Ideas needed for 'interesting but relaxing' holiday with DCs 15 & 13!!

[PingPongBat]

Really struggling for ideas for next summer... When our DCs were small we had villa holidays, PILs came with us & so there were plenty of adults to entertain them. As they've got older we've had a few long-haul holidays with a mix of exploration, sightseeing & relaxing by the pool.

Last year we did a busy sightseeing holiday with lots of walking in very hot weather, so we promised ourselves we would relax more this summer. DH & I would also like to be away from the crowds & DH in particular needs peace & quiet as his job is really busy and stressful.

I think if we do a really quiet holiday without WiFi the DCs will never forgive us. OTH I'm concerned that they will get bored if there are absolutely no activities. None of us are that bothered about water sports, nor are we sun-worshippers, but we'd like a warm sunny week.

Anyone been for a 'interesting but relaxing' holiday with young teens? How did you hit the right balance? (PILs not coming with us this year, just the 4 of us)

house in southern france or in the ALps with activites nearby?

waswondering the whole idea of a cruise fills me with dread, tbh. I think it's the prospect of being in a floating hotel with thousands of other people - DH would absolutely hate it. I know lots of people love cruises and I'm a bit of them as I'd like to love the idea, IYSWIM.

I agree - I have kind of the same issue and we are just doing a week in a house through holidaylettings.co.uk or whatever.
Choose an area of France you like- maybe mountains to do loads of high ropes or mountain biking and NO ONE else to nick your sunlounger

Maybe invite a cousin or a pal too

Oh god yes the sunlounger fights.... last summer we were in a big hotel in Italy & there were towels on every bed by 9.15am...

What about a Mark Warner / Club Med sort of holiday somewhere lovely and warm? There are plenty of activities (sailing, tennis, etc) easily accessible for those who want them (without endless arranging/figuring out), and those who wish to simply lounge by the pool/at the beach can do that too. There are also various evening activities geared toward different interests.

There is also something lovely about not having to think about where you're going to have meals, whether you need to reserve, how to get there/where to park, etc.

i will dm you

We just have a week or so in London with the teens in the summer now tbh. Dp and dd2 (17) hate beach holidays, so dd1 and I will go without them and then have London (or a city break abroad) for the four of us.

but mark warner= OTHER PEOPLE

im not keen on Italy for holidays

Quite Elizabeth - other people = 'the great unwashed' .

I did Club Med as a kid (7) with my family and absolutely loved it, but my parents were much more sociable than my DH when on holiday! Trying to get the right balance is hard

We did Egypt (Sensatori in Sharm el Sheikh)last summer with our two DS (14 and 16), lots to do, they swam in the pools and snorkelled in the sea every day, we went quad biking in the mountains. There are lots of excursions (Cairo, Luxor, Petra), boat trips etc and they learnt to dive. Pretty much the perfect holiday with a good combination of relaxing and activities. We hired a wifi unit so they could use their iPads wiphich worked really well too.

Forgot to say we had a swim up room so no sun lounger fights! And we're rubbish at mixing with others but found it to be great for keeping to yourself

sounds good furry

but HOTELS = other people.
and their kids ( even worse)

i have also decided I dont like getting dressed for breakfast

I know, I know Elizabeth!!! that's the conundrum... I think it will have to be a villa / house somewhere, just need to work out where.

Looking at the Club Med website makes me want to go to Thailand or Bali which would be £6000+ for the 4 of us

we have just come back from Belize. very few people from the UK go there, cant think why as our 3 teens (12,14 and 16) absolutely loved it. Ziplining, cave tubing, mayan ruins, river trips, sailing, snorkelling.

we have also recently been to Canada last summer and had a fab 3 week trip around Vancouver and the rockies.

Both were self drive and we booked our own accommodation. couldn't bear a cruise personally as hate the whole "organised fun" idea.

x-post - I actually don't mind getting dressed for breakfast, but come to think of it DD has been in her PJs for 3 days now so we need to take that into consideration

Ooh - Belize - looks fab. How did you go about finding your accommodation mummymeister* ?

Tell us more about Belize...

A couple of Summers ago we rented a house in Italy.

We went to Rome for a couple if days then done to the house.

From there we had day trips to Pompeii , Vesuvius, Capri etc plus plenty of time chilling. ( we were actually there a month in total ).

The DC enjoyed that .

Another successful trip was California. LA to San Fran via Yosemite.

We are going to the South of France. Private villa, pool, wifi etc.

Close to town, beach and restaurants. More limited in the way of activities but plenty of day trips/boat trips. Lots of water sports which I see your not keen on but there may be other sports that you haven't tried.

Our dc will be 16 and 12 so similar ages to yours and they are not usually bored on this type of holiday.

Oh and Canada. That was a hit!

Meant to say, the South of France has great rail links and you can get a train to Monaco and Italy which are great day trips.