do you put your children in kids clubs while on hols?

[goodbyemrschips]

As in the title ''do you put your kids in kids clubs while on hols, if yes why and if no why?

The YMCA? surley it's the Macarena song nowadays? . When we went on our first AI in Corfu three years ago, they had a fabulous (I know, anathema to some) little kids disco outside most evenings - I became most ept at the 'Court of King Caractacus' . Luckily our apartment was a long way away from the disco 'area' so we could leave when the not so amusing adult entertainment started..

Depends on the child. There was one last time we were at Sunsail but the twins didn't choose to go in it that year and we were all happy about that (their sister has worked in them in the Caribbean and I doubt she would have that that wonderful chance in university holidays if she hadn't had a great time in children's clubs there as a child/teenager herself).

Then we did have a phase when the baby twins were in them from 9 - 4 and the 3 teenagers who very actively wanted to be in them with other teenagers. The twins were up at 5.30am every day because of teh time difference. By 9 they had been playing with us for 3.5 hours and were quite happy with the club and then being with us from 4 to bed time. It's still 7.5 hours or something with parents even if in the club Worked fine for us.

I still don't see why it has to be either or. Can't you traipse round a cathedral one day and then sip a pina colada by the pool the next (while the kids do the Bus Stop far far away)?
Or morning/afternoon splits?

Last year we went to a place where there was a kids club. The children could attend whichever half-day sessions they wanted. The list of activities for the week was posted outside the 'clubroom'. DS chose three, DD chose two.

One of these sessions we influenced their choice because we told them the alternative family activity was going to see a place of local interest that could only be accessed by a long hike.

This seemed to work out fine for everyone involved. It would have been a shame to drive 8 hours and for me and DH to miss out on that hike and there is no way they would have made it.

We are going back to a campsite in France this year because the kids want to go to a kids club even though they are 14 and 11.
The club does canoeing, high ropes, mountain biking and the like.

Never mind that they can canoe and bike with me aytime and I've got a Go Ape not far from me!!!!

Odd how many posters insist they want to be with their dc 24/7.. Is this tied up with feeling guilty about not spending enough time with them in day-to-day life? I think what children are lacking nowadays is time with random individuals in unstructured settings. I would like my dc to meet other folk and have new experiences when on holiday. I think this is in the interests of their own personal development. I can offer my dc certain important things but I can´t be everything to them. We can share activities we all enjoy but equally do our own thing too. This doesn´t make us less of a family. What´s important is really enjoying the things you do do together and pulling together as a family at the end of the day.

To answer the OP, we have holidays with basically FT childcare included - older child actively pushes to attend, the other doesn´t.

I am happy for DD1 to go to a kids club because:

-she thinks it´s great fun
-it gives access to facilities/toys/crafts/horse riding/discos/expeditions
-it enables her to make new friends
-it increases her second language and culture

• I do NOT want to gear every holiday to childrens interests. I can make a city or museum absolutely fascinating to a 5 year old but although rewarding, this is work and exhausting, not my idea of a holiday. And I´d also like to spend time and energy on my OH!

I am a SAHM. Taking care of my dc is what I do. My dc have never known any chidcare and never had a babysitter. A kids club could buy time with my DH and that is important to me.

Nothing is more important to me than my children but I am not willing to completely sacrifice my own interests on a thwarted notion that a family holiday means being with my dc 24/7.

No ..it's friggin expensive!!..I send them to grand-parents..and sometimes I even have time off when they are at GPs..they love it!..they get spoiled and spend time with their cousins ...I would like to spend more time with them I currently work FT ..but I know they love their time with their GPs..we do stuff together too..I'm going to do days with both of them individually....can't wait!

No thir not mine costs £45 per week 8:30-6 includes full use of the pool, gym and sports stuff

Yes, we do a mix of holidays, sometimes kids focussed, sometimes more about resorts and pool lying (in which case we would use a kids club for some time), sometimes as tourists so looking at stuff.

The times DS1 has been to a kid's club he has seemed to enjoy himself and has asked to go back in the afternoon if he has had a morning session.

Doesn't have to be all or nothing. Sometimes DH and I want to lie by a pool and then retire for sex naps. So kids club handy there. Sometimes we spend hours at the beach building sandcastles with kids, sometimes we go exploring together, sometimes we want to do a harder hike etc.

It's all good.

yes ds went in to kids club for 2 hours a day last year and he loved it i realised he was ready for nursery then (which he loved from day one)

i was on my own with ds and found the holiday really hard work it was an all inclusive family friendly place but swimming pools everywhere. i found our next holiday with nice little sandy beach and shallow water no fancy pools, no entertainment no kids club far more relaxing and enjoyable and ds enjoyed it just as much and made friends on the beach despite the language barrier

No. But only because we haven't been to the sort of holidays where they are avaiable. And if we did I think I'd like to consider it for a few days not the whole time - but knowing my DC they'd probably love it and not want to be with us at all!

Yep - usually a session is 2-3 hours so they might do two or three of those. I see plenty of my dc , and when at home in the normal course of events, I don't have the luxury of extended family for babysitting or to have the dc whilst we dh and I have a weekend away etc (as many of my friends do). The dc are 7 and 9 and dh and I have managed just one weekend away without the children in that time. For me - time spent without the children is just as precious as time spent with. The dc enjoy the holiday sessions - if they didn't we wouldn't insist that they still go. It's a win win.

My ds is too little, but I remember going on Eurocamp holidays with my parents as a child and loving the kids club! It was only a couple of hours a day anyway.

A kids club that the children actually want to go to is a little different to using resort nannies/creches for childcare while the parents enjoy their holiday. Some of those places take babies from 3 months.

No Because we are usually backpacking.

Not yet. Probably won't for a few years. Six year old is good at doing stuff without needing to be entertained and 20 month would hate it as not used to nursery etc

Yes both in school hols and on hols when they were younger (pre teen).

Yes, we do because it's the only time DH and I get some together time. The kids love the clubs, make new friends, form short relationships with other adults, and get to do things they wouldn't do with us. We go to the Alps with Esprit, so the kids go to club 3/4 out of 7 and spend the rest with us as a family.

Absolutely. Holidays may well be family time but, oddly enough, we all enjoy doing different things. They have enjoyed doing snorkelling, canoeing, crab hunting, tennis, racing etc and whilst they are doing that with all their new found friends, I have enjoyed some well deserved peace and quiet with a book.

kids clubs aren't 24/7, we do get to spend time together doing stuff too.

We've just come back from 2 weeks away and we did use the kids club a few times. The DDs loved it and it helped them make friends more quickly. I think they went to 4-5 2 hour sessions, all whilst DS was having his afternoon naps. It meant DH and I could have a little quality time alone and they weren't bored waiting for DS to wake up.

I can't understand why you would do it all day everyday though. but each to their own.

I haven't before, but this year we are going somewhere that does great activities that I think the kids would get a lot from - more than spending time with us.

Our dc used one on a eurocamp site, purely out of choice and just a couple of sessions each. However, despite enjoying it and getting to know the other children, we did notice that they seemed to play sleeping lions for an awfully long time - suspected the leaders may have been a bit hungover..