Milan to Venice, the long way

Our family holidays have rarely been about staying in one place. We like a journey — combining a few different places, changing the scenery and finding experiences along the way. So, when we started thinking about our next summer holiday, we wondered how much further we could take that idea.

I'd recently been to hear Simon Reeve speak, and one thought in particular stayed with me: be a little more adventurous and you'll create memories that last. That was all the encouragement I needed!

This time, we'd make the journey itself a core part of the adventure: flying into Milan and home from Venice, with a route through Italy, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia in between. We'd travel by train, bus and minivan, building the trip around experiences rather than simply places to stay. There would be the Bernina Railway through the Alps. Panoramic trains and cable cars. Mountain playgrounds and a toboggan run. Gorges filled with impossibly blue water. Waterfalls we could walk behind. And, because the boys still wanted some beach time, we'd add a few days by the sea at the end.

We wanted it to feel active, but never rushed, and everyone needed to get something they wanted from the trip. Which, for me, is where the fun of planning a journey like this really begins.

The journey becomes part of the holiday

Our first adventure was the Bernina Railway, travelling from Italy into Switzerland before spending a night in Chur.

This is a great one to have on your radar, as during the summer months, some regional trains on the Bernina route include wonderful open-air panoramic carriages. There are no windows separating you from the landscape — just mountain air, tunnels, valleys and extraordinary Alpine views as the train climbs.

We followed that by dining aboard the Gourmino, a beautifully restored 1930s restaurant carriage. Think a little of the romance of the Orient Express, without the Orient Express price tag. Yet still with great food, great fun, and something all four of us will remember.

From Switzerland, we continued towards Austria and Zell am See. And by this stage one of the things that had surprised us most was just how easy the journey was. The trains were comfortable; the scenery was spectacular and getting from one place to another felt like part of the experience rather than simply a means of reaching the next destination.

Mountains made for families

Zell am See was a revelation.

Our hotel stay included local tickets and a Summer Card, giving us access to public transport, mountain gondolas and many of the area's attractions, including reservoirs, gorges and lakeside swimming areas. Which meant our days could be wonderfully simple: head up a mountain, walk and explore, stop somewhere for lunch and ultimately see where the day took us.

As the mountain walks themselves were ideal for children, with activities and play areas along the way that kept our boys moving without it ever feeling like we were dragging them out on a hike. But it also helped that we could balance all of this with a very respectable quantity of apple strudel at many of our stops.

But to top it all there was the Fisser Flitzer — an Alpine coaster that the boys subsequently declared as one of the best things we'd done on the entire trip! The strudel didn’t get a look-in from then on.

Seeing somewhere differently

Lake Bled was somewhere I almost felt I knew before we arrived. I'd seen countless photographs of that beautiful blue-green lake, with its island church and castle perched just above the water. But I have to say walking up to one of the higher viewpoints changed my perspective completely and is something I’d definitely recommend doing, even when part of it includes hauling yourself along with a rope.

Nearby Vintgar Gorge was also every bit as blue as the photographs suggest, and so we hired a car to explore further, finding the Pericnik waterfall where we could walk behind its curtain of water. It did feel like our very own Last of the Mohicans moment — only this time, in Slovenia. But it was certainly one of those slightly unexpected experiences that stays with you long after you've come home.

And yes, we still went to the beach

We finished in Lido di Jesolo, giving the boys the beach time they'd requested and all of us a chance to slow down after our adventures in the mountains. And it gave us an easy opportunity to spend a day in Venice before flying home.

But looking back, what I loved most about the trip wasn't any single destination. It was the combination.

Mountains and beach. Trains and cable cars. Walking and swimming. Adventure and downtime. Things the adults wanted to experience and things the children couldn't stop talking about afterwards.

It reinforced something that sits firmly at the heart of how I plan travel for my clients: a memorable journey isn't necessarily about fitting more in. It's about putting the right things together.

This may have been a European adventure, but it's the same principle I bring to the long-haul and multi-stop journeys I particularly love to plan. The destination might be Australia, New Zealand, Asia or somewhere completely different; the starting point is always understanding what you want the journey to feel like — and then working out the route, pace and experiences that will make it happen.

Who would love a trip like this?

Families who want a little more adventure from their summer holiday. Children who love being outdoors and trying new things. And anyone who likes the idea of experiencing several places without feeling as though they're racing through them.

A few things I'd do again

Build the route around a handful of standout experiences rather than a list of destinations. Reserve important train journeys and seats early. Allow enough time between stops that travel days remain enjoyable. And give everyone in the family something they're genuinely excited about.

Because sometimes the best way from Milan to Venice isn't the quickest one.