Mark Warner first holiday. Should we still go?

[Love2dance]

DH, DS (will be 5 1/2 m) and I were about to book with MW on a late deal for the first time to go to Ocean Club Portugal when poor little Maddy McCann went missing. Ocean club sounded just up our street (we don't usually do all inclusive and before DS born tended to go on independent self catering hols) as it has apartments for independence but also the creche/babysitting facility so we could eat out in the eves and relax on our own some (but not all) of the time.
I now feel a bit uncomfortable about going, particularly as I can empathise with the McCanns' suffering.

Anyone know of anywhere shortish haul with apartment or small villa with a babysitting option? Any advice gratefully received.

LOL. I have never been in a clique before. Does this mean I have graduated on MN somehow!!!

And OO

That's better

Sorry OO - I x posted with you!

nailpolish -

so therefore if you cant eat with your children and there is no babysitting what do you do? leave them alone and check every 30 mins or go out and get a mcd's to eat in the apartment

GO ELSEWHERE!!

surely its not a choice of mcd's or leaving your kids alone?

some holiday that would be!

If you're not able to get a babysitter, you get takeaway from the restaurant you wanted to go to and eat it on your balcony.

I expect people assume that all the relevant checks have been done by the holiday company which is why they don't check them themselves.

It must be cheaper to hire a reputable babysitter one night a week, EVERY week of the year so that you and your husband can spend the evening together, then go on holiday with your children in a gite than go on a Mark Warner holiday in peak season.

TOOMUCHTODO

i ws being sarcastic

I think Mark Warner is thought to be pretty expensive. It's the package holiday for people who don't go on package holidays.

Yeah one of the best moments of our trip to Butlins was watching DD dance with the RedCoats at 10pm

Her eating candy floss, making friends, singing to all the crappy chart music, things she wouldnt have done if she was stuck in the nursery for the night session.

We're going to either Alcudia/Salou in September and it will be the same there. Late nights and as much junk food as she wants.

Caitlin Moran

She is VERY good

"ultimately, as with all holidays any further away than Devon, the whole thing would be a gigantic amount of money and arse-ache."

SOOOO true

We are off to north Devon for our exciting Caravan holiday in a few weeks....

We could travel half way around the world and we'd STILL have to move the children out of the damn bed before we had our Holiday Sex

Best solution to holiday childcare is to go with another family, or your parents.

I think things are gettig slightly hysterical. A friend of mine said they were considering a holiday in Portugal this year, but have changed their minds now.
FGS lets just shut down the entire country. In fact maybe all the Portugese should seek asylum in the u.k, where of course these tragic but rare occurences never happen.

We moved to Devon so we wouldn't have to bother travelling anywhere to be on holiday

We're staying in a posho campsite in cornwall this summer. A quick train journey, no airport hassle, and no 'brits abroad' behaviour.

OK well as far as whether or not kids are allowed in restaurants in the evening, can I first point out that MW do not own the Ocean Club, so it is Ocean Club's rules that would apply in terms of dining and not MW. MW do supply some extra facilities to MW guests at the Ocean club (sailing tuition, creche and kids clubs facilities), but they do not own the restaurants.

I have to say that I would be amazed if kids were forbidden from MW restaurants in the evening, especially in light of recent events (and I'm a veteren of some 7 summer holdiays). However it is the norm for the children to have their tea later and the adult meals tend to start from 7:30, so in general very few under5s eat their tea at the adult meals. That is very different from saying that you can't have a 5.5m asleep in a pram at the table! But equally I have only rarely seen a family with say 3 children under 4 all come down for an evening meal - usually the children are asleep as they've been swimming all day!And for avoidance of doubt you do have your children with you for breakfast and lunch, so it is not as if you are not eating with them, and parents are welcome to join in with the chaos of high tea if they wish.

There are services at most MW resorts set up so that you do not have to have your children with you at the evening meal, which for some families is a plus. Additionally in resorts where there are several restaurants to choose from, one of them may be designated as adult only for the evening meal.

As far as the OP goes, personally I wouldn't use the Ocean Club. Firstly it is not controlled by Mark Warner so in some respects you're getting Ocean Club's rules imposed not MW. Secondly I can't imagine managing to have a holiday there at present and being able to escape from the investigation etc. And for me, a night creche wouldn't have worked that well, though with one infant I might have done so. But I prefer babysitting or the listening service.

If you are looking for a late deal then try their Corsica hotel. The hotel is a bit on the shabby side but the creche and childcare is very good, and the baby listening works very well as the nannies are physically positioned on each corridor all the time (so more secure as well).

I bet the other parents stare at you with horror if you bring your children down to eat at 8pm!

ladymuck

i p osted a link further down the thread showing on the MW webiste that they have a rule that no children under 12 are allowed to dinner in the restaurant

np, reading that you might find the pizzerias are available to younger guests in the evening. I'm pretty sure you had the option to eat together so at Ocean Club when I read the blurb , but were simply more restricted as to where, with some being adults only dining.

Regarding expense, outside of school hols I'm not that sure whether it counts as horribly expensive or not: Currently you can get 7 night in Greece, with flights, transfers, main meals, childcare, sailing and windsurfing tuition all included for under £500 per person (less for kids). You can get 2 weeks (including the half-term week) for under £800. Only first timers pay the full price. I think that the deals for this current week were below £400.

Of course when I try to go as a family of 4 for a fortnight during the school summer hols the brochure price comes up as £7,500! But then I wouldn't ever pay the brochure price.

It makes no sense, family resorts are for people with young children, so you would expect them to encourage children and parents eating together.
Surely those who are up their own arse enough to mind sharig a dining room with other peoples children wouldn't be in such resort?

Mark Warner holidays sound shite, IMO.

Nailpolish - that is just the taverna - you would still be able to have your children eat with you at the main restaurant or the pizzeria. And not all resorts have a taverna - eg Corsica doesn't (or at least it didn't when I went)

MotherRedcap - not horror, but perhaps with some pity. Those families who sat alone with their much younger children never seemed to be having as much fun as everyone else. Older children were fine though - they'd just be playing nearby.