Holiday clubs abroad ?

[hatter69]

Hello.

We are due to go to Spain this month with our 5 year old . There is a kids club there. I personally don't like the idea of leaving them with strangers in a foreign country. I personally think a family holiday should be just that!
Am I being completely over protective, paranoid and unreasonable ?

I would love to hear some of your experiences/opinions !

I used to be the person running them. Fabulous purpose ready room, loads of equipment, kids loved it. I still remember some of the kids. 9.30 -11.30, 3-4.30 and I did ‘early suppers’ for the kids and it went straight into wind down hour. It meant everyone got some fun time, the parents loved it, especially the end of holiday show we put on.

All clubs I know are drop in. Some also do sleepovers so you can have a late dinner out.

Recently back from a week in the Balearics and deliberately booked somewhere without a kids club as I don't want him left with strangers like that - and I wanted to spend the time with him!

Bit sad especially if the parents both work full time. Mine older now and those years when they are tiny go fast. Hated them as a kid my sister and I went once I got whacked with a rounders bat so we left. We used to camp and did not want to “make friends” with random kids on the campsite

I think it very much depends on the children and what they enjoy. You know your DC the best and what they will and won't enjoy.

For example, when they were younger my DD absolutely loved going to kids clubs and joining in, my DS on the other hand could very much take or leave it. He enjoyed some of the activities but was, and still is, fine with his own company.

Well exactly. Some kids are muck in joiner inner lets make new friends types. In our family we are not! My kids recoiled from them (organised pre / school type “fun” on holiday no thanks) as did I and my sister. Not saying they are wrong but not for us.

When I was a kid we used to go on Thomson/Thomas Cook hols abroad with another family in the summer and we were always in the kids club. I think it was just in the morning if I remember correctly but we absolutely loved it. It was brilliant fun doing all the activities and playing games with other kids. I think we would get returned to our parents after lunch and spend the rest of the afternoon with them by the pool.

I honestly only have fond memories of holiday clubs. From my parents perspective it was probably nice for them to have the mornings to chill out without watching us like hawks around the pool.

But each to their own!

We tried it for the first time at a Holiday Village last year, our 4yr only loved it and asked to go back every day! The sessions only lasted 90 mins so plenty of time for family time.. All british staff & very impressed with security. We had a lovely routine of pool/playing all morning, lunch then into club at the hottest part of day..DC made loads of friends and DH & I had a chance to shag reconnect Win-win!

My nearly 5yr old spent 2 days at a kids club in Spain last week (11-1 & 3-5.30 not 2 solid days)

It rained for those 2 days and he would have been bored senseless otherwise as he's an only child, he loved it, had so much fun and it would have been hard to keep him occupied otherwise.

We had lots of family time the remaining 5 days!

If you want to send them to kids clubs, might as well leave them at home with the grandparents and save some money!

How is staying with grandparents the same thing as spending several hours playing with other kids?

Are you seriously thinking that children would rather spend several hours a day with adults rather than be in a pool or on a beach or on the ocean playing with other kids?

I have only just started doing summer holidays, so my understanding of what constitutes a kids club may not be normal. DD spent a few hours a day being taught to windsurf and sail a dinghy in hers. Most of the rest of the day she spent in the pool with other kids. (She's an only child.)

I wouldn't leave my child at this age I think once they are school age I would if they wanted to but stay close by eg in the hotel complex rather than go out whilst they are there.

My DC loves kids club. He learnt songs in different languages and perform them on stage. They get involved with magic acts and other shows in the earlier part of evening- I have fond memories of my boy performing Songs from the sound of music. Every child came from different country and they had such fun. Crafting, water sports games, swimming comps, singing, dancing I could go on.

The added benefit is afternoon club takes them indoors out of the heat for an hour.

It’s not for everyone but what great exposure to other languages and other children? One debate they had was about which country had the best breakfasts.

So you see it’s not a dumping ground or even a chance to have a break from kids ( you have to be close to club in case if emergency) its an opportunity to make friends with non English children, learn a few words from a different language, try something you might not get a chance to at school and embrace something a little different to help your child grow and dare I say gain a little more independence?

Thank you again. I never went to any holiday clubs (I'm one of 4 siblings, all close in age)
Our family holidays were never pool holidays on big resorts. We went mountain climbing and trekking most years, so this is all very out of my comfort zone !!

We've always used holiday clubs...in fact we choose hotels because they have a kids club!

It's usually only 2 hours a day and my DS has always loved them and begged to go the evening parties. The ones we've used have all been British staff who have recognised childcare qualifications.

If you want to send them to kids clubs, might as well leave them at home with the grandparents and save some money!

Yeah cos two hours a day in kids club is like not taking them away at all! FFS

PettyContractor exactly. My daughter would be bored shitless if left with my 80 year old mother (who lives in a different country anyway where none of my daughter's friends are). Or the in laws who live hundreds of miles from us and whom she rarely sees. That is not her idea of a good time at all.

We always used to ask to go. We were a bit older though, probably from age 7-13. It was a bit different though as it was the 'youth club' of my granparents home town and our cousins went too.

I'd let DS go if he wanted to. He always wants to play with other DC if they are about. I'm happy he's finally old enough for the creche in ikea!

Camomila my daughter loves the creche in Ikea, she first spotted it before she was old enough to go and hassled me every time we went until she was old enough.

The main reason to use the club is so that the parents can have sex whilst on holiday.

This^

My kids love them. They make holiday friends, get an hour or two doing crafts in the shade, know the kids at the disco and get excited to see them.

They usually end up painting t shirts etc and learning songs, counting etc in several languages and new dances.

I always go along and check it out first, I've never found a club to be unsafe so far and the staff are great.

Do what you and your child are comfortable with. You could even sunbathe/read outside the kids club if it makes you feel safer.

One child's mum refused to let him go on our last holiday and he was so upset seeing the other children coming back with their t shirts and faces painted etc. Her take on it was that you should want to spend every minute on holiday with your child similar to the leave them with the grandparents pp . Her little boy was just sad he was missing the fun and didn't understand why

We were lucky as none of ours wanted to go.
After doing the job myself many years ago I wouldn't touch them with a barge pole.
I was not fit to be left with anyone's children. Only realise this now, post dc.
I know a couple of young girls doing it now, they are out getting pissed every night, have no childcare qualifications.

Depends where you go though surely Romany?

At them one we were at earlier this year all the staff had recognised childcare quals and loads of experience. They were absolutely brilliant and our DS(4) loved it - especially the chocolate party! He still talks about the staff and friends he met there.

They were really tight on security and you had to tell them where you would be during the session.

I think you are being unfair RomanyQueen. I am sure that there are plenty of rubbish ones but certainly not all. All of the clubs we have used have had English speaking, well qualified staff. The SEN support in the MW one we went to was outstanding, and I’m not a huge Mark Warner fan (despite our kids adoring it). It was all highly visible so they weren’t just hiding away being negligent with children.

Oh and one of the parents we were on holiday with had been a MW kids club leader in her youth and happily put her three kids in them.

The hotel we go to has lovely staff running the kids club, who we now know well as we’ve been several times and they don’t have a big turnover. They have older, experienced workers rather than students filling a summer. They do brilliant activities, my kids have tried horse riding, golf, tyre sledding. They always have nice craft activities in the week. Plus they have a massive soft play area and they put on a show every week which is hilarious. Using whatever languages the kids attending that week have.

We manage to mix a bit of kids club with family time as well, it is quite easy to do. I might have been a bit snobby about them pre-kids, but when you have a 5 year old who wants constant entertaining and you just want to read a book, they are a bloody godsend.