The perfect holiday with children - what is it?

[annahove]

I am trying to define the perfect holiday with children (3 years and 1 year) to my husband by creating a list of 'holiday ingredients' which we can then compare our differing holiday ideas against. We have not been away with them both yet, so this year it is important to get it right. Any thoughts for my 'ingredients list' would be most welcome.

My perfect holiday, with the children, would be a villa, other adults, and a car. Our own pool, near a beach and within easy walkign or short drive from town with restuarants / stuff to do.

Kids go to bed in the evening and adults can have a bbq and a drink by the pool. Kids have pool to be constantly amused with when you want a lazier day and the car is ther for when you want to explore etc.

what TC's last post said.

As TC says, only with an au pair/nanny too!

I would love, love, love to spend a few days lying on a sunlounger with a novel, raising my head now and again to admire the picturesque sight of my frolicking infants playing in the pool with a friendly, patient Polish girl!

yeah, tc that sounds pretty good. we have had some excellent holidays with other families, sadly w/o pool though!

Gawd, I'd kill for a beach right about now.

Puerto Rico.

LOL Aloha - a woman after my own heart, only you forgot to mention the cold white wine inthe other hand!

Oh, I rather took that for granted TC! Though, as I'm on holiday it might be a well chilled rose!

With pre-school children, I think the perfect holiday has to be a villa with pool, grandma and grandad, not too far from a sandy beach and plenty of child friendly eateries in the vacinity.

Javea and Denia Costa Blanca in Spain fulfilled these criteria for us.

Now that DD is older, we have come to realise that we adults can be pretty boring companions, and all day on the beach or in the swimming pool is not such the attraction it once was. So we have booked an apartment at a complex with lots of entertainment for children this year. And plenty of child friendly things to do near the resort.

I think suzywong has good ideas about 'holiday at home' We have annual membership at Chester Zoo, and this weekend took DD to a Birds of Prey Centre. It was good to get home to your own bed after a long day! I also like simple things, like a walk in local woods and taking a picnic along.

It doesn't have to cost the earth, but in UK, it can involve spending a lot on day trips - I am sure I read an article in the Indy about how overpriced our amusement parks and other 'attractions' are.

you don't have to go abroad! keep your carbon footprint small and go to one of the many glorious places in the UK!

I was going to say rose! Has to be rose during the day. It's not real alcohol if it's pink and can therefore be drunk all day long! The white comes out when the kids go down

Do I still get my 'i left a small carbon footprint' badge if I drive to France or Italy.
Sorry but Bournemouth over South of France / Tuscany .......

long drive with small kids in the car = hell

Yeah I was going to fly really, was just putting you off with my car thing!

Sorry I love the world and all that but I do need to leave England now and then!

yeah me too, we are going to the languedoc later this year, but by train - eurotunnel and then motorail

Camping

In France

Beach and/or pool

Bread

Wine

Cheese

Books

No discos

A BBQ. Some fab fish marinated in the fridge all day.

Jazz on the stereo.

Chilled Sauv Blanc or Pinot G.

Afterwards, Mama and I play cards.

Kids sleeping upstairs.

Yes, that's about as good as it gets with young children.

Yomping in scotland

We're trying the villa with pool thing this year for the first time. Sardinia with 14 other adults and 1 other child (+ my two). The other adults adore children but don't yet have their own so I'm hoping for lots of chilling .

Kids sleeping upstairs.

Kids sleeping in their rooms.

Kids just sleeping.

Top of the range mobile home (with baby gates, if necessary, and a deck)
With a heated pool
By a snady, rockpooly beach
Barbeque so DH does all the cooking
Overnight ferry to cut down on the driving
Cases and cases of chilled wine of any colour.
No grandparents unless they are only there for your convenience. Ours selfishly wanted to 'do their own thing' last year after crashing our holiday.

sandy beach

fenced outdoor space.
if theres a pool, make sure its fenced.
no open stone stairs indoors or similar pecarious death traps for curious crawlers and teetering todlers.
be able to go for a walk, with a buggy, from the accomodation. you will want to.
proximity to nice restaurant which is child friendly.
a restaurant with an enclosed garden - now that would get my patronage every blinkin night!
nice safe beach and all that.
proximity to supermarket or sim to stock up on essential provisions.

if the place you are in requires constant vigilance on yr part to keep them alive, you will have a Kerrrap time.

(i rented a beautiful, but in retrospect, utterly foolish house on a mountain in majorca. for a month. unfenced garden. unfenced pool. total sodding nightmare.)

self catering cottage with enough rooms for each child to have separate room - no travel cot in my room with baby in it
takeaway place nearby, parks etc for kids.
don't like beach so countryside but close enough to shops/child friendly pubs very important
wad of cash to spend so don't have to worry about money all week

STOP TALKING ABOUT BEACHES AND SUN LOUNGERS AND RUM-BASED COCKTAILS, PEOPLE!

I can almost smell the entire experience (excepting the sun loungers, but you know what I mean).

At that age, paddling pool and sandpit. Back garden basically.