Childfree Holidays Abroad

Faith

As mentioned on the other thread, if you're looking for an adults only holiday, you can't go wrong with Mexico (particularly the Cancun area*). Now, to be fair, most of the adult only hotels are also 5* and pretty high end, so they're not cheap - but hey, that's what we can spend all our extra money on

I can personally vouch for Excellence Playa Mujeres - https://www.excellenceresorts.com/cancun/excellence-playa-mujeres

It is breathtaking there. All inclusive, absolute luxury and NO CHILDREN ANYWHERE. You'll be waited on hand and foot, and there feels like no end of options and choice in terms of restaurants and bars, so it doesn't get boring like many AI places. You could, if you wanted, do day trips too, like to nearby Isla Mujeres or lots of other cool historic Mexican/Aztec sites, but we mostly preferred to stay constantly low-level drunk near the pool

Many of the Excellence group of hotels are adult only. There'll all pretty much in the Caribbean area so it's a long enough flight to factor in. You have:

* Excellence El Carmen in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
* Excellence Oyster Bay, Jamaica
* Excellence Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
* Excellence Riviera Cancun, Mexico

I think most of the Secrets resorts are adult only too?

Closer to home, Secrets Lanzarote is a new European contender. It is a mix of AI and B&B/half board, so what you get in convenience of less travel time, you lose in things like not all guests being AI, not everything on the menus being included and just slightly less luxury than you'd get in Mexico. We'd booked to go there on March 23rd 2020 but well you can finish that story yourself *facepalm*. So I can't speak from personal experience but it certainly has good reviews so far.


*NB: there definitely are a few "clothing optional" adults only hotels so best to do your research thoroughly

bunny_mac

Faith wrote: »

As mentioned on the other thread, if you're looking for an adults only holiday, you can't go wrong with Mexico (particularly the Cancun area*). Now, to be fair, most of the adult only hotels are also 5* and pretty high end, so they're not cheap - but hey, that's what we can spend all our extra money on

I can personally vouch for Excellence Playa Mujeres - https://www.excellenceresorts.com/cancun/excellence-playa-mujeres

It is breathtaking there. All inclusive, absolute luxury and NO CHILDREN ANYWHERE. You'll be waited on hand and foot, and there feels like no end of options and choice in terms of restaurants and bars, so it doesn't get boring like many AI places. You could, if you wanted, do day trips too, like to nearby Isla Mujeres or lots of other cool historic Mexican/Aztec sites, but we mostly preferred to stay constantly low-level drunk near the pool

Many of the Excellence group of hotels are adult only. There'll all pretty much in the Caribbean area so it's a long enough flight to factor in. You have:

* Excellence El Carmen in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
* Excellence Oyster Bay, Jamaica
* Excellence Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
* Excellence Riviera Cancun, Mexico

I think most of the Secrets resorts are adult only too?

Closer to home, Secrets Lanzarote is a new European contender. It is a mix of AI and B&B/half board, so what you get in convenience of less travel time, you lose in things like not all guests being AI, not everything on the menus being included and just slightly less luxury than you'd get in Mexico. We'd booked to go there on March 23rd 2020 but well you can finish that story yourself *facepalm*. So I can't speak from personal experience but it certainly has good reviews so far.


*NB: there definitely are a few "clothing optional" adults only hotels so best to do your research thoroughly

Do these resorts tend to be couples only/honeymoon type places though?

If you're single and childfree that's an extra layer of discrimination!!

Faith

They would attract mostly couples, but are definitely open to singles/groups of friends travelling together.

secondrowgal

One I've been to many times, and can't recommend highly enough is The Body Holiday in St. Lucia.

https://www.thebodyholiday.com/

100% adult only. Spa treatment every day included. Many activities also included and extras that you can pay for. It also has a "solo traveller" table, so if you are on your own you can choose to join other solo travellers, or not, for main meals.

I loved it every time I was there and will be looking into it for early next year again.

bunny_mac

secondrowgal wrote: »

One I've been to many times, and can't recommend highly enough is The Body Holiday in St. Lucia.

https://www.thebodyholiday.com/

100% adult only. Spa treatment every day included. Many activities also included and extras that you can pay for. It also has a "solo traveller" table, so if you are on your own you can choose to join other solo travellers, or not, for main meals.

I loved it every time I was there and will be looking into it for early next year again.

Oh wow that sounds great, thank you!

R.D. aka MR.D

Does anyone have any experience of any in Thailand or Bali? We're looking that direction for our next holiday and have looked at some but as I said in the other thread, so nervous about there being children nearby.

John_Rambo

Just happened on this thread browsing, I have kids and travel around surf spots in France in a Campervan... but.. there's a good few adult only campsites. A decent Campervan (the smaller two berth ones are excellent value compared to the larger family ones, and are probably in better shape for obvious reasons) and you're away, vineyards, wine tasting, good restaurants etc... The adult campsites are very serene, usually in stunning deciduous European forests with excellent facilities with your own BBQ.

I reckon you could go pretty far in to Spain, Portugal, Croatia, South of France with a few long journeys without the obvious concerns of bored kids in the van.

The ferry prices are a bit insane at the moment, but at a quick glance through the threads on this forum there doesn't seem to be a money problem with all the savings from the life choices and there's no stigma attached to camper vans if you want to check in to a quality spa hotel for the odd night.

Food for thought. Let me know what you think, I reckon it's an untapped market for the child free people.

R.D. aka MR.D

We love love love camping, I actually have never even considered that adult campsites would even be a thing. For some reason, kids camping never bother me. Maybe it is because they go to bed early and you're not in the campsite much during the day anyway? Now adults having a sing song at 2am when you want to be up at 5 for an early hike is a different story..... :pac:

John_Rambo

R.D. aka MR.D wrote: »

We love love love camping, I actually have never even considered that adult campsites would even be a thing. For some reason, kids camping never bother me. Maybe it is because they go to bed early and you're not in the campsite much during the day anyway? Now adults having a sing song at 2am when you want to be up at 5 for an early hike is a different story..... :pac:

I hear you, I'd take kids before drunk adults singing at 2am! But I get the impression that these places are aimed towards the child free people that enjoy a quieter life. Not the stag/hen party crew. To be honest, we stayed in one (with one kid) that wasn't exactly "child free" but wasn't aimed at families... We're fairly hands on parents and amused our kid ourselves without any impact on the other campers and we were only there two nights and that was enough for him.

You're looking at heated swimming pools with no slides or child attractions, above standard restaurants etc... We won't be going back to that particular campsite with kids because there's just not enough for them to do so they seem reserved for couples or singletons or of all ages, but not kids. It's pretty organic, less stuff for kids to do, less kids.

Camping in a Campervan in France with kids is great... but I'm so sorry I didn't do it in France and further afield before kids. The price of the vehicle and ignorance had a part in me not doing it.

You're driving through rural Europe. The vineyards, the wildlife, the terrain, the villages, towns, museums etc... Even Normandy, small towns like Bayeux with it's tapestry, WW2 history... Bordeaux, down to the South to Biarritz, across to San Sebastian... So much on offer for the people that don't have kids and can really get 7 hours relaxed driving in a day with a good podcast or playlist.... The hiking, mountaineering, biking etc... that kids just can't handle are all there.

Edit... If you're making lots of noise after a certain time in any campsite in France you'd be told soon enough to pipe down. It's a very convivial relaxed scene.

John_Rambo

Forgot to mention, there's Aires in France, stop points for overnighting with electricity, water and sanitation. Not perfect for overnighting with kids, but perfect otherwise to crash for the night half way through a long journey.

https://www.wandering-bird.com/french-aires/

Edit.. It's important to note... Southern European families are much more used to dining out, I'm sure you've all been to restaurants abroad where the kids are very well behaved. We're not there yet in Ireland, but we're working on it.

cee_jay

R.D. aka MR.D wrote: »

We love love love camping, I actually have never even considered that adult campsites would even be a thing. For some reason, kids camping never bother me. Maybe it is because they go to bed early and you're not in the campsite much during the day anyway? Now adults having a sing song at 2am when you want to be up at 5 for an early hike is a different story..... :pac:

We are exactly the same - we go camping every year with friends and their 2 kids, maybe twice over the summer. We do camping just with the 2 of us. We don't go in for major drinking when camping, and after a day of walking, sightseeing, etc, we just want an early night :cool: We were camping a few years ago, and the guards were called because of a very rowdy group who weren't adhering to the curfew - people's kids were crying all around the campsite with all the arguing etc. Give me a quiet, relaxing campsite any day. The only thing that annoys me is when they kick balls off our tent :pac:

Kirby2k07

Faith wrote: »

As mentioned on the other thread, if you're looking for an adults only holiday, you can't go wrong with Mexico (particularly the Cancun area*). Now, to be fair, most of the adult only hotels are also 5* and pretty high end, so they're not cheap - but hey, that's what we can spend all our extra money on

I can personally vouch for Excellence Playa Mujeres - https://www.excellenceresorts.com/cancun/excellence-playa-mujeres

It is breathtaking there. All inclusive, absolute luxury and NO CHILDREN ANYWHERE. You'll be waited on hand and foot, and there feels like no end of options and choice in terms of restaurants and bars, so it doesn't get boring like many AI places. You could, if you wanted, do day trips too, like to nearby Isla Mujeres or lots of other cool historic Mexican/Aztec sites, but we mostly preferred to stay constantly low-level drunk near the pool

Many of the Excellence group of hotels are adult only. There'll all pretty much in the Caribbean area so it's a long enough flight to factor in. You have:

* Excellence El Carmen in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
* Excellence Oyster Bay, Jamaica
* Excellence Punta Cana, Dominican Republic
* Excellence Riviera Cancun, Mexico

I think most of the Secrets resorts are adult only too?

Closer to home, Secrets Lanzarote is a new European contender. It is a mix of AI and B&B/half board, so what you get in convenience of less travel time, you lose in things like not all guests being AI, not everything on the menus being included and just slightly less luxury than you'd get in Mexico. We'd booked to go there on March 23rd 2020 but well you can finish that story yourself *facepalm*. So I can't speak from personal experience but it certainly has good reviews so far.


*NB: there definitely are a few "clothing optional" adults only hotels so best to do your research thoroughly

Is Mexico currently open to Irish tourists? As in no hassle at the border for proof of essential travel?

ztoical

R.D. aka MR.D wrote: »

Does anyone have any experience of any in Thailand or Bali? We're looking that direction for our next holiday and have looked at some but as I said in the other thread, so nervous about there being children nearby.

I've been to Thailand several times. Not a massive fan of Phuket, its not an issue with children but mainly american/Australian/Irish frat boys drinking themselves silly and asking every local woman if shes a ladyboy...ffs. Bangkok I love! I've stayed at the same guesthouse called Focal Local several times, its not near the traditional tourist center so no annoying frat boys but its very well connected to the skytrain and river. It's a great city as there's lots of cultural stuff to check out but also very modern city center and amazing food. There is the twenty something drink all night western tourist crowd but much easier to avoid them there then in Phuket. Also rec Cambodia but during the off season, avoid December to March as its just rammed with tourists.

Bali not a major fan, its beautiful and if you want to just sit by a pool for 2 weeks its got that but its so tourist focused it feels a little over done for me. East Timor is near by and while very much a developing country its a fraction of the price and there's hardly anyone there as its not developed yet as a tourist spot.

Personally I don't look at adult only holidays I just book holidays outside of school holiday dates, a lot fewer kids and usually cheaper. I've been to Disneyland in 3 countries and had a great time, I just picked dates that had very low numbers - there's several online sites that will tell the off season for major tourists attractions so while there might still be kids the numbers are pretty low. I've found a lot of 'adults only' type places are either heavy drink focused or a lot of couples both of which I'd like to avoid and I'm really not into sitting by a pool.

R.D. aka MR.D

ztoical wrote: »

I've been to Thailand several times. Not a massive fan of Phuket, its not an issue with children but mainly american/Australian/Irish frat boys drinking themselves silly and asking every local woman if shes a ladyboy...ffs. Bangkok I love! I've stayed at the same guesthouse called Focal Local several times, its not near the traditional tourist center so no annoying frat boys but its very well connected to the skytrain and river. It's a great city as there's lots of cultural stuff to check out but also very modern city center and amazing food. There is the twenty something drink all night western tourist crowd but much easier to avoid them there then in Phuket. Also rec Cambodia but during the off season, avoid December to March as its just rammed with tourists.

Bali not a major fan, its beautiful and if you want to just sit by a pool for 2 weeks its got that but its so tourist focused it feels a little over done for me. East Timor is near by and while very much a developing country its a fraction of the price and there's hardly anyone there as its not developed yet as a tourist spot.

Personally I don't look at adult only holidays I just book holidays outside of school holiday dates, a lot fewer kids and usually cheaper. I've been to Disneyland in 3 countries and had a great time, I just picked dates that had very low numbers - there's several online sites that will tell the off season for major tourists attractions so while there might still be kids the numbers are pretty low. I've found a lot of 'adults only' type places are either heavy drink focused or a lot of couples both of which I'd like to avoid and I'm really not into sitting by a pool.

I've been to Thailand a number of times but never to an adults only resort.

We do the same with themeparks, i also don't mind kids at themeparks, it is for them after all!! I'd be a terrible grouch if i begrudged them their fun.

I would like to give resorts a go, I'm usually very active on holidays but we've had an extremely stressful couple of years.

CelticRambler

John_Rambo wrote: »

Forgot to mention, there's Aires in France, stop points for overnighting with electricity, water and sanitation. Not perfect for overnighting with kids, but perfect otherwise to crash for the night half way through a long journey.

:pac: :pac: :pac: You need different children! With a decent campervan, you don't need anyone to provide electricity, water or sanitation, and indeed the FrancePassion network is provided on that basis. My children never had any trouble overnighting without "facilities" and although they're fewer and further between these days, there's still no significant difference between our "adult" holidays and the ones we had when they were children.

John_Rambo

CelticRambler wrote: »

:pac: :pac: :pac: You need different children! With a decent campervan, you don't need anyone to provide electricity, water or sanitation, and indeed the FrancePassion network is provided on that basis. My children never had any trouble overnighting without "facilities" and although they're fewer and further between these days, there's still no significant difference between our "adult" holidays and the ones we had when they were children.

That's brilliant advice, thanks. I'll pm you if I need any more.

cocker5

R.D. aka MR.D wrote: »

Does anyone have any experience of any in Thailand or Bali? We're looking that direction for our next holiday and have looked at some but as I said in the other thread, so nervous about there being children nearby.

Are u looking for adventure? Or spa hotel only?

Reason I ask is we did Vietnam December 2019 - brilliant holiday loved every minute ..

R.D. aka MR.D

cocker5 wrote: »

Are u looking for adventure? Or spa hotel only?

Reason I ask is we did Vietnam December 2019 - brilliant holiday loved every minute ..

We hope to visit Vietnam for a proper holiday (for want of a better phrase) once they open up a bit more.

Was thinking of Thailand/Bali for one of those adults only hotel breaks where you just lie about a bit and eat food/swim/get drunk.

I've travelled in Thailand a good bit but never stayed at that kind of place.