The holiday season is around. And most of us are busy planning our family holiday to beautiful locations. Or, have already planned the family holiday by now. And are looking forward to having a wonderful time with our family. But there are so many of us who want to plan a family holiday. But are constrained by factors. One of the major factors being need of additional accessibility. Either when traveling with elderly or other family members with special needs.
Although holidays are a great time to kick back, relax and get away from the strains and stresses of life, but when you have additional things to worry, about, the fun can be hard to find. Planning a holiday can be stressful enough without having to worry about accessibility. Whether you want to travel alone or with your partner, children, parents, siblings, or friends, you need to ensure that they are able to enjoy their trip too. And so do you.
The good news is it is very much possible to plan a family holiday when you need additional accessibility. To help, we have put together all you need to know about planning a family trip when you require additional accessibility, and the top tips to help your trip run smoothly. So, here we get started.
Make A List of Your Needs
Before you even think about booking a holiday, it is important to make sure you have everything covered. This will include making sure that you have booked an accessible hotel, as well as ensuring that you have made arrangements for any other needs you may have. For example, if you have a wheelchair user in your party, you should check whether there are ramps at the accommodation you choose. If not, you may need to consider another option.
Book Early
Booking early means that you can take advantage of special offers and discounts on hotels, flights, and car hire. It also gives you more time to plan what you want to do during your stay and gives you the chance to pre-book any activities or aids that can make your holiday more accessible.
Choose The Right Accommodation Type
When choosing where to stay, you need to decide between self-catering and staying in a hotel. Self-catering options give you more flexibility, which can be useful for members of your party with additional needs, but they come with extra costs. Hotels usually offer better value for money, but you may need to book ahead of time, and you may not have the accessibility features that you need. This year, we did a overnight stay at Mahabalipuram at Radisson Blu Mahabalipuram. And our kids totally enjoyed the facilities at the resort. Accommodation really plays a big role in making or breaking your holiday.
Choose An Accessible Destination
The destination is another important factor to consider. If you are going abroad, there are certain countries that are known to be more accessible than others, and it is a good idea to make sure that you do plenty of research before booking your trip. Like, when we planned our 2 weeks Europe trip with our 3 years old kid, we chose to spend 6 days in Italy, 4 days in Switzerland and a couple of days each in Amsterdam and Paris. This way, we knew we were going to stay in some of the best cities of the world. And we didn’t have to worry about any lack of facilities etc.
Choose The Right Holiday Type
Also when you plan a family holiday, key element to consider when you need additional accessibility is the form that your holiday will take. There are a number of options, and the exact choice will depend largely on the nature of your holiday, and just what your family needs. These include:
Short Breaks
These are ideal for those who just need a few days off work and don’t want to spend much time travelling. They are perfect for people who are looking for something relaxing and low stress and can be great for a first holiday, or something relatively familiar. Also, short breaks are easy to plan, don’t need too much travel packing and are easy on the pocket as well. Particularly with elderly, kids and those with special needs, short breaks are a perfect way to enjoy a quick family holiday without having to stress too much on how to plan a family holiday.
We keep taking short breaks with our family now and then. And really enjoy them. We have taken several such breaks with our little kids and our elderly parents over the past couple of years including a trip to Channapatna along with Sula Vineyard visit, a vist to Chitradurga Fort, a quick trip to Palampur, a stacation at coorg etc.
Longer Holidays
To plan a family holiday for longer trips can be great for families and groups of friends who want to explore new places and see some sights. However, they can often involve long journeys, so it is important to make plans for how you will manage this, and determine whether your family will be able to manage. We have done some very long trips with our parents and our second kid who was not even one year old at that time. Including a trip to Thailand. These trips definitely need more advanced planning. Also, we did a 2 weeks stay in Goa wherein we worked from Goa. While our family enjoyed the resort facilities and the beach.
Adventure Holidays
These are great if you want to go somewhere adventurous, such as skiing, climbing, or diving. They are also good for families who want to try out different sports, and many places have a number of adaptations and facilities available to make them easier to use.
Family Holidays
For families, holidays are generally about spending quality time together. That doesn’t mean that everyone has to like each other! But it does mean that you need to make sure that everyone feels included and that you can accommodate everyone’s individual needs. We did a family holiday to Shimla and Manali years back when our elder kid was just 1.5 years old. It needed a little bit extra planning as the kid was way small for a very cold travel destination. And also my father in law had a knee problem so it was difficult for him to navigate rough terrains of the mountains. But, we did it successfully !!
Contact The Travel Operator
Once you know exactly what you want from your holiday, the next step is to contact the travel operator to discuss your options This will allow them to arrange all the details, including finding suitable accommodation and arranging any special requirements. Although, we plan our own travel most of the time. We have done a few trips where we have taken help from travel operators. Particularly if you have a family member who has special accessibility needs then taking help of a travel operator eases things a lot. As they can take the hassle of the meticulous planning for you while you can just focus on enjoying your holiday!
Find Travel Insurance
Another essential to consider is insurance – and this is particularly important for families with additional accessibility needs. This will allow you to cover yourself against any potential problems that might arise, and ensure that you get the best deal possible.
Final Thoughts
While planning a family holiday when you have additional accessibility needs can feel daunting at times, finding the right accessible holiday for you and your family can be easier than you think.
By taking these steps, you should find that you can enjoy an unforgettable experience, whatever the destination, and can build amazing family memories that last a lifetime.
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