first holiday abroad with baby - where to go?

[stripemarshmallow]

we've had a couple of lovely UK breaks with baby and looking to go on holiday abroad this year, baby is currently 7 months old. thinking early may or mid/late June (have commitments in between!) really struggling to find anything affordable and suitable, any recommendations?
wishlist would be:

• warm but not absolutely boiling hot
• ideally an apartment/villa as would need 2 bedrooms, our baby is a very light sleeper and sleeps badly in same room as us
• somewhere with a pool or access to a pool
• don't mind self catering or all inclusive but I have some health related dietary requirements that can make buffet eating very tricky!
• short flight from UK
• 1 week under £1500 which seems to be impossible!

feels like I'm asking the impossible, I've done a lot of travelling and never really spent much but definitely saved by taking hand luggage and not great flight times which won't work with the baby!

Budget is a little tight for abroad but I really recommend Mousses in Lefkada especially if you'd like some (good quality) childcare. It's lovely. But would be over your budget.

Look on the TUI weekly deals pages, they drop in price closer to the date. The need for the second bedroom is a major price issue though as you could easily get ai with just one room. I would try the Balearics, mainland Spain, Sicily and Greece as they get warmer quicker, won’t be that warm in France northern Italy etc.

https://www.tui.co.uk/destinations/bookaccommodation?productCode=941984&tab=overview&noOfAdults=2&noOfChildren=1&childrenAge=0&duration=7&flexibleDays=3&airports%5B%5D=MAN&flexibility=true&noOfSeniors=0&when=04-05-2025&pkg=5243446016%2F3%2F489%2F7&tra_o=5123804867%2F5710252&tra_i=5123804930%2F5710253&units%5B%5D=GRC%3ACOUNTRY%7CMEX%3ACOUNTRY%7CMNE%3ACOUNTRY%7CCYP%3ACOUNTRY%7CCPV%3ACOUNTRY%7CSWE%3ACOUNTRY%7CITA%3ACOUNTRY%7CMAR%3ACOUNTRY%7CCAN%3ACOUNTRY%7CTZA%3ACOUNTRY%7CIDN%3ACOUNTRY%7CPRT%3ACOUNTRY%7CDOM%3ACOUNTRY%7CEGY%3ACOUNTRY%7CHRV%3ACOUNTRY%7CFRA%3ACOUNTRY%7CLKA%3ACOUNTRY%7CTHA%3ACOUNTRY%7CESP%3ACOUNTRY&packageId=941984ESMN012517463168000001746316800000TOM278017469216000001746921600000TOM27811BA015243446016%2F3%2F489%2F7&index=2&multiSelect=true&brandType=T&bb=SC&room=&isVilla=false&searchType=search&durationCode=7115&rmpc=1%7C2%7C0%7C1%7C1%7C1&rmtp=1BA01&rmbb=SC&fc=n&utm_campaign=holiday_results&utm_content=holiday_results&agent=tda&idfv=EF706FAC-C501-42EA-B200-7CEF685EBFBB&ga_id=EF706FAC-C501-42EA-B200-7CEF685EBFBB&utm_source=tui_uk%2Cdirect%2Cnone&agent=tda&utm_medium=app&appsflyer_id=1697879604222-7065014&app_webview=true&idfv=EF706FAC-C501-42EA-B200-7CEF685EBFBB&ga_id=EF706FAC-C501-42EA-B200-7CEF685EBFBB

this is self catering and they have a 2 bed available

Mar Menor golf resort in Murcia might work as long as you don’t mind hiring a car.

You can fly into either Murcia or Alicante airports. Lots of lovely little beach resorts close by without lots of crowds. Murcia is worth a day out and there used to be a great wildlife/aqua park there. When we went there wasn’t much in the way of restaurants within walking distance but plenty of supermarkets made self-catering easy. We tended to eat out at lunchtime and then have something easy back at the villa in the evening.

If you play around with dates you should be able to find something within budget. We have some very happy memories of going there when both DC were little.

I'll have a look at these!
2 rooms is a huge pain, I'd be happy to stay on a sofa bed if we could find a one bedroom stay, I can't even turn over in bed if he's in the room without him waking!

Don’t tie yourself up in ‘suitable’ flight times, take any flight that’s cheap! They won’t care.

go on Skyscanner and find flights to the cheapest place, and book accommodation separately if this works out cheaper.

you are putting constraints in that don’t need to be there. I took my 11 month old to Mexico, is the flight long, yes, but it was cheap at the time so we booked it and the flight was tiring but was a tiny % of the holiday as a whole

The hardest part will be a 2 bed apartment within budget. You don’t often see them come up even with 2 or 3 kids. Could you just have a 1 bed and put the cot in the living area instead.

EasyJet packages are really good and well priced. I don’t know what airport your near but I found a great deal 7th may for a week from Glasgow. It was £1508 all inclusive 4 star Fergus Club Mallorca and includes cases and transfers.

Majorca is lovely for family holiday.

I'd look at Menorca. We did several different locations on the island when we had small children and it's generally low-key and relaxed. We particularly liked Santo Tomas (very quiet) and Cala n Porter (has a lovely sheltered cove, but it's a bit of a hike up and down to it).

Siblu / Eurocamp where designed for babies/ toddlers became a lifesaver. Cheap - self catering but toddler pools. Also when a bit older kids club and felt like a mix of things you might find in a resort but self catering and two bedrooms and a patio to sit on with a book whilst they nap in the day

We went to Jersey as our second abroad (first was Disneyland Paris, does not fit the brief!). It was October so the weather was like here but I should imagine June would be lovely as it’s slightly nearer France than here so gets their weather for the most part. There are lots of quaint AirBNBs you could grab or there are hotels with connecting rooms I imagine.

I've been to Majorca and Ibiza (twice) with my son, first when he was about 5 months. We loved Ibiza - short flight and picked resorts with quite a long promenade. It meant we could pop baby in the pram for naps and at his bedtime, we'd walk and he'd dose off then we could have the evening to ourselves.

We went to Lake Garda last September and it wasn't pool weather but I reckon that in June it will be. We stayed in a serviced apartment but it was within a complex and it had a pool, reception, laundry area, kids play area. It was called Residence Il Sogno Desenzano.

I don't understand taking a baby abroad. Who is it for? Certainly not the child...

So just because you have a baby, you can’t go on holiday?

news to me!

Perhaps the parents would like a holiday…?

No, I did not write that. Re-read the post

If you look at 'on the beach' I would go for Spain including Balearic Islands. Majorca would be my favourite. You can select two rooms as an option and also choose your board. Pretty sure you will get something within budget there. It's mostly hotels on there but some have a villa/apartment feel. Good luck!

They can have one in country of residence.

And why must it be in their country of residence…?

You obviously aren’t well acquainted with the British weather

Oh please

hi, me and my husband both really want to go on holiday abroad to make some memories with our baby and enjoy the sun and an outdoor pool - yes they will be our memories not his. our baby responds very well to going on holiday and really enjoys new surroundings so we're doing something nice for all of us.

Hope that helps you understand xxx

managed to find a 2 bedroom stay on a holiday cottage resort in Majorca in budget, thanks so much for your help everyone! 😊

@stripemarshmallow Have a wonderful time! Always remember that their childhood is your motherhood so take the time and make the memories ❤️🎉

exactly!! thank you 😊 x