Our guide to booking your family hotel
Going on holiday with children isn't always easy. How do you make the right choice from all that's on offer? A rental, a holiday village, a hotel or even a campsite... what's best for your little family? There are advantages and disadvantages to each of these 4 main types of tourist accommodation. Nothing is ever perfect. This article aims to help you weigh up the pros and cons of a family hotel stay for your next trip to France.
We've structured the guide in a fairly simple way. In the first part we'll tell you about the different types of accommodation in family hotels (room, suite, connecting rooms...). We will then present the main services offered by children's hotels. Finally, in the last section, we'll look more generally at the geographical location of family hotels. The idea is always, in these three parts, to list the advantages and disadvantages of such a stay.
Family hotel accommodation!
Accommodation features are an ultra-important dimension when you go on a family holiday. The accommodation must be adapted to the family and the way they function. When you stay in a hotel with your family, you're in a room. What do we mean by a room in tourism? Well, we're talking about accommodation without a kitchen. You may have a mini-fridge, but that's it. This absence of a kitchen is clearly the difference with flat or mobile home type accommodation.
It should still be noted that there are many different types of room within family hotels. The simplest accommodation is the room, then the suite, then the connecting rooms. The suite is larger than the room and sometimes has a separate sleeping area for children. Communicating rooms are made up of two classic rooms that communicate from the inside. Connecting rooms are very interesting when staying with very small or very large children. In fact, the sleeping area is completely separate, allowing babies or teenagers to sleep while the parents are awake!
Some hotels have suites that connect with bedrooms. This type of accommodation is particularly suitable for large families. As far as the types of beds found in family hotels are concerned, it depends but more and more are single beds. These beds can often be moved closer together, so there's no need to worry.
The primary advantage of family hotel stays is to be found on the price side. Smaller rooms are inevitably cheaper than larger ones. The disadvantage is space. When you're going away as a family, and especially with a baby or teenager, you need more space and a hotel stay may prove a little complex.
Focus on family rooms in hotels or aparthotels
In Familytrip destinations, we offer rooms for all families! These range from double or single rooms with the addition of a cot to family rooms or suites for large families. In the case of very large families, we'll suggest residences or aparthotels to keep the budget down. The ratio between a hotel and a hotel apartment for a large family can vary by as much as double, because in a hotel you are obliged to go to the restaurant most of the time. In cities such as Paris, Lyon or Rennes, the best option is to take public transport to the city centre and stay in an aparthotel on the outskirts. In Paris, for example, an aparthotel in Montrouge or near Roissy airport rather than a hotel on Rue de Rennes means a saving of €200 on the final bill between the 2 offers, and just as much more for your budding travellers' activities! You might prefer a family-friendly area of a big city like Lyon rather than being next to Saint Exupéry airport, which is a bit far from everything.
As you will have realised, family rooms generally stop at 4 people, whereas in an apartment hotel you can easily go up to 6 or even 8 people. This means that you don't need to take 2 family rooms in a hotel, but rather just one flat. The services included in a hotel apartment are the same or almost the same as in a hotel: quality bed, wifi included, possibility of breakfast-type restaurant offers, parking, baby cot, etc... However, it is rare to find an apartment hotel with a children's club, although there are hotels with clubs, and it is in these destinations that you will find all-inclusive packages or packages with meals included. The all inclusive offer is great for travellers who don't want to move too much from the hotel, have everything included, and rest.
These family rooms work in the same way in the city in Paris or Lyon or on the seaside in Saint Cyr sur Mer or Saint Jean de Luz. All destinations have customer reviews but beware of the stars. The criteria for rating an apartment hotel are not the same as for hotels. It is reputedly easier to have a 4-star apartment hotel than a 4-star hotel... The rates for nights spent in the 2 types of accommodation are not unrelated, but are nevertheless far apart. You can look at the reviews of travellers in our Familytrip club who have already booked a stay, the average rating will give you a good idea of the overall quality felt by the establishment.
What do family hotels offer?
To compensate for smaller room sizes, hotels offer as many activities as possible to keep families occupied. Hotels that offer little or very little activity are generally not suitable for families or only for families passing through (stopping off on the way to the trip).
There are therefore many and varied activities in hotels: swimming pool, heated swimming pool, indoor swimming pool, water park, petanque pitch, kids' club, games room, playground... the activities are sometimes endless. Services can also be offered for parents with sports activities or wellness services: spa, massage...
Some family hotels offer excursion-type activities for families. These types of activities are often offered in starred (or even very starred) hotels. So that parents can rest, and not spend too much, family hotels often offer a lunch service or even half or full board.
Where are family hotels located?
On Familytrip we have selected the best hotels for family holidays. In France, you'll find this type of hotel mainly in the mountains and on the beach. However, there are hotels for families in some small country villages. In fact, to develop the local economy, some local authorities have invested in tourist accommodation. These country hotels, which are admittedly a little out of their depth, offer a wide range of services to cater for families. In general, the price of these hotels is relatively lower than that of beach or mountain hotels...
You now have more information to help you make your choice for your next family holiday. A word of advice, a hotel is fine but it depends on the age of your children and the level of service on site!