Ideas for big family trip post A levels

[cheezncrackers]

DH and I are just starting to kick around some ideas for next summer (2026). DC will be 18 and 15. We're open to anywhere really, although I suggested Western Australia and DH said it's too far and he has no interest (although he knows nothing about it), so I guess not Australia, NZ or the South Pacific.

We've travelled a lot in the US, so not there and not Canada, also been to Costa Rica, going to Japan this year. DH's idea is South Africa (Cape Town, garden route, etc), but I know it's midwinter in July/Aug and it's not the best time to go. We're active, but not full-day, hardcore hiking type active, more a nice walk of an hour or two. DH and I like a good museum, plenty of local colour and culture, we all like good food, wildlife, meeting local people and exploring.

We don't like AI hotels, don't want to go on a cruise or go anywhere bland or mega-touristy. We've travelled a lot in Europe, particularly in Spain, France and Italy and we don't like it too hot. Any suggestions for a good family holiday or info on South Africa in our summer/their winter much appreciated. TIA

Iceland? It's pretty amazing and like nowhere else i've ever been!

I was also going to suggest Iceland. Great time of year to go.

I'd love to go to Iceland! I'd even be up for driving around it in a campervan. Alas, DH is less interested and I don't think he'd agree to go for two weeks, which is the length of trip we're looking for. He is my biggest sticking point tbh!

Long haul with good weather in our summer:

Borneo
Indonesia (Bali, Lombok etc)
East Coast Malaysia
Singapore (combine with one the above)

Sri Lanka (north & east)

Kenya
Tanzania
Botswana (I think)

Peru
Ecuador (I think)

Canada
USA

I'd definitely ask the DC about what they would like to do if you haven't already. If this trip is to celebrate your eldest DC completing their A Levels and potentially a 'last hurrah' for family holidays, when I would be prioritising them and telling my DH to bloody lump it!

Thailand, Cambodia, Singapore.

So much to do and see and you can stay clear of the tourist areas if you head to northern Thailand.

Singapore is a great city for 3-4 days, Bangkok is also great.

@cheezncrackers August is fab for s.Africa…I did Cape Town, garden route ( fab to see the whales from a beach side cafe!) and Kruger national park in august, it’s a good time to go on safari and often recommended.

Sri Lanka is perfect as it has so many options once there

We're going to Thailand. Have booked the flights and just need to decide now where we Wang to stay and for how long.

Bali! There's culture and food and sun and beach and great hikes. We're bringing the kids back again this year, they're so excited!

@Mangoesintoapub sorry I didn't mean to quote your post!

@Appleblum how have you found the crowds in Bali? A friend went recently and said there was so much traffic on the main routed it put them off going to any sights.

We went to Thailand for a month - it was EPIC

Another vote for Thailand.

Several votes for Thailand, which is interesting, because that's somewhere we're already considering and handily I happen to already have an itinerary for!

Good to know that South Africa is also a possibility. I don't think we want to go up north. One of our DSs went to Kruger on a school trip and the game drives were all at about 4am, which he managed to sleep through almost every time! I think we'd just do Cape Town, Stellenbosch, Garden Route, so any info on that in July or August?

We're touring from Cape Town up to Namibia. It's the best time of year for wildlife as it's the dry season so the roads are ok and animals have to come to the waterholes.

We're looking at Japan for next year but considering Borneo and northern Australia. We've already done several USA road trips

Sorry, hit post accidentally while reading your post again so can see you're not looking at USA. Namibia or Borneo look ideal for you.

It's true that bali has a problem with traffic jams. Their roads are mainly single lane each way. Many of the more adventurous tourists will rent scooters to avoid this but it's not an option for those travelling with children. However, in my experience,the congestion occurs mainly on the route to the airport, and during peak dinner hours at the restaurant area. The former you'll only experience when you arrive and leave the island, the latter is avoidable with some planning.

Malaysia or Vietnam.

I've always wanted to do overland from Singapore to Bangkok

If you look at the weather averages for Cape Town in august you will see it’s perfectly fine, often t shirt weather! Lots of dry clear warm-to-cool days though you need layers for evenings and am’s. It’s not the place you go to for sunbathing anyway and if you are eg, walking up Table Mountain it’s perfect walking weather. There’s plenty of info out there on what to do, I went there to do conservation volunteering and then did travelling….loved visiting the penguins, whales and kayaking/ walking opportunities along the garden route….the caveat is obviously the safety and security which may or may not deter you but I haven’t been since the 2000’s so have no up to date info on that.

Thanks @Zippidyza I haven't looked at the up-to-date security info. I know it's a somewhat risky destination and that it's very important to follow advice to the letter. I will look into that more and also have a word with SA friends.

@op @cheezncrackers
Our favourites have been Sri Lanka and Borneo.
Contemplating Indonesia or Thailand this summer.
Where is on your Thailand itinerary?

@House4DS my itinerary was drawn up for a winter trip, so it may need tweaking. In its current form it consists of:

4 nights Bangkok (with 1-day side trip to Ayutthaya)
2 nights Kanchanaburi
4 nights Chiang Mai
4 nights beach resort tbc (for a summer trip this would be somewhere in the Gulf of Thailand or west coast)

100% Thailand. Koh Samui or one of the other islands. Our teen dc loved being in the luxury hotels with lounges - and they didn’t cost too much

What about Mauritius? I know there's lots of AI there but there is also lots of independent hotels - and it's a great mix of scenery, beaches and activities. It's winter but still around the 20s