I need your advice on our holiday situation - I want to know what you think of DH's thoughts - Don't want to discuss the McCann's situation although it does bear relevance

[FoghornLeghorn]

Ok ..............

We are going on hols in just over 2 weeks to Praia Da Luz (Algarve). This is the villa
We are staying in a 3 bed villa which we have stayed in before (2 years ago). We will be with my parents & our 2 DD's.

Now my take on arrangements would be that DD1 (3) will have her own room - doors out onto patio will be continually looked (for her safety around pool more than anything else) and DD2 (8 months) will be in with us. DD1's room would be the one with the balcony around the doors (If she is in with us, the room is around other side of villa, but from inside door to door is about 6-7 footsteps)
DH wasn't happy with this from the beginning, he wanted DD1 to be in with us too and for the 4 of us to squeeze into one room and just leave the 3rd bedroom empty. In light of the McCanns experience, DH is now instistant that this is definitely happenning.

I'm in 2 minds - I have no problem with DD1 being in with us but am unsure as to whether it is really necessary.

The Villa has a long drive way with a big iron gate - there are no surrounding walls which seem easy to get over (iirc). If someone were to gain access onto the property it would be very easy to get into the villa, they aren't particularly hot on security and everything is on one level.

What would you do ?

[lemonaid]

I would have DD1 in her own room.

You can get portable alarms that you could attach to the inside of the exterior doors and windows so that if they are opened the alarm will go off. Do you think that would reassure your DH?

Or your DH can go and sleep with your DD1 and you can sleep with your DD2 and no one needs to squeeze anywhere.

[LilRedWG]

I assume DD has her own bedroom at home, so I'd give her her own bedroom on holiday. Lock the exterior doors and windows and give your DH the keys, or, as Lemonaid says, DH can share with her.

[Flower3554]

The ad says no small children???

[FoghornLeghorn]

Hadn't even thought of that Lemonaid - although DH can sleep with DD2, she's the early riser .

I will look into the alarms - any idea where sells them?

[FoghornLeghorn]

Flower - we know the owners - they have rented to us before. It is more for the childrens safety around pool and we have signed a disclaimer.

That OK?

[LucyJones]

do they know how old your children are?

[LucyJones]

sorry, posts crossed!

[forsale]

i would let her have her own room but would make sure all the toys/cases/crap are kept in the room cluttering up the exit throughy the patio door then if anyone does come in you will all hear it as he/she trips over a multitude of toys and crap

[LucyJones]

I agree that if dh is the one insisting you should all sleep together he could sleep in dd1's room.
Or you could sleep in there and have awhole room to yourself!

[elasticsortinghandstand]

yup, i think dh was one and you with one, or altogether

[crokky]

I would all go in together.

When I was little, I had my own room, but when we went on holiday, we were all in together and I really enjoyed it.

[chopster]

It does have security shutters doesn't it? I wouldnt stay in a place without them.

Id put dd in her own room and take a baby monitor so I could hear if anyone got in. That's what we did when our dkids were on a different floor to us one year, and we will be taking it in case again this year.

[elasticsortinghandstand]

so really it is the pool that is the worry
?

[FoghornLeghorn]

Yes it does Chopster but we got locked out last time and DH had to break in through the shutters - used a stick to pull the locks down

[tortoiseSHELL]

If you're really worried about it, I would have dh in with your dd1, you go in with dd2.

Just a thought, by posting the villa URL and the dates you're going there, and your profile has pics of your dds, you've basically announced to the world that you will be THERE, during THIS TIME. In a paranoid world, you might want to delete some of that - in the unlikely event of a paedophile/abductor reading this, they now would know everything about your holiday!

[FoghornLeghorn]

No the pool isn't a worry - well it is but I have overcome those problems and have made arrangements to keep DD1 away from the pool when we are not out there.
The owners of the villa I think had a bad experience of someone trying to complain about a child slipping over around the pool - there isn't a huge amount of space so I think they just decided it was easy to generally say no small children to cover their backs

[elasticsortinghandstand]

i would be more worried about the pool than any potential abductors

[FoghornLeghorn]

Oh shit Tortoiseshell.

Deleting profile now

[littleredhen]

was about to say the same - do you not realise anyone in the world can read this thread? odd to post your exact whereabouts and fact you will be leaving your dd in room

[tiredemma]

On holiday I always go in with ds2 and dp sleeps with ds1. Not because of abductions or anything- more to do with either of them getting up in the night to get to the pool.

my worse fear is my children finding water alone, it makes my blood run cold.

[lemonaid]

There's

this kind (needs a metal doorknob).

Or this (more versatile) (similar design here).

Or this, which is the kind I was originally thinking of and would work on windows as well.

[Beetroot]

To be honest I would put both kids in one room and have some sexy time with my dh.

[Beetroot]

the pool should be alarmed and have a fence around it btw EU regulatios

[FoghornLeghorn]

It's hardly odd LRH is it - I didn't realise ffs . don't really like the insiunations being made there