With baby number three on the way, we have had to postpone our family holiday and put our Florida plans on the backburner until until next year, but that doesn’t stop me browsing several travel sites every day. A girl can still daydream…

Our five year old has recently expressed a keen interest in going to Portugal. I’ve actually got no idea why, though I wonder if it’s something to do with Cristiano Ronaldo. If it is, I hope Rowan isn’t expecting to see him when we get there!

Rowan hasn’t ever been on an aeroplane; we often holiday here in the UK because the children are still quite young and we like to be able to take our dog Betsy with us if we can. But as I say, we are planning on going to Florida next year. The children will be nine yrs, six yrs and nine months old. I’m sure it’ll be a breeze(!) but I am wondering if we should take a short haul holiday first. It’s a long way to America with small people who haven’t flown before, and having flown to Barbados when Louis was just turned one year old, I know that keeping them occupied for that length of time is not the easiest of tasks!

I’ve been having a scout around and I think the best option for us would be to go to a hotel rather than staying in a villa. That way I can concentrate on the children and don’t have to worry about cooking or cleaning. That, plus the fact that it’s my holiday too!

Family holiday in Monte da Quinta, Portugal
courtesy of totstotravel.co.uk

I managed to come up with 4 nights in Portugal, half board for the four of us in May for around £900. That’s pretty good going if you ask me, and actually the rooms are suitable for up to two cots to be added in as well so it would still be perfect for us once the baby arrives.

I sourced the flights through Skyscanner who I always find to be great value, and as I was looking for something suitable more for the kids than the adults I opted for Monte da Quinta in the Algarve, via Tots to Travel. They only represent properties that are suitable for youngsters so you know that wherever you stay the little ones will be catered for and that makes your holiday far less stressful, right? If your children are older, or hotels aren’t your scene, they also have a brilliant range of villas with families in mind so you can stay in a place that suits you best.

Have you flown with little ones? I’d love to hear your top tips if you have some!

*partnered post

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4 Comments

  1. ooh where we stayed was right next door to the place you are lookig to go to, in fact I think they used to be part of the same complex but now the villas are part of Martinhal

    1. Ha! Fancy that! I thought it was a really good price too – not high season either which hopefully means quieter and not too hot 🙂

  2. I’m there now! It’s wonderful. The only disappointment is that the kids club is 4+ and the creche/babysitting charges have increased twice since I booked and have now reached an extortionate €18 an hour. We only have one child, (under 3) who would be asleep all night while we went out for dinner, so this is a hefty fee! All the staff however have been really friendly and welcoming. Breakfast was amazing – toddler heaven asthere was so much to pick at and try (and disgard…) The food is good, again expensive but we walked (not recommended – he who only sleeps in motion was very grumpy and needed a nap) to the supermarket this afternoon and bought some essentials so that we could eat in the apartment – which brings me to the biggest bonus. This trip has confirmed that a basic hotel room is not for us! We need a bedroom each (us and HWOSIM, not me and the hubby!) and a living area to relax in after he’s gone to bed (finally) is a rare delight! Not to mention that we have more bathrooms that we know what to do with! (The remote control curtains so you can let in the sunrise from bed and pretty funky too!) I hope you enjoy it as much as we are… Despite the tantrums and the public ice cream meltdown today. After all, the wine is cheap too!

    1. Oh wow thanks for your comment! Gosh yes the babysitting charges are a bit steep at those prices. That’s the trouble when you go on better holidays than you have before – you can never go back to basic! Have an amazing time x

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