Surviving the heat on holiday with DC - tips please!

[4fingerKitKat]

Against my better judgement DH convinced me to book somewhere hot this summer so we are going to Croatia. Forecast max temperatures currently look to be between 33 and 42 (!!) degrees for different areas we are staying.

For most of the trip we have a villa with a pool so we could just chill and splash about but I also want to do some sightseeing, visit beaches etc and we have a big of travelling around.

We normally stick to Northern Europe for holidays and I’m feeling unprepared for how to make the trip enjoyable for primary age DC.

Top tips please on what I should pack, how to plan our days to make it enjoyable and not torture!

Ooh, which one? We’re in Dubrovnik now… Banje beach, or just by the harbour breakwater, or somewhere else? Thanks!

The one round the corner from the breakwater. It has a ladder in and out of the sea (so can easily avoid any rocks/urchins) and even has a freshwater shower!

There’s also one here (see photo) this is harder to find, look for Azur restaurant and there’s a hole in the city wall just beyond it, go through and there’s a great swimming spot - ladder but no shower. More suited to stronger swimmers/older kids.

Ah, we’ve seen the first one and spotted the second from the city walls yesterday but couldn’t see the access. Thanks @minipie

OP, it’s 37 here today (Dubrovnik) and we walked down to the market/new harbour and back (30 mins each way) this morning without feeling it was far too hot. Kids are older but my prone-to-complaining 13yo didn’t. There’s a lovely breeze and in the shade it’s fine. This is going to be the hottest day while we’re here (till next week) and I think it’s going to be ok, temperature-wise. There is air conditioning in our bedrooms, which really helps.

Thanks for the reassurance from people who have been there recently!

We’re heading inland to Bosnia for a few days where the temperatures are particularly high but I’ve managed to do some accommodation switching so we have a couple of days in a air-conned apartment with pool near a shady river. We were planning a day trip to Mostar which I really wanted to visit but it’s scorching so I decided it’d actually make more sense to stay there overnight so we can have an evening and early morning there rather than try to brave daytime temps. And the apartment is really central so we can retreat to cool down if it’s too much!

Hi, I just wanted to comment again as I saw you are going to Mostar, I've been there just recently - The town is the nicest first thing in the morning and last thing at night when all the daytrippers are gone. Cash - we needed cash for most places. We ate at restaurants Šadrvan, Urban Taste Of Orient, and Terace Lagero, touristy but they were all good.If you like melted cheese try topa in Šadrvan it's really good. Waterfall Kravice - there is a train there to take you down as it's really hot to walk and you can swim, it is small though. Locals swim at Drežnica, not been. Blagaj Teke are well woert the visit, but only worth paying the entrance if you will go inside the building (need to be dressed appropriately. Drive between Sarajevo and Mostar is really beautiful. Also fuel - so much cheaper in Bosnia than Croatia.

If you can’t do early mornings do late evenings instead. Spend the morning by the pool in your villa, then plan a film for your dc to watch during siesta time, another quick swim at 5ish and head out to a nearby town for a bit of sightseeing and dinner.

Great tips thank you! Glad we’ve re-planned to spend the night in Mostar so we can make the most of the quieter (as well as cooler!) times.

We’re staying nearby Kravice too so that’s definitely on our list but also hoping to check out some more local spots!