Day trips with kids
Theme parks, castles with room to run and short train rides that work with children, with travel times that keep the day manageable.
From Paris
All day trips from Paris
Worth a full dayDisneyland Paris
Disneyland Park and Disney Adventure World at Marne-la-Vallée, about 40 minutes from Châtelet-Les Halles on RER A, with the station 2 minutes from the gates.
Worth a full dayProvins
A walled medieval trading town on the UNESCO list, with ramparts, a 12th-century keep and underground galleries, reached by a direct Line P train from Gare de l'Est.
From London
All day trips from London
Worth half a dayWarner Bros. Studio Tour (Harry Potter)
The studios at Leavesden where the eight Harry Potter films were made, 20 minutes by train from London Euston plus a 15-minute shuttle bus.
Worth half a dayWindsor
A royal castle still in use, with State Apartments and St George's Chapel, about 35 minutes from London Paddington with one change at Slough.
Worth a full dayBrighton
A seaside city on the south coast, 58 minutes from London Victoria on the fastest trains, with a pebble beach, a pier and the Royal Pavilion.
Worth a full dayYork
A walled medieval city in the north of England, 1 hour 45 minutes from London King's Cross on the fastest direct trains, centred on York Minster.
From Rome
All day trips from Rome
Worth half a dayOstia Antica
The excavated harbour town of ancient Rome, 25 km south-west of the centre and 26 minutes from Porta San Paolo on the Metromare line.
Worth a full dayPompeii
A Roman town buried by Vesuvius in 79 AD, south of Naples and a little over 2 hours from Rome by train with one change.
From Barcelona
All day trips from Barcelona
From Florence
All day trips from Florence
Worth half a dayPisa
A university city 80 km west of Florence whose main sights all stand on one lawn, the Piazza dei Miracoli, an hour away by regional train.
Worth a full dayLucca
A flat walled town west of Florence, ringed by 4.2 km of Renaissance ramparts you can walk or cycle, 1 h 20 away by direct train.
From Amsterdam
All day trips from Amsterdam
Worth half a dayZaanse Schans
An open-air village of working windmills and green wooden houses on the Zaan river, 17 minutes by train north of Amsterdam Centraal.
Worth half a dayKeukenhof
A spring flower park in Lisse planted with 7 million bulbs, open about eight weeks a year, 35 minutes by direct bus from Amsterdam RAI.
Worth half a dayLeiden
A university town of canals and almshouse courtyards, Rembrandt's birthplace and home of the national antiquities museum, 35 minutes by train from Amsterdam Centraal.
From Dublin
All day trips from Dublin
From Lisbon
All day trips from Lisbon
From Madrid
All day trips from Madrid
From Edinburgh
All day trips from Edinburgh
Worth half a dayThe Kelpies and the Falkirk Wheel
Two 30-metre steel horse heads and a rotating boat lift that joins two canals, at opposite ends of Falkirk, 21 to 29 minutes from Edinburgh by train.
Worth half a dayNorth Berwick
A harbour town on the East Lothian coast with two beaches, the Scottish Seabird Centre and views of Bass Rock, 23 to 35 minutes by direct train.
Worth half a dayStirling Castle
The Renaissance castle of the Stewart kings, on a volcanic crag above Stirling, 41 minutes from Edinburgh Waverley by direct train.
Worth a full dayGlasgow
Scotland's largest city, 42 miles west of Edinburgh, with free museums and a different mood from the capital, 44 minutes away by the fastest train.
Worth a full dayAlnwick Castle
A large medieval castle in Northumberland, England, used as a Harry Potter filming location, 58 minutes by train to Alnmouth plus four miles by bus or taxi.