Affordable summer young family holiday- Canaries or Balerics?

[Mummyof287]

Search meeting our needs has come up with Tenerife, Majorca or Menorca for an affordable short distance summer holiday for us and 2DDs (1 and 6)

We would like a decent beach and will spend some time in hotel complex, but also want to get out and explore local attractions maybe zoos or museums etc, so would like somewhere with some culture too, and not wanting to appear snobby, but definitely no party vibe or somewhere that attracts loud arrogant troublemakers or heavy drinkers! So

quiet, but fun in a family orientated way.

Which of those 3 places might suit us best?

Tenerife is a longer flight than Maj/Men. Most (all?) its beaches are black volcanic sand.
I think you will find resorts in all 3 places that meet your other requirements. Menorca is slightly quieter than the other two.

Balearics although Ibiza would be my preference. All totally family friendly if you chose the right place eg not Magaluf or San An, not too hot (although Ibiza in August this year was roasting, but would have been even hotter further south), short flight, short transfer times once you are there.

Menorca is the quietist, the resorts are all aimed at families or couples so no club 18-30 types anywhere. It's a beautiful island and very small so you could easily hire a car and explore if you wanted to.

Majorca would tick all those boxes if you choose the right resort. It's very family oriented and not all clubby.

The shorter flight vs Canaries with young kids would be a big deciding factor for me. I'm still scarred by the trauma of a two year old whose sole aim in life is to sit glued to an iPad except when we wanted her to on a plane and all she wanted to do was climb everywhere.

Thanks for the helpful responses so far- I hadn't realised about the canaries being that bit further, so I think we will look at doing the balerics, possibly menorca.

If we do choose menorca, any particular hotel or area recommendations?

Thanks again

menorca is beautiful. we have stayed north in fornels , hotel with splash park and right on beach . we have stayed in Son Bou which has a lovely Miami looking beach . Galadena which is full of stunning coves and turquoise seas . Mahon is good to go for and evening . very pretty.

I used to be a travel agent. Menorca is the perfect destination for families with younger children. I haven't been myself so I can't give a personal recommendation. Cala n Bosch is the busiest and probably most popular resort on the island however I wouldn't say it's the prettiest. It depends on how busy you want it

I really recommend Royal Son Bou Family Club Hotel in Menorca. It's on the Son Bou beach that a previous poster has recommended and is ideal for your DC ages - perfect kids pool, big kidsclub and play area, a mini-farm, pony rides, the best minidisco we've ever seen and a fun family parade through the streets once a week. They even have a supervised play area for kids just outside the buffet so the adults can eat in peace if you like!

I love Menorca. We stay near Cuitadella at a resort called Cala Blanca or Santandria. Definitely hire a car and explore the island if you can. It's absolutely beautiful 😍