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Original poster

Should we avoid a villa with pool with 3 yr old?

21 replies

mulranno · 01/06/2009 20:47

Thinking about booking a villa with pool in spain in summer have 4 kids would be great for older 3 (7, 8, 10)...but worried of risks with 3 year old...WWYD?

OP posts:
plimple · 01/06/2009 20:49

Go for it, but make sure you know where the 3 year old is at all times. Create a rule e.g. Only allowed in pool area wearing arm bands and be dead strict with it.

snigger · 01/06/2009 20:51

I'd take someone with me to exclusively watch the three year old so I could read my book.

Are there any 'shallow end' pools - it might be a bit rubbish for the little one if everyone else can dive in and they've got to wait for armbands and 1-1 supervision.

We holidayed in Greece with a wee one and it was exhausting, frankly, but then, that comes with the territory at that age I suppose.

I'd still be pretty edgy just in case - if you do, make sure you rent one with an enclosed pool if possible, a gate or suchlike so you can limit access.

aznerak · 01/06/2009 21:27

If you go for France, there is a law now which means pools need to have security. Some have alarms but many are now fully fenced and secure

SoupDragon · 01/06/2009 21:29

I thin kit will be fairly miserable if you go for one with no pool.

Security/fence/alarm or not, always know where the 3 year old is.

hatwoman · 01/06/2009 21:33

agree with soupdragon and snigger - go for a pool - makes such a difference to the holiday - but find one that's properly fenced off. one of our best holidays was a self-catered house with huge garden and a pool that was completely walled off, with a lockable gate. it made the world of difference.

traceybath · 01/06/2009 21:37

We did this last year when ds1 was 3. He basically had his float jacket on the whole time he was outside but also knew he wasn't allowed near the pool unless either DH or I were there.

It worked fine - enjoy.

Original poster
mulranno · 01/06/2009 21:53

Good idea about the float jacket...also migt get a paddling pool for her also...dont really want to restrict the others fun

OP posts:
spicemonster · 01/06/2009 21:55

Definitely but a) check there is a fence (with a gate a 3 year old can't open) and don't choose a villa without one and b) make someone responsible for your 3 YO at all times when you are by the pool ie nominate one person to be in charge. There was a thread on here earlier this week about a child falling into a pool (was fine luckily) but it seemed to be because everyone assumed someone else was watching her.

spicemonster · 01/06/2009 21:56

Sorry - that's definitely don't avoid a villa with a pool, rather than definitely do!

bigstripeytiger · 01/06/2009 22:00

Be careful when you arrive at the villa and leave at the end of the holiday. Apparently those are the highest risk times, as the adults are busy and distracted.

mumoverseas · 02/06/2009 08:07

You should check that the doors out to the pool have alarms so LOs can't get out there.
I own a villa with a pool in Florida and it is a legal requirement there that all rental properties have pool alarms.

Like others have said, always make sure there is one adult designated to watch over the little one and possibly make sure whilst around pool area she is wearing a float jacket or armbands.

thislittlelightofmine · 02/06/2009 22:32

mumoverseas We're looking to go to Florida next year and have looked at some villas with pools. How/what is a pool alarm if that isn't a dumb question??

Plus, which area of Florida would you recommend we rent in if we want to go to Disney, Univeral, Space Center etc.
Sorry to hijack the thread!!

gordonpym · 03/06/2009 06:53

I am a lifeguard,
you souldn't avoid it, but should be very vigilant. Life jacket is good because it helps if LO falls in the water and it gives you 20 more seconds reaction time but is VERY BAD because it gives you a false sense of security. If there are toys, especially inflatables or anything that covers the water, your child won't be able to get to the surface even with a life jacket. If his foot/leg is stuck between ladder and wall, and he is head first in the water, life jacket won't save him.
Drowing is the first cause of death under 6y and 90% happens at home.
Yes go for a pool but look at him. It takes very little time and don't believe pictures where you see people splashing and shouting. Drowing is silent. Never ask your older DC to look after him, they can be distracted by something and it is not fair. LAst, learn and practise CPR, that, more than a life jacket will make the BIG difference

hatwoman · 03/06/2009 09:30

thislittlelightofmine - we had a pool in France once with an alarm and, imo, they are of limited use. you turn them on when no-one's in the pool and, should your toddler toddle over to the pool and fall in it sets off an alarm. so - it's only of any use at all if the last person out of the pool has remembered to turn it on, and it only helps in the situation where you are not near the pool and your toddler is. which is a situation you really need to make sure doesn't arise in the first place. I guess you could say it's "belt and braces" but I feel that walls and lockable gates are far more important.

notwavingjustironing · 03/06/2009 09:42

We bought a little paddling pool from Tesco (about two or three quid) and packed it.

Then we blew it up and put it in the shade near us so DS could play in water (bought bucket, sieve set when we were there) without us all worrying about him. Took it in turns to watch him.

thislittlelightofmine · 03/06/2009 10:13

hatwoman Thanks for that, I was wondering if it was the pool that was alarmed or the wall/fence around it, I'd never heard of it before.

Couldn't agree more with your advice, my worry is that when we go away we are going with some friends who had kids but they are much older now and I think they forget how careful you have to be. The thread on here last week about the toddler that fell in really scared me and when we go DH and I will always make sure one of us is 'on duty'. All the villas we have looked a have fences round the pool, will have to make sure our friends know that it must ALWAYS be closed.

hatwoman · 03/06/2009 10:54

there may well be differnt types - this was just the type we had.

ChopsTheDuck · 03/06/2009 10:59

go for the pool, jsut start teaching water safety now. Wallking roudn the pool, getting in and out safely, etc.

I wouldn't bother with the paddlign pool personally. Mine would have been so miffed if they weren't allowed in the big pool with their siblings. They jsut wore armbands and used noodles.

I'd ask if there is any kind of alarm. In the US it is madatory for doors leading out to the pool to be alarmed and you can't turn them off. I wouldn't let the three year old out on his own.

MarshaBrady · 03/06/2009 11:08

We went to a villa with a pool just for us when ds was 3 and it was great.

It's a really good way to teach basic water safety and for ds to get used to being in the water everyday.

I was a bit nervous before going, but we always had ds in our sight, which wasn't onerous at all, and it was fine.

mumoverseas · 03/06/2009 13:08

thislittlelight, the type of alarms we have are on the patio doors out to the covered pool area and the door from the en-suite to the pool area. They have a button at the top of the doors which has to be pressed when you open the doors and if you don't press it, an alarm will go off after about 5 seconds. This stops little ones escaping out there without you knowing.
As far as I'm aware, all rental villas in Florida must have them.

With regards to where to stay, most rental properties are in Kissimmee however this is a really big area. I've seen villas advertised which are 'minutes from Disney' and are in fact around 59 minutes from Disney.
I'd recommend a company called Loyalty run by an english lady called Yvonne who only manages properties within 4 miles of Disney. Her website is www.loyaltyusa.com she manages my house which is called Minnie's Mansion

thislittlelightofmine · 03/06/2009 13:47

mumoverseas Thanks for that we will have at look at that site. Thanks again X

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