Category: Europe

Categories
France

Menton, France

Young children will love taking part in the Lemon Festival, the colourful annual event in sunny Menton.

Why go?

Just a 40-minute drive from Nice Airport, with fantastic views and a stop-off in Monaco, Menton has year-round appeal – for parents and children.

Because it enjoys a subtropical microclimate, citrus fruit and exotic gardens have thrived here for centuriesand it has been on the map for its 365 days of sunshine a year. 

The narrow, cobbled streets are filled with fruit sculptures, bright colours and the sound of marching bands. It also has two lovely town beaches with shallow, clean water, and there is plenty to explore.

Activities

When you’re not mingling with lemons and oranges, there is plenty more to see in this beautiful town. There are cafés in the main square, and for families it’s a convenient place to relax in because it’s accessible and good for children on wheels.

The markets showing off all of the locally produced fresh fruit and vegetables are a must-see – a good way to tempt reluctant toddlers to try something a little more exotic than apples and bananas. Menton has four French markets and three Italian markets each week, so there’s plenty of variety.

The town also has beautiful gardens to explore, two imposing baroque churches and two town beaches.

Don’t miss: The Fête du Citron, the annual Lemon Festival, which happens in February or March, and is one of the most vibrant times ofyear to visit. 

Menton bursts into life as the locals celebrate the town’s citrus fruit production. An endless surge of families and masked revellers in fancy dress advance through the town. It’s a visual spectacular with something for everyone and the festival has been pulling crowds since 1895. 

Highlights include a Moonlit Parade, the Parade of the Golden Fruit, a citrus display in the Jardin Biovès, a light and sound show, an orchid festival, and the chance to see local artisans in action, carving wood, engraving glass, and showing off their ceramics, pottery, and local cuisine. Kids will love the parade atmosphere.

The lowdown

Where to stay: The main bay sweeping round from the Italian border, on the Porte de France, has a pretty promenade with informal places to eat, as well as a number of hotels. 

Set on the seafront, the Hôtel Napoléon has a swimming pool and a cool, modern feel. All rooms have TV, iPod dock and air conditioning and the hotel is 100m away from a private beach.

The staff there all speak good English and enquiries can be made through the website about activities in the area and around the hotel, as well as the accommodation and family facilities.

Price: From €275 for double occupancy with a garden or mountain view room.

How to get there: British Airways flies from London Gatwick to Nice; from £78 return. 

Travel time: It is a 3 hour flight, with 45 mins transfer from Nice Airport to Menton.

Categories
Greece

Messinia, Greece

If you’re looking for a school holiday destination that’s not overrun with British holidaymakers then this is your spot. Hire a villa here.

Why go?

Without the high volume of tourism, your holiday money goes further in this area. Eating out is noticeably cheaper than the Greek islands, and sunbeds generally come free if you buy a drink.

Activities

Methoni’s Ottoman fortress is perched at the top of a rocky promontory, reached, just like a fairytale castle, by crossing a stone bridge. There are lots of lovely seashore tavernas in the village serving fresh seafood. Koroni’s Venetian fortress stands over a pebble beach where boats dock to bring in fresh fish for lunch. There’s also a small sand beach at the far end of the bay where the sea washing on both sides and rocks to scramble on provide the play area, while you enjoy views of the fort from your sunbed under palm fronds. 

If ruins appeal, there’s Ancient Olympia to visit; also the Palace home of the 13th century BCE king, Nestor, and Ancient Messini, where you can still see the grooves worn by chariot wheels in the 4th century BCE.

 

Don’t miss: A family trip to horseshoe-shaped Voidokoilia beach on the west side, one of the most glorious and undeveloped beaches you will ever see. Its turquoise water is shallow for a long way out so good for tots and messing around on inflatables. It can get windy – so hog a spot by the rocks. 

The lowdown

Where to stay: Good bases for a self-catering holiday are the small, quiet villages of Chrani and Petalidi, joined by a shingle bay halfway down the Eastern side of the finger.

Both have good quality tavernas, bars and mini markets, villas with private pools with expansive views across the gulf toward the Mani, and those rarities in Greece, power showers and mattress toppers.

Nearby, is the pristine beach of Episkopi, where trees are your parasols; empty barring a few locals at weekends. There’s a stream running into the beach, which provides hours of fun for little damming and netting enthusiasts.

Another good but busier base is Finikounda at the fingertip. This has a pleasant sandy beach, backed by tavernas and cobbled lanes of shops. Standing guard either side of Finikounda are the stunning fortress towns of Methoni and Koroni, where kids can model their sandcastles on the real thing, Castle Methoni, looming over the beach. 

How to get there: From 6 July, direct flights from London to Kalamata will be available from £165.86 with easyJet.

Travel time: 3 hours and 45 minutes direct to Kalamate International from where you can reach the resorts in under an hour. 

Categories
Portugal

Monte Da Quinta, Algrave

Cool family villa accommodation, relaxing spa facilities, top golf courses, kids’ clubs and babysitting services, as well a host of activities for all the family to enjoy; stay in this luxury Algarve resort.

Why go?

The Algarve enjoys more than 3,000 hours of sunshine each year, and locals enjoy a healthy lifestyle and love of the good life. 

For this reason, the region has long been a favourite for British families heading abroad.

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The Monte da Quinta resort offers families – with children of all ages – the chance to enjoy a host of activities, whether you want to enjoy them as a whole family or spend a day or two enjoying some parents-only time. In which case, the resort also offers a Kids’ World club for all ages and a dedicated babysitting service in the evenings.

 

Accommodation: For cool accommodation with plenty of space for you all, the complex has impressive town houses and villas, plus a collection of 132 design suites featuring one, two and three-bedrooms.

Activities

Monte da Quinta is located in the Quinta do Lago estate, which nestles between the Atlantic Ocean and the Ria Formosa Natural Park. It’s an idyllic setting, and perfectly placed to explore a range of activities for all the family to enjoy together – so it’s not all about lazing about the pool in the heat of the sun all day. 

You and the kids can play tennis, enjoy water sports and go horse riding, as well take part in a host of other family-friendly options in the secluded 2,000-acre estate. For the wildlife fanatics, guided tours of the Ria Formosa nature reserve are also available by boat or on foot, where you’ll see terrapins and crabs running around.

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If dad needs a break, or you have some golf-enthusiasts amongst your children, the estate also boasts three of Portugal’s top golf courses and with preferential rates for Monte da Quinta guests.

For families with older children, mum and daughter can enjoy an afternoon of bonding at the Magnolia Spa which offers a full range of treatments on a luxury complex with a Turkish bath, heated indoor treatment pools and a host of therapeutic showers. 

The lowdown

Price: From £72 a night for a double room. 

To book: Call 00 351 289 000 300, or go to www.mqresort.com

Categories
France

Summer Lakes and Mountains Holiday: Europe

Make the most of your time together by taking your family to these beautiful mountain destinations.

Midi-Pyrenees, France

The Pyrenees snake along the border between France and Spain. Base yourself in the middle and, to really get back to nature (and save some money), go glamping. Campsites provide ready-made friends for your kids and peaceful surroundings in a natural playground of mountains, pine forests and lakes. This Basque region is rich in historical sights, too, from ancient caves to stone villages, castles, monasteries and the pilgrimmage site at Lourdes. 

WHERE TO STAY

Eurocamp’s Airotel Pyrénées is near Luz St Sauveur, gateway to the Pyrenees National Park. Choose from mobile homes, lodges or swish safari tents, all with beds and kitchen facilities. The site has pools, waterslides and a tennis court.

THE LOWDOWN

Price: A safari tent that sleeps up to six costs from £180 per week, excluding ferry crossings.

South Tyrol, Italy

Until 1918, the South Tyrol was part of Austria, and its people are proud of their unique identity and even have their own language, Ladin, although few of them still speak it. The area has gained a reputation for its cuisine, with more Michelin-starred restaurants than you can shake a wooden spoon at. So foodie families can fill up, after working up an appetite in the Dolomite mountains.

WHERE TO STAY

Dolomit Family Resport Garberhof is a Kinderhotel, part of a consortium of hotels that provide whacked-out parents with childcare and equipment such as back carriers, bibs and baby baths.

THE LOWDOWN

Price: Starting at £75 per adult per night and £24 per child per night, including all meals, childcare, baby equipment, bike hire and use of spa

Categories
Greece

Mousses Villas, Lefkas

Private family villas nestled in the olive groves of the Greek island. A nirvana for parents.

Why go?

Run by the wonderfully maternal Eleni and her family, this complex of 10 small houses is beautifully situated in what was once the family’s olive grove. Each two-bedroom house has air-con and a private terrace. For something bigger, opt for Castor or Pollox; two brilliantly equipped neighbouring villas, which sleep six, each with its own garden and pool. Whichever you choose, all have direct access to Mousses’ large communal and toddler pools, bar and restaurant.

There’s an air-conditioned kids club (ages six months to 10 years) with UK-trained nannies. Strict child-to-staff ratios ensure safe supervision, babies and toddlers have their own crèche room and older kids enjoy everything from art classes to water-fights.

The lowdown

Price: Simply Travel offers seven-night holidays for a family of four; from £1,156 at Apollo, Mousses, or £1,738 at Villa Pollox. Price includes car hire and flights from London Gatwick to Preveza. 

Travel time: A flight from London to Preveza takes 3 hours and 15 minutes.  

 

Pictures by Abigail Flanagan.

Activites

The nearest beach, Gira, has a family-friendly shoreline where toddlers can paddle, and a taverna serving great calamari. Also nearby is the island’s capital, the colourful harbour town of Lefkada where caves, waterfalls and natural watertaps are waiting to be explored.

Lefkada is largely pedestrianised at night, but it’s ideal for young families and has numerous pavement cafés serving traditional Greek food such as souvlaki (skewered meats), gyros (meat-stuffed pitta) and crepes, as well as superb icecream parlours for that holiday essential, the way-past-bedtime sugar rush.  

Categories
Norway

Oslo, Norway

We spent a weekend in Norway’s leafy capital, Oslo, where we sampled nature, culture and some noteworthy landmarks. Ideal for a family weekend.

Why go?

Nestled between evergreen hills and a sweeping fjord, Oslo is a blend of Scandinavian nature and culture that’s unlike any other European capital. 

This city is noticeably well-oiled; with a zippy transport system and pedestrian-friendly centre that make it easy to pack a smorgasbord of art, architecture, fresh seafood and Viking heritage into just a few days.  

Activities

Central activities: Take the metro downtown to the National Theatre stop and you’ll see some noteworthy landmarks amid the fountains and flora. Look out for the Royal Palace, Norwegian Parliament, National Gallery of Norway and Museum of Cultural History. 

The star of Oslo’s ‘Sentrum’ district is the fjord front. Lined with boutiques, yachts and gelato shops (stop at BellaBua for a dollop of liquorice icecream) the ‘Stranden’ promenade offers a hearty buggy walk ending at the Museum of Modern Art. This cultural hub is complimentary for under 18s and also has its own pebble beach. 

More free fun can be found in Vigeland Park; a lush garden on Oslo’s west side that hosts the life’s work of it’s namesake, sculptor Gustav Vigeland. Focused on human variety (age, sex and emotion) the artist’s work will appeal to everyone. Look out for his grumpy toddler. 

Don’t miss: Go between June and October 2013 to catch the 150-year celebration of ‘Scream’ painter Edvard Munch. Also make time to visit Oslo’s Opera House, the city’s architectural jewel.

Historic activities: Founded by Viking King Harald Hardrada in 1048, Oslo has emerged from the mists of time as a chic metropolis. Thankfully, there are still plenty of ways to dip into Norwegian history, starting with 800-year-old Akershus Fortress. Built as a castle, used as a prison and occupied by the Germans in WW2, Akerhus’s cobbled vantage holds a well of stories and a great view.  

If, however, you want to fully embrace your inner-Viking it’s best to take a trip across the fjord. Oslo has many sea-faring options, including a swashbuckling pirate children’s cruise, but we made the economical choice and hopped on the Bygdoy ferry.

A gorgeous peninsula reminiscent of the Hamptons (think white wooden houses) Bygdoy is also home to the Folk Museum and Viking Ship Museum. Kids will particularly like the Folk Museum; its open-air park has reconstructed villages, period actors and livestock. Next door, the Viking Ship Museum is a must for history buffs; housing three excavated Viking ships. 

Top tip: As mostly all of Oslo’s attractions have outdoor tables it’s easy to save money by packing a picnic, particularly for pricey Bygdoy. Oslo has lots of supermarkets to rustle up your own sandwich or pick one up at a deli, our favourite is Deli de Luca. 

The lowdown

Travel time: A flight from London to Oslo takes 2 hours 10 minutes. 

How to get there: Fly with British Airways from £112 return. 

Best time to go: Visit in the summer months for pleasant temperatures and long hours of daylight.

Where to stay: We stayed at the centrally located Best Western Kampen Hotell. The rooms are clean, well-priced (starting at £180) and suites have full kitchen facilites. Children under six stay free. 

Categories
France

Paris City Break: Disneyland and Beyond

Suzanne Dent travelled to the French capital in search of rollercoasters – and discovered that Paris has much more to offer families than theme park thrills.

Why go?

The harness is pulled over my head and locked in place. I cling to it, wondering why such a robust restraint is needed. Then it hits me: they are going to hang me upside down. I doubt I’m the first parent to view a trip to Disneyland as a form of torture that must be endured if the little darlings are to have a full and happy childhood. 

That being said, having submersed myself in the world of Mickey and friends, I’m relieved to report that a Disney holiday isn’t just about stomach-churning rollercoasters and mouse ears. If you stay at a hotel outside the resort and take time out to explore the city and the pretty Parisan countryside, you’ll discover that a Disneyland break can be just as much fun for mums and dads.

Disney magic

NEW RIDES

Having been to Walt Disney World Florida, I assume I will find exactly the same collection of rides in the Paris park. Indeed, when I arrive at my old favorite, Big Thunder Mountain, the same ruggedly dressed cowboy directs me to my seat (except that this one speaks with an elegant French accent). However, to my surprise, I also find rides in Paris that are not offered at Disney’s American parks.

The recently opened Ratatouille ride takes us on a magical ride around Paris as only Disney could. Zipping through a Parisian restaurant, the ride becomes a fully immersive experience – we’re blasted with cold air as we pass through the giant freezer, and kids of all ages squeal with delight as the champagne corks fly overhead.

FANTASY PARADES

Wearing our obligatory Mickey Mouse ears, we squeeze into the crowd and peer anxiously down Main Street, waiting for the famous parade to begin. Never mind the rides, the evening shows are where the family bonding really happens. The Disney ballads we all know by heart are infectious and before long everyone is singing and waving at the breathtaking floats that roll by, carrying fairytale princesses and mythical creatures.

If your kids can cope with staying up past bedtime, the spectacular after-dark show is a fitting finale to a fantastic day. After a breathtaking firework display, families leave hand in hand, still humming the final tune.

Explore Paris

A NEW KIND OF CITY TOUR

We head to Paris, but unlike our previous visits, we opt out of putting in the legwork to explore the city on foot. Little legs demand another option and luckily for us, we discover a faster and more fun alternative to the typical bus tour. Innovative tour company 4 Roués Sous 1 Parapluie run open top 2CV cars for a customized trip round Paris – ideal for a family of four. With cushions and lap blankets provided in colder months, it’s like touring the city from the comfort of your own two-seater pastel sofa. Our charming guide Julie gives a jovial explanation of the sites tailored to our interests, and to our delight, she treats us to a hair-raising sharp turn down a narrow lane.

ESCAPE TO THE COUNTRY

Having arranged a rental car from the Sixt desk in the lobby, we are ready to head out into the beautiful French countryside that we have so far only peaked at from our hotel window at Magic Circus. We pull up to the Muse de la Grande Guerre, on the outskirts of the pretty town of Meaux, and what we find is not what I expect from a war museum. Although it sits on an First World War memorial site, the museum is a modern building, containing plenty of video clips and plaques encouraging the kids to explore and touch. If you haven’t had enough history for one day, then take a walk into Meaux to see beautiful architecture in the gothic Cathedral and Bishop’s Palace.

Where to stay

MAGIC CIRCUS AND DREAM CASTLE 

Four-star hotels Magic Circus and Dream Castle are minutes from the Disney gates and Eurostar station, thanks to frequent free shuttle buses. When you’ve had your fill of all things Disney, both hotels are well-placed to be the family’s base from which to explore the world outside the theme park gates. Paris is only 45 minutes to the east and you’ll find a scattering of charming chateaus within short driving distance.

JUST FOR KIDS

Magic Circus and Dream Castle may not be Disney hotels, but they make sure kids don’t miss out, by offering their own brand of fantasy. I’m often under-whelmed by hotel kids’ clubs, but looking around, I realise that the entire lobby in the Magic Circus hotel is one big kids’ club – with rides, games, and even a ball pit, right in the middle. This isn’t normally something I would welcome in a hotel, but here it seems to work. The red and yellow circus theme continues in the family-style hotel room. As if finding bunk beds aren’t enough to make the kids giddy with excitement, a circus tent-like curtain surrounds the bunks and – joy of joys – they even get their own telly.

The lowdown

Price: Adult tickets to Disneyland Paris start at £87; children’s tickets start at £63.

Book: Choose your hotel package, add your preferred mode of transport and you’re ready to book your Disneyland holiday. 

Getting there: Whether you choose to fly, drive or hop on a ferry, getting to the heart of the magic couldn’t be easier…

Plane: easyJet flies regularly from London Luton to Paris. Flight time is just over an hour.

Train: Hop on board at London St Pancras International, Ebbsfleet International or Ashford International and arrive in Paris in 2 hours, just a 2 minute walk away from the Disney Parks. 

Car: Travelling through the Eurotunnel by car takes 35 minutes from Folkestone to Calais with up to four shuttles per hour at peak times.

Ferry: With P&O ferries, the journey from Dover to Calais takes 90 minutes, with around 20 crossings a day. A 3 hour drive the other end takes you to the gates of Disneyland Paris.

Where to stay: Magic Circus hotel; Dream Castle hotel.   

More of what you love:

Think the French capital is a city for grown-ups? Our roundup of the best family-friendly acitivities in Paris will change your mind. To see another side of France, enroll your littles ones at the fabulous ski school in Tignes. 

Categories
France

Paris with a Baby

Julia Scirrotto braves the French capital with a seven-month-old and not only lives to tell the tale but discovers how much the country loves babies.

Why go?

As a first-time mum, I hit the internet for parenting advice approximately 423 times a day. So when I was considering a trip to the City of Lights with a seven-month-old, I turned to my good friend Google before booking. As usual, it spit back a healthy dose of paranoia. “A city that is terrible for ‘les enfants’”, warned the very first hit, an article packed with tales of buggy-unfriendly public transport, baby-hating museum staff and an apparent Paris-wide ban on high chairs and changing tables. 

Well, ignore Google. It turns out the French absolutely adore babies and will fall all over themselves to smile, coo and otherwise ensure little ones are well looked after. Their complete exuberance for les petites – along with the obligatory steady stream of café crème, croissants and crêpes– made the three-day trip a stunning success.

Activities

Day one: Our first afternoon was spent exploring the Left Bank on foot, from the full-bloom splendour of the Luxembourg Gardens to the saturation of chic boutiques in St-Germain-des-Prés. We lunched on buckwheat crêpes at an outdoor table in the shadow of the Pantheon.  Later, we refuelled with a pricey but atmospheric coffee at Café de Flore, the storied artist’s hangout beloved by everyone from Ernest Hemingway to Sofia Coppola. Rather than turn his nose up at le bebe, the white-aproned waiter kept Emma giggling with playful smiles and games. Our epic walk concluded with ice cream cones (delicious and decadent dark chocolate and bean-flecked vanilla) at Le Flore en l’Ile on Ile St Louis. 

Day two: Emma and I were travelling with my very best friend from school, a Paris first-timer ready to take in some of the key sites, so Day Two was devoted to art and architecture. We started the morning at the Eiffel Tower where, once again, we were invited by staff to jump the lengthy queue. One warning, though: Leave the buggy at the hotel. Pushchairs are allowed if they’re folded, but the crowded maze of mini-queues en route to the top is best navigated with a baby carrier. (We spotted another British mum who got sent to the back for attempting to wheel in three kids on bikes. Oops.) 

For lunch, we stocked up on fresh charcuterie, brie and baguettes from a row of specialty shops on Boulevard St Germain and picnicked on a bench in the Tuileries Garden. Then it was straight into Musée de l’Orangerie to immerse ourselves in Monet’s waterlilies. (I like to think the panoramic floor-to-ceiling panels had the same effect on Emma’s cognitive development as playing Mozart in the womb.) From there, it was onto the Impressionist Mecca Musée d’Orsay, which has late opening hours on Thursdays. We spent the evening with Van Gogh, Renoir and Seurat and took in the sweeping views from the 5th-floor terrace. (Inside tip: Time nappy changes with gallery visits; museums are the exception to Paris’s general lack of baby-changing facilities.)

Day three: London was calling on Day Three, but not without first having a morning stroll through Notre Dame (go early to dodge the crowds) and a lunchtime visit to foodie heaven on Rue Cler. Fruit and veg stalls, boulangeries, wine shops, bistros and, yes, more ice cream await on this cobblestone pedestrian side street. (There’s a Petit Bateau here, too, if you’re looking to stock up on stylish baby threads.) We grabbed two croissants for the train journey back home – plus a copy of Babar from a children’s bookshop for Emma – before bidding Paris au revoir.

The lowdown

Getting there: The Eurostar travels from London’s St Pancras to Gare du Nord from £69 return (from £49 for children four-11). Kids under four ride free on Eurostar if they sit on your lap. At the Gare du Nord taxi rank, we settled in for an epic wait when – mon dieu! – a cabbie ushered us to the front of the line. In Paris, we were told, babies don’t do queues.

Where to stay: I chose the quirky, cosy, ludicrously well-positioned Hotel Esmeralda (4 rue Saint Julien le Pauvre, double rooms €110 a night) for its postcard-perfect views of Notre Dame and fabulous Latin Quarter location. We loved the friendly vibe and on request staff provided a cot (“le berceau”) for Emma and stored the pushchair (“la poussette”) in the ground floor office to save us from lugging it up and down the spiral staircase. The steps are a bit of a workout, but the view of Notre Dame from our window was worth the effort. 

Categories
France

Paris with Children

How would two exuberant children fare at a luxurious Parisian hotel? Sasha Slater discovers a family-friendly side to Europe’s most grown-up city.

Why go?

‘If you go to Paris, you have to be smart and I hate being smart.’ So said my six-year-old daughter, Olga, before we set off for the French capital. This struck an ominous note, since she and her brother Joe, five, were going to have to be extremely smart indeed – and very well-behaved. 

For the offspring of French parents are legendarily polite. What would my children make of a place in which every child is immaculately dressed in a Bonpoint sailor suit, lisping ‘Oui, Maman’, ‘Non, Maman’ and ‘S’il vous plaît, Maman’? Perhaps the atmosphere of a swish five-star hotel might be enough to induce politeness. 

So to the Mandarin Oriental, situated on the Rue Saint-Honoré. The bright lobby looks onto the courtyard with a shallow pond fringed with palm trees. The atmosphere inside is playful, and the concierge unexpectedly relaxed about taking two rather battered three-wheeled scooters under his protection. These scooters are, in fact, the secret of a successful city break. 

Activities

The aforementioned scooters meant that on our first day in Paris we could walk through the Tuileries gardens, stopping in the playground (no sailor suits in view) and then cross over the river on to the Ile de la Cité.

We sat at one of the colourful outdoor tables at Ma Salle à Manger, a café on the Place Dauphine, where the children picked at vegetarian lasagne and George and I sipped rosé.

Then we were off again, the children swooping along on their scooters, to Notre Dame Cathedral, then across to the Saint Germain district on the Left Bank and the Jardin des Plantes, where the Mandarin Oriental had arranged tickets to the zoo.

On the way back to the centre of town, we stopped at the Boulevard Saint-Germain by the Maubert-Mutualité Metro Station, where there is a mind-boggling run of shops. We stocked up on supplies and jumped into a taxi back to the hotel.  

Then we offered the children the biggest challenge of the weekend: Saturday lunch at the Hotel Plaza Athénée’s Le Relais Plaza restaurant. The room is a hub for social Paris and not the place to take badly behaved under-10s. But something about the magical atmosphere, classy service and delicious food combined to put us all on our best behaviour. While my husband and I devoured steak tartare, Olga and Joe ate hamburgers, and remembered all their mercis and au revoirs.

At the end of the day, after a baguette-making class in a shop in the 15th arrondissement, we scooted off to the Marais where Olga delighted me by ordering a dozen escargots, and heroically swallowing at least one. A true Parisian of the future. 

Accommodation

On arrival, the hotel staff whisked us up to our interconnecting rooms, where the kids pounced on the colouring books left on their beds, gasped at the size of the flatscreen TV in their room and bounced on the luxurious bed. Then we washed and went down to Camélia, the hotel’s courtyard restaurant, where double-Michelin-starred chef Thierry Marx offers a high tea groaning with macaroons, ice creams and other evil French delights. 

 

Family programme: On our second day, the Mandarin really took control of our schedule. Family Twist – the company it employs to arrange itineraries for children – came into their own. First, Katia, a local, met us in front of Lamarck-Caulaincourt metro station for a child-friendly tour of the old artists’ quarter. A highlight was visiting the Musée de Montmartre, where Renoir used to live. He even painted his famous picture of a girl on a swing in its shady garden and, pleasingly, both garden and swing are still there to be enjoyed. 

The lowdown

Getting there: Eurostar travels from London King’s Cross to Paris Gare du Nord; from £69 return for adults, from £49 return for children under 11. 

Where to stay: The Mandarin Oriental Paris offers a family suite and adjoining guestroom from £1,702 per night. Its J’aime Paris en Famille package, which showcases the best of the French capital for children, costs £425 for two adults and two children.

Those on a tighter budget should book into Résidence Nell. Its 17 stylish apartments (which come in four sizes) are fitted with a kitchenette and living room with a sofa bed, and cost from £295 per night for a family of four. Parents can even organise babysitting through the concierge.

 

For tips on travelling to Paris with a baby, check out our recommendations. 

Categories
Greece

Periyali Villas, Greece

Child-friendly beaches and a kids club means mum and dad can steal some me-time

Why go?

These are a low-key collection of 11 pretty villas, each with their own private garden and safely fenced-off pool, glorious gardens to explore, and top-notch club for kids from six-months to 10 years. There’s also a communal pool, kids’ pool and poolside bar to congregate around.

There’s no denying Periyali’s cliff top location and spectacular sea views are something special, or that the villas, with their pared-down nautical loveliness, are a cut above too. The villas have air-con, stereo, TV and DVD player (there’s an onsite DVD library); plus parenting essentials, from safety gates to bottle sterilizers. And apart from the kids’ clubs, for parents there’s also a visiting masseur.

Facilities: Supermarkets and the bustling nightlife of Zante town are a 30-minute drive away, but local mini-markets stock most essentials and there are decent tavernas nearby, several within walking distance.

Best of all, beach access is a doddle – the famous Gerakas is a short stroll away and has a long, sweeping bay of golden sand and gently shelving waters making it perfect for little ones to paddle and to take their first steps across the sand.

Don’t miss: Boat trips taking in the Bay of Laganas, which is the nesting ground of Caretta loggerhead turtles who return annually to lay eggs.

The lowdown

Price: Simpson Travel offers seven-night holidays for a family of four; from £2,016. Price includes car hire and flights from London Gatwick to Zakynthos.

Travel time: A flight from London to Zakynthos takes 3 hours and 30 minutes.

Useful links: Caretta loggerhead turtles

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