Where to holiday with pre-teens?

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I'm looking for August 2014- kids are 10,12 and 14. They are too young to want bars but too old to be stuck in a villa up a track with mum and dad. Our last holiday was in Kalkan in Turkey 2 years ago and was perfect, villa with pool in a town with loads of restaurants and brilliant day trips. Also been to Pollensa and the hills of Andalucia. We like having our own space and pool but want lots to see and do, does anyone have any suggestions?

Mine have really enjoyed some city breaks - Barcelona, Rome, Paris etc. also their favourite was florida keys with loads of outdoor activities to tire them out. weather never gets above 100 degrees in the keys either which makes it perfect imo.

The holidays I found worked best with DC of that age were either cruises, there is so much on board for all ages to do and lots to see at each port. Or sightseeing holidays in sunny destinations. We visited Cape Town and Brazil and Argentina, doing lots of half or full day trips and then spending some time on the beach or hotel pool at the end of the day and then eating out somewhere different each evening. Baisically keeping the DC busy and stimulated avoided any moaning.

thanks so much for the tips- I think cities/sightseeing with some pool time might be the way to go (I need my pool time!)

Salou area in Spain - Works really well great theme parks - Portaventura - Water Parcs...Barcelona ....and you can spend time lying by the pool...

Also Italian lakes - great water parcs etc

Certain area's of France are great too....Bezier coast line ...(they run allot of the school camps in this area for 12/13 years plus...

I'm taking my pre teen on a back packing trip around East Coast of Italy and Croatia - Croatia is great for them too....we stayed at Korcula last year and the kids can have allot of freedom whilst being safe...

I'd recommend the Salou area too. I wouldn't really suggest Salou itself as from what you've already said it wouldn't be your scene. (very british and lively in summer months!)
But nearby are the quieter resorts of La Pineda and Cambrils which both have plenty going on. Barcelona is about an hour away on the bus, when we went we stayed overnight in Barcelona and my DD loved it! Also nearby is Tarragona which has a great ampitheatre and Montserrat mountains and monastry which has some fantastic views.
We've stayed in La Pineda and found that to be ok but last time we just went for a few days and stayed at Portaventura theme park. We stayed in the Hotel Caribe www.portaventuraholidays.co.uk/hotel/hotel-caribe/ and really enjoyed it. We went with some friends and our kids loved it, lots to see and do in the theme park and some great shows too. Hotel was classed as onsite but is about 10 mins walk away so was quite relaxed and far enough away from Salou centre too!

How about a family adventure holiday? These take all the hassle out of a holiday and are great value for money as all the activities are in with the price and quite a few meals. We did Egypt and Thailand this way with pre teens (both very cheap spending money-wise once you are there) and would love to do Morocco.

We have been with Explore and Exodus.

Italy. We have been to Italy for the last three years, Lake Garda twice and Sorrento. DD is now 13 and on each holiday she did what we did - swimming, reading, exploring, sightseeing. Last year she was very lucky that she made a couple of friends, but that is a bonus as we tend to shy away from holidays that are aimed at families with children.