Holidaying with Four Children

We have recently returned from our first holiday with four children and we had a wonderful time.  I never expected to write this post feeling rested and refreshed but actually our short break was exactly what we all needed and I have come home with happy memories and significantly less stressed!  

We decided for our first trip with four aged five and under that we would stay in the UK and we picked a caravan park down in Sussex for a Monday to Friday break.  Being a family of six, caravans become one of the easiest places to stay as we can all fit in one unit, we have the space to eat our own meals and spend some down time and we can put the children to bed and still stay up together as a couple.

I chose Combe Haven site for many reasons, the location, the facilities and the fact it had a couple of clubs that worked for both the big boys ages.  I will be writing more about that soon though.  The boys love caravans and so they were really excited when we revealed where we were off to and they loved the lifestyle of a caravan park - having the doors open so they could come in and out, scooting around with new friends, eating bbq's outside and having all the ammenities within walking distance.

One of the best ways we found to enjoy holidaying with four small children was just to relax.  Usually I like to plan all sorts into our days so that we make the most of our time away, but we took it slower this time and followed their lead more and it made everyone a bit more relaxed.  We made the most of everything we had paid for already - the holiday clubs, the swimming pools and parks and the big open spaces that come with being on  a caravan site.

It was Cora's first holiday and being only 2 months old it is rather hard to say whether she enjoyed it or not.  Her brothers loved having her around though and asked for cuddles even more than usual.  In the absense of play mats and toys we put her down on a duvet on the floor or in her carrycot and they enjoyed having her as part of their play.  She had her first experience swimming and she was relaxed and content in the water and she slept really well in the caravan so we are considering it a good holiday for her too!

So after 5 days experience, I thought I would share my top tips for travelling with lots of little people.

1) Don't plan too much into your days.  Some days the boys just wanted to explore where we were, or they needed a lie in, or they just wanted to spend some time together without really doing much.  We went out and did something every day, but keeping it simple kept everyone happier.

2) Choose your accommodation wisely.  We went for the three bedroom above the two even though both would fit us all in and we upgraded to the prestige caravan too as I wanted us to be comfortable and to have space to spread out.  Obviously if you are planning to be out all day every day then it isn't so important but if you are just after a change of scenery and are planning on making the most of where you are then it is worth going for the best you can stretch to.

3)You don't have to go far to get away.  We ended up chosing somewhere that was less than a two hour drive from our home.  It meant that we didn't have to worry about a long car journey with a newborn but it felt far enough from home to be novel and we enjoyed exploring somewhere none of us had been before.  The boys would have happily had a holiday in the same town we live in, as they were just excited to have our undivided attention and a new home for the week.

4) Let the children pack their own bag.  Ours took a trunki and although I found the contents rather random (apparently they needed one pretend egg with them), they loved the build up excitement of packing and the toys all got played with (even the egg).  I added in some extra Lego Duplo which was a great idea as all three boys could play with it when they wanted some time inside.

5) Matching clothes are actually really useful for keeping an eye on them all and to help locate any children that have a tendency to wander off (Archie).  I can't resist a bit of matching anyway but I feel like I have a real excuse when we are on holiday! I pack one outfit for each of them into a fabric bag before we go so that each morning I just grab a different bag and know that I have everything I need to get all four ready for the day.

6) Whilst you have come away to enjoy family time, divide and conquer is still a great motto.  With four it isn't easy to give any of them one on one time, but there were evenings when one of us would stay at home with the babies whilst the other took the bigger boys to the arcade so that they could have different experiences. 

7) Staggered bedtimes can work really well.  Ours normally go to bed at the same time at home, but the small caravan bedrooms meant it was easier to put them to bed one at a time as they were not going to go to bed nicely if they went together.  It worked out quite well as they all had a little one on one time whilst one of us read them a story and tucked them in.  Each night the order changed depending on who seemed the most tired.

8) Try and pick one thing each to fit into your holiday.  You can't please everyone all the time, but everyone getting an input makes it a holiday for all.  Dylan was desperate to go to the arcades, Finn wanted  to swim and Archie loved the park.  Ed wanted to have a bbq together outside and I wanted to have a little time to sit outside and just read my book (Cora was too young to express her wishes but she loved having her naps in the pram outside during the day)

9) Time things right and make use of nap times to do things with the older children.   We went swimming a couple of times and never had to take all four in the water as there was always one asleep.  We were allowed to take the buggy on the side of the pool which made it so much easier and meant that the child to adult ratio was more favourable!

10) Relax and enjoy it.  It will never be as easy or relaxing as holidaying with one or two, but watching them explore and bond and enjoy themselves is amazing and having four children is no reason not to go away.