few years. Planning this big multi-city trip was so fun. We saw Christmas markets, snowy villages, ice-skated in 3 cities, and loved loved loved train rides with gorgeous scenery. European travel is quickly becoming one of my favorite things with family-friendly towns, easy navigating with trains and so much history and beauty. Traveling internationally with kids can be daunting but with a little preparation and research and tips from other travelers, we had a successful trip! This post covers our 2 days in Munich. Read all of our European Christmas Market posts at the following links: Our 2023 Germany and Austria Trip: Flights and Logistics (this post) 2 days in Munich, Germany with Kids Day Trips from Munich with Kids: Nuremberg & Neuschwanstein Castle 3 days in Salzburg, Austria with Kids 3 days in Innsbruck, Austria with Kids Arrival in Munich Munich International airport has great options for flights from the US. See this post here for more details on how we used points and miles from credit cards for our flight. At the time of our visit, the luggage was sooooo slow to arrive at the carousel. More reason to be team carry-on. Our usual routine is to take an uber from the airport to our hotel on the first day and get the hang of public transport and other options throughout the trip. A great option in Munich is the Lufthansa Express Bus. It takes you to the central train station where you would need to then transfer to your final destination. For a family ticket of 28 euro, you can get into the city (compared to $50-$80 for ubers/taxis) Transportation in Munich We love train-travel in Europe. We used the MVGO app and bought daily unlimited family passes. It was super easy to buy tickets for our day trips and train to Salzburg, Austria at the end of our stay. We used this website for tips and recommendations. We also just used google maps frequently which was synced to the schedules. One top tip for international travel is to download the city map to google so that it doesn’t continue to use data every time you load. Hotel In Munich, we stayed at the Andaz Munich. The hotel is located in the Schwabing district. Views were absolutely gorgeous and the hotel was fantastic with a lovely spa/pool area, great breakfast and bar and super kind staff. We were able to get upgraded to a suite which let the kids be on a pull-out and us be in a separate room. Plus 2 bathrooms! The hotel was a short walk and quick 15 minute bus/train combo to the city. We thought about trying to stay closer but wanted our free breakfast <3. A block away, there was a really cute playground! Our 2 day itinerary in Munich: Day 1: Arrival, Christmas Markets, Hoffbraus After our afternoon arrival, we checked into the hotel (yay for free welcome drinks) and then headed out to Old Town and the main city area. The Marienplatz area was easy to get to and full and bustling with Christmas cheer. The New Town Hall (Neue Rathaus) building is a beautiful landmark and a great backdrop to our first day of adventures. One of the main reasons we visited Germany and Austria was for the Christmas markets and this area had a giant one with hundreds of little kiosks. Marienplatz Christkindlmarkt: No trip to Munich’s Christmas markets is complete without a visit to the Marienplatz Christkindlmarkt. This iconic market, nestled in the heart of the city’s main square, is the oldest and largest in Munich. With over 100 stalls selling traditional Bavarian crafts, ornaments, and delicious treats, it’s a sensory overload in the best possible way. Be sure to soak up the festive atmosphere, with the twinkling lights and the sound of Christmas carols filling the air and try a mug of steaming Glühwein (mulled wine). At the market, you pay a pfand (deposit) of 3-4 euro and pay 4-5 euro for the actual drink. The deposit is the cost for that adorable mug. If you don’t return it, then you forfeit the deposit. However, if you return it, you get the deposit back. This is environmentally friendly and a nice way to use lots of cute little mugs. They had kid non-alcoholic punch but the kids were not huge fans. We also stopped by a cute cheese shop and sampled some fun snacks. So great! Hofbraeuhas: For dinner, we walked a few blocks to Hofbraeuhas. This is one of the most famous breweries in the world. If you’ve ever been to a US german-themed beer hall, it is probably modeled in part on this brewery. It was founded in the 1500s and lived up to its hype. It is so touristy but that’s part of the joy. There was live tuba music, large liters of beer, pretzels and schnitzels and large tables full of tourists from all over. We chatted with another family who adventured from Australia and were on a full monthly adventure. I wish! Day 2: Munich: Glockenspiel, Residence Palace, Viktualienmarkt, City Walking, Ice Skating, More Christmas Markets Glockenspiel Glockenspiel: This was our main full day in Munich so we had to make it count! After a late start and hotel breakfast (Yay for nutella croissants!), we headed to see the glockenspiel at 11a. Back at the Marienplatz main square, the large clock tower has a show at 11a, 12p and sometimes at 5p. The short 15 minute show has characters dance around and recounts a royal wedding, jousting tournament and ritualistic dance. It was a little rainy and it didn’t hold our kid’s attention span the whole time but it was fun (Get a cookie snack as a distraction/peace offering) Munich Residence Munich Residence: After watching the show, we walked 10 minutes to the Munich residence.
Sharing memories and tips for enjoying travels with littles. Always looking forward to our next adventure!
❤ Jenn Morse ❤
