Holidays with younger children

The great joy of travelling with tweens and younger children is their wonderfully contagious curiosity about the world. They make friends wherever they go, are excited by pretty much everything they see, and open doors to experiences that adults would never have on their own. The secret is choosing the right pace, the right places and the right balance of activities, and that’s where we can help.

We’ll always take children’s ages into account when planning a family holiday. A successful holiday with pre-teen children isn’t about squeezing in as much sightseeing as possible. It’s about finding the right rhythm. A morning exploring a city by tuk-tuk, an afternoon by the pool, and a dinner somewhere relaxed is far more enjoyable for everyone than rushing between attractions.

Boy exploring Cu Chi tunnels in Vietnam, showing camouflaged entrance hidden in leaves

Cu Chi Tunnels, Vietnam

This is where tailor-made travel really comes into its own. We’ll spend time getting to know your family to ensure travel is accessible for everyone – even those with the youngest kids. We’ll listen to what kind of family you are and then we will create a family holiday to suit you. One that the children will love, but also, crucially, so will you.

Here’s a quick guide to destinations that you might like to consider:

Top 10 best destinations for younger children

Sri Lanka – Always a winner for families with younger children due to the relatively short driving distances, wonderfully friendly people and the rich variety of experiences, including fabulous beaches, incredible wildlife and interesting (even for children) sites. Direct flights are available.
Thailand – Hard to beat for families with children of any age! There’s so much to see here – elephants, tuk-tuks, Buddhas, street markets, monkeys and loads more. Fabulous beaches for some relaxation and always something to look at. Direct flights make it easier too.
Mexico – Our recommendation is to stick to the Yucatan, which is fantastically child-friendly. Stunning beaches (with turtles offshore for those old enough to snorkel), brilliant activities and short distances so you don’t have many long drives. Self-drive options offer wonderful flexibility, and there are direct flights into Cancun.
Egypt – This is always popular with families and works just brilliantly, particularly as children will have studied the Ancient Egyptians in primary school. The Pyramids and the temples are truly awe-inspiring for absolutely anyone – even toddlers will ‘appreciate’ the enormity of the temples when playing a game of hide and seek! Pretty much all hotels have swimming pools, and there are direct flights making travel simple and easy.
Cambodia – It takes a little while to get there (although you can enjoy a stopover in Singapore or Kuala Lumpur, which have lots to offer pre-teen children). But once you arrive, it’s brilliant for younger kids with masses to do (transport by tuk-tuk makes it more fun for kids), great beaches and short distances between destinations.
Jordan – A perennial Stubborn Mule favourite for families with younger children as this is such a great place for an adventure. All kids, from toddlers to tweens (and beyond), will love careering down sand dunes, riding camels and exploring Petra (Indiana Jones style). Direct flights, hotels with pools, wonderfully welcoming locals and child-friendly food all add to the mix.
Morocco – One of our most popular destinations for families with younger kids. It’s just a short (direct) flight from the UK and there’s so much colour and variety. Kids love honing their haggling skills in the markets, and you can combine beaches, mountains and desert in just one week. You need to pick a smaller part of the country rather than trying to do it all, and then the driving distances are small too.
Oman – This isn’t on everyone’s radar, but it’s ideal for families with tweens and younger kids. Everything works incredibly smoothly, with easy drives and a wonderful mix of activities. Think deserts, ancient forts, turtles laying eggs, remote canyons and more. There are direct flights and fabulous family-friendly beach hotels.
South Africa – This is the ideal country for an introduction to safari, opening the children’s eyes to Africa’s remarkable wildlife. The great thing is that you can then combine this with so much more, including Cape Town (one of the world’s iconic cities), incredible scenery and an amazing array of child-friendly activities.
Madeira – This is the perfect short-hop destination, easily reached with a short direct flight but offering so much. The island is small, so you can base yourselves in Funchal and do a wonderful range of activities from here, with adventure, beaches and stunning scenery.

Family on holiday in Mexico - mum with three children - blue sky

Family-friendly Mexico

How we plan holidays for tweens & younger children

Every family and every child is different, and what fits one family won’t fit another. One of the many benefits of a tailor-made trip is that we will find out what makes you and your children tick. And then we will design the whole holiday around this, taking into account what we know from travelling with our own children. These are some of the things that we will consider:

Making sure that there are several consecutive nights in each hotel. This helps to avoid too much unpacking and repacking (which inevitably falls to the parents) but also helps to allow important ‘down time’ after the day’s adventures.
Food needs thinking about. Some kids are very adventurous and will be munching their way happily through sushi, tacos and curries. Others will need something a little more familiar and hotels will need to be selected with this in mind. Whilst we would all love to have great eaters for children, the truth is that some are more fussy than others and we want mealtimes to be fun rather than an endless negotiation.
A pool is key in hot destinations. Most children will be happy doing pretty much any activity in the morning if they know that there will be a pool to return to afterwards. Over the years, we’ve built up a collection of favourite family-friendly hotels where pools are a given.
Family-friendly room configurations are also crucial. You want to be able to put younger children to bed and then be able to relax nearby in an adjoining room or on a balcony so you can still enjoy your evening. Some destinations have wonderfully family-friendly rooms, with interconnecting or suite rooms. Other countries don’t have quite such a range of family-friendly options but we always have a few hotels up our sleeves and will be able to advise what will work best.
Keep an eye on travel times. Younger children and long car journeys are not a match made in heaven. We will always suggest a route that avoids too many longer journeys. Yes, a device can be used if necessary to pass the time on the odd journey, but usually you’ll want this to be the exception rather than the rule. Small bite-sized travel chunks work best. We’ll also suggest interesting stops along the way wherever possible.
Possibly the most important thing we consider is that this has to be a holiday for the whole family, not just the kids. Our holidays are designed with children in mind, but we know from travelling with our own families that kids tend to be much more open to new activities and experiences than we sometimes give them credit for. So whilst we always take into account the ages of your children, our holidays don’t revolve exclusively around the kids. This is a holiday for all of you, so we’ll make sure there’s plenty included that you, the adults, will love too.

Kids dressing up on Oman with kids holiday

Oman works well for tweens and younger children

Ready to plan a holiday that works for everyone?

Travelling with tweens and younger children doesn’t mean putting your adventures on hold; it simply means travelling a little differently. Tell us about your family, your children’s ages and the sort of experiences you enjoy, and we’ll create a tailor-made itinerary that’s exciting for the kids and genuinely relaxing for the grown-ups too.

Ready to plan a holiday that works for everyone?