Brussels is an easy drive from our house, so it’s a wonder it has taken us so long for a proper visit. We opted to drive down, which is actually a less expensive option than taking the train. Since we were in the car we stopped at Cook & Book for lunch before checking into the …
I have a thing for cool bookstores. When I found Cook & Book during a Belgium Pinterest hunt, I knew I had to add it to our itinerary for our next Brussels visit. Just outside of Brussels this adorable bookstore takes up most of a shopping plaza. There is ample street parking (metered). It was …
As you likely know by now my kids are train obsessed! When we heard there was a Train Hostel in Brussels we knew we had to check it out. Brussels is a two-hour drive for us, so a quick overnight was easy to arrange. We easily found street parking outside the hotel. At reception they were …
Seeing the Northern Lights was on top of our wish list for our visit to Lapland. Choosing to book on our own meant we could tailor the trip to the best experiences for the kids. We chose an evening picnic with Safartica thinking we would (hopefully) see some Northern Lights and do something the kids …
Hands-down our favorite experience while in Lapland was our Reindeer Safari with Santa Claus Reindeer. Laura and Ari, the two who run the company, are completely locked on. We napped the kids and fed them a late dinner in town. Then we were picked up at the hotel by Laura from Santa Claus Reindeer and …
The first excursion we had planned for our Lapland trip was an afternoon husky safari with Lapland Welcome. The Lapland Welcome office is easily reachable in downtown Rovaniemi. We had just arrived that morning though and opted for their free pickup. Our hotel had a front and back door and we were not really sure …
We spent one of our days in Finland exploring Santa Claus Village. There is easily a full day of adventures here particularly if you book all your outside activities out of this location. Santa Claus Village is easily accessible from Rovaniemi by bus (#8). The bus is slow and makes lots of stops, but it was …
One of the main reasons we wanted to book our own trip to Rovaniemi, as opposed to using a pre-packaged deal, was to have the freedom to explore the town of Rovaniemi. The pre-packaged tours tend to have everyone from their tour in one hotel or resort area and then move everyone to activities as …
Tallinn’s impressive collection of museums and fortifications might make your head spin. There’s not nearly enough time on a weekend trip to Tallinn to see it all. You’ve got to prioritize the types of activities that interest you. The KGB Museum should be near the top of your list in Tallinn. It’s unassuming. It’s just a …
Helsinki is one of the loveliest cities we’ve had the pleasure to visit. It was incredibly clean and had a trendy feel. Looks aren’t everything though. While Tallinn offered loads to do with the kids, Helsinki had far fewer offerings. A day trip here with kids is enough to cover the basics in the winter months. …