Where to go

[wallababy]

Need suggestions on where to go for our first foreign holiday....
We usually go camping in cornwall/Devon but would really like a bit of sun next year, but are stuck as we don't know many resorts, so hoping you helpful lot could provide some suggestions.
We are a family of 5 (dc's will be 7,6 and 1) and definitely want a self catering villa.
Don't mind a shared pool, and would llike somewhere on site/near by that has some sort of entertainment, even if just a nice quiet bar or something. WRT the actual resort, sea would be an advantage, but restaurants, markets, a pretty village nearby, and maybe some 'kids' treats like a waterpark or something (although this definitely NOT essential).
We definitely don't want a Marbella or benidorm type place and as few "British" bars as possible!!
Prob 6 hour flight limit.

So fire away on your favourite places....

depending on where you live i would consider france. are you near one of the ferry ports? if you love camping holidays what about a mobile home? we've had loads of lovely holidays when our 3 boys were younger there. brittany is beautiful - though weather not guaranteed - bit better than south britain. like cornwall but fewer people and no tat. or you could go further south for more reliable weather (we never fancied the drive though).

advantage of not being too hot and you can load everything into your car and good wine/cheese/pate/cakes

Thanks will look into it, I'm sure dh would love to drive to france, but I wanted to venture a little further and ditch the drive!

Also fancied the (in my imagination) luxury of a villa

we went to a gete (rural house) in france once and the boys got bored very quickly. we liked the eurocamp type holiday as there was so much for the kids to do and for grownups there was the bar/siteseeing/pool/tennis/tabletennis etc. plus beautiful beaches.

if you do decide to go and want some advice on sites in brittany let me know. the pitch sizes vary (most have hedges round them) and i would suggest largest mobile home.

it got us into camping in the uk - but the french sites we have been to are in a totally different league to any in england

I would recommend playa blanca in lanzarote ,We have been going since my eldest 7 was 1, it is lovely, very nice people very clean,good choice of restaurant and lovely beaches.We have stayed in villas and we have stayed in hotels there is a very mixed choice it depends what you are looking for.If you want a mix of self catering with a restaurant a little entertainment and lovely warm pools very close to the town you will never beat las brisas, these can be booked through owners direct etc and you can see reviews on trip advisor , it really is lovely and very reasonable.1,2,3 BEDROOM bungalows on a very pretty secure ,child friendly site. see the other post on playa blanca from a lady who has just returned.

Melxx

Thanks mel, will definitely check it out. Keep suggestions coming though, I need a couple of options to -bully- convince dh!!

Portugal - reasonably priced, the people are very welcoming, and if you go a little inland and hire a car, you have the best of both worlds - the 'real' Portugal, and the beaches close by. I have wonderful memories of time spent in a gorgeous little village about half an hour from Albufeira and we felt as if we'd stepped back in time.

Also, as others have suggested, France is great if you fancy the drive. The roads in France are great, when you get on the Toll roads, and you can get anywhere really fast.

try not to travel on a saturday in school hols as thats when all the french use the roads and theres long queues at the tolls

How about Turkey? There are some lovely resorts there and you can get some beautiful villas. Have a look at Turgutreis, Yalikavak or Bitez on the Bodrum Peninsula. It takes about 3½ hours from London to Bodrum

Turkey is also a very child friendly country so you will feel very welcoe wherever you go.

walla - how hot do you like it and when are you going? some of these places are boiling at the height of the summer - went to turkey in july and the sand was too hot to walk on.

hi
this could have been me, after three years of Cornwall (which I still love) I wanted to avoid the rain in August and the 12 hour (yes 12 hours) journey on the M5. We have just booked a villa in Menorca, following at least half a dozen recommendations from other school mums. We have booked a villa that has a private pool for two weeks in August, not sure of your budget (It will have to be a lot bigger than Cornwall) ours is costing just under £3k, which did make me gulp, but by the time we added up all the extra costs of wet weather activities in Cornwall and the extra fuel costs of driving around Cornwall looking for a break in the clouds, its a bit more but hopefully the promise of sun and no car needed won over. We booked with VillaPlus who organised everything and even easy flights....worth a look?

If you could stand telling people you were going to Mallorca (cringe) then it's an ideal villa island.

Avoiding the southern tip where all the Brits go, Palma is one of the most upmarket cities I've ever been to. It's totally posh with the yacht set,royalty and glam europeans all using it. There are wonderful shops but also backstreets with art galleries, authenic resturants, bars etc. The north of the Island is lovely and not all touristy.

Best of all it has lovely weather but is still green and pretty unlike lots of Spain. Its also obviously and island so unlike Italy say,you are much closer to many beaches.

There is a great water park for a day trip which wasn't grim at all and the wonderful privately owned caves to the west to do.

Obviously though you will have to say the "M" word but if you have well travelled friends they will know what you mean!

Sorry caves to the East (SW is Brits ville)