This week took us from the Rhine to the Black Forest and finally into Switzerland, with a brief and glorious apartment intermission along the way. The kids climbed, swam, hiked, made friends, fell asleep on bikes, and occasionally reminded us that family travel is still just parenting in prettier places.

Bacharach

We started Sunday with a big family bike excursion from our campsite, riding upriver to Bacharach. Before doing anything remotely cultural, we found a playground down by the water and stayed there for, honestly, a couple of hours. Nolan and Nina were delighted, and we once again confirmed that the key to exploring Europe with small children is to place a playground between every two historic landmarks.

Eventually we convinced everyone to leave and went to Cafe Noi for lunch. The kids shared spaghetti while Mom and Dad ordered different kinds of meat, and we may have received slightly friendlier treatment than some of the other customers based on the makeup of our party. It turns out traveling with Nolan and Nina has benefits beyond always knowing where the nearest playground is.

After lunch we hiked up to the postern for a beautiful view over Bacharach, the castle, and the Rhine below. Then we walked back down and got gelato, because we believe in rewarding strenuous uphill activity immediately. Mom and Dad tried the local riesling gelato, which felt both culturally responsible and like a very good excuse to consume wine in frozen form.

The kids decided we should take the ferry across the Rhine with our bikes, so we crossed over, rode back along the other side, and then took the ferry back into town. Nina fell asleep in her bike seat during the ride, which was Mom’s favorite part of the day. Nina later described her own favorite thing as, “My favorite part was going to sleep with my mommy,” so she was apparently experiencing a different but equally pleasant version of events.

Mom took sleeping Nina back to camp while Coons and Nolan returned to the same beach they had visited the day before. They skipped rocks, found some sea glass, and built a cairn before riding home.

We cooked dinner, the kids ate fish sticks, and Nolan entertained the neighbors with his routine again. Our neighbor resembled a German Danny Devito and was laughing so authenticity that he had to excuse himself multiple times to catch his breath. All four of us chose the bike ride as a favorite part of the day, making this one of the rare occasions when the family reached a unanimous decision.

Bruchsal

The next day was mostly about moving into our suite apartment in Bruchsal and enjoying the sort of luxuries that become very exciting after living in Lightning McQueen. For Dad, the highlight was unpacking, setting up shop, and listening to the kids discover all the toys. Nolan loved reaching the apartment, watching TV, and exploring everything, while Nina simply chose “going to the apartment.”

Mom’s favorite part was using a dryer for the laundry. Not a castle, not a bike ride along the Rhine, not riesling gelato—a dryer. Van life has a way of dramatically reshuffling your hierarchy of needs.

Steinach

After a slightly tough morning with the kids, we packed up the Airbnb and drove south. Coons’ ear was still bothering him, so we headed to another ENT specialist and managed to park at a grocery store nearby. Unfortunately, the office was not taking walk-ins and referred him to a hospital about 30 minutes away. We decided to give the ear a few more days and see whether it improved, which is the sort of relaxed medical strategy one develops while moving a family around Europe in a van.

We grocery shopped and continued to Camping Kinzigtal in Steinach, our home in the Black Forest for the next few nights. After checking in, we walked over to the nearby pool, and it was awesome! There was a big pool, multiple diving boards, a large slide, a kids’ section, swings, and a trampoline. Nolan and Nina happily spent three or four hours there, jumping and swimming together while attempting to shoot Daddy with a water gun.

Coons briefly interrupted the fun to bike into town and mail some documents for the IRS, because nothing complements a family pool day in the Black Forest quite like American tax administration. He returned for more swimming, and later we cooked dinner while Dad handled work calls and Mom did school with the kids.

The kids finished the evening at the campground playground, where both Nolan and Nina climbed the little rock wall without help. Nina also made her way across the balance beams on her own. She described her favorite part of the day as “climbing up in bed like a leopard,” but we were impressed by all of the climbing, feline or otherwise. A small thunderstorm rolled in as we went to bed, giving Lightning McQueen a proper Black Forest welcome.

Hausach

Nina woke up with a fever the next morning, so we divided and conquered. Coons and Nolan mounted up and biked about 45 minutes to Hausach, where they explored Abenteuerweg Hausach. The trail wound through the woods with natural obstacles and play structures along the way, eventually reaching an old chapel with a view over the valley.

Nolan pretended they were Hansel and Gretel as they crossed the log bridges, while Dad told him about “the little baby and the evil wizard who killed his parents.”

Just a light father-son discussion in the forest. They had lunch in town, where Nolan received free gummy bears, and then biked back to meet the girls.

Meanwhile, Nina stayed close to Mom for a lazy day of resting and snuggling. Once the boys returned, Dad took over with the kids so Mom could get her nails done. The salon was cash only, but another woman helped translate and gave Mom enough cash in exchange for a PayPal transfer. It was an incredibly kind gesture but apparently not enough good luck to protect Mom on the bike ride home, when she took a spill and scraped her knee and hand.

Back at camp, Dad cooked dinner and worked while Mom handled van school. The kids later returned to the playground and played with new friends. Nolan especially loved meeting another boy and brushing his teeth with him in the boys’ bathroom, which made his very detailed list of favorite things alongside the hike, log bridges, Harry Potter discussion, lunch, and gummy bears. Nina, still feeling under the weather, chose playing with Mommy.

Gengenbach

Nina was feeling better the following morning, so the whole family got back on the bikes for a leisurely hour-long ride through the Black Forest to Gengenbach. It was a beautiful day with a little wind, and both Mom and Dad picked the ride as their favorite part.

Once we arrived, the kids spent some time on a playground and stopped to pet a cat before we headed into town for lunch.

We ordered spätzle—cheesy egg noodles more or less—and drinks, followed by the inevitable gelato. Nina chose strawberry, Dad had mango, Nolan ordered citrone, and Mom went window shopping. Nolan’s favorite part of the entire day was the ice cream, proving that the Black Forest’s natural beauty had been carefully considered and decisively defeated by lemon-lime gelato.

We rode back to camp, where the kids immediately found more friends at the playground. One family had children who spoke English, German, and Spanish, which was impressive considering ours occasionally choose not to acknowledge even the one language they know.

Dad cooked and then worked while Mom attempted a little school with two somewhat unruly students. Afterward we packed everyone up for bed and prepared to leave Germany the next morning. Switzerland was next, with a grocery stop and the Rhine Falls standing between us and our campsite near Lake Lucerne.

Rhine Falls

Friday was a long driving day and, overall, a tough one. We left Camping Kinzigtal around 9:30 in the morning, made a stop at a huge grocery store in Germany, and then continued to Rhine Falls.

The waterfall was very cool, even if Nolan and Nina were not in their best moods.

We walked up to the viewing station, did a small hike, and spent a little time at the playground before returning to Lightning McQueen for lunch. Kourtney also finally found stickers in the gift shop, so the stop was a success on multiple fronts.

From there we had another long drive into Switzerland. Both kids fell asleep at some point, and we finally pulled into TCS Camping Buochs Vierwaldstättersee around 5 p.m.—roughly seven and a half hours after leaving Steinach. We cooked dinner at camp surrounded by mountains and the greenest hills imaginable. Dad took a couple of calls, and the kids went to the playground before bed. We had made it to Switzerland, eager for tomorrow, even if all four of us looked and felt like we had driven there.

Dad and Mom both chose Rhine Falls as the best part of the day. Nolan picked the little hike, and Nina called the day “going on an adventure,” which was a very generous review from someone who had spent much of it strapped into a moving vehicle.

Lake Lucerne

After the previous day’s drive, we stayed at the campground on Saturday and kept things very low-key. Mom may have thrown out her back, so she rested and got in a lot of reading while Dad took Nolan and Nina on a little adventure by Lake Lucerne.

The kids visited the playground a few times, and Nolan’s highlight was going to the lake and throwing a stick for a puppy. Nina’s favorite part was brushing her teeth. Switzerland gave us mountains, a beautiful lake, and a campsite surrounded by scenery from day one, but the toothbrush is just good hygiene. Don’t you agree?

We ate every meal at camp, read, rested, and gave Lightning McQueen a day off from hauling us around. It was not the bike day we had originally imagined, but after a fever, a scraped-up Mom, an angry ear, a sore back, and a long international driving day, hanging around camp was exactly the adventure we needed.

Xanten

We woke up for one more day at Camping Kurskenshof and watched our firefighter friends pack up and leave. After saying goodbye, we got on the bikes and rode back into Xanten for the LVR Archaeological Park.

The park had Roman ruins, an amphitheater, a temple, old bath houses, and a lot of very cool Roman gear. Nolan was completely in his element. His recap included “seeing the Romans fight,” seeing where they fought, and seeing “the bear who roars,” so clearly the park delivered. The kids also had an awesome playground with a jump pad, water area, wooden equipment, and a few balance beams that required some legitimate bravery. Both of them did a great job crossing everything and generally acting like fearless little gladiators.

Inside the museum, Nolan and Nina got to dress up like gladiators while we looked at weapons and armor.

We ate lunch there and then entered the gift shop, where each kid chose something that matched their personality perfectly. Nolan selected a sword with a sheath and belt holder. Nina chose a small warthog stuffie and keychain. One child left ready for battle; the other left ready for snuggles.

We biked into town, stopped at an ATM, and visited Saint Victor’s church.

The kids were very well behaved inside. Nothing makes ancient architecture more enjoyable than spending the entire time pleasantly surprised that your five- and three-year-old are not touching everything.

It sprinkled a little on the ride back, but we made it to camp, cooked dinner, and went to feed the goats. One goat stole an entire box of food out of Nina’s hand, which felt a little aggressive after we had so kindly brought and paid for its dinner. We recovered with some time on the swings and headed back to Lightning McQueen for bed. Nolan’s new sword was his clear winner for the day, while Nina’s review wandered through being a tiger—“raaaaaaah”—before landing on ice cream. Three-year-old storytelling remains our favorite genre.

Düren

The next morning we packed up and moved into our Airbnb in Düren. The journal from this day is short, which usually means the logistics of moving four people and all of their belongings out of Lightning McQueen did not leave much energy for literary reflection.

Still, the important points were covered. Dad’s favorite part was a sushi poke bowl, Mom’s was talking to Yaya, and Nina was thrilled about going to the apartment. Nolan chose feeding the goats, apparently proving that the campground goats—food theft and all—had made a lasting impression.

Family-Camping Mesenich

We packed up the Airbnb the following morning and managed to get Lightning McQueen out of a very tight alley. After a grocery stop, we drove through a beautiful river gorge and across the river into wine country, eventually arriving at Family-Camping Mesenich.

We snagged the very last campsite, although “snagged” makes it sound easier than squeezing Lightning McQueen into a tight spot and getting everything situated with leveling blocks. We made it work, which is basically the official van-life motto.

The kids immediately changed for the pool and met a one-and-a-half-year-old German toddler. The water was cold, but the sun was out, the pool was shallow, and the three kids had a blast together. Mom and Dad supported this international friendship by drinking a fresh, chilled local Riesling nearby.

Mom started laundry, Dad cooked, and then Teacher Mommy officially opened school for the year.

Nolan and Nina were so excited for their first lesson, which made starting school at a campground in German wine country feel almost normal. We had salmon for dinner, Dad worked, and then we discovered that the campground dryer was essentially just a machine for keeping wet clothes warm. Nothing was dry, so we hung a weeks’ worth of laundry all around the campsite before bed. Lightning McQueen looked like it had grown a damp clothing garden overnight.

Cochem

The next morning started with bread from the baker cart and preparations for a big family bike ride. Unfortunately, Nolan’s seat clamp appeared to be broken. Coons responded with the sort of careful mechanical repair you would expect from an experienced father traveling Europe: he attached it with bungee cords.

With Nolan’s seat now technically connected to the bike, we set off for a bike shop in Cochem. It was about a 40-minute, 10-mile ride along the river valley, and it was one of the most beautiful bike rides we have taken. The bike shop was very busy and had never worked with that seat before, so they could not help us. The bungees would ride another day!

We tried biking up toward the castle, quickly learned that was not going to happen, and took a bus instead. We walked the rest of the way and had lunch at the restaurant with a view.

Ultimately, we decided against going inside the castle because it required a 40-minute guided tour. A 40-minute tour with Nolan and Nina can either be delightful or feel like several years, and we chose not to test it.

After walking back down and collecting the bikes, we went to the Sesselbahn and took the chairlift up for more great views.

We got ice cream at the top, rode the chairlift back down, and biked all the way to the campground. Twenty miles with two little kids and one bungee-supported seat—not bad!

Back at camp, Teacher Mommy held school while Dad cooked. The German toddler and his mom came over, so we included him in the lesson. Our campground classroom was already accepting international students on day two. After dinner, Dad worked while Mom took Nolan and Nina to the playground. We finally finished the laundry and dishes and went to bed, with the bungee cords still somehow holding strong.

Neef

For our last full day at Family-Camping Mesenich, we got more bread from the campground service and let the kids play before gearing up for another ride. Nolan’s bungee seat was still holding, so this time we headed south toward Neef.

Our first stop was Wajos Lounge, where we ordered a bottle of wine and some delicious pizza. More importantly, there was a sandbox and play area for the kids. This is our current version of fine dining: local wine, good food, and somewhere nearby for Nolan and Nina to dig holes and serve us sand food.

We continued toward Neef hoping to find a winery or tasting room, but it was closed. We pivoted to Gaststätte Zur Blauen Traube, which was run by Nino. He loved the kids, the kids got ice cream, and we got another Riesling. Everybody won.

We eventually biked back to the campground, where Mom taught school before we went to the campground restaurant for dinner. Nolan and Nina were extremely brave and tried all sorts of seafood, including calamari and octopus. This is the same pair that can occasionally treat a normal meal they asked for like a personal betrayal, so watching them willingly sample tentacled sea creatures was most impressive.

Dad’s favorite part was biking, drinking delicious Riesling, and watching the kids do such a great job hanging out at the different restaurants and bars. Mom also loved the leisurely ride and wine stops. Nolan picked both the restaurant and the bike ride, while Nina chose going to bed with her sweet mommy. After two days of big rides, playgrounds, school, wine stops, and bungee-based engineering, we were all ready for sleep.

The Rhine

On Friday we left Mesenich and headed to our new campsite on the Rhine. The campsite was along the river and had views of a brilliant, yet privately owned, castle! Nolan was feeling a little under the weather, so this became a quieter family day. He got some snuggles from Mom and took a nap in the sun, which we assumed was the best part of his day since he was not up for giving an official report.

Mom went to the pharmacy and met a guy from Boston—or at least someone who knew where Boston was—which apparently felt exciting enough to make the daily favorites. She also talked to Auntie Kristian on FaceTime. And she got Nolan snuggles, so she really won the day! Nina, meanwhile, remained focused on the essentials: playgrounds and biking.

Dad’s favorite part was simply arriving at the new campground and relaxing together. After a packed few days on the Moselle, letting Nolan rest and spending time around Lightning McQueen was exactly what we needed.

River Day

By Saturday, we were ready for a little more exploring along the river. The day included biking, a boat ride, and a new beach where Dad, Nolan, and Nina skipped rocks. They also found mussels and glass in the water (we’re still learning the difference between sea glass and just glass), which Nolan considered important enough to include in his full report.

Mom got some one-on-one time with Nolan by the river and had a picnic with him. It was her favorite part of the day, while Dad chose skipping rocks with both kids at the new beach. Nolan listed the boat ride, the beach with Daddy, the mussels and glass, and his picnic with Mommy. Nina kept her answer admirably concise: biking.

It was a simple end to the week—rocks, a river, a picnic, and a little individual time with our five-year-old after he had not been feeling well. Sometimes Roman ruins, castles, chairlifts, and Riesling country win the week. Sometimes it is just finding the right beach and throwing rocks into the water together.

Bunkers, Bikes & New Friends

We started the week with the sort of low-key campground day that somehow still involved a bike ride, World War II bunkers, two playgrounds, an indoor pool, and several new friends. Relaxing looks a little different with a five and three-year-old.

After grabbing some bakery items from the store for breakfast, we loaded everyone onto the bikes and followed a loop of marked trails through some very pretty purple-flowered fields . Along the way we passed several old World War II bunkers that people used to hide in, so naturally we stopped to explore.

Coons chose the bike ride and bunkers as the best part of his day, because apparently old concrete structures in the middle of a family bike ride are exactly his love language.

The trail eventually brought us to a small town whose name we never figured out, but it had a playground, which is really the only important detail anyway. We let the kids play for a while and then biked back to camp for swimming at the indoor pool.

Nina’s review was concise: “That’s the fun of my day with swimming in a pool.”

After dinner, Nolan and Nina met some new friends at the indoor playground and then continued the party outside. Nolan was particularly excited about meeting his new friend, although swimming and biking also made his very full list of highlights. We ended the day hanging around camp, enjoying our last night before packing up Lightning McQueen again.

Gietelo

The next morning we took our time packing up. The kids got in one more round of playing with their new friends while Mom and Dad had a nice breakfast and a few quiet minutes together. Then we went grocery shopping and drove about 30 minutes to an Airbnb outside Gietelo for Dad’s work day.

A very nice Dutch couple met us at the house, which came stocked with Legos. This was excellent news for Nolan and Nina and also excellent news for the adults who needed to unload, do laundry, clean the van, shower, and generally put our lives back together. Mommy’s favorite part of the entire day was taking a nice hot shower, which tells you everything you need to know about camper van life.

The kids played with Legos, watched some TV, and had a video call with their Yaya. Nolan was still thinking about the friends from the campground—especially one older girl with orange shorts, a golden-and-silver dress, a rainbow, and a rainbow crown. “She was really pretty, oh my god,” he explained, with the full sincerity of a five-year-old who had clearly been struck by true love… again.

We ordered pizza and chicken nuggets for dinner while Coons worked and Kourtney handled the kids, laundry, bills, and bedtime prep. It was not our wildest day in Europe, but everyone was fed, the laundry was done, and Mom got a hot shower. Huge success!

Camping De Waay

The kids squeezed in a little more Lego time the next morning before we packed up and hit the road. About 30 minutes into the drive, we stopped at a grocery store and received a text from our Airbnb host: Nina’s polar bear—and another stuffy—had been left behind.

There are forgotten items, and then there are forgotten stuffed animals belonging to a three-year-old. We turned Lightning McQueen around, drove back to the Airbnb, rescued polar beary and its companion, and started the journey again. Crisis averted.

Our next stop was basically the Dutch equivalent of Best Buy, where Dad bought a new travel monitor and more adapters for work. Again, van life: one minute you are conducting an emergency polar bear retrieval, and the next you are shopping for a second screen that miraculously was crushed.

We eventually made it to Camping De Waay outside Doornenburg, where we would stay for three nights. Our spot had a playground right in the center, and the campground had a big lake, water slides, and a pool. The kids went straight to the lake, first in their Ninja Turtle suits and then in their birthday suits, which was Mommy’s favorite transformation of the day. After dinner they headed to the pool while Dad worked.

Nolan was excited about building his new car, Nina was delighted to sit in her chair, and we were all happy to stop driving in circles.

The following morning we set off on another family bike ride, stopping at Spar for bread before heading to Doornenburg Castle. We climbed around the castle, saw some very cool armor, and walked along the walls.

Nolan loved exploring “the castle of the very old things,” which is honestly a fairly accurate description of most castles.

From there we biked to Fort Pannerden. We did not go all the way to the top, but we explored the first floor, which had a collection of random games including a marble run, stacking a nail, and getting a loop onto a hook. The kids also got poffertjes at the restaurant, so they were perfectly happy with our chosen level of fort exploration.

Back at the campground, we moved on to the playground, the pool, and the lake. Mom and Dad both went down the lake water slides, which were fast and awesome.

Nolan got back on the trampoline after hurting himself, Nina happily bounced, and we had a long pool session before Dad cooked dinner and took some work calls while the kids played. Castles, forts, poffertjes, trampolines, and water slides: not bad for a Wednesday.

We kept the next day intentionally simple. We biked into town for bread and groceries, spent plenty of time in the pool, went down the lake slides, and made the rounds of the playgrounds. Nina made new friends on the seesaw and eventually fell asleep on Mommy, giving Kourtney a rare campground nap snuggle.

While Nina slept, Dad and Nolan went to the campground restaurant for dinner together and brought food back for her. Having dinner with Nolan was Coons’ favorite part of the day, and Nolan agreed that dinner with Daddy deserved a spot alongside swimming and the bike ride. Dad still had work calls, the kids went back to the lake, and we settled in for one final night before crossing into Germany.

Xanten

We woke up to rain on our final morning at Camping De Waay, packed everything into Lightning McQueen, and went to Bistro Bar Proof for brunch. The kids got poffertjes, Mom and Dad had a very nice brunch, and Coons managed to get a work document printed and squeeze in a haircut. Nothing says international family adventure like urgently locating both a printer and a barber. Nolan has declined any hair cuts this trip so stayed tuned for his boy-bun.

Across the street, we wandered through an open-air market and bought some delicious goat cheese, plus chocolate-covered nuts and raisins for the kids. We made one more grocery stop and then crossed into Germany, heading for Camping Kerstgenshof outside Xanten.

It rained a little more that evening, and the campground restaurant was full, so we waited for the weather to clear and made dinner at camp. Nina spent part of the meal pretending to be a vulture, circling Mommy and eating most of her dinner. It was both cute and strange, and –from Nina’s perspective– highly effective.

Then our neighbors returned, and the evening took a major turn. They were a group of actual and volunteer firefighters, along with kids ages 11 to 17 who were interested and training in becoming firefighters. The chief told us they simulate smoke by using dry ice to rescue individuals, let them use the rescue ladder to save someone from a two story building, and let them put out fires that the veterans make themselves (all safe they assured us). The volunteers showed Nolan and Nina around their cars and trucks and let them try on helmets, vests, radios, and other gear.

Later, they played a little volleyball and soccer with the kids.

Nolan was especially excited about “the girl firefighter,” while Mom and Dad both chose meeting the firefighters and watching the kids try everything on as the best part of the day. Nina selected going to bed, which feels a little unfair to the firefighters but is also extremely Nina. She loves a good snuggle with mom. We were very happy to learn that our new neighbors would be camping there for the next few nights.

The next day we biked into town and made a full day of hanging out together. We ate two restaurant meals, and Nolan and Nina were such good eaters and “restauranteurs” that Mommy chose watching them at the restaurants as her highlight.

Dad enjoyed the family bike ride, the meals, and a few good German beers.

The kids, naturally, had their own priorities. Nina loved going to the playground, while Nolan’s favorite parts were playing with his new friends and getting ice cream and candy. Between the firefighters next door, the playground, and dessert, Germany had made a very strong first impression.