Those of you who go abroad without planes.. Where do you go?

We used to get the ferry from Rosyth to Belgium. It sailed every day at 5pm went under the Forth Bridges (wonderful to do and see). You wake in the morning in Zeebrugge! It's a little cruise! DFDS took it over, then the service reduced to a few times each week until it finally stopped in 2018. However, the Scotland-Europe link coming back later this year! One to watch out for! I understand it will be Rosyth to Dunkirk. DFDS do Newcastle to Amsterdam, Divert to Dunkirk and Calais, Newhaven to Dieppe, Portsmouth to Jersey etc. P&O do Hull to Zeebrugge and Rotterdam. I quite liked them. But it was a bit of a drive to Hull from Glasgow. We also did the catamaran from Dover just do we could actually see the white cliffs. The trip was really short! But we had the long drive down the entire length of England. Before children, we would drive off the ferry at Zeebrugge and be in Paris by lunch. We could hit the Mediterranean by evening. We liked the driving because we could buy things abroad and bring them home in the boot. In fact, we didn't really pack luggage per se, just little bags in the boot! We never booked accommodation, nor did we have a plan, so we'd meander through Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg, Austria, Italy... Lots of off the beaten track amazement, great food, and nothing beats a road trip with someone you are dating. No wonder we got married (abroad). When children came along, we would use the camping sites... static caravans, pools, chateaux... Eurocamp, Keycamp, Siblu, etc... Many are in Northern France so easily under an hour's drive from the ferry. The kids loved these places, great for languages and messing about in the pool. When they got a little older, we went with the train. More expensive, but no driving. We missed not being able to bring back cases of wine and odd things from antiques markets, but it was more relaxing. Trains are great in Europe. And you can do a bit of beach then a bit of city, then a bit of rural mountain or lake as you wish. Flying is a pain in the bum, so much waiting about, security, cameras, oppression, restrictions, luggage and liquids... It's dehumanising! Kids crying on planes, nappy changing, cramped seating, delays, air traffic control strikes, the local airport is miles away at both ends. The ferry is a relaxing cruise. If you have kids in the car you go on first at the head of the queue. They watch a movie in the cinema, family dinner in the restaurant, bedtime in the cabin. Stroll on desk, drinks at the bar, softplay. No scans to walk through, no luggage opened, no queues at passport control, no liquid or luggage restrictions. Completely civilised. And works out much the same as a flight with connections etc. Hope this inspired you! Enjoy!