Six steps to a great holiday With Your Family

Planning a family holiday can be a nightmare - particularly if you want to try somewhere new. Which beaches have clean toilets and safe bathing? Does the campsite have a supervised toddlers pool? You might even forget how fantastic a great family holiday can be – creating the shared experiences and memories that will stay with your family for a lifetime.

Frommer’s With Your Family travel guides have done all the legwork for you – so you can can sit back, relax and concentrate on having fun. Here are a few tips and tricks from the guides on making your next holiday trouble – free.

1. Plan ahead. Those carefree days of trusting your trip to an out of date travel guide and a handful of euros are well and truly over. It’s the small things that can make or break a holiday – such as already knowing which local restaurants will cook ‘off the menu’ to please small fussy appetites or which hotels really are ‘child-friendly’.

2. Involve the kids. It’s the best way to get them interested. You can start even before the holiday has begun. Ask them to research the destination, the local towns, language, music and so on. You could have family based quizzes based on this information. Your children may have fun putting together a scrapbook of pictures about the places you’ve visited or will be visiting. There’s lots of material available in travel brochures and online. You can also contact tourism boards for free information packs. The With Your Family guides have lots of other suggestions for getting your children involved such as suggestions for suitable books, music and films. Visit www.frommers.co.uk to download your free holiday activity pack.

3. Prepare for the journey It’s an unavoidable evil but if you think ahead, you can make it a little bit easier. If you’re flying take a handy bag with all the essentials as well as plenty of toys and games. At the airport, reigns or harnesses for toddlers are essential – it only takes a second to lose a child. Don’t check in the buggy – you’ll be glad of it if there’s a delay. If you’re driving, plan stops along the route – such as a swimming pool or park and don’t forget a cool bag of drinks, snacks, fruit and disposable wipes. CDs, talking books and a portable DVD player will also help things along.

4. Find a balance Remember, you’re on holiday too. A little research before you go will pay off big time and help build flexibility into your schedule. Pick activities that the whole family will enjoy – not just kids. And if you want a few hours ‘off duty’, you’ll be glad you checked that the hotel has a kids club before booking.

5. Be safe: As everywhere, hold hands with young children and don’t let them out of your sight unless they are being supervised by someone you trust. Avoid situations where your child could get swept away in a crowd. Make sure your children have your mobile number and accommodation address on them. Beaches can be lethal: you lay back and close your eyes for what seems like a second, and when you open them your child is nowhere to be seen. With the sea close by the potential for disaster is clear, The rule is to take it in turns to flake out while one parent keeps watch. You can also buy wrist worn monitors with adjustable distance alarms.