European Vacation Suggestions

Unfortunately, my brother and sister-in-law (and three wonderful kids) are going to be in Germany for another year. This is unfortunate because, well, we miss them over here. Our (with) family situation pretty much makes it impossible to go and visit them. Unlikely anyway.
The one plus is that this gives them another year to scoot around Europe and see the place. In that spirit, I offer some vacation suggestions.

• Here is a collection of family friendly vacation spots.
• This is a list of great European rail trips.
• A top ten list of hidden European gems (I really liked this). Btw, these are more of the 'unknown special place' type of gem than the type you'd set in jewelry.
  
• Geocaching? This would lend to that.

Some more personal suggestions for me:

• Castle Hill in Budapest. Looks like a fun place, fun for the family too. It reminds me of my old Lego castle sets.
• Take a short cruise! Royal Caribbean has their hot deals page here. Scroll down to the Europe section and you'll find plenty of four and five night cruises in Scandinavia for very affordable prices.
  
• Neuschwanstein Castle, the inspiration for Disney.
• Loch Ness and the Inverness area. Monster watching for the kids, gorgeous scenery for everyone. And while you're at it, you could try and get there using the Chunnel.

I hope this helps!