Our Family Trip to Germany, Switzerland and France with 3 Kids [With Itinerary]

So, I don’t usually write about travel here. But, we recently took a 2-week trip to Europe with our 3 kids, and I shared some of it on my Instagram stories, and got a whole bunch of Qs on the itinerary. I figured the best way to share the details would be right here!

First, a little backstory about how and why we decided on this trip. Every year, we visit my in laws in Michigan for a week or two. This year, though, they had booked a river cruise down the Rhine River, from Amsterdam through Germany in the middle of July. And at some point earlier this year, I floated the idea about visiting them in Europe this summer instead of in Michigan. At first it was kind of a hypothetical, like a lot of trips are. But then, one of my husband’s childhood friends, Nick Grey , who is a world traveler and somewhat of a travel influencer, stopped by our house on a pizza tour he was doing of the northeast (yes, I want that life, too). We talked him through some of our ideas, and he offered to create us an itinerary based on our family’s interests (/ off the charts activity level). Once we saw it, we were sold.

The itinerary largely avoided major cities in favor of smaller, more scenic spots where there were a ton of options for physical activity. While my husband has done a ton of international travel for work and while he was in school, I have really only been to major international cities like Paris, London, Lisbon and Barcelona. The only time I’ve ventured out of big cities was for a work trip to Bath, England, which is still a fairly large city. So, the idea of traveling through the European countryside was new to me. But, at the same time, it instinctually felt right.

Our kids were 9, 7 and a few days shy of 4 when we went on the trip, and our two oldest are boys who have energy levels that are hard to explain unless you also have two active boys. The trip had lots of adventure, balanced out by some driving, which would give them all a chance to rest/nap.

Here’s the rough itinerary we settled on:

There were some pros and cons to every spot, but overall, it was an incredible family trip. We spent a lot of time at playgrounds and in nature, but the scenery and attractions also made it enjoyable for my husband and I.

If you’re curious about what we did in each location, here’s a more in-depth look:

Day 1: Leave for Zurich, Switzerland

We took a red eye from JFK to Zurich, which is about 7 hours. We took an 8:30 PM flight and were supposed to land in Zurich around 10 AM, but were delayed by 2 hours on the way out.

Day 2: Colmar, France

We landed around 12:30 PM local time, and picked up our rental car. Nick suggested renting a car over public transport/trains and it ended up being the right move. The car gave us flexibility, a place for nap time, and just ease in general.

Nick also suggested making sure that all of our accommodations had parking, which was also valuable advice since it eliminated the need to drive around looking for street parking or lots after a long drive.

After picking up the car, we headed to Colmar, France, a 90-minute drive.

By the time we got to Colmar it was like 3 PM, so we walked to La Petite Venice, the downtown area, which is one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen. It’s like a little storybook Bavarian village, with colorful buildings and cobblestone streets and Geraniums everywhere. We got dinner and drinks and went back to the hotel to pass out.

Day 3: Colmar -> Villingen-Schwenningen, Germany

We took a morning boat ride up the canals on the Sweet Narcisse, which was about 30 minutes, and went to Marché Couvert, a covered market, for pretzels after.

Our plan was to go to a winery later in the afternoon, since Colmar is in France’s Alsace wine region, but our kids were high-energy and that just felt like a bad idea. Our hotel was also super quiet and the room was teeny-tiny, so we made a game time decision and left Colmar early to head to the Black Forest, Germany.

We packed up and were on the road by noon, with a plan to head to Blackforestline Todtnau and then the Hasenhorn Mountain Coaster, also in Todtnau. However, about 15 minutes from our first stop, we spotted Steinwasenpark from the road. At first, we thought it was actually the Blackforestline bridge, since the park also had a suspension bridge. But as we drove into the parking lot, it turned out it was a kids’ adventure park. By the time we got through the gate we realized we weren’t getting out of there without going in – our kids were SOLD. So, we continued with the ‘go with the flow’ vibe of the day and decided to check it out.

Steinwasenpark had its own mountain coaster, an alpine slide, multiple indoor roller coasters, a huge playground, a small gondola, a suspension bridge, and a petting zoo. OH, and an indoor play area. Everyone loved it.

We spent probably 2 or 3 hours there, and then went on our way to Todtnau. We decided to stop at the Blackforestline, since it’s a quick and easy attraction that was on our way. You walk over the bridge and have the option for a few hikes on the other side. We did a short hike to a waterfall, that took about 20 minutes each way.

Back in the car, our plan was to drive an hour or two to a hotel that could serve as a halfway point to our next destination, Lake Constance. and found a good spot in a town called Villingen-Schwenningen. On the way, we ended up on the Autobahn for a bit, which was fun for my husband, and we also stopped for pizza in the middle of nowhere, at a place called EngelFood and then at the local Lidl to stock up on snacks.

Day 4: Villingen-Schwenningen -> Lake Constance, Germany

In the morning, we left from the hotel to do a castle tour on our way to Lake Constance, which had always been part of our larger plan. We went to three castles. Hohenzollern Castle, Schloss Lichtenstein Castle and Sigmaringen Castle. Each was a short-ish drive from the other, anywhere from 30-60 minutes.

Hohenzollern Castle was our first stop, and it was stunning. We bought tickets and were able to walk right in for a self-guided tour, which was nice since the kids went pretty quickly through each room. After the tour, we stopped at the beer garden on the castle grounds for a snack, which was a nice bonus.

The next castle, Schloss Lichtenstein, was a totally different experience. A good difference? There was a large park area at the base of the castle, which was great for the kids. It had a zipline and a few small play structures, so a nice way to burn some post-driving energy. There was a cafe alongside the park, so we ordered lunch and let the kids hang. The not so great difference was that you had to book a guided tour, which I didn’t love, for one because we had to wait for almost an hour on the castle grounds before going in, and two because it was a little slower than we would have done on our own. And, the tour was also in German. Overall, though, it was a beautiful spot.

All are worth seeing, but by the time we got to Sigmaringen, our kids were getting tired, so instead of going inside we checked out the outside of the castle from Panthelstein park and walked to a toy store in town instead. If you spread out your castle tours, or have some more time, Sigmaringen is a beautiful little town and I would have loved to spend some more time there.

After that, it was about an hour from the last castle to our hotel in Lake Constance. When we arrived, we decided to eat dinner at the on-site restaurant, and check out the hotel grounds, which were gorgeous.

Day 5: Lake Constance

The hotel we booked, Hotel Hirschen Horn, had a pool, so we started the day doing a swim and a sauna.

Then, we walked across the street to rent bikes (and a trailer for the younger two kids). Lake Constance has a bike path that runs the entirety of its perimeter, so we had to check it our. We rode our bikes from Horn, where we were staying, to the beach in Iznang, where we stopped for swimming and lunch. After that, we rode about another 30 mins to a Biergarten for drinks, and then back to the hotel.

At night, we met up with friends who live in Germany at the campground they were staying at. Campingplatz Horn, which was low-key awesome. The campground was right on the lake, and it had mini golf, a beach and a playground, plus a small restaurant and live music. It was the perfect way to end a busy day.

Day 6: Lake Constance

The next day, we met back up with our friends and went to Wildlife and Leisure Park Allensbac. I had found a photo of it on Instagram, and they had the tallest slides I’ve ever seen. I showed my oldest son and it was the thing he most wanted to do on the trip, so we had to go. The park also had animals, a train, some kids rides and a falconry show, so it turned out to be a fun way to spend the morning.

One of the things that struck me was how different safety rules in Germany are than they are in the U.S. There were no attendants giving safety speeches or checking heights at these slides. You kind of just went for it, which was wild to me at first.

Ditto for some of the amusement ride. They were coin operated, and you just put money into the machine and the rides would start, sort of like those mini-carousels at the front of Walmart, except these rides were quite a bit bigger.

In the afternoon, we went back to the hotel to swim and had dinner at the hotel.

Day 7: Lake Constance, Germany -> Interlaken, Switzerland

We left Constance pretty early to head to Interlaken, since we had plans on the way. We wanted to stop in Stoos to ride the world’s steepest furnicular. It takes you to a little alpine village where you then have the option of completing one of the most scenic hikes in Switzerland, Klingenstock to Fronalpstock. You basically take a chair lift to Klingenstock and hike along a mountain ridge for Fronalpstock, which has a ski lodge, playground, and a goat petting zoo.

Since our 4 year old is not a hiker, we skipped the hike and took the lift straight to Fronalpstock. The kids were giddy to find out that there were also huge herds of cows that openly roam at the top of Fronalpstock. Between the cows, the goats, the playgrounds and the incredible scenery, the whole thing felt like a fairytale.

We ended up hiking about 15 minutes of the trail and turning around, just for the views.

After Stoos, we drove the rest of the way to Interlaken, which was one of the most beautiful drives I’ve ever taken.

When we got to the hotel, Hotel Seiler Au Lac, we unpacked and headed out to see the lake. We stayed directly on the lake, so the views were insane.

One thing to note about Switzerland, though: It is EXPENSIVE. Our hotel was nice enough, but nowhere near where we stayed in Lake Constance. Both were around the same price, but the hotel in Germany was luxurious, while the one in Interlaken felt like a 1990s time capsule. It was clean and comfortable and the location was stunning, but just a little old. Something to take into consideration when budgeting for Switzerland.

Day 8: Interlaken, Switzerland

We started the day by going up to Lauterbrunnen, which is a beautiful village about 20 mins from Interlaken. We hiked to the waterfall there, which was about 15 minutes, and then walked through the adorable streets to the train station to head up to Wengen, a Swiss ski resort town.

WOAH was I not prepared for Wengen. The train ride to the top was only 12 minutes but it was panoramic, with some of the most beautiful views we saw on the trip.

When we got there, the town was adorable. There was a playground, tennis courts, shopping, mini golf and a gondola ride. We stuck to the playground, but my kids found “marble runs” which were these little mazes you could drop large wooden “marbles” through. There were over a dozen of them scattered around the town, which was great.

After we took the train back down and a quick rest, we drove to Thun, a beautiful little city about 15 minutes from Interlaken. It’s known for its rivers, which locals jump into to float down, and also surf. We got to see people doing both, which was pretty cool.

Day 9: Interlaken, Switzerland -> Zermatt, Switzerland

Another travel day, but before we left for Zermatt, we drove up to Grindelwald, another gorgeous village.

We got there by 9, which I recommend because even then it was hard to find parking. We then walked to the gondola, and took it to Grindelwald First, which is the top of the mountain, where we did the Cliff Walk, which was incredible.

Then, we took the gondola down two stops to Alpenspielplatz at Bort Station, a playground with the most stunning backdrop I’ve ever seen. We made peanut butter & jelly sandwiches and had a picnic, and filled up our water bottles from a mountain stream fountain.

After that, we started the drive to Zermatt, which came with one of the coolest surprises.

About halfway through our drive, we stopped for the bathroom and snacks, and when we went to get back on the highway, we passed through what looked like toll. It was expensive, though, and on the other side we ended up in a line of cars. My husband looked around and said “I think we’re getting on a train.” To which I was like, you better turn around and ask for a refund because we’re not getting on a train.

Turns out! It was a car train. Literally like a ferry but with a train car instead of a boat. It was the only way to get through this huge mountain we had to pass through. A literally train, in your car, through a mountain. The kids thought it was the coolest thing ever, and it kind of was.

Since Zermatt is a car-less village, we parked at the shuttle train and took it to the top. We got an Airbnb about a 3 minute walk from the top of the train station, which was a good move so we didn’t have to haul all our stuff and 3 kids up the hills of Zermatt.

We finally met up with my inlaws at the gorgeous Grand Hotel Zermatterhof for drinks and then went for sushi.

Day 10: Zermatt, Switzerland

In the morning, the whole family took the Gornergrat Railway from Zermatt to the top of the Gornergrat, which offers an awesome view of the Matterhorn. At the top, there are viewing areas along with a little museum and an observatory. The views were incredible, but it was chilly, even in the light jacket I brought and pants. Bring a heavier sweater or jacket, even in July. We spent about 45 minutes up there checking things out, and then took the train a stop down, where there were some hiking options.

We ended up doing a quick walk to a little lake, which took about 10 minutes each way, but had pretty views. Then we headed back to Zermatt.

After lunch at McDonald’s (kids’ request), we went to the playground in the village, where my boys joined a pickup game of soccer with a bunch of other kids from literally all over the world, which was pretty fun to watch. They played soccer for an hour, maybe more, until it was time to go check out one of Zermatt’s most famous daily attractions, the goats.

Each day, a herd Valais Blackneck goats make their way from the village out to the pastures and then back again, so we watched them return home at the end of the day. The bells ring and the goat herders try to keep everyone on task and it’s fun to watch.

Then we stopped for pizza, and got ice cream, and went back to the Airbnb.

Day 11: Zermatt, Switzerland -> Annecy, France

We woke up early and I ran out for breakfast from the local Coop grocery store, and we took the train from back down to the car. Our plan was to head to Annecy, France, but stop on the way in Chamonix. It’s not directly on the way, but only added about 20 minutes to our drive.

I’m glad we stopped, because Chamonix was beautiful, and I’m now dying to go back and ski there. We got lunch at a Biergarten in town, and walked around town through the shops until we found … another playground. We burned some energy for a bit, and then went to see the Olympic rings in the center of town.

If we had more time there, we would have done the cable car ride, but we instead decided to head to Annecy.

I don’t know what I was expecting from Annecy, but I underestimated it. The old town area is (and I know I’ve said this a few times in this post), one of the most beautiful places I’ve been. In a totally different way than Switzerland, though. Annecy is on a beautiful blue lake (Lake Annecy) and has canals running through its old buildings and cobblestone streets (almost like Colmar, but with more of a French feel instead of a German one).

We stayed just outside of the old town so we could get an Airbnb with parking, which was nice.

After unpacking, we walked to a little park (with a playground, of course!), on the water, and there was a carousel, which the kids had to ride. Then we went to dinner and walked the streets, where we found yet another playground which we stayed at for a bit before heading home.

Day 12: Annecy, France

On our last full day in Europe, we decided to rent a boat on the Lake. We rented it from a place called Le Bounty, which was about 15 minutes from Annecy. We were able to get a same-day boat rental. They require a boat license to rent the larger motor boats, which my husband luckily had, and had on him, but there are smaller boats you can rent without one, too.

After the boat rental, we did something you’ll never believe: we went to the playground near the boat rental. It was a wild time,

And then, we did our last tourist activity of the trip, and drove about 10 minutes to the Château de Menthon St. Bernard, a medieval castle that’s rumored to have inspired Walt Disney’s Sleeping Beauty Castle.

After we got back to the Airbnb and the kids all napped, we went to dinner in the old town, at an Italian restaurant right on one of the canals, which was lovely for the scenery and people watching. Another playground and ice-cream run, and we were on our way home.

Day 13: Annecy, France -> Geneva, Switzerland Airport -> JFK

On our last day, our flight was delayed, so we walked to a French bakery in the morning before packing up and driving up to Geneva to fly home!

Overall, this trip was incredible for a family with active kids. We didn’t get to do all the best hikes or eat at the best restaurants, but the itinerary was conducive to our family’s pace, with plenty of places for the kids to run and play in between the tourist attractions.