Potentially booking a villa abroad rather than an all inclusive package holiday - some help/ advice please

[Motherof1and2dogs]

So I have always booked my holidays via TUI or Jet2 where accommodation and flights are already sorted for you plus the option for all inclusive which I always opt for, but I am looking at booking a Villa holiday for next year to try something a little different. I have never gone anywhere self catering but I quite fancy the idea of having our own space, going out for food with the occasional meal at the villa (we will have a 3 year old and 10 month old at the time I am looking to go next year).

Just two things I wanted to ask but please any further advice or comments please tell me!

1. Is going self catering with 2 very young children more stressful? Baby will only just be weening but still mostly on bottles anyway
2. How do you even start the process of booking?! I can’t wrap my head around how you book flights and accommodation desperately making sure the dates of flights and accommodation match up. Do you book flights first or the other way around?

Thank you in advance!

Solmar villas are very good. We find a villa we like then book flights.

With tiny tots like yours I’d make sure it was very family friendly and if there’s a swimming pool it’s fenced off.

You don’t book anything first without researching everything.
So pick a destination you can fly to from your area, research villas, see what dates are available and when you want to go and book flights once you know you have a few villa options you would be happy with.

Although having just come back from a more inclusive resorts style holiday with a 1 and 3 year old personally a villa at that age sounds like hell. Much more washing up, less things to entertain them, less things on hand to help etc

Yes book your flights first. Then accommodation so it matches up with your flights. Then a hire car. Go to a local supermarket once there and stock up on breakfast and lunch foods.

It's really not that hard. Also take a look at Airbnb.

I would find a few possible accommodation choices first.

Then double check where you would fly to, how many flights there are per week, how easy it is to get there from the airport, how expensive flights are.
Decide if you want to hire a car or travel by public transport/taxi.

Choose your favourite, book the accommodation, then book the flights.

As others have said, it's pretty straightforward. We've always booked through Villa Plus and would recommend them.

We've done both over the years. I love all inclusive for when they were smaller because then it's a real holiday for me. No food shopping, prepping, cooking or cleaning up for a week is amazing. Plus there is usually kids entertainment. As they got older we moved to villas. I still miss the AI but the apartments are too small whereas with a villa everyone can spread out to play on their phones, read books, etc. You can play in the pool all night if you want (hotels usually shut the pool at 7pm for safety), you don't have to dress up at all so spend the whole time in swimmers and a sarong. Then we go out for dinner every other night and BBQs so it's not too much work.

I don't think I would have enjoyed the villa as much with small children mainly because my youngest was a safety hazard near a pool so it felt safer to be at a hotel where he couldn't just wander in.

I agree about the safety issues with the pool. The point of the villa is that you can relax more as it’s your space. Research carefully to make sure the layout will suit you.

I loved villa holidays with older kids, but the cooking, tidying up is wearing and it feels less like a holiday in many ways.

Make sure the pool is fenced and gated and take a lock for it with you so your children can’t access it without you

Honestly, whilst the children are to little you need help on holiday not the usual work. Why not try a self-catered apartment on the site of a resort, something that gives you the freedom to eat wherever you like but there are facilities for the children on your doorstep.

We always used to book a villa when ours were small. BUT!!! One of the things we love to do on holiday is shop and cook and eat. AND!!!! My DP always did significantly more than his share of the domestic/childcare stuff on holiday. If you can’t be sure of these two things, then go all inclusive!

You can book a package holiday with a villa through jet2. I like a villa but only when we’re going as a large group so that there’s fun around the pool and people to interact with.

We did villa holidays exclusively when the kids were small - the flexibility in terms of timing of meals etc and the privacy are what makes the difference for us. I couldn’t imagine the stress of supervising small kids in a crowded hotel pool environment. Neither would I have enjoyed schlepping them about in the evening - sitting on a terrace enjoying a grown up evening with kids tucked in bed nearby is bliss!

In terms of timing of booking things, find your villa (see more below) and check it has availability for your chosen week(s). Then go on your chosen airline website and look for flights for that same time period. Once you have got something that looks right for you time wise and price point book the villa and flights at the same time. NB the villa might only be a deposit but you will have to pay your flights in full straight away.

With regard to choosing a villa - make sure you research to forensic levels. Read reviews not only on the website you are looking at but in other platforms (most are on several) - google the villa name and location. Look at google maps and street view so there’s no surprises about the neighbourhood. Make sure it has aircon and curtains in every bedroom (speaks from bitter experience!). Look at local amenities: where’s the nearest supermarket, restaurants, anttractions etc. Will you need a hire car or are there local transport options to/from the airport and getting out and about? For a first time I’d recommend one week only so you can see if it suits you.

Hi OP it's so so much more fun holidaying in your own space.
We do villas and did the same when DC were little.
Very often villas will have toyboxes, high chairs etc.

I have just booked a villa for me and DH (DC aren't interested in holidays anymore!) and I must have looked at every villa in europe to find the perfect combination, which for me is:

Minimum 10m pool as I swim a lot
Walking distance to at least 3 restaurants and ideally a small town
Not overlooked. Totally private. Must be quiet. Ideally in the countryside.
Air conditioning.
Air conditioning.
Air conditioning.

We've landed on Tuscany. But when DC were little we went to carveiro a lot.

Oh yes and re booking, I work out the dates for the villa, work out where the closest airport is and when the flights. I always book the villa first as its easier to get flights than the perfect villa!

So in this order:
Villa
Then flights
Then hire car
Then airport parking
Then travel insurance

The really good thing about not using a package company is that you can choose your flights and which airport you go to.

So previous years, flying into Lisbon and driving to the Algarve, made more sense finaically and for times, than flying to the Algarve direct.

This year we are flying to Rome and driving for 2.5hrs to the villa as the times were better than the local airport. And we get to go from Heathrow - result!

You can book villas (or aparthotels/bungalow complexes etc) as packages.

Or you could do it separately, which I'd probably prefer as I want control over the transfer - I'm particular about what hire car company I use as most are crooks but latterly we generally don't bother with hire cars at all and mostly use public transport and the odd taxi.

But which to book first depends on availability of accommodation and flights. If you live somewhere with lots of flights, book the accomodation first. If you're going somewhere where there's only a few flights a week from your preferred airport, but there's lots of accommodation, book the flights first and then book the accommodation.

you can definitely get inclusive packages including a villa

my kids are 10 and 12 and until recently we had only ever done self catering holidays. Much easier to deal with fussy eaters and their routes imo.

I would research villas and available dates but book flights first because I am really fussy on flight times and days. Bear in mind that a lot of villas will be Saturday to Saturday which forces you to fly Saturdays which is almost always more expensive. But if you are likely to be fussier about the actual villa, fine to book that first as long as you check there are flights going there on the right day from your airport

for summer 2026 you’d probably have a good amount of choice. Summer 2025 not so much.

Jet2 villas you can book as a package including car hire and you don’t need to worry about organising everything individually.

we have done it a few times when ours were smaller as the baby could nap inside whilst we were round the pool and found it much more relaxing.

We do a big local supermarket shop for breakfasts, odd bbq, lunches/ snacks and mix it up with eating out.

Make sure your villa is fairly close to a town for example we did Lanzarote and could walk into Playa Blanca in 30 mins but the drive was about 7 mins. So we could have a few drinks etc on the evening and walk back. Some villas can be in the middle of no where- we made this mistake in Greece and whilst the villa was gorgeous we did have to drive ALOT.

You will want to factor in activities outside the villa, beach, zoo, waterpark etc as obviously theres not entertainment etc for the kids and the pools are just a pool no slides etc.

Overall we really enjoy doing a villa but you just have to be careful that you plan it well so it’s but just cooking and washing up. We tend to mix it up between AI and Villas now.

Book flights via skyscanner. I use search anywhere from my preferred airport for inspiration.

I put the dates into vrbo, airbnb or similar. I use filters like: aircon, pool (option between private pool and shared), parking, washing machine. I usually look at seafront and beachfront villas to see if any with nice views.

I read reviews and listing to ensure there's restaurants within walking distance so we aren't always driving out to eat.

I only did villas or apartments with young dc. Far too much hassle being in a hotel with them.

You can book this as a package as well but we research flights and villas and often book immediately after each other, sometimes DH and I with 2 laptops sitting side by side.

We loved s/c when DD was younger, so much easier in my opinion but even child free I would say we did 70/30 in favour of s/c and we both grew up with s/c holidays.

Look for one which has a dishwasher and washing machine. No cleaning required, I happily pay a cleaning fee.

Have a good look at Google streetview as well. We normally choose something more central as I prefer walking to a restaurant and beach, we made a mistake with a remote villa when DD was 4 and she was bored just with the pool and it was more time consuming driving everywhere.

We always book villa first and then flights. Although I will have had a good google to make sure flights exist/are affordable etc. In theory I’d just add an extra night in a hotel if we had to fly out a day earlier etc.

We only ever did villas when the DC were small as the idea - as others have said - of monitoring small children in a hectic hotel environment was horrific. We still prefer villas really, as other people ruin things and it's nice to walk around in your pants.

@VanCleefArpels depends- you can pay in 3 payments . on both BA and Ryanair these days

I find there are pros and cons to self-catering with toddlers and babies. I would definitely check the location carefully as many villas are not centrally located and it will be a pain to load the kids into the car every time you want to go out. Apartments can be a good option too and might be better located. The pools at a villa may be less kid friendly than what you would find in a family oriented hotel and you have to be super careful the toddler can’t get access to the pool. You also have to look out for things like dangerous staircases or bedrooms on different levels and when you first arrive do a bit of baby proofing (moving the chemicals which always seem to be under the sink and moving breakable ornaments etc). All that said the extra space is definitely an advantage.

You are my people ☺️

Would you mind if I asked where?
I am trying to find something similar for DH and I and dear god its tough out there lol.
I didnt like Villa hols at all when we had the 3 kids with us, We did it once and they hated it. Asked to go back to the campsite hols. We loved the Mobile home places, dont ever remember having to watch them in a manic pool tbh, it was never nuts busy, watched them in a normal pool but sure id watch them in any pool so what odds.
Not a fan of restaurants, we prefer SC all the way, and the mobile homes were set up great for that.