'Will we be free'? - why resorts work well for children!

‘Will we be free’ is the common cry of our children, whenever we announce that we are off on holiday. When I initially heard this, I was baffled, it’s not that we keep them under lock and key, ‘um well, you won’t be in the same room as us’ was the best response I could think of. As usual, it was our youngest child who decoded the hidden meaning for us – ‘will we be able to walk around without you’ he asked, ‘specifically, can we go off and get a drink or snack’, or meet you ‘somewhere’ (unspecified) later. Aha, we realised, after years spent watching our children’s every move in unfamiliar surroundings, their main aim on holiday now, is in fact, to get as far away from us as possible. This is welcome news, but only likely to deliver the worry-free results it promises, if we are in the relatively safety of a resort, preferably one that is family-friendly!

Before having children, we stayed in small hotels, apartments, or villas sometimes. We may have only brushed-shoulders with a resort, perhaps unknowingly. But now, we actively seek them out, in all their resort-glory. Not all resorts are created equally however. There are luxury resorts, sports resorts, all-inclusive resorts, small intimate resorts (which probably don’t even call themselves a resort), but they all have communal grounds beyond the lobby with space for guests to spread out in, a central swimming pool usually, bars and restaurants, exclusive to those lucky enough to stay there, perhaps even a playground or a teen hang-out area.

When our children were small (too small to roam) we visited the Sani hotel in Halkidiki, Greece, where each of us parents could take it in turns to be ‘free’, (these days I’m tempted by the all-inclusive Ikos resorts, also part of the Sani group), at Martinhal in Sagres on the Western tip of the Algarve we were introduced to the ‘villa on a resort’ concept, a genius idea when sitting in restaurants with children for every meal feels like too much of a chore. Whilst skiing we discovered the joy of a resort hotel, a place where we could relax over a meal, whilst our children hung-out with the new friends they had made.

Perhaps our best find of all though, has been Chateau St Pierre de Serjac in the South of France. A small collection of villas and apartments on a vineyard with large central pool and restaurant, as well as a tennis court and spa. The villas are all large and stylish, with luxury touches, and this is not the sort of place where you’ll ever have to fight for a sunbed. Our kids love it, we love it, we’ve been three times, and it’s a great place to combine with other destinations in France or northern Spain, either on a self-drive itinerary or as a fly-drive.

Next year, we are heading to Costa Rica, and our most important criteria when choosing where to stay? Not just hotels, but resorts, albeit small ones; somewhere where there are places to hang out, just for guests, and we can all be, just that little bit free!