Child's Play

These family-friendly destinations have the summer holidays sorted.

Edited by Daisy Finer

Costa Navarino, Messinia, Greece

Children are notoriously easy to please; adults with children, on the other hand, are somewhat harder. Luckily, there’s plenty to keep both camps happy for a week or more at Costa Navarino. The resort encompasses two five-star hotels and is single-handedly taking on the task of bringing the Messinia region of Greece, in the southwestern part of the Peloponnese, to life through the highest quality environmentally and socially responsible tourism. Check in to The Westin resort with the whole family, where the kids can hop between two outdoor pools and an impressive water park, enjoy a game of basketball or tennis, go climbing or even go-kart racing. Or you can drop them off at the Sandcastle and Cocoon club, where there’s full-time childcare available for children from four months to 12 years old. You’ll then be free to enjoy your own private pool, book some spa time, or head down to the beach for cocktails and calamari at the excellent Barbouni beach bar. The nearby pretty town of Pylos is worth an afternoon explore if you can drag yourself away from the resort.

Book it: Red Savannah offers seven nights B&B for a family of four (with children under 12), including flights and transfers, from £4,262. redsavannah.com

Curtain Bluff, Antigua

Perched on a secluded palm-strewn peninsula, overlooking clear waters with a jungly rainforest backdrop – you’d be hard-pressed to find a more jaw-dropping location for a family sojourn. Two glorious white sand beaches flank the resort; restaurants, bars and an excellent watersports centre create a buzzing hub on the south beach, while the north side is the spot to chill. Pathways through tranquil tropical gardens lead to contemporary suites and chic airy duplexes – some with private dip pools. All rooms offer spectacular sea views. The all-inclusive, family-run resort, opened over 50 years ago, combines the ultimate in laid-back Caribbean luxe with a warm family ambience. Watersports, basketball and a jungle gym keep active teens busy, and at the Cee Bee Club little ones take part in cookie decorating, crab races and fishing off the dock. There’s also a games and movie room and a dedicated teen spa menu. Restaurants transform from relaxed buffet lunch spots by day, to candlelit dining by night. Menus change daily and include everything from local grills to creative vegan delights. Something for everyone.

Book it: Inspiring Travel Company offers seven nights all-inclusive, from £12,299 per family of four, including flights and transfers. inspiringtravelcompany.co.uk

Belmond Le Manoir Aux Quat'saisons, Oxfordshire, UK

You might not necessarily mix children with two Michelin stars together for a first-class recipe, but surprisingly enough Raymond Blanc’s exquisite Oxfordshire affaire de coeur is as welcoming to nippers as it is to eager epicureans. You can even bring your dog, though naturally not to the kitchens. Here is where you must book in for a day’s family cookery course (from £555 per adult and child, from 9am till 4pm), which – gratifyingly for the children – will include something chocolatey. You’ll eat loads, so in order to work up an appetite again for dinner, grab your kids and dog to discover those enchanting gardens that are maintained to such a high standard they might make Monty Don blush – seek out the kitchen garden whose produce will no doubt be on your plate later on. Guests come here because there’s no compromise on perfection, but that doesn’t mean it’s stuffy; you can happily dine on ingredients presented as the best-ever version of themselves, while the kids chow down fish and chips (Raymond style, granted). The staff don’t bat an eyelid, making the whole experience magical.

Book it: Deluxe room B&B, from £695. belmond.com/le-manoir-aux-quat-saisons-oxfordshire

The Fish, Cotswolds, UK

As if ravishing views of quintessential Cotswold countryside weren’t enough, The Fish reels in guests with the promise of laid-back, woodland luxury too. Chiseled out of a chunk of the 400-acre Farncombe Estate, this hillside retreat offers a collection of quirky houses, huts and three stunning new treehouses. Each arboreal pod sleeps a forest-loving family of four (kids are in their own bunk bed room with a stash of books and a giant jar of jelly beans) and there are two Siberian larch baths on the outdoor deck for splashing under the stars. At The Lodge – the hotel’s social hub – the restaurant serves sublime fish and seafood, but larger families staying in The Farmhouse might like to barbecue on the open-air feasting deck. A dedicated on-site activity company can organise archery, crossbow and axe throwing, Segway safaris and all-terrain vehicle trips, while tiddlers can enjoy the compact Kids Play Zone that uses reclaimed/recycled wood and old aeroplane tyre chippings for the floor. The picture-perfect village of Broadway is a mere 20-minute yomp across verdant fields.

Book it: Treehouses start from £370 per night, B&B; The Farmhouse sleeps up to 15 and starts from £1,200 mid-week, £2,400 at the weekend, B&B. thefishhotel.co.uk

Forte Village, Sardinia

Forte Village is probably the only hotel in the world to have employed Parisian ballet star Roberto Bolle, tennis prima donna Ilie Nastase, rugby player Will Greenwood, boxing champion Frank Buglioni and Marvin the magician. They have all taught academies at the one-stop 40-acre luxury holiday complex in Sardinia which caters for all with film studies, table tennis and dance. The star is the Chelsea football academy where competitive little alpha boys are taught by Roman Abramovich’s Chelsea trainers while their parents can listen to open air concerts, relax on the beach by the pool or in one of the 21 restaurants. There’s a Gordon Ramsay, a Schuhbeck and a Mahiki... and few would realise that hidden behind elegant palm trees there are nine four and five-star hotels and nine villas from €30,000 a week. There’s also a new fencing academy and a private spa, where you can be massaged in mud inside an opaque glass box, alongside six thalassotherapy pools, ayurvedic medicine consultations and yoga.

Book it: Seven nights half-board from £1,189pp for a family of four, including transfers and return flights with easyJet. citalia.com

Villa Clarisse, Île de Ré, France

If you long for the summers of yesteryear, take a look at Île de Ré. Easily accessed via an arching bridge from west coast France, it’s a 30km slither renowned for salt marshes, sandy beaches and miles of cycle paths. Parisians see it as their Hamptons. Pack an appetite and sunblock but leave your sausage-skin cycling kit at home – this is no place for MAMILs (middle aged men in lycra). Villa Clarisse, with the reassuring stamp of Relais & Châteaux, has just nine suites and is one of the island’s most charming residences, an 18th-century mansion in the heart of Saint-Martin-de-Ré. Interiors maestro Pierre-Yves Rochon had a hand in the design – spacious rooms in crème fraîche shades, ancient flagstones and shuttered windows, carefully edited furniture and touches of modern rattan. A small dining room caters for breakfast or eat in the garden where a sandpit and swimming pool keep little ones at bay. Excellent fishy suppers can be booked at sister property, Hôtel de Toiras, a short walk away. The staff will happily indulge any whim such as picnics or in-room massage and don’t miss the best ice-cream – caramel fleur de sel.

Book it: Doubles from £184 room only. villa-clarisse.com