Travel inspiration for solo parents*
*aka superheroes
It's a knock-out
Pack
Packing when you’ve got kids in tow is no easy feat – whether you’re going
Say cheese
Head’s up
£329
£16.99
Capturing golden safari moments is as easy as 1, 2, 3 with this limited edition stylish Go Pro HERO 7 camera in dusk white.
Protect their noggins from the sun with this Stash Hat by The North Face, available in hot pink or royal blue.
Brought to you by Ellis Brigham (ellis-brigham.com)
It’s only natural
Taste the rainbow
£8.99
£15.99
A natural mosquito repellent, Saltidin will keep those blood-sucking things away without being harmful to young skin.
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Keep your kids cool and hydrated with this colourful, lightweight 400ml water bottle from Camelback Eddy.
Upfront
it in
on a city break or a safari, Sarah Ashton looks at ways to lighten the load
Foxy Loxy
Dino-roar
£17.99
£19.99
Foxes may be sly but these reigns, with their five point harness, won't allow your child stray far.
Pack their raincoat, sunhat, suncream and favourite toy in Dino the backpack, and let the exploring begin.
Brought to you by Trunki (trunki.co.uk)
Pack & ride
Snack attack
£39.99
£7.99
A suitcase and ride-on trolley all in one – the Trunki cat will have your kids purring all the way to the city.
Fill these snap pots with fruit, sandwiches, crisps and juice boxes and your kids will never go hungry/thirsty – hallilujah.
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It may be a 9-hour flight and a 9-hour time difference but Jo Gardner discovers 9 reasons to visit Seattle with kids
Let's go: short-haul
A
s a solo parent of a six-year-old, I’m prepared to pay over the odds for a kids’ club on holiday – time spent lazing by a pool (book in one hand; beer in the other), isn’t just wonderful, its priceless. Just one afternoon off and I’m a better parent/ writer/daughter… person, even. But here’s le problem: kids’ clubs are often small rooms with nothing to do bar arts and crafts. The only way to get my daughter into one of these things is to bribe her with pool time and ice-cream; even then, she looks unhappy as I drop her off [insert guilt here]. And who can blame her; it’s her holiday too, isn’t it? Then I heard about Country Kids – a different kind of holiday where the happiness of children is central to the whole experience. Happy kids = happy parents. It’s a winning formula. Set on a farm in the Languedoc Roussillon region of France (equidistant from Beziers and Montpellier), the glorious views on the way up will distract you from the rapidly increasing metre (taxis are expensive in this area – hire a car if you can). We are warmly greeted by the owner Sylvain who runs Country Kids with his wife, Laure. Sylvain shows us around the former dairy farm, with its modern accommodation housed in historic buildings and all the French charm you could wish for (original stonework, wooden shutters, olive trees, beamed ceilings…). It’s rustic, perfectly-sized and, most importantly, fenced off. “Just let Lily-Jane explore, Jo; the whole place is safe,” he says. Within seconds, she’s off: up the wooden treehouse, around the playground, across the zip-wire and on the trampoline.
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Let's go: short-haul
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Let's go: city breaking
D
espite being as historic as Rome, as quirky as London and as pretty as Barcelona – with architecture, beaches, culture, fresh seafood, rooftop bars and sunshine in spades – Lisbon remains relatively under the radar. The upside of not shouting “come here tourists, we have it all,” though, is that it’s quieter than Rome, London or Barcelona, giving visitors a more authentic experience. Start the day wandering the narrow cobbled streets flanked by crumbling, pastel-hued buildings – coffee and custard tart in hand – before embarking on an afternoon of sightseeing. Come evening, head to a rooftop bar and admire the sea of terracotta roof tops seemingly tumbling down to a blue ocean. Lisbon is extremely family friendly, too, with zero curfews on children being in bars and restaurants, and many hotels offering babysitting services – so, parents can go out for a drink safe in their knowledge that their offspring are being well looked after. We say cheers to that.
Do/see
One of the best ways to see Lisbon is on the iconic yellow Tram 28 which heads around most of Lisbon in around 30 minutes for around £2.50. There are tram stops all over the city – stand by a sign for 28E and wait (it gets very busy so be prepared to wait for another one to arrive or to stand the whole way). En-route, you will see the castle, the sea and people drinking coffee (or beer) in pretty squares. The Oceanarium is a great choice if the sun isn’t playing ball. This is Europe’s largest aquarium and you can easily lose three or four hours gorping at sharks, mantra rays, clownfish, sea otters, penguins and colourful fish. It’s an all ages spell-binder. Afterwards walk around the eco-friendly shop (even the coat hangers for the t-shirts are made out of cardboard) or head into the ice-cream shop for a scoop with sprinkles (for them) and beer (for you).
Credit: Hugo Sousa
A great thing to do when the sun shines is take the 30-minute train journey out to Cascais, a pretty costal town with beaches, tree-lined squares and a good amount of culture. Praia Ribeira beach is right in the centre of town and has a large arc of soft, caramel sand and boats bobbing about on the water. Spend a couple of hours looking for pretty shells, paddling in the sea or watching people play volleyball before grabbing an ice-cream in town.
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Let's go: noshing/slurping
“The chocolate shops in Bruges are so pretty you’ll spend a few minutes each day with your face pushed against a window, tongue out in anticipation.”
NOSH The frites
In Bruges, frites aren’t worth their salt unless they have been dunked in hot oil not once, (or twice) but three times. The result is chip perfection: crunchy on the outside and pillowy soft in the middle. Dip each one in thick, creamy mayonnaise and you’ll be in frite heaven. You’ll find a frite shop on practically every corner in Bruges – if you are taking away, order a small portion (they are big) or share a large one with your little one to ensure there’s no wastage (now that would be a crime). Better still, find a street cart and order a cone to go – sightseeing with kids is easier if they have something to munch on (don’t worry about the mess; a happy child is a messy child).
Whether you go for classic with icing sugar, sticky with syrup, decorative with strawberries and cream or gluttonous with hot chocolate sauce, a trip to Bruges wouldn’t be complete without eating a waffle. Do as the locals do and take a photo of your waffle in front of an iconic building (the vendor will give you a small Belgian flag to stick in it if you wish) then ‘gram away. Waffle shops, stands and stalls are everywhere, however, which could be potentially dangerous for the wide-eyed. Use these battered batons as bait for good behaviour (“If you climb to the top of the Bell Tower, you can have a waffle when you come down”, etc). We like to think of it as realistic parenting not bad parenting.
The chocolate
While chocolate is like heroin to children, they don’t tend to like pretty, fussy chocolates with all sorts of fillings that they might love or hate (or spit out in the middle of the street). So this one is for you, parents. The chocolate shops in Bruges are so pretty you’ll spend a few minutes each day with your face pushed against a window, baggagemag.co.uk | 60
SLURP The beer
The kids get chips and waffles; you get chocolates and beer… And what a selection: light, dark, fruity, so strong you won’t remember your name the next day and recognisable (Stella is the local larger). Find a bottle shop – where the beer is stacked so high and wide it could almost be the wallpaper – and head out the back to try a few flavours in a small garden or courtyard. It’s a very civilised way to drink beer with advice on tap. Come evening, find a waterside bar, order a cold beer and people watch. Waiters will come armed with paper and crayons for the kids, guaranteeing you’ll get to the bottom of the glass without having to leave.
The hot chocolate
In a country that produces 20,000 tonnes of chocolate each year, it seems only logical that it be melted down, added to milk and made into hot chocolate. This is particularly wonderful in the winter months when sightseeing can be a little chilly. Don’t be fooled though, this isn’t the powered watery stuff we get at home but rich and creamy, topped with cream, marshmallows or chocolate sauce (for them), or laced with orange zest, rum or Baileys (for you). It’s not a drink so much as an orgasm in a cup. Head to a café and sip some while watching the snow fall outside, or grab a cup to go and warm the hands – and the heart – while wandering. Baby chocs are available for smaller human variety, too.
Belgian beers - credit Mourad Mokrane; French fries just cooked - credit Lucas Mellec
The waffles
tongue out in anticipation. Inside the smell is intoxicating. Then there’s the choice: row upon row of pink, white, dark and milk chocolates with intricate designs and inventive fillings (get your morning off to a zing with a Mojito one). While a box isn’t the cheapest thing to buy, selecting a few to munch while you walk around is as cheap as – well – chips.
Are we nearly there yet?
Q& A
Q. I find holidaying with children full-on and stressful rather than relaxing, how can I engineer some time to myself? A. While holidays are relaxing times for most, the entire week or fortnight can be more stressful for solo parents than being at home. Some help is at hand, however…
Find a kids’ club
We've said it before but kids’ clubs are the holy grail of single parent holidays – not only do they give parents some much-needed ‘me’ time but they also encourage offspring to meet other children in a creative setting. They aren’t always the easiest things to find, though – particularly in Europe where families tend to spend their entire holiday doing things together (not always practical as a single parent we understand). The majority of hotels offering this golden service also tend to be pretty expensive. If you can find a hotel where you want to go with a kids’ club though, book it and hang the expense if you can – that time out will be just what the doctor ordered.
Use a local babysitter
If you can’t afford a resort with a kids’ club, see if your accommodation at least offers a babysitting service (most do; check the website for details). You can go for dinner in the hotel restaurant or sit and have a drink in the bar safe in the knowledge that your child is being looked after in your room. If the hotel doesn’t provide such a service, they can often facilitate you with the number of somebody local that they recommend, who will come to the hotel to help.
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Know their swimming limits
One way of getting some much-needed lounger time is to take your child to a shallow pool that has a lifeguard (or one where they can touch the floor all the way along) and leave them to splash around while you read a book. Some lifeguards will ask your child to demonstrate how well they can swim a width or dive down to collect something to determine if you need to go into the pool with them – if they can manage these things, you are off the hook. Now where did I put that magazine?
Head to the spa
More and more spas are offering treatments for parents and children to spa together – you head one way for a massage, facial or hot stone treatment, while your child heads the other for their manicure, pedicure or hair-do. If your treatment runs for an hour, and theirs 30-minutes, staff will look after your child until your treatment ends at no extra cost. An hour on a treatment table at the hands of an expert will feel like Christmas has come early.
Are we nearly there yet?
Q. How do I avoid stomach bugs when travelling with my children? A.Whether it’s food poisoning or too much alcohol in the sun, a dicky tummy on holiday is, erm, crap basically – here’s some tips for keeping down your chips
Water, water everywhere
If you are heading outside of Europe, the first rule of thumb is to avoid drinking the local tap water – this includes cleaning your teeth, eating ice lollies made with local water, adding ice-cubes to your drinks or tucking into salad washed by a local tap (for the first few days at least). While this won’t be so crucial for you, smaller stomachs are more sensitive; anything unfamiliar is likely to come back up. Lovely.
Wash, wash, wash
We all know that we need to wash our hands after each flush but children often forget – adopt a Naziesque checking process and inspect those hands every time they come back from the loo. If all else fails, buy a small hand sanitizer and take it around with you to use when toilets aren't the cleanest.
You are what you eat
Meat naturally carries more bacteria than fruit and vegetables and can easily cause stomach upsets in hot countries (this is particularly true of chicken which can contain salmonella and cause Thypoid. Stick to fish or vegetables for the first few stays until your stomach normalises. Never eat rice that has been pre-heated and be wary of a buffet, particularly if has been left out in the sun. Anything that looks sweaty or is attracting flies (eugh) is an absolute no no, too, and always buy children icecream that comes out of a packet. Adults should avoid overindulging on the wine for the first few
days, too, particularly in tropical heat – alcohol is an antidiuretic that will dehydrate you, causing stomach upset the day after a session. Don’t worry: just a handful of days and you will be able to enjoy those lunchtime beers and evening cocktails without a care in the world.
Be prepared
No matter how careful you are, stomach bugs can still strike – stock up on diarrhea tablets before heading for your holiday (making sure they are safe for children) and, once the unpleasantness stops, use rehydration salts such as Dioralyte to get salt and sugar levels back to normal fast. These are safe for children and come in two flavours: blackcurrant and lemon. BAGGAGE | 69