European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - May 19, 1993, Darmstadt, Hesse T r a v e l r o p e carry for the rest of your lives. Make them Good memories. Plan a few things they like to do. You mean like swimming exactly of eating things that Are bad for them or sleeping late a couple of Days or sitting at another table from yours at breakfast. In fact i m glad you brought his up because it s a Catchall category applying to travel time lodging food and activities. How far Are you driving each Day of your trip keep your kids in mind. Plan a few stops. Don t just take a Scenic route get out and look at the scenery. What Are your food plans let them order some of their own meal whatever it is. Or let them help plan menus if you re packing your oven food. Take a look at where youve staying. If you were 12 years you want to stay in a room without a to of course not. Even foreign language television can be fun. But let me add a note of warning Here. Be sure and Monitor the tube. European television can be quite steamy. Or As in the Case of my 5-year-old, you might stumble onto the old movie with the giant lobster thing eating screaming pleading. Men then spend the rest of the night reassuring her that no there Are no giant lobster things in what about your activities almost anything can be made entertaining to your kids of you think about them. Are you strolling through an old City pedestrian zone give them some spending Money. Shopping for a $3 gift to Send to a Cousin Back Home can keep Little ones occupied for an hour. Teen agers take a bit More out of the Wallet but the principle is the same. If they buy a to shirt from a Prague Street Vendor they be made the City theirs in a Way and have something to take Home with them. It sounds easy when you put it that Way. It s anything but easy. In fact every vacationer in the world would have a much better time if they realized from the get go that travelling with kids is hard. It s tiring. It s expensive. It s draining. It s planning. It s Compromise. And most of All it s Worth it. But like any other investment it takes common sense hard work and follow through. So we have to remember three things. Let me have Fem. Be flexible. Plan for what won t happen. And see through your kids eyes. That s it. And we re out of time. Well Back next week. Until then remember it s their vacation too. Crowds wander Down main strict of u.s.a., near the Entrance to euro Disneyland. The latest word on euro Disney who is Filo adults May consider pigeons pests but they can entertain children for hours. By John Taylor staff writer euro. Disney which celebrated its first birthday in april is already one of Europe s premiere attractions for children. And As Vith any big travel destination there Are plenty of people eager to Tell you How to Best appreciate it. Several Book companies have published travel guides on the magic kingdom or included sections on it in updated travel books. They offer a wealth of information on How to get to the Park what to expect once you arrive How to Best work your Way through the crowds rides restaurants and shops and what to see in the area on your Way Home. Michelin maker of the dependable Green guides and an expert on France has come out with a 157-Page Book packed with color maps photos and drawings of the Park and the Disney characters that bring it alive. The guide lists the individual attractions and the Park s different lands fantasy land Frontier and adventure land and discover land by name and discusses them in alphabetical order. It recommends that visitors spend two Days at the Park to experience everything but includes two itineraries for those who have enough time or Money to spend just one. It also has a chapter called childhood friends. Here it tells How each Disney cartoon character entered the company s stable and what its name is in several languages. Ever wonder what Chip and Dale Are called in Portugal or what the big bad Wolf s name is in dutch do you know what had it not been for Walt s wife Mickey mouse might have been named it s All in the Michelin guide. It costs $12.95. The Harper Collins guide to euro Disneyland is a 160-Page Book aimed at Balder Reader. For one thing As one Young Reader was Quick to note there Are no pictures. For another it spends More than half its pages describing things to see on the Way to the Park and in its environs. The guide has a More detailed breakdown on , local car rentals train connections and other activities available at the Disney resort. Its information is arranged , so that All the rides and attractions Are in one Section All the shops in another and All the restaurants in a third. The Book s most interesting chapter suggests routes to. The Park from different places in Europe. For example it recommends a drive from Italy that picks up in Milan and goes through Switzerland and includes Day activities in Lucerne and Basel Switzerland and Colmar France for those not in a hurry. It costs $10.95. Fodor s 93 guide to France includes six pages on euro Disneyland As a Day trip from Paris. It claims that most people on vacation Don t go to France for the magic kingdom but a Side trip gives them especially those with children a break from t the sightseeing routine. Fodor s is not nearly As detailed As the other guides but its summaries of the attractions and strategies for making the most of your time Are right on target. It Points out that the rides Are not designed to be ends in themselves but rather vehicles to move visitors through Disney s make believe worlds. Those who spend All their time dashing from one ride to the next in an Effort to make them All will spend too much time in Long lines and miss much of what the Park is about. Fodor s lists euro Disney restaurants and hotels in its dining and lodging Section and ranks them by Cost. It considers the places offering counter service inexpensive to moderate while the sit Down restaurants Are moderate to expensive. The hotels Are rated from very expensive to moderately expensive Only Camp Davy Crocket receives a moderate rating. The guide costs $16. Also Worth a for first time visitors is the less expensive euro Disney the mainstream unofficial guide. It Sells for $7.95. One bit of advice that the guides do not have but which id card holders should be aware of is that they Are eligible to join the magic kingdom club. Membership which costs nothing is Good for a 10 percent discount on admission to the Park and on the Purchase of souvenirs plus special hotel packages. Details on membership is supposed to be available at bases although there have been several complaints that the information is often difficult to track Down. A spokeswoman for the club recommends starting at base recreation centers and going from there Europe Cru 19, 1993 43
