Barcelona is great with children. Our older daughter was almost 5 when we went there and we could see so much potential for going back in a few years time. Even as it was she enjoyed the Maritime Museum and the museum which has all the Roman remains under the glass floor but would have got so much more out of both had she been a bit older. She also enjoyed the Gaudi cathedral and the trip up to Tibidabo.

Valencia - We went with my sister in law and some friends, both have children, but they were left with grandparents. They were so impressed with the city and what it offers for children they both came back and booked for a week last summer - neither knew each other had booked to return. City, beach, parks, hands on museums, huge sea life centre all in a compact area with excellent public transport.

Perhaps not the most obvious answer, but why not try La Rochelle on the western coast of France. You can visit the stunning aquarium Les Minimes and walk through a passage with sharks swimming all around you, there is the Weather Ship to explore, the museum of automated figurines, the old port, a beach, and of course loads of seafood and good chips!

aww that sounds fab !

thanks for your suggestions

Just a thought, city breaks (with kids) may be alright daytime-wise, but I can imagine night-time might be a problem in a lot of cities, particularly in the winter months. ??

A little warning about Valencia. From April till July this year the Americas Cup sailing contest is being held in the city. Because of this the price of accommodation has got very scarce and expensive. We are going there in September when things appear to return to normal.