That's quite an ambitious plan! What sort of car would you be using and would you have a trailer or everything on the roof?

My experience of kids that age are that they will be excited by anything they don't normally see /do but will lose interest within the hour. So it may be as well to go for places that would interest you without boring them rigid from the moment they get out of the car.

One word of warning, in the Alpine areas the nights may still be quite cold in June, some of the high pass roads only reopen in May and may still have snow at the side in June (which itself would be an hours entertainment if you found somewhere safe to stop!).

Germany is much bigger than many people expect and to reach Austria is quite a drive which may require 2 overnight stops if the kids play up. One of my "when-I-win-the-lottery" plans is to do a tour like this (minus kids) in a vintage MG and I would do one direction by putting the car on the train. The Dusseldorf terminal is handy for Rotterdam and has links to Munich and Austria. See http://www.dbautozug.de/site/dbautozug/en/start.html for details. It would be an extra cost but would save time, petrol, wear and tear (of car and parents!) and the overnight services have 4 berth cabins.

As to sites for places, there is a simple rule that usualy works in the countries you mention, each town normally has it's own site in the format www.placename.de (or.at/.ch). If it works but only in German and you can't see a link like Tourismus look for Unterkunft. In Austria the Tirol region has a good site at http://www.tirol.at

In rural Bavaria and Austria there is a good chance of finding camping on farms complete with cows with bells, that ought to entertain the kids.

You do realise that the Euro 2008 football is on in Austria and Switzerland in June? Campsities close to the venue towns may not be family friendly at this time. See http://www.euro2008.com for the places and dates to avoid!

Hi, thanks so much for all that! No, I didn't realise the footy would be on! (My husband is less interested in the beautiful game than I am!!).

My husband and I done a tour of the same regions when we were single (sigh... ) and we did spend the whole fortnight mainly in the car rushing from one place to another. At least we saw much of the main tourist sites in those countries so this trip is more about relaxing in beautiful surroundings, playing with the kids. If we don't reach a certain country, it doesn't matter, I just needed some suggestions in case we do! The car is a peugeot 407 estate and we have just purchased a roof box (it would have been IMPOSSIBLE to do trip otherwise). You are right about the mountain passes, we love doing them and you're right, the kids would adore the snow. We'll just take it as it comes... Cheers, Lesley

A suitable car for the voyage then - I was dreading you saying that you were going to try it in something like a F reg Micra!! If it's more than three years old and you intend trying the mountains get the brake fluid changed - old fluid can boil at altitude.

Assuming you're on the overnight ferry to Rotterdam you ought to be able to make the dash across the Netherlands and through the Ruhr before the kids get too restless, reaching somewhere between Bonn and Koblenz for the first stay. Two options are Bad Breisig and Bad Hoenningen which face each other across the Rhine. Both are small quiet towns with campsites. Just watching the dozens of boats going past ought to entertain the kids for a while and you have options of visiting the towns between Bonn and Koblenz and the wine trail (links from the Breisig site). The two towns are linked by a small car ferry which would be another 15 minutes fun.

When you've had enough there the Black Forest is within reach for the next stop (mostly following the river). There is a good theme park near Freiburg but the kids may be a little young for it. http://www.frsw.de/camping.htm has a list of sites. Whilst registered on a camp in this region I think you are entitled to free use of public transport, see the detail and links in the specific post on this board. That would entertain the kids and give car and driver a rest. Basel is possible, the old town area is worth seeing and going by train would save the hassle of getting into the city by car. But check the football schedule!

You need to check the current rules for using motorways in Switzerland and Austria, I think both countries require you to buy "tax discs" which may not be good value if you're only in the country for a few days. You can avoid payment by using ordinary roads but you'll need a good map. Personally I wouldn't try to do both countries on the same trip or you'll just end up spending most of the time driving.

Either stick to the German side of the Rhine and head for Austria via the Bodensee or be different and try Italian Switzerland (Ticino) via a stop near Interlaken. The route from Interlaken south would be over the Grimsel pass which has a Marmot colony at the summit . After that there's the Nuffenen pass, 2478 metres up with the chance of a late snowball. Ticino being south of the Alps should be quite warm. Return route, San Bernadino pass then via Bregenz in Austria (just for a few miles) and into western Bavaria.

You do need motorway stickers for Austria and Switzerland but there is a wide range of periods - from memory the shortest one for Austria is 8 days. You might want to use motorways just to get more quickly from one place to the next.
The great thing about Germany and Austria is that kids are taken for granted. This means every cafe and restaurant has high chairs and a children's menu. I would say that virtually all tourist sites have a children's playground for the kids to let off steam. And entrance fees are minimal or non-existent.
Mountains are an excellent idea. Particularly fun for children are the cable cars and, top favourite with our guests, the summer toboggan runs - a kind of semi-circular piece of metal with bobs you sit in to go down. I have say that they look terrifying! Look for Sommerrodelbahn signs.
And if your children know the Pied Piper of Hamelin story, why not go to Hameln on the Weser river - picture book pretty black and white houses.
Salzburg and the nearby lakes were always a huge favourite with my children - most of the centre of Salzburg is pedestrianised and the horse and cart trips are great fun. St. Wolfgang is very kitsch but would amuse the children, with boat trips on the lake (and a Sommerrodelbahn opposite).
There are plenty of theme parks around if you need them, but my children were more than happy to enjoy being somewhere different.

Yes, my husband and I have visited Salzburg, Hamelin and St Wolfgang but as we didn't have kids at the time, can't recall what there was to do for children in each place! To be honest, I'm sure my girls would most enjoy the open meadows, mountains and somewhere to kick their ball, run around and visit playgrounds the entire time! So stunning scenery and lots of space might the order of the day for us. Cheers. Lesley

In the Freiburg (Black Forest) area there is the Cuckoo Clock route - you might enjoy the shop of 1000 cuckoo clocks in Titisee (a beautiful lake resort in the mountains, with pedaloes and ducks to feed), the warm thermal baths of Bad Krotzingen, Badenweiler, and Baden Baden, the Europapark theme park (as good as Disney and much less commercial), plus in France nearby, a stork park in Hunawihr, Mulhouse Zoo and the interactive discovery museum Le Vaisseau in Strasbourg (trilingual with things for the little ones to do to) and loads more.

Yes, I've been to Titisee before and liked it. Thanks for other suggestions, I'm sure we'll find enough to amuse the kids with all the places that have been recommended. We have had hordes of tourist information leaflets etc from all three countries but none really cover what there is to do for younger children so feedback from these forums are invaluable! Cheers

Have a look at Luxembourg
http://www.lcto.lu/html_en/index.html

This may come a bit late for you but we went to Switzerland with the kids last year and they had the best time ever.......there was so much for them to do and see. Particular highlights include ;

Chocolate factory tour at Broc (free entry and plenty of free samples !!) http://www.fribourgregion.ch/en/navpage-ExcursionsFR-GastroExcursionsFR-120165.html

Minature (ride on) Railway at Le Bouveret on the shores of Lake Geneva http://www.swissvapeur.ch/index_e.htm
And the nearby waterpark is superb too http://www.aquaparc.ch/.

Cable car "Glacier 3000" at Les Diablerets (http://www.travelbite.co.uk/news/europe/switzerland/the-worlds-highest-rollercoaster-$476334.htm) with a roller coaster at the top (don't worry it is actually a sophisticated tobogan run on rails on the ground, but the really great thing is that you can go down it as fast, or slow as you like) !!

For slightly older kids the Alien themed bar near the castle at Guyeres (castle also worth a visit) http://www.trendhunter.com/trends/fiction-themed-establishments-h-r-gigers-alien-bar-design

All highly recommended