Spain is good. Don’t go to France unless you speak French. The English channel islands are beautiful. And they speak the language.
I have another country in mind as well. ahem.
Europe is great here are some general observations:
The farther north you go, the more expensive
the farther south, the cheaper
The farther north you go, the more likely to run into lots of english speakers,
the farther south, fewer speakers of english
The farther north you go, the better the public transportation,
the farther south, the dodgier (more rundown generally)
The farther north you go, the more moderate the temperatures.
the farther south, the hotter but generally clearer and drier
I personally prefer the mediterranean countries because of the food and wine, the scenery and history, and the fact that I can speak Spanish, get by in Italian, and understand but not speak French. That said, my two favorite cities in Europe are Amsterdam and Budapest.
I think Amsterdam would be a wonderful place to go as a first trip to Europe for the following reasons:
- Most Amsterdam living Dutch speak really wonderful English, and don’t give any attitude at all about it
- Great public transportation
- Easy to get to from most American cities
- Great art, the Van Gogh museum is one of my favorites because of design and manageability
- Easily walkable
- Disgustingly picturesque and romantic
There are other reasons but those are the main reasons why I think it’s a good place to cut your teeth on European travel.
Iceland has always been a nice place to visit for me, but, then again, I visit with relatives and go camping and horseback riding when I’m there. What season do you plan on going? I’m guessing summer, unless you plan on staying mostly to one side of the country or the other. A good chunk of highways across Iceland get closed as soon as it starts snowing enough to make ice on the roadways. What do you plan on doing/seeing while you’re there?
Hell, if I can get away with it, next time I go I want to be there for blueberry picking season. (Wait, maybe they’re bilberries… eh, they taste good, whatever they’re called.)
Thank you so much, White Ink 
I second the Netherlands. I only spent 3 days there, but I’m in looooooove.
Spain, Spain, go to Spain! I fell in love with the country the first time I went there. It has beautiful scenery, beaches, and pretty much whatever you’re looking for. The people are really nice, and the food is great (make sure to try the tortilla espanola.)
I seem to recall a city in Southeastern Europe.
Formerly part of the Austrio-Hungarian Empire, it was re-built entirely in Art Deco Style Architecture, after an earthquake in the late 19th Early 20th Century.
But I can’t recall the name. :o :o :o :o
I heartily recommend Germany.
Go to Greece. My recommendation is Santorini - albolutely 100% the best place I have ever been in my life. If I win a million tonight on the lottery I will be on a plane to Santorini tomorrow morning.
The Greek islands especially Corfu.
Great food, great people, great wine, great beaches, great everything.
Corfu Town!! Ah bliss!!, The museum of Indian Art is a must, slap bang in the town centre and surrounded by fantastic restaurants.
You can also take a boat trip across to the mainland but if you do book it privately and not with one of the courier firms 'cos they rip you off.
Just go down to the harbour and make a deal with some boat owner, you can also fish whilst going across to the mainland.
Efcharisto,cala mara, cala nista. [thank you, good morning and good night] and that’s my Greek language knowledge summed up.
Thank you so very much for the suggestions. I may rethink Greece in light of the olympic preparations.
We would go in July to celebrate our tenth wedding anniversary. We have a baby daughter who will be over a year old by then but we’re not sure if she’s coming with us. My mother has pleaded with us to let her babysit for two weeks.
As for our interests we’re not stay out late at nightclubs kind of people. We like art museums, good beaches and great food. Both of us have studied European history from the Greeks to the post war period so we’re keenly interested in seeing historical sites if possible. We’d also like to keep to under $3,000 for the trip including air fare.
I’m sorry for not replying sooner but Comcast is a lousy ISP and my service was down for 48 hours.
Thanks again. You’ve given me a lot to think about!
By any chance, do you live in Tennessee? 
With the exception of possibly the art museums, I suggest Croatia. We spent two weeks there last July, and already have plans to go again next July. After a one day sort of layover in Zagreb, we started in Dubrovnik for a few days, then rented a car and drove up the coast. We went to Split, then Plitvice lakes (amazing) and finally ended up in Porec. After Porec, we took a hydrofoil ferry to Venice, and finally flew to Paris. Next year were spending more time in Dalmatia, especially the islands. We’re skipping France and Italy (which we like very much, but we like to save money too).
Croatia has great food, great beaches with warm water, and plenty of history (old town Dubrovnik is wonderful). The prices are very good when compared to Italy and France, especially for food and drinks. For instance, we were spending about $2 for a 0.5 liter beer in Croatia, the same beer in Paris was about $7.
Twelve years after the war, the tourism is coming back, as it is a traditional German and Hungarian destination. It’s safe, affordable, and language won’t be a problem, because they don’t expect tourists to know Croatian.
I’ve driven across Slovenia too, and it’s beautiful. You could easily do a Croatia and Slovenia trip, with maybe a bit of Italy thrown in.
Taking a kid won’t be a problem in most of Europe - in fact, (s)he will most likely become the centre of attention wherever you go
I haven’t decided when I’m going yet, but after this coming spring and before it gets too cold there again. I have in mind taking a week (10 days) and circling the island by bus + a day or 2 in Reykjavik and if I can squeeze it in, overnight to the Faroe Islands (Torshavn likely). I’ve heard there is a bus pass program for circling the island that allows as many ons and offs as long as progress is continued in the direction started around the island.
I vote for London and Paris. Last time we flew to London and stayed there for a week and just enjoyed the restaurants and plays. You could take the train north to York and see the minster and walk the old wall or take a day trip to Windsor castle; then we took the Eurostar to Paris. In Paris, Versailles, and the Latin Quarter, and just walking around will take a week. I love to just walk in Paris. We made reservations ahead of time in old, quaint, cheap hotels from budget travel books. But be prepared: hotel rooms in Europe are like big closets, Once we stayed in a hotel just around the corner from the Blanche subway stop. In the morning we could look down from our hotel window and see the shopkeepers setting up their fruit stalls and all the hustle and bustle. Now that is the kind of stuff I enjoy. It depends on what you find interesting. I think you will miss your child, but hauling around a sleepy, cranky baby who has no interest in what is going on is really not fair to her.
Greece is awesome!
Portugal is gorgeous too.
Go somewhere unique, like the Aran Islands:
http://www.aran-islands.com/
I wont comment on Iceland as it would be unfair. Im a bit biased
Out of the other European countries I think Prague is the best bang for buck. Its extremely cheap and you get the Old Europe feeling. From there you can go anywhere depending on the weather.
I’m itching to go back to Denmark. Folks are friendly; there are lots of English speakers; there’s a great mix of cultural and outdoorsy stuff; and the population is, frankly, babe-a-licious. It’s a bit more expensive than southern Europe, but well worth it.