Beach hols or something more 'memorable'? Views, please

[doglover]

We've been discussing this issue as a family and we're nowhere near reaching a decision!

Here's the dilemma .......................... Last summer we went to Austria and all loved the mix of sightseeing / activities etc. Previous years have seen us holiday in various Med locations which we've thoroughly enjoyed, too.
We have to go away in school hols (I'm a teacher) and only have a budget of about £2800.
My husband is keen to do an all-inclusive holiday where we crash out by a pool for a week. Our 2 dds (aged 13 and 12) aren't too keen on kid's clubs etc so they tend to play together which can be quite stressful!
I'd prefer to create some wonderful memories by maybe visiting another city / country and 'experiencing' something wonderful!!

We keep going round in circles .............. any thoughts?

Have you been anywhere that could fit my criteria? What are cities like Paris, Rome etc like in late August?

I'd really appreciate any views!

Last Easter we took two 17 year olds plus DH and myself for 10 days in Sardinia. We bought Ryanair flights and booked accom, from justsardinia.com and it was truly a bargain.
We could have stayed in an agriturismo, villa or aparthotel and chose the last one as it was 1/2 mile walk along seafront to Alghero town which is a gorgeous castellated town on the west coast. 1/4 mile the other way was Le Bombarde the gorgeous local beach. About half hour drive was La Pelosa, the most gorgeous beach I have ever seen. With teenagers, it seemed best to be in town and it was incredibly safe for them to walk around especially during the evening passegiatta. A bonus Hardly any other British tourists. Seemed to be most popular with mainland Italians and some Scandinavians.
The weather was low 80's and we paid £380 in total (not per person) for a two bed apartment sleeping up to 8 and when we arrived they gave us an extra apartment for free for some reason! Sea facing, wine, bread, fruit juice, milk and cheese provided upon arrival. We had a pool and our own parking space and lovely albeit very plain and simple furnished rooms. Very clean. The pizza by the metre pizzeria proved a hit although it was pretty inexpensive to eat really well.
It was during the school holidays too.

I've now been to Sardinia 8 times over the last 12 years and it is the most amazingly beautiful place. I'll never forget walking down a rocky mountainside to a beach cove and noticing that in a two foot square of ground, I counted over 25 different flowering plants and herbs-all baby plants as it was spring. We had that beach cove with its pellucid aquamarine waters all to ourselves.

As for late August (sorry, didn't see that bit), I have been to Sardinia during the last week of august and the first few days of september. The temperature is mid 80's, most tourists have gone and the prices drop dramatically. If you contact the hotels in brochures direct, you will get amazingly low rates, including full exclusive meals and drinks. One hotel at Capo Caccia charged us £80 per room per night all inclusive. A five star hotel with private sunning areas built into the rocks down by the sea....
Loads to do too- hire boats, mini cruises, riding, flamingo watching, mountain trail walking and rambling, THE best swimming, sophisticated towns and cities, good eating.

I get bored rigid and too hot on beach holidays so I don't do them now. At 14 I really wasn't too keen on going on holiday with mum and dad anyway, I would have foud a beach holiday unbearable but your two may be different. I would go for an interesting holiday without a doubt

Wow!! Thanks so much for this information! I'm off out now but will some investigations on t'internet this evening. x

If your DDs like animals an agritourismo could be the way forward. Many have their own pools too. Sardinia is fab and very family friendly. They just expect your kids to be with you for an evening meal. We saw dolphins in La Pelosa bay! Also at weekends young people play beach volleyball ....er on the beaches, so your DDs could just join in.

We took our kids to Israel , lots of things to see and do, and lovely beaches x

I would suggest pricing up some cruises. We have been on a couple and they are a lovely mix of chilling, sightseeing and a new experiences. Last year we visited Rome, Pompeii, leaning tower of Pisa and Gaudi's cathedral in Barcelona. My children are 11 and 13.
If you don't fancy that I can't see why you can't combine new experiences and chilling by the pool. Holidays where I did both in europe have been in Majorca, Croata, Greece, Turkey, Italy.
My BIL and family have done a couple of city breaks as their main summer holiday and said their children felt a bit stitched up as got hot and bothered so then they visited the Black Forest in Germany and really enjoyed that.

Noexcuses

Oh how wonderful! La Pelosa is breathtaking enough on its own and so safe for adventurous children but to see dolphins in that gorgeously coloured water!

Totally agree re family friendly. To see older children and teenagers out during the evening passegiatta, talking and walking happily with all their relatives and friends had such a good effect on the two teens we took.

Also loved exploring the ruins at Thassos. Loads of lizards and some snakes sunning themselves plus birds of prey soaring in the thermals above. A flock of flamingos flew over on the way to the famous salt marshes just south of Bosa which was really cool. then return the next day. Or fly into the west (Alghero airport) and take a drive across, staying at various places and depart from either Olbia in the east or Cagliari, the capital in the south. or just do a two centre, east and west. if you keep away from the Costa Smerelda in the high season, you'll get good value.

Another great place to visit is Sicily. The ice cream alone is worth it! Watch the Georgio Locatelli series currently showing on TV for a better idea than any I could give.

I also recommend Seville as a city holiday and the Picos De Europa Mountains in the NW of Spain. You can fly or take the ferry to Santander for the latter. It's a great all activity you could wish for adventure place but has plenty of lazy all inc options too. The mountain trails and scenery are so spectacular.

Sorry, got text a bit muddled. Should be

"Take the little train which runs across the breathtaking Sardinian mountains that bisect the island. Stop along the route to stay overnight or go to the last stop, pre book a hotel or agriturismo then return the next day on the train"

Sicily is on our list as have not been there. Also loved the beautiful beaches of Corsica but not quite so child friendly we thought.

I am visiting Sicily and Corsica on a med cruise for the first time this August so even more excited now. So many wonderful places to visit.

Lucky you fluffy-

I wish you as much pleasure from these wonderful islands as I experienced.