Finding Family-Friendly Accommodation in the UK

Travelling with babies and young children can be a stressful and exhausting experience, and parents looking for accommodation will need to make sure that their choice of place to stay makes the experience easier rather than still more complicated.

Whether you are staying in a big city such as London or in a tiny village in the back of beyond, booking a hotel that offers extras such as cots, baby baths, high chairs and any other essentials that families with babies and young children will need. Some hotels can even go the extra mile and provide lists of accredited babysitters and childminders, while others may have games rooms and adventure parks to keep older children entertained and out of trouble.

The type of children’s activities and facilities will depend to a large extent on which part of the country you are heading for. A hotels in a Scottish ski resort such as Cairngorm National Park, for example, is much more likely to offer extensive children’s facilities than a hotel in Loughborough or a Braintree hotel.

But even if you are heading to a small town or a destination that is not geared towards family tourism, many hotels will still be able to offer those essentials that will make your stay as stress free and enjoyable as possible. Before being lured in by a bargain, check with your chosen hotel whether they can provide cots, baby baths and any other items essential for travel with young children. Getting a bargain room at a cheap Birmingham hotel may not seem like such a fantastic deal if you find out that there is not in fact anywhere suitable for the youngest member of the family to sleep. Holidaying as a family can be a wonderful experience, but it takes a lot of planning to make sure that everything goes smoothly, so do make sure you double check that the hotel can cater for your children’s needs.

If your kids have special dietary requirements, don’t be afraid to ask if they can cater for them - for example, if you have a child with a wheat intolerance, many good hotels will be able to source wheat-free bread for breakfast or at the least should be able to provide wheat free cereals such as cornflakes, together with fruits, yogurts and other such suitable treats. The principle ‘if you don’t ask, you don’t get’ certainly applies to travelling with the family, so don’t be shy about asking whether a hotel can provide something to meet your family’s needs.