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Holiday suggestions for 3yr old and 9mth old..

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    #32
    fatboy69
    Registered Users Posts: 20 ✭fatboy69


    Amber springs in Gorey , Wexford is gorgeous. They have a soft play area inside. A petting zoo, pool and train on site. They also have babysitters you can book and child friendly restaurants on site


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    #33
    vidapura
    Registered Users Posts: 718 ✭✭✭vidapura


    "Winner of Ireland’s favourite family-friendly stay in the 2018 Reader Travel Awards of the Irish Independent"

    Thanks, I will check that one out.


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    #34
    afkasurfjunkie
    Registered Users Posts: 771 ✭✭✭afkasurfjunkie


    CheerLouth wrote: »
    We did France two years ago with a one year old and a three year old & had an absolute ball! It will be fab!


    Whereabouts did ye go? I’m half considering a trip this year or next. Have a baby and a 5 yo I can manage fine but also a very busy one year old hurricane boy child who is putting me off the idea of holidays this year altogether.


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    #35
    CheerLouth
    Registered Users Posts: 2,421 ✭✭✭CheerLouth


    afkasurfjunkie wrote: »
    Whereabouts did ye go? I’m half considering a trip this year or next. Have a baby and a 5 yo I can manage fine but also a very busy one year old hurricane boy child who is putting me off the idea of holidays this year altogether.

    We went to Domaine Des Ormes, it's not too far from Cherbourg...maybe two hours in the car I think. We chose it purposely because we didn't want to be travelling for hours in the car with two small ones. We also went in early June so it wasn't too busy! Kids had a ball, there were plenty of playgrounds for them, kids disco in the evening & the swimming pools were brilliant. They've done up the indoor one since we were there and it looks amazing!


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    #36
    Unshelved
    Registered Users Posts: 864 ✭✭✭Unshelved


    When our little guy was younger we did a few hotel breaks - grand when he was in a buggy and could sleep while you had your evening meal - but now, sitting in a dark hotel room waiting for him to fall asleep at 9pm is just a pain. Some hotels offer family rooms with separate areas for children - Hodson Bay in Athlone springs to mind - but I prefer the space and freedom of an apartment or lodge. Fota was great, as was Centre Parcs - you can get up when you like and can wander around in your PJs after breakfast. Plus sometimes eating out with small kids just isn't worth the bother.

    Loved the mobile home holidays in France - we went to Ile de Ré - out on the bikes all day and between that, the beach or the pool he was out like a light most nights. Plus there's always great, good-value takeaway options so you're not tied to the kitchen.

    There is no getting around it though - holidaying with small children can be hard work. It's not a "get away from it all" in that some things just still have to be done no matter where you are. Some days it's not much of a break for the parents - but it's still worth it if you change your expectations!


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    #37
    PhoenixParker
    Registered Users Posts: 2,671 ✭✭✭PhoenixParker


    I would definitely go for centerparcs.

    Been there twice. Once with a 3 year old and once with a 3 year old and a 3 month old. Mid week during term time is generally very good value.

    You need a kitchen with tinies so that you can keep food and make snacks easily. Everything from the houses to the restaurants is geared around kids.

    If you can share with another family or bring grandparents. You can trade off parenting duty to get a small break for yourselves and bigger houses tend to be better value.


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    #38
    CheerLouth
    Registered Users Posts: 2,421 ✭✭✭CheerLouth


    Back from CentreParcs. It was just brilliant! We had a fantastic time, both our 3 year old and 5 year old had the time of their lives! Accommodation was perfect, beds comfortable. Kitchen was small but fully functional. I brought our Spag Bol with us for Friday night & if I was going again, I'd definitely bring another dinner with us for another night as we got a takeaway on Sunday night & it wasn't great given the price of it.

    We arrived on Friday at about 11.30am. Would definitely recommend arriving early. There was no queue when we arrived, so we parked up, went and grabbed a bite to eat & then headed to the pool for a few hours. We walked over to the lodge then about 5ish & hubby went to get the car & he said there was a massive queue of cars trying to get in. We unpacked and he brought the car back to the carpark.

    Activities wise, we only did one activity on Saturday morning - the Off Road Explorers (it was 12 euro a child I think) which they loved. And our girl got her hair braided which was 6euro. Other than that, we stuck to the pool which had so much to offer. The kids area is great, water is only ankle deep in one section & they've plenty of slides to keep them entertained. Our kids loved it. The big pool was also a great hit & the lazy river. We even went in the outdoor pool while it was snowing.

    Things I would recommend if you are going:
    - Bring your bikes
    - Bring all the snacks (I thought I had brought lots but underestimated how hungry we all would be and we had to buy more bread and ham for sandwiches)
    - Reusable Water Bottles - the pool is fierce warm but they fill up your water bottles at the bar
    - Bring swim shoes as some of the kids areas are slippy & in spite of me yelling "walk" every 20 seconds, kids won't walk :P
    - Go early on check in day & stay late on check out day if you can - we didn't leave until after 3.30 yesterday so between that & getting there early on Friday, we had four full days to enjoy it!

    Also, there were so many people there with tiny babies & they looked like they were getting on grand. There are cots by the pool and the pool area is lovely and warm for them. The only thing I would say could be an issue is if you are in a lodge that is further from the village. We were lucky that we had a lodge that was only a 5 minute walk & even though our two are big enough, our youngest found the walk a challenge at the end of a day in the pool. I wouldn't like to have been further away & would definitely pay to be closer next time.


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