The Adventure Itinerary and Budget, part 1

Now to the meat of it, let's see the itinerary and budget for the 9 weeks.  As this is an out-loud-in-public forum, and since the plans are still in progress anyway, the details I am about to share are inexact and flexible.  But I do want to give enough information to be useful to anyone interested in undertaking an adventure of your own.  Throughout this whole process I will try to uncover and then post as much information as possible on European travel that is exciting, affordable and enlightening for both parents and kids.


First, to get to the continent we obviously have to find the most affordable and practical transatlantic flights.  It is much cheaper to depart from the east coast, for obvious reasons.  But we live in California and it looks impossibly complex to cart the kids around in order to time a cheaper departure.  After much comparing and evaluating, the choice I made is to fly out of Los Angeles to London.  The competition between Virgin, United, British Airways and others keeps this route fairly reasonable.  Just as key, it is very practical and helps me start and end the trip in a simple uncluttered way. With taxes, fees and nitpicking incidental costs, the lowest priced flights I have found (my  favorites currently are www.kayak.com, www.vayama.com and  www.tripadvisor.com) are $720 per person round trip leaving late in March.  I am monitoring fluctuations and have price-change alerts set, knowing that historically the best time-frame for purchase of this flight is 6 weeks out. Many travelers will choose to go "open-jaw" meaning they will fly in to one country and leave out of another.  This saves you from costly return travel and redundant sightseeing. However, I have chosen instead to use a round trip (LAX-LHR-LAX) that involves also a "round" driving route, going in a large circle.  This is a cheaper flight, it starts us out in a culturally familiar English-speaking country, and it gives me a comfortable area to start out and then end the trip in.


UPDATE: WE endend up using an open-jaw route after all because we got a deal we couldn't miss.  All three tickets with all added fees etc from LAX to London then Venice to LAX for $1750.


The first 2-week block (or fortnight!) will be in the suburbs of London.  My military connections gave me a semi-unique advantage or two (although they were not solid enough to enable the free MAC flights that many are eligible for, darn it).  We can use lodging options that are really nice and extremely affordable.  If you think you may qualify, visit www.afvclub.com and www.dodlodging.net for more information.  To begin the trip, however, these great and cheap options were not putting us close enough to the attractions like the British Museum, the Tate, Parliament and all things London.  It didn't help that I am insisting on two-week periods of a stable home-base from which to explore.  I feel this slower travel style will help the children keep up with their school work (more to come on that) while also seeing that we all get the most out of each experience,  place and culture.  We also need accommodations with kitchens as I will be making 80% of our meals.

The best options I found  near London turned out to be the plentiful and widely varied private "short-term lets" on sites like www.holidaylettings.co.uk or www.bedycasa.com and www.flipkey.com and many others.  Obviously the nearer to downtown, the more expensive.  Luxury, size, convenience and location all have their price.  Be aware that if you are open to a longer stay, have flexible dates or are able to pay in cash, the advertised prices can become negotiable.  Just do not ever wire money or send untraceable deposits to anyone.  I plan to use Paypal, common sense and advice from seasoned, sensible travelers.

My arrangements are with a nice family in a suburb 30 minutes south of Big Ben on good rail connections.  We will rent their small apartment with a tidy kitchenette, bathroom, sitting/dining area and beds for the 3 of us.  This little hideaway also offers comfort, internet access and parking  at a total cost of $800 for 14 days.  They provide all we need including utensils, linens and advice.  In France they call these homey rentals gites. A quick google search will show a plethora of options once you know your destination, budget and criteria. It gives us privacy and space, with the ability to cook and space to do evening school work after a full day of adventuring.

While in this first "home" we will use the train to go into London proper to explore the British Museum exhibits (all free!) several times.  We will ride the public buses around town and get off at all the squares, monuments and  historical spots we can handle.  At least twice we will trek off to outlying must-tour areas like Bath and Cambridge for full day trips.  Every night there will be maps and background history to study as part of both the fun and the learning.  The time spent by the kids for reading and studying lets me prepare dinner as well as portable meals for the next day in between helping them with schoolwork.

While we travel, the children will remain enrolled in public school.  We are lucky enough to have an innovative charter school that allows online and distance education.  They will share the same teacher who is tailoring curriculum for each of them to fit the state standards for their grade.  Best of all, their studies will incorporate all of the different elements of the trip.  Their language arts lessons will include journal entries about each day's sights.  History and social studies will be taught in situ.  Math, while universal, becomes more meaningful as they help me convert currency and distances. Science, spelling and other requirements will be taught via online  workshops and packets.   Maddy is learning French and Chris is learning German as part of the preparation in these months leading up to the trip.

Whew... if you stuck with me this far, I know you will want to check back in as I add details.