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Holidays

Use our Travel forum for recommendations on everything from day trips to the best family-friendly holiday destinations.

Nielson holiday for only child and single mum

10 replies

sandcw · 23/05/2025 23:13

Hi there
I am thinking of going on a Nielson holiday with my 9 year old son this Summer. I'm separated from his dad so it would be just the two of us. My son tends to hate going on his own to kids clubs and will most likely refuse, so we would need to do activities together - but have read that they're really set up for adults and kids to do things separately. I am thinking we could do the sailing, kayaking and paddleboarding and tennis together plus he loves climbing. I love the gym/swimming and he is used to just hanging about and reading for half an hour if needed so I can do some exercise solo.
Just wanted to get a sense check before I go ahead and book that I've understood the set up correctly! Plus ask for any advice for others in this position.

OP posts:
purpleme12 · 23/05/2025 23:15

Following

ErrolTheDragon · 23/05/2025 23:27

If you can already sail then you should be able to sail with him plus the kayaking and paddle boards . I think it’s just the adult sailing and windsurfing courses which younger kids can’t do (I think they can join those from about 13/14 if they want, .)
If you phone them their customer support people should be able to confirm if that’s correct.

sandcw · 24/05/2025 09:05

I don't sail - we would both be starting from scratch....

OP posts:
CalamityGanon · 24/05/2025 09:30

I did this a few years ago with my 15 year old. You can do things together. That’s not an issue. Just book two places. But the truth is no one likes to go to something on their own for the first time so it would be a good idea to build in a bit of resilience here. I hear so many young people not doing things because they have ‘social anxiety’ when in effect it’s a perfectly normal reaction to going to a new event on your own. Remember a lot of the other kids will be there on their own too.

I got my son to agree to go to one activity with the kids club and if he didn’t enjoy it he didn’t have to go again. He went, enjoyed it, and I barely, saw him again for the rest of the holiday.

ErrolTheDragon · 24/05/2025 10:03

sandcw · 24/05/2025 09:05

I don't sail - we would both be starting from scratch....

If it’s the same as it was when we were doing it, the adults do proper RYA courses (which teens can also do if they want) , the kids can earn junior certificates but they do that in the kids clubs, a mix of sailing and windsurfing in a fun way.

seasonnaire · 24/05/2025 10:37

Sounds a nice idea. If you can’t sail already you probably can’t learn with him in the boat, I’d phone and check that. The lessons are usually in small dinghies like picos. Maybe worth doing a crash course before hand. They may do dart joy rides with instructors that you could do together, not sure if you might be able to book a private lesson or two out there to get you started, the darts (catamarans) are more stable, less easy to capsize than the small dinghies, as long as it’s not too windy. It depends where you go and how windy what is manageable too.

I’d also check about leaving him unsupervised- I’m not sure at what age they’d allow him to be on shore alone while you’re on the water, or even in the pool, they might be quite strict on this. If you could find another single parent in the same position to team up with I think you’d be able to get a lot more out of it.

Kayaks and paddle boards should be fine, tennis courts will need booking and are likely in use for group lessons a lot, again check what age the lessons go down to. I’m not sure how climbing works, probably similar to tennis.

The call centre staff are mostly ex seasonnaires and should know their stuff but might need prompting to think about implications for a single parent family as we don’t see so many, not sure if that’s due to cost or practical limitations with making the most of the activities, but they will try to be helpful. I hope you can make it work for you. If you do go, make sure you go to the big briefing at the start of the week and sign up for your most important things first in case things get booked up, summer holidays are a busy time.

sandcw · 27/05/2025 19:24

Thanks for the responses - will give them a call!

OP posts:
Spirallingdownwards · 27/05/2025 19:28

I think you will find they will have separate
groups for different aged kids and adults. We used to go and it worked well with an only because they found friends. My DH and I were in different groups too due to level of expertise.

UnaOfStormhold · 27/05/2025 19:35

I love Neilson and I'd definitely do it with a 14 year old as they can join all the adult classes, but 9 might be tricky if he's really set on not doing kids clubs. If you could sail then you could take him out and teach him but there isn't provision for parents and children under 14 to do sailing courses together. You can book a court and play tennis together, and Alana (and I think Messini) do family climbing sessions. Bike rides I think he'd be limited to the resort for insurance reasons.

minipie · 27/05/2025 19:41

Sailing and windsurfing courses are in different groups for adults and kids I’m pretty sure.

Bike rides are for 13+ I believe

Tennis, you could book a private lesson together , or book a court together

What about an alpine holiday - there are a lot of activities available and you would do them together. You can get organised groups so you are with other families (have a look at Families Worldwide website, or Simply Morzine/Alpine Elements) or you can just book flights and a flat and sort the activities yourself.

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