Cyprus - help me find a compromise please

[Smoll]

Hi everyone

I'm looking for some advice to help me finally have a happy holiday with my family. My DH is a travel snob and travelled a lot before we had the children. All our holidays have been crap as we have tried to cram in too much 'travel' and not enough holiday and the kids have hated it .🙁 I want to give my kids (boy and girl aged 13) a brilliant beach holiday this summer and have set my heart on Cyprus which I know quite well.

Could anyone recommend a hotel or All Inclusive that is not too 'Brits abroad' but is still near or on a sandy beach? We don't need on-site entertainment or kids clubs.

Also, how does AI work? Can you hire your own car and drive there from the airport yourself or do you have to do the whole thing as a package?

Ideally I'm hoping to balance DH being a travel bore with my kids having fun so I definitely don't want Ayia Napa. I'd be grateful for any ideas.

Thank you x

My suggestion is leave snob DH at home and have a great time with your DC.

Can't help with hotel choice in Cyprus, but with car hire you can definitely cancel the transfer that comes with the package and collect your own hire car at the airport, just let the travel company know so they dont hold up the bus for you! Or you can take the transfers and arrange for a car to be delivered to the hotel the next day depending on flight times (if its a late flight I find it easier just to get on a bus)

We stayed at the Coral Beach Hotel with our teenagers, it was a few years ago, but we loved it. We hired a car from the hotel for a few days.

@greencheetah this is also an option I'm considering but I'd love to try and have a nice family holiday

@muddledmidget thanks that is helpful

@Lennonjingles thank you, I'm going to look it up now

We did Airbnb (or similar) in Cyprus, which was fabulous. It was a lovely villa with a pool in a village. Just bear in mind just how hot it can be in the summer holidays. I like hot, but it was really unbearable.

Will this work if DH is going to be a grump the whole time? We did two weeks in Cyprus and DH was bored. He’s the same as your DH. We did hire a car and went into the mountains. We also went to Nicosia (so hot). Driving home from there in the air con car when the kids and DH asleep was a highlight!!! I still remember the contented feeling I had.

Have you though about a cruise as a compromise - do stuff in the morning at each port then chill in the afternoon.

If you buy a package the transfer from the airport is included but just tell the travel company staff who will be outside the aiport exit that you’re making your own way to the hotel. It’s not prison, you can go and do whatever you like. You can also book AI not as part of package deal at some hotels and book your flights seperate.

I found Northern Cyprus much more interesting, would that be a compromise with DH ?

@Wonderknicks thanks, I know Cyprus well so am expecting the heat!

@HollyhockDays I hear you! I'm set on Cyprus, I'm just after hotel/resort recs that aren't too Brits abroad. Thanks for the suggestion though

A few years ago we stayed at King Evelthon in Paphos. We took the transfer but then rented a car for a few days to go exploring, one of our best family holidays!

Thanks @HGC2 i'm looking it up!

Another question about All Inclusives. Do they do ajoining rooms for parents and teenagers? Do you all have to share one room? Sorry if a silly question but I've never been to an AI

We stayed at the Avanti Village in Paphos. It was the best of both worlds - a SC apartment on a resort with great facilities and walkable to the beach.

@oncemoreuntothebeachdearfriends I've visited (and it was interesting) but would never holiday there as I would not want to contribute to the economy of an illegal self-styled 'Republic' recognised only by Turkey. I did not spend any money on my visit and I would not holiday on stolen land.

@Meredusoleil that looks great! Thank you so much for suggetisting it

I’d avoid AI as that is likely to hit all of your husband’s issues. Go B and B at a hotel and then eat out at local restaurants. Hire a car at the hotel and get out of the resort for a few days.

I can’t recommend a hotel, but we are also looking at Cyprus for this summer so I am interested in recommendations. We want a bit of time relaxing around the pool but also some local culture and history.

If you take the transfer you can rent a car in resort and decide how many days you want it for. For instance if a 10 day break you could have first give exploring then the beach or you could have 5dsys mud holiday exploring. This can work well. Just when people are getting a bit bored with the beach you start going out. When this is getting tiring you are giving the car up and having last few days in resort/pool/beach. I think this can be a better compromise than hiring the car for the whole break and going out every other day. The problem with that might be from your dh's point of view that we have this car sitting there doing nothing and you end up using it more than having the planned resort/beach/pool holiday. Dh happy because the car is hired for a few days out. Kids are happy as starting as beach holiday and they know the explore bit is clearly defined with more resort/beach/pool afterwards. Hopefully everybody happy.

extremely good advice @shiningstar2 . Thanks!

We love The Anna belle in Paphos it's not at all Brits abroadish you can keep hire car in their car park

Yes, they do 2 bed apartments and 1 bed apartments but that would be teenagers in the living area. They can be difficult to find on TUI and Jet2 search engine so I would type in “2 bed apartment all inclusive cyprus” into google rather than go through holiday companies.

We stayed in Aphrodite Hills in house with shared pool. There’s a breakfast option as well. There were a range of restaurants on site. So it’s not AI (although I think Tui do packages to it) but it was nice enough.

@Rainraingoawaydontcomeback thank you

At the risk of being hated on this thread, I’m very much in your husband’s camp and would like to avoid the type of holiday you are suggesting 😂, however, I also have aging parents who live in Cyprus so have to suck it up and go there at least one every year. We stay in hotels because there isn’t the room for us at DPs house, and because we try to make it as much of a holiday as possible.

Based on this, my thoughts are:

Avoid the Coral Bay area, yes there are lovely hotels with amazing amenities there but I find that that area is everything I dislike about resort holidays with a Brits abroad vibe.I’d look at Kato Paphos (if indeed looking at the Paphos area – most of my recommendations are here as it’s the area I know well) instead – it definitely has its share of that kind of thing but in general, I find it’s easier to detach and there are interesting things in the area which might appeal to your DH – House of Dionysius, Tombs of the Kings etc, plus Paphos old town is really nice and easily accessed by car, bus or even on foot. You can also drive to Coral Bay and enjoy the beach, which is beautiful, without staying in the area.

In terms of Kato Paphos hotels, I like Avanti, Ameni, Annabelle or Alexander the Great. I’d personally avoid AI though – there are so many amazing traditional Cypriot tavernas around and I suspect your DH would appreciate the option to esacpe from the other Brits in the hotel.

I’d also suggest looking at Limassol. I’m afraid I can’t recommend anything here as I don’t know it very well but it’s perhaps a little better placed on the island for blending beach/pool relaxation to interesting trips – you can get to Nicosia, Troodos villages, Larnaca, Famagusta etc more easily.

Another option, which I appreciate is not what you have asked for, would be a villa in a village. We have rented a place in Omodos a couple of times and really loved it – it’s such a beautiful village and feels more like “travelling”/living with the locals but also really easy to get back to the coast for more fun/holiday type stuff – we drove to the beach at Pissouri most days.

In general though, I would agree that Cyprus is a good compromise option between the two of you for a holiday which combines beach holiday with places of interest.

Also should have said, we always book a package and always make our own way from the airport. 30 seconds to have a quick word with the rep at the airport and then we're on our way, while they are still loading the bus.

@CreaturefromtheDeep thanks for your answer which is helpful. I am also in my DH's camp if I'm honest but I want the kids to have the holiday they crave and that's life sometimes. I know Cyprus well for similar reasons to you! I've added the hotels you say you like to my list x