Help, totally fed up with looking at holidays, though a cruise was the answer now not so sure.

[Skippythebeercan]

So I posted before about booking cruise and hoping it would be a quick and easy to organize fun family holiday. It seems we have left it quite late and there isn't much availability. Which has left me in a position were we may not be able to get flights and a cruise as a package making what I thought would be a one stop quick to organize holiday less so. Added to this my husband has huge reservations he doesn't like crowds and can't cope with noise when he's trying to sleep, this worries me as most of the reviews I have read of the MSC cruises which I had initially favoured due to the amount of kids stuff can be noisy and very crowded, plus the trip advisor reviews are absolutely dire. Id never normally consider something that was 2.5 stars.

So what to do. I'm feeling very fed up with it all, my Dad died suddenly a few weeks ago and I just wanted a nice family holiday somewhere warm without stress or too much organization as I just don't have the time.

So what to do? I have £4,500 for a family of 4 with a 6&8 year olds. Nice food nice location, decent pool, some culture, nice places to visit. Not crowded and preferably no stray cats and dogs as I just want to adopt them all.

Do I abandon the cruise idea? If so can anyone make any suggestions of where we should go for a week in the first 3 weeks of the school holidays?

It is a bit late but honestly, I’d just do a keycamp type holiday. The kids love it and there are some quieter sites as well. Go for ones which have bigger pitch sizes. Recommend Canvas or Keycamp. Yes it is self catering but most have some food on site available.

Have you tried Marella or P and O from Southampton?
Both are family friendly and zero flights involved so much calmer to board and disembark.
You can also take more luggage as you’re not constrained by the airlines baggage rules.
Be involved as much or as little as you like on board. There are always quiet places for your DH to hide!
Usually lots to see and do once you’ve arrived at a port.
I dreaded my first time, a few years ago, but I was honestly blown away by how organised and calm the whole holiday was.

Marella (Tui afloat) is a big NO if you want a quiet holiday.
Worst holiday of my life for many reasons. When I complained about the disco noise at 01.00 I was offered earplugs !

Personally wouldn’t go on a cruise a lot the whole ship gets a virus

The vast majority of cruises complete without any incidents! Illnesses or anything else. At that age a trip over to France used to suit us. Would you book Britanny ferries and see what they offer in France? Can be as relaxing or busy as you want.

I’d also see what’s going from Southampton. Makes life a lot easier and in the summer, it will be quite warm.

I would find a cruise too stressful with children that age, so many people. I would rethink but I'm not a cruising fan.

Many dc go to the dc clubs. You don’t notice all the people. These ships are huge. We took dc twice but that was enough. You don’t get long in each port snd trips off the boat are ridiculously expensive (and often short) if you book via the cruise company. You need a curiosity bypass to enjoy them. But for people who want average food, don’t want to see much and prefer to lounge around, they are quite good. Plus a bit of dressing up on some of them, so you need more luggage!

I can’t comment on cruises - never done one - but re your wish list Croatia ticks those boxes. We have found the valamar chain to be great, good kids facilities but still nice hotels with nice food and not your classic ‘family friendly’ hotel. Not sure on prices in school hols re your budget as DD isn’t school age yet so we’re maxing out on term time trips while we can!

I hate giving it out as a recommendation because ots my secret cheap holiday but honestly just go to voya beach resort near sunny beach in bulgaria.

You'll have change leftover and the staff food and pools were great.

I find cruises great for my DC at your children’s ages, especially for the kids clubs which are brilliant on MSC, RCL, Disney and Carnival. The ships can have water slides which are fun too.

For me the main downside of a cruise is that the pools are small, we get a balcony for private outdoor space and we are all in one room whereas in an all inclusive we tend to get a suite or apartment. But it’s a great way to see other places compared to a big resort in the middle of nowhere.

DS far prefers cruises now because the kids club is for his age so they do things he genuinely finds fun like fifa, science experiments, glow party and he’s with kids his age 7-10 not 3-12.

That’s a really healthy budget for 1 week. I’ve done a cruise (Disney) for the whole Disney cruise element (rather than visiting places) which was a short one from Southampton and I’ve never come off a trip more floating on air. However that’s down to good food, incredible service, a brilliant kids club and adult only area. I was at breaking point when I booked and needed a break

I wouldn’t however consider a cruise in the med in summer. It’s going to be super hot and access to the pool is difficult due to the sheer amount of people and tiny pools - your decent pool comment is just the opposite of a cruise

My go to is Italy, however I’d always go b&b (flights & hotel £2k) then utilise the rest on eating out to have some incredible food. It needs to suit you though and if you want it all included, its maybe not the best choice

Oh and take the reviews with a huge pinch of salt. I read a review of a cruise I was on and I just didn’t recognise it!

People can be weirdly loyal and evangelical about a cruise line and see it as their duty to trash the others. They also want to pay 3 star prices and get 5 star service.

If your Dh doesn’t want to cruise, I wouldn’t.

Another vote for Croatia. Neilson?

Anywhere is ludicrously hot in the med in the summer. I’d prefer a hotel with a pool I guess but whether you get a lounger is another matter. That’s why northern France or Brittany can be much nicer. Ticks every box. You cannot compare cruise ship food with a decent local French restaurant!

When our dc were your dc ages we used to go to Majorca every year. We just wanted easy holidays with nice hotels, good food and loads to do. Most of the hotels have kids clubs and the kids had a blast while we chilled at the pool. I'd recommend Protur hotels around Sa Coma. For culture we hired a car for a couple of days and drove explored the island.

Thank you so much for all the messages. You've all made me smile with how polarizing the views are on cruises! It seems you either love them or hate them! I'm afraid I really don't want to do self catering, we did that when the children were toddlers and it just wasn't relaxing at all. I was constantly thinking about the next meal and what we were going to eat, unfamiliar stuff in the supermarket for fussy children.

I'm going to look at going from Southampton and then also look at Croatia and Bulgaria. Thank you, although feel free to continue making suggestions!

I’d just look at tui/easyJet or similar and book an all inclusive package if you want an easy holiday you don’t want to think about too much. You can pick a hotel which looks smaller and should then hopefully be less busy. I had a quick look on Tui and there seems to be plenty of all inclusive options within your budget.
I’ve stayed in a Protur hotel in Majorca as mentioned above and it was very family friendly.
To check the size of the hotel, on TUI there is hotel info at the bottom of the page which shows number of rooms like this (I haven’t stayed at the hotel- just using an example of one that came up which looks smaller!)

Eurocamp is great for that age group and they will book the ferry for you so quite hassle-free. Northern France is very easy, or try ferry to Northern Spain for a more cruise-like experience.

If you're looking for a cruise then I absolutely recommend speaking to a cruise specialist. They will help you get sorted for that budget, if you were still thinking of going down that route 😊 Just look out for a travel agent with ABTA and ATOL protection and not one with a Hotmail/Gmail etc email address. That's what I have done for every cruise and they've been some of my best holidays!

@Skippythebeercan Maybe educate your dc on food and take them out? French dc eat out so surely yours could? Bulgaria? No thanks! Anywhere with flights might not have much availability as airlines are cautious regarding fuel shortages.

Another vote for the Valamar hotels in Croatia. They are very well set up for children, and the food has always been really nice when I've been.