See Europe by Train: Five Great Family Summer Vacations Without a Plane
Climbing and crossing the mountains to Italian lakes and towns
Getting to Italy overland from the UK is suitable for those looking to savor the journey and give children a unique geography lesson. The most spectacular route is on the Treno Gottardo, a renovated 19th-century railway line that skirts Lake Lucerne and winds through the snow-capped mountains of the Ticino Valley between Basel and Locarno, the city the hottest in Switzerland, on Lake Maggiore.
< p class="dcr-8zipgp">Just seven hours from London via Paris, Basel is doable in a day, although the Alsatian town of Mulhouse, with its stunning street art and ornate central plaza, makes for a great stopover. Once in Locarno, local Italian trains and ferries offer plenty of ways to explore the lakes. Sipping an Aperol spritz or scoffing at spaghetti by an Italian lake is a world away from the UK. Those with more time can make the most of Italy's excellent rail service, traveling to Milan and even Verona or Venice. From Milan, the high-speed Frecciarossa service returns to Paris in less than seven hours.Rail Europe recommends buying a one-month Interrail pass for this journey, which costs £260 for an adult< em> (children under 11 travel free, there are supplements on the Eurostar and some TGVs)The sweet life in Normandy
Le Perche is a 250,000 acre national park in southern Normandy that is often overlooked by the British which are heading south. Unlike much of northern France, Le Perche has retained its forests and wildlife partly due to its hilly terrain, and food producers are small-scale and often organic.
Long a popular getaway for Parisian families, Le Perche is also an easy train hop from the UK. Fun family activities include exploring the Bellême Forest on horseback and cart with Bellême Attelages, meeting Percheron horses, donkeys and cattle at Courboyer Manor, and visiting an organic cider house and an orchard at the Cidrerie Traditionnelle du Perche.
This summer, 13 artists will add art installations to the mix with the Orne Contemporain summer festival filling villages with sculptures and paintings .
Getting to Italy overland from the UK is suitable for those looking to savor the journey and give children a unique geography lesson. The most spectacular route is on the Treno Gottardo, a renovated 19th-century railway line that skirts Lake Lucerne and winds through the snow-capped mountains of the Ticino Valley between Basel and Locarno, the city the hottest in Switzerland, on Lake Maggiore.
< p class="dcr-8zipgp">Just seven hours from London via Paris, Basel is doable in a day, although the Alsatian town of Mulhouse, with its stunning street art and ornate central plaza, makes for a great stopover. Once in Locarno, local Italian trains and ferries offer plenty of ways to explore the lakes. Sipping an Aperol spritz or scoffing at spaghetti by an Italian lake is a world away from the UK. Those with more time can make the most of Italy's excellent rail service, traveling to Milan and even Verona or Venice. From Milan, the high-speed Frecciarossa service returns to Paris in less than seven hours.Rail Europe recommends buying a one-month Interrail pass for this journey, which costs £260 for an adult< em> (children under 11 travel free, there are supplements on the Eurostar and some TGVs)The sweet life in NormandyLe Perche is a 250,000 acre national park in southern Normandy that is often overlooked by the British which are heading south. Unlike much of northern France, Le Perche has retained its forests and wildlife partly due to its hilly terrain, and food producers are small-scale and often organic.
Long a popular getaway for Parisian families, Le Perche is also an easy train hop from the UK. Fun family activities include exploring the Bellême Forest on horseback and cart with Bellême Attelages, meeting Percheron horses, donkeys and cattle at Courboyer Manor, and visiting an organic cider house and an orchard at the Cidrerie Traditionnelle du Perche.
This summer, 13 artists will add art installations to the mix with the Orne Contemporain summer festival filling villages with sculptures and paintings .
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