Desperately seeking inspiration - January holiday with 21 month old?

[ColumboGetsMedieval]

Please could anybody give me some advice as to holiday destinations?

Finally got DH to book some time off work, but he's plumped for the last 2 weeks in January. This is OK - but where should we go? DS will be 21 months by then. I think we had thought we would go to the Carribean or something, our usual type of holiday being a combo of sight seeing, with a background of pool/beach. We don't usually do packages. Often rent a place rather than hotels but don't really mind either way this time.

DH suggested Florida, saying that there is loads of stuff for DS (Busch gardens, Disneyworld) but does he need this at only 21 months? What happened to an ice cream and a bucket and spade?

Where else is clement but not boiling at that time of year, and not 20 hours away? Have any of you taken a child of similar age anywhere at that time of year? Would like to see some nice scenery/old buildings etc if poss.

Thanks.

Caribbean is nice in Jan, can be expensive if you stay at an all inclusive. Lots of self-catering places too, lovely beaches for buckets and spades. Have you set yourselves a budget? Time wise about 8.5 to 9 hour flights depends if they stop via another island.

We're off to Majorca with my 21 month old, (keeping the destination within 2 hour flight time and coach travel of up to 2 hours afterwards).

Been to florida a couple of times, but a 21 month old wouldn't get anything out of it really.

If your intent on flying long distance with a toddler, then I have heard that Fennigan (herbal suppliment) can be brought from a chemist is good to relax children. Though I have read reports it can send children to sleep, there are a few cases where it's made the child hyper, so I would give it to them at home to double check first.

Also, a 21 month old woudn't have a seat on a plane until 24 months and an 8-9 hour flight is a long time.

We went to Thailand in March, DS was 26 months. He loved it. Flights were a lot easier than I expected, he slept a lot, watched cartoons and kept asking to get on another plane as soon as we left the airport. We spent a couple of days in Bangkok - we did a trip to tiger zoo in Pataya - he loved feeding the baby tigers. We also did a boat trip on the river. We flew south to the icelands and spent a week on Phi Phi Don and a week on a remote one further south, which we particularly liked. There was a lot of running around the beach and playing with sand, also lots of other kidsfor him to play with. His favourite bit was riding an elephant through the jungle, he still talks about it. We did have tantrums of course but on the whole it was a much nicer experiense then I had imagined. I was 5 months pregnant at the time too.