Hi ,look on Thomson website,there are still one or two with free child places,depending where you are flying from,does it have to be Es Cana ?One in Playa den Bossa quite cheap.

Hi Cath, i really wouldnt worry at this stage.... I always take the kids away during school time, if i didnt i could never afford to go away during school hols, i think as long as its not during exams etc it doesnt really do any harm, its far too expensive to go during the hols... i would rather pay the £50 fine (not that ive been fined yet)than pay an extra 3 or 4 hundred pounds for a holiday.... no doubt i will get shot down in flames for this, but as ive been a lone parent for 7 years now, if i took my hols during term times, i would never get away... ive got 2 kids that have recently left school with fantastic exam results, so its done them no harm!

Hi Kath

I booked the fiesta don doni hotel in ibiza, for next july, and got a free childs place for my son (15), and that is half board! This was through thomson, and cost just over £1400 - for the 3 of us. The hotel is in playa den bossa. Also check out the price on first choice website, as well as thomson, as I remember looking a few weeks after I had booked, the same holiday was cheaper (Not much) - but as the 2 companies have now merged, - it's worth checking both prices out.

Also I know the club migjorn apartments (same place), were just over a £1,000 self catering for the 3 of us - but we decided to pay extra, and go for half board.

The hotel has fantastic reviews, and have plenty going off for the kids!

Hope you get sorted - I always think its best to book early, if you are wanting free childs place - as they are soon snapped up.

Good luck

belly

Well i'm looking and looking and they just get more expensive

hi cath, gotta agree with mitchell here, don't know how old your little one is, but if they've just statrted school, then, i wouldn't worry, my daughter is now in yr 3 and we have taken her out of school for holidays always about a week before they break up and we have never had a problem, obviously, we didn't do it in may this term because ofe the 'sats' , and also, i wouldn't take her out at the begining of any term, but, as regards to holiday prices, then , if its a difference of 500 quid or more, then go for it !!!!
cheers,
juby

Even looking at the week in July before he breaks up to go is madley expensive.
Wouldn't want to go any earlier than that and don't want to pick September as he'll just be starting Yr 1

I don't know if this will help anyone but the Heateacher at my kids primary school once told me that she that if parents are taking kids out of school for holidays she much preferred it if they did so in the final half term of the year (after May half term) as the government doesn't collect the attendance figures for that half term and so the absence doesn't appear to reflect on the school!

Cath,

Every holiday can be done cheaper. If there is a way of looking at all my posts you will see that I have knocked away on this subject for much of the time and realistically saved serious money for people(I kid you not).
You just have to have a little bit more imagination, some courage and know-how (covertly, people in the travel industry will be on to dispel my suggestions). You have got to make your own mind up. Anyway here goes:-

Book a private apartment, house, duplex in the resort you wish to visit. Do this as early as possible, even now for summer 2009. In January property owners tend to put up prices which are reduced during March to fill in gaps.

Try and book directly from the owner and then there are no commissions involved. Make contact with one owner and be sure he/she will put you in contact with others if necessary.

Book low cost airlines (e.g. Ryanair, Easyjet, Monarch) well in advance. You may have to hire a car, but I bet this is cheaper than you think.

Privately owned apartments are usually more equipped than apartments supplied through your local travel agent. You should not have to pay extra for airconditioning, television, washing-machine as these are generally provided as standard. Apartment owners usually use the place themselves, therefore all home comforts are usually provided.

Ask questions like:- How far is the apartment from the beach, supermarket, restaurants, hairdressers etc? Does the apartment have a working swimming pool? Is there continuous building going on? Have you references? What are all costs involved? How far away is the airport?

Bear in mind that fifty percent of all holidays booked in the UK are done privately.

leprosy,

Some reasonable advice but a lone parent with 2 kids is probably not going to want a private villa but more likely wanting accommodation where there are plenty of other guests to make friends with.

You can look to DIY, book flights with a low cost airline like Easyjet as soon as they come out and book accommodation seperately.

Kind Regards
Stewart

Hi Cath, perhaps if you give us some more information we could have a look for you. How many in your party, adults, children, infants? How long do you want to go for and from which airport?

Our holiday this year was the first I'd booked as a family of 4 and during school holidays and I was shocked at the price. Have you had a look a Direct Holidays? I have found that with them the last 2 weeks in Aug are cheaper than Jul/beginning Aug, plus they include transfers, 20kg baggage and inflight meals which all add up. Also many of their holidays have guaranteed free kids places although these don't often show on the website quote, you have to phone them to get the correct price. Just done a quick search as an example for Ibiza, dep 14th August for 2 weeks from Manchester based on 2 ad and 1 ch.

Hotel Riomar, Half Board, Santa Eulalia £1587, but this includes a child price of £215 which could possibly be taken off so £1372.

This might not be an option for you, but might be worth having a look at what else they have and making a call to them.

Regards, Nic.

Hi, at that age I wouldn't worry too much about taking him out of school for a family holiday. We used to take ours (4 of them) out around the Whitsun holiday (late May) but prefer to do two weeks mid/late June as the weather is usually better then in places like Ibiza, Majorca etc.. and it isn't too crowded everywhere!

As someone has already mentioned, the attendance figures are usually up to the last half term holiday, so it won't affect those. My daughter last year had 100% then after half term was off nearly a week with an ear infection but it still didn't show on her figures.

My advice would be just go now while you can and have some lovely holidays we're now stuck with main summer holiday prices due to GCSE's etc...

So grab your bucket and spade and run for the sun!!! Wish we'd taken a few more holidays now...

Some folk who really don't have the money for the standard type of package deal go to France and stay in a mobile home, going with companys like French Life, Eurocamp, Key Camp etc. Also people who have money often do it as well just because they like these kind of relaxed style holidays. Lots of pools, kids clubs, on-site shops, BBQ's etc.

I have both a cousin with 3 kids who has done this for the best part of 12 years and work with a woman who did it from when her kids were three and now the eldest is at University and still insists on his two weeks in France with his younger siblings.

Up to 3 kids go free until they are either 16 or 18 (can't remember) as you are hiring the mobile home rather than paying per person.

If you don't want to travel too far the regions to look at are probably Brittany and the Vendee. Only possible downside is you need to be prepared to drive there.

I agree with doepsmc, we did several years of Eurocamp, Haven etc in France and my girls still talk about the wonderful holidays they had, it enabled them to have much more freedom than at home and they would take themselves off to the shop and cycle around the site. We last went about 9 years ago and used to book these holidays as having 3 children of school age it was very expensive even then to go abroad during the school holidays. Mind you we have a couple of photos of the car when it was loaded up with bikes etc and I wonder how we all managed to fit inside it.

Have you looked at the price of this type of holiday recently? I looked last year thinking it would be a cheap way to go abroad and found that a mobile home in France during August was around the same price as a 'normal' package with flights/apartment. Just had another look at Keycamp and you're looking at about £1800 for mobile home or £1100 for a tent, then of course you've got to add on your fuel to get there. Don't think it's the cheap option it used to be

Hi Nic

I know what you mean, but 1800 still seems to be fairly competative as loads of normal package holidays I have priced up are about 3000.

Only reason it might not be a good option is that I have just re-read the original post and I think the OP will just be taking one child. These holidays often come into there own when you have three kids, like my cousin and a package holiday has just always been out of the question as too expensive.

When you get there as well its no longer as expensive as it used to be (if that makes sense) its not that France has got cheaper, its just that everywhere else has got blooming dearer. lol. Also people tend not to eat out in restaurarants 24/7, they do Barbies, picnics etc

Nels, I also did two of these hos with my kids when they were young, kids really liked it. By the 2nd year I realised you don't have to buy any new clothes, it's all so laid back and relaxed, no worrying about wearing the same outfit down to dinner in your hotel as you wore 2 days earlier.

Guy at work just drove to Rome and back, cost 600 in petrol, Filling tank once in UK, once in France, and once in Switzerland, and the same on return. So I guess it might cost about half that to drive there and back to the Vendee.

Plus you then dont have to hire a car while you are on holiday, if that is something you would normally do, so a possible saving of 200 pounds or so there.

With the number of small tour operators going bust, I think next year will find me taking an extra weeks holiday, driving down to Italy, catching the ferry to Athens and figure out where to go from there.

Thanks again for opening your mouth Mr Darling, or was it string operated by Gordie?

PARKY45 wrote:

With the number of small tour operators going bust, I think next year will find me taking an extra weeks holiday, driving down to Italy, catching the ferry to Athens and figure out where to go from there.

Thanks again for opening your mouth Mr Darling, or was it string operated by Gordie?
:think

I guess if we drive, at least we won't have to worry about airlines going bust.

Only problem is we might have trouble booking our place on the ferry or through the tunnel. As they will no doubt see an increase in bookings.

Hi Doepsmc. I really like the idea of this type of holiday but as you've said it's probably more beneficial cost wise for bigger families. Although if package holiday prices go up like predicted I my have to reconsider for 2010. Just glad I've already booked for 2009

It might be overbooked on the ferry, there could be another fire in the Chunnel, or the ferry could sink, but I won't let it spoil my time over there!

Or am I just depressed.

Never mind, I don't think my car will break down.

Inflation now at Gordie knows what %, I probably won't be able to afford the ferry prices anyway.