Family Friendly Stays #11
Welcome to Family Friendly Stays #11
The summer holidays are just around the corner. Are you heading abroad or staying close to home? It’s amazing how many attractions are waiting to be discovered if you decide not to go on holiday over the summer break. I’ve recently updated a blog post about things to do near us in Hertfordshire. I originally put it together after panicking that I had six weeks to fill with two small children. There turned out to be endless free and cheap things to do close to where we live near Hertford.
This summer we’re doing something rather different. We’re going on a four week road trip around Europe taking in mountains, lakes, rivers and beaches along with lots of great food and wine. The trip will involve a couple of thousand miles of driving, four overnight ferry journeys and an overnight train journey. We’re staying in a range of accommodation: campsites, farms, a youth hostel and a couple of hotels. Our most southerly point, and the place I think I’m looking forward to most is a campsite on the east coast of Corsica where we’ll have access to river swimming, mountain walks and wonderful sandy beaches.
If you’d like to follow along on our adventures, I’ll be updating our travels sporadically on Instagram.
For our trip, I’ve tried to book us into small, independent places to stay, the farms sound brilliant: family run, good value and from my correspondence with them so far, great hospitality.
Last month on Family Friendly Stays, I really loved the review of Sloeberry Farm by Deborah at Grand Adventure Story. So much so in fact that I’m considering booking a trip there for my family next summer.
For this month’s Family Friendly Stays, I’m linking up my post about camping in the Cotswolds at Far Peak Camping. We picked the site for its climbing centre which the kids really enjoyed. We’ll definitely return for more climbing sessions in the future as it was really well run. The campsite was brilliant too: lots of space, good views and good facilities.
**** Family Friendly Stays will be taking a break in August and September, see you in October! ****
What is Family Friendly Stays?
Family Friendly Stays is a monthly blog link up where you can share blog posts about brilliant places you have stayed at with your family. It’s also the place to come to if you need some family holiday inspiration.
Have you rented a great little cottage which had a perfect garden for your children? Maybe you’ve stayed on a campsite with the most amazing swimming pool which your kids loved. Perhaps you found that all-important villa which allowed you to walk to a restaurant or a beach. Or maybe you stayed at a hotel where the staff were particularly warm and attentive to your family. It doesn’t need to be a place which is obviously family-orientated, just somewhere which worked really well for you and your brood.
This isn’t the place for all inclusive resorts, big chain hotels or cruise ships. There are plenty of online resources where you can find out everything you need about those types of holiday. Family Friendly Stays is about highlighting smaller, harder to find places to stay.
I’m hoping that Family Friendly Stays will become a community of like-minded parents sharing places to stay that genuinely welcome families.
Posts can be old or new provided you still believe the property is suitable. And if you’re not a blogger, do drop by to have a read of some of the submitted posts, you might discover your next holiday destination!
How it works:
- Family Friendly Stays will go live on the first Wednesday of each month. It will stay live for 2 weeks.
- Bloggers can link up one post, old or new. Please add the #FamilyFriendlyStays badge (details below) or link back to my site.
- Please read my post plus at least 2 others, using the hashtag #FamilyFriendlyStays. We want to share these wonderful places you’ve all discovered.
- Social media: tweet me your post with the hashtag #FamilyFriendlyStays and I will re-tweet it (@smudgedpostcard). I’ll also be adding the posts to my #FamilyFriendlyStays board on Pinterest and mentioning my favourite posts each month on the @SmudgedPostcard Facebook page. Add an image of your #FamilyFriendlyStay to Instagram and I’ll do a round up at the start of next month.
Grab Badge:
If you enjoy staying in independent, characterful properties, keep an eye on Smudged Postcard: changes are afoot to include a directory of holiday accommodation recommended by like-minded families.
