Mom & Dad · UK and Europe

29 April – 1 June 2027

Five weeks from a Bristol base: tulips in the Netherlands, the Highlands and Skye, and Gaudí's Barcelona. No car on any leg.

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View photo: Keukenhof

Keukenhof

View photo: Eilean Donan

Eilean Donan

View photo: Park Güell

Park Güell

Flights and transfers

Thu 29 Apr	Cathay Pacific, direct	HKG 08:05 → LHR 15:15 (14h10)
Thu 29 Apr	National Express coach	Heathrow → Bristol coach station. Brian collects after work.
Sat 1 May	KLM Cityhopper, direct	BRS 10:45 → AMS 13:00 (1h15)
Sat 8 May	KLM Cityhopper, direct	AMS 16:45 → BRS 17:00 (1h15)
Mon 17 May	easyJet, direct	BRS 11:40 → EDI 12:55 (1h15)
Sat 22 May	easyJet, direct	EDI 08:05 → BRS 09:20 (1h15)
Thu 27 May	easyJet / Ryanair, direct	Bristol → Barcelona, about 2h. Morning departure.
Mon 31 May	easyJet / Ryanair, direct	Barcelona → Bristol, about 2h. Latest evening departure.
Tue 1 Jun	National Express coach	Bristol → Heathrow, about 2h30. Early-afternoon coach.
Tue 1 Jun	Cathay Pacific, direct	LHR 20:15 → HKG 15:45 next day (12h30)

The month at a glance

Thu 29 – Fri 30 Apr	Arrive Heathrow, settle into Bristol. Rest days.
Sat 1 – Sat 8 May	Netherlands. Keukenhof on the bank holiday Monday.
Sun 9 – Sun 16 May	Bristol base. Bath, the Cotswolds, Wells.
Mon 17 – Sat 22 May	Scotland. Edinburgh and a three-day Highlands and Skye tour.
Sun 23 – Wed 26 May	Bristol base. Devon, South Wales, day trips.
Thu 27 – Mon 31 May	Barcelona, with a day trip to Montserrat.
Tue 1 Jun	Repack in Bristol, coach to Heathrow, fly home.

Bristol base — Premier Suites Bristol Redcliffe

Address30–38 St Thomas Street, Redcliffe, Bristol BS1 6JY

Telephone+44 117 954 4800

Nights29–30 Apr, 9–16 May, 23–26 May, 31 May (about 17)

To Bedminster15 min walk over Bedminster Bridge

Netherlands · 1–8 May

Tulips, windmills and canals

Four nights in Leiden, three in Amsterdam. Trains, buses, bikes and boats throughout.

Sat1 May

Day 1

Arrival, Leiden

10:45 → 13:00KLM Bristol → Amsterdam Schiphol
·Border: allow 45 min for biometric checks on first entry
·Train Schiphol → Leiden Centraal, 15 min, direct from under the terminal
14:30Check in, drop bags
15:30Hortus Botanicus Leiden — the garden where Dutch tulip growing began in 1593
EveningCanal walk through the old town, early dinner

Sun2 May

Day 2

Delft and The Hague

·Train Leiden → Delft, 25 min. Markt square, Nieuwe Kerk, Vermeer's canals
·Royal Delft pottery works — hand-painting demonstrations
·Train on to The Hague, 12 min
·Mauritshuis — Girl with a Pearl Earring. Two hours is plenty
·Optional: Scheveningen beach, 15 min by tram
EveningBack to Leiden for dinner

Mon3 May

Day 3

The bulb region — UK bank holiday

07:20KeukenhofBuzz bus 854 from Leiden Centraal, about 30 min
08:00Keukenhof, earliest timed slot. Far end first, then work back
10:30Whisper-boat tour through the bulb fields, 45 min, from inside the park
12:00Kasteel Keukenhof, 10 min walk. Castle, parkland, lunch
14:00Bikes from the Keukenhof entrance. Flat 8–12 km field loop
15:15Annemieke's Pluktuin — pick your own tulips
16:30Bikes back, bus 854 to Leiden

Tue4 May

Day 4

Rotterdam and Kinderdijk

·Train Leiden → Rotterdam Centraal, 35 min
·Markthal and the Cube Houses
11:00Waterbus from Erasmusbrug to Kinderdijk — 19 windmills, UNESCO listed
·Two working mills open inside. Allow 2–2.5 hours including the boat
·Back to Rotterdam: Erasmusbrug and the harbour
19:30Back in Leiden

Wed5 May

Day 5

To Amsterdam — Dam, cruise, Jordaan

10:00Train to Amsterdam Centraal, 35 min. Check in, drop bags
12:30Guided walking tour from Dam Square — Royal Palace, Nieuwe Kerk, Begijnhof, canal ring
15:00Tulip Tour canal cruise, Flagship Amsterdam — bright afternoon light
17:00Liberation Day — free open-air festivals
19:00Jordaan on foot: Westerkerk, Noordermarkt, hidden hofjes, Nine Streets. Dinner at a brown café

Thu6 May

Day 6

Giethoorn day trip

08:00Depart Amsterdam
·Train to Steenwijk, about 2h via Zwolle, then bus 70, 15 min
·A village with canals instead of streets — thatched farmhouses and footbridges
·Whisper boat for an hour or two, electric and easy to drive yourselves
·Lunch canalside, then the footpath loop
EveningBack in Amsterdam for dinner

Fri7 May

Day 7

Flower market and Zaandam

09:30Bloemenmarkt — the floating flower market on the Singel, trading since 1862
11:15Train to Zaandam, 17 min
·Inntel Hotel — seventy Zaanse houses stacked seventeen storeys high
12:30Zaanse Schans: working windmills on the river
·Catharina Hoeve cheese farm — demonstration and tasting, free
·Kooijman wooden shoe workshop — a clog carved in five minutes, free
·Inside one working mill, about €6
17:00Back to Amsterdam

Sat8 May

Day 8

Van Gogh Museum, then home

09:00Van Gogh Museum, first slot — his work hung in the order he painted it
·Two hours. Check out first, leave bags at the hotel
·Lunch, last canal walk
13:30Train to Schiphol, 20 min
16:45 → 17:00KLM Amsterdam → Bristol

Scotland · 17–22 May

Edinburgh and the Highlands

Edinburgh at either end, and a three-day small-group tour to the Isle of Skye in the middle. Long daylight, and no midges yet.

Mon17 May

Day 1

Arrival, Old Town

11:40 → 12:55easyJet Bristol → Edinburgh
14:00Tram to St Andrew Square, 35 min. Check in
15:30Royal Mile towards Holyrood, via Victoria Street and Greyfriars
EveningCalton Hill for the view. Sunset about 21:30

Tue – Thu18–20 May

Day 2

Highlands and Skye — 3-day tour

Tue 08:00Departs central Edinburgh. Stirling, then Glencoe, night in Fort William
WednesdayIsle of Skye: the Cuillins, Portree, Old Man of Storr or the Quiraing. Night on Skye
ThursdayEilean Donan Castle, Loch Ness, Fort Augustus. Back in Edinburgh 19:00–20:00

Fri21 May

Day 3

Edinburgh, slowly

10:00Edinburgh Castle
·Royal Botanic Garden — peak rhododendron season, free
·Stockbridge, Dean Village, Water of Leith
·If wet: National Museum of Scotland, free
EveningEarly dinner, pack

Sat22 May

Day 4

Early flight home

05:45Taxi to the airport, 25 min
08:05 → 09:20easyJet Edinburgh → Bristol
·Home before lunch

Barcelona · 27–31 May

Gaudí and the sea

Four nights in the Eixample, one day out to Montserrat. Late May is about 23°C.

Thu27 May

Day 1

Arrival, Gothic Quarter

·Morning flight Bristol → Barcelona, about 2h
·Aerobús to Plaça de Catalunya, 35 min
·Cathedral and the Barri Gòtic lanes
·El Born and Santa Maria del Mar
EveningTapas in El Born

Fri28 May

Day 2

Gaudí

09:00Sagrada Família, first slot — morning sun through the east windows
·Lunch, then Passeig de Gràcia
·Casa Batlló inside, Casa Milà from outside
·Rest at the hotel
EveningGràcia — small squares, local restaurants

Sat29 May

Day 3

Montserrat

08:30R5 train from Plaça Espanya, about 1h
·Rack railway up the mountain
·Basilica and the Black Madonna. Boys' choir about 13:00 most days
·Sant Joan funicular for the views
·Back in the city by six

Sun30 May

Day 4

Park Güell and the sea

09:30Park Güell, early timed slot. Taxi up — the walk is steep
13:00Seafood paella at Barceloneta, then the promenade
·Cable car to Montjuïc Castle, or rest
EveningPack

Mon31 May

Day 5

Last morning, fly home

·Check out, bags at the hotel
·La Boqueria market — closed Sundays, so today
·Palau de la Música guided tour
·Aerobús to the airport, evening flight home

Before you book

UK ETA for both, well before travel. Passports valid 6 months past 1 June 2027.
ETIAS for the Netherlands and Spain, expected live in 2027, €20, over-70s exempt.
Keukenhof tickets + bus 854 + boat tour, the day they release.
Tulip cruise Flagship Amsterdam, afternoon of 5 May.
Van Gogh Museum 09:00 slot on 8 May, online only.
Giethoorn train or coach tour, then the whisper boat.
Highlands tour 3-day Skye tour before any Scottish hotel.
Sagrada Família plus Park Güell and Casa Batlló.
Premier Suites Redcliffe about 17 nights across four blocks — ask for one rate.
Travel insurance the whole 29 Apr – 1 Jun window.

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