[FishDUDE]

Hi all, the wife, kids and I are just back from a holiday in Devon, we have decided that next year June/July we want to go somewhere with good weather as it was a little wet to say the least on this years holiday.

Basically I'm looking for a villa with 4 or more rooms with a pool somewhere hot, the budget will be around £1000 per week for the villa and I would like to go somewhere that food and the like is fairly inexpensive. Also I'm going to invite my sister and niece along who don't have very much money so cheap flights to where ever from Exeter or a close by airport would be good.

I'm open to anywhere really I guess Europe would be best for flight prices and with 3 kids 6, 7 and 8 long flights are out and I would prefer to not need a course of injections before we go ( don't like needles)

We would be going for 1 and if I can stretch to it 2 weeks, any suggestions would be appreciated, along with an idea of the cost of living so I can decide on the length of the holiday - I think I would have to pay for everything while out their as I wouldn't like my sister to be getting into debt for the sake of spending money. I think so long as the villa was nice with a good pool and perhaps near a beach the kids would be happy and wouldn't need to many excursions.


Thanks in advance

Ewan

[FZR400RRSP]

Inexpensive once you're there pretty much rules out anywhere that's part of the euro.:-(
You're probably looking at Turkey or Croatia for a good combination of value/distance/heat.
Wherever you choose, use 'owners direct' for the villa.
No point paying the likes of 'James villas' money when you can deal straight with the owner.
As you've said, kids of 6/7/8 wont need excursions when you've got a pool.
Any time we've taken ours out on excursions, they just moan about getting back to the pool, so my efforts/time/money were wasted.
Next time we book a villa, we're going to spend more on the villa and allow less for excursions, simply no point.

[craig1912]

As above use Owners Direct- booked our villa about 10 times through there.
I'd look at Portugal (been there 6/7 times) Praia de Luz, Burgau, Carviero. Food and drink is good value, people friendly, great for kids and cheap flights to Faro.

Also a couple of good water parks nearby and Aqualand which is superb for kids.

[Ian J]

I'm lucky enough to have several villa holidays a year and whilst Owners Direct is a useful site I also use a couple of others too Holiday Lettings » Holiday Rentals, Villas, Apartments, Cottages and HomeAway Holiday-Rentals. UK's No. 1 for self catering villas, apartments & cottage holidays in Spain, Portugal, France, Florida, Italy & worldwide.

Spain and Portugal are fairly safe bets but you may want to have a look at Cyprus too as the villas in Paphos tend to be cheaper although you may end up paying as much overall with more expensive flights.

Lanzarote is another place that is great for families with Puerta Del Carmen and Playa Blanca catering for villa renters and again it may be cheaper than Spain

[FishDUDE]

Excellent suggestions so far thanks all, in everyone's experience is it better to wait closer to the time to book flights and a car or is it best to do it as soon as possible? Also the only experience of renting a vehicle abroad was a scooter in Crete and they were basically gangsters trying to scam us for extra insurance saying they would steel them back and we'd have to pay them fortunes if we didn't take it. Is it the same for cars? Or was I just unlucky ? I guess the big rental company's would be fine.

Ewan

[craig1912]

Flights are cheaper the earlier you book them.
Always booked our cars from Car Hire in Spain, Portugal, Malaga, Malta, Cyprus from all major airports - Economy Car Hire and had no problems (fully inclusive insurance)

[Ian J]

Originally Posted by FishDUDE

is it better to wait closer to the time to book flights and a car or is it best to do it as soon as possible?

Have a look at Carjet or Car Hire Market for car hire but most car hire companies will insist on extra insurance on top of the quoted rates.

It's probably a bit early to book for next summer but I like to book the villas as soon as possible as the better villas tend to be the first ones to go so the earlier you book the bigger the choice.

I tend to book cars as far ahead as possible partly as the prices are cheaper but also becaue most hire companies don't insist on payment until you pick the car up

Flights I tend to leave for a bit but still book fairly early (three or four months in advance) before the prices start to creep up.

[John]

Book early and on credit card. Prices can go down, but it would be a brave man that bets on it(especially after this summer) and CCard for protection against airline failure. You never know!

[dejongj]

You never know when to book for sure, there is always a risk associated with it...

This year as per usual we left it rather late only booked a couple of weeks ago...But I say a deal come in from Easyjet which meant flight for our family of 4 were £950'ish inclusive to Mallorca. Then I used owners direct/holidaylettings to see what was available and found a villa with private swimming pool and private tennis court available for two weeks in August which came to only £875/week...Hire car, Skoda Yeti size was only £350 for two weeks...

Must admit that I didn't find Greece particularly expensive to dine out last Summer...I have not idea about Mallorca, but even if it is, there is always a BBQ at most villa so happy days

[Ian J]

Originally Posted by dejongj

I used owners direct/holidaylettings to see what was available and found a villa with private swimming pool and private tennis court available for two weeks in August which came to only £875/week

That's excellent value as when I looked at the part of Majorca that you're going to it seemed much more expensive

[craig1912]

Originally Posted by dejongj

You never know when to book for sure, there is always a risk associated with it...

This year as per usual we left it rather late only booked a couple of weeks ago...But I say a deal come in from Easyjet which meant flight for our family of 4 were £950'ish inclusive to Mallorca. Then I used owners direct/holidaylettings to see what was available and found a villa with private swimming pool and private tennis court available for two weeks in August which came to only £875/week...Hire car, Skoda Yeti size was only £350 for two weeks...

Must admit that I didn't find Greece particularly expensive to dine out last Summer...I have not idea about Mallorca, but even if it is, there is always a BBQ at most villa so happy days

Weve just booked this weekto go to Mallorca for a week on 31 July. Flights from Bournemouth were around £300 each and a hotel(half board and quite posh) was £1500. Went to Greece in June and it wasn't expensive- some things were cheaper than last year.

[dejongj]

Originally Posted by Wore Nowt

That's excellent value as when I looked at the part of Majorca that you're going to it seemed much more expensive

Yes, although I haven't been there yet...It could be our first bad experience with owners direct

The trouble is finding real owners on the sites, I've given up on the agencies as they a) seem more expensive, and b) never update their availability dates...So a bit of data mining, but worth it...

[redaprilia]

Quality villas in the best location in Spain Luxury holiday villa with pool to rent in Spain & search Moraira -- you cant go wrong !

[marieballu]

Hello

Holidays in villas are of fun as people can enjoy their holidays on beaches with hot temperature and sea shores.

Caribbean islands are one of those where people like to visit because of their hot temperature.

Thanks

[FZR400RRSP]

We've just booked another villa through owners direct.
Got 10% discount for early booking from the owners, so a very nice villa with our own pool, which we really wanted, near Murcia in Spain is costing £580 per week, right in the middle of July.

[dejongj]

Sounds great

My wife is still making up her mind where she wants to go...I bet we end up booking in July again

[Kara Win]

Hey Dejongj. Have you thought about Italy? I would suggest you try to book holiday accommodation as soon as possible, as Ian J mentions the best villas rent out quickly. If you're still thinking about renting accommodation for summer, this website offers plenty of Italian villas for rent.