Hi,
Why not consider a home exchange, you swap your home with families in
Europe. Many Europeans are on holiday in the summer months so many of
their homes are empty anyway. You can learn all about swapping by
reading the members' stories, the 'tips to find the perfect exchange
etc.' at http://www.digsville.com -

following the blog a bit may help has well. My family and I have been
swapping since my older daughter was young, (now an adult) and we
continue with my second child (lily age 10) there's no better way to
travel than to see the world through the eyes of a local and you can
save thousands of dollars that will be better spent on fine dining and
fantastic side trips (just what a 17 year old will want!) Feel free to
email me directly at any time .

Good luck,
Helen
Editor's Plea - I'm looking for interesting home exchange stories, can
provide up to 3 year free membership in one of the top home exchange
community. Here's the link to some of the ideas I'm looking for.
http://www.digsville.com/page.asp?content=editor's%20request

Thanks all -
Helen

Join the banter on all things home exchange.

http://vacationhomeexchange.blogspot.com/


jst wrote:
Our family of three( 2 adults & 17 y/o )are considering a trip to Europe
this summer. We would want to spend at least 2-3 days in London then 5-7
days going from France ( Paris a must ) to Switzerland ( the alps ). We
have traveled the states extensively and have never been overseas.Is
this the type of trip that we should do exclusively with a travel agency
and do the group tour bit. We have never been the types to do a group
tour but would do one if we could find the right locations included.
We are just starting to look into this and any recommendations would be
appreciated. We are budgeting 10 - 15 thousand , is this reasonable ???