Activity Holidays for Children

There are literally hundreds of companies offering activity holidays for children unaccompanied by their parents. Most of the holidays are in Britain. Accommodation is usually pretty basic and the big draw is all the different activities that children can try. Some holidays specialize in one main pursuit – football, perhaps, or computers. Others offer a range of sports and hobbies.

Anyone can open a children’s holiday center. There are no official requirements to meet. In fact, the law makes it more difficult to start up a kennel for holidaying dogs. So you really need to check out a place carefully before you send your children to it.

Before you book, ask the following questions. Don’t book with any company that is not happy to answer them and won’t let you visit them for a look round when they are open.

• What qualifications and experience do the staffs have?
• What is the ratio of staff to children, not counting any administration staff? One member of staff to every six kids is a good average. Remember that a sport like archery needs a higher degree of supervision than football or cricket.
• Does an adult sleep in the dormitory with the children, or at least next door to them?
• Are there any qualified resident medical staffs and is there a doctor on call close by?
• Do the children ever have to leave the site? If, say, the riding stables or a river for canoeing is away from the center, how far is it and how do the children have to get there?
• What happens on rainy days?
• Will the children need pocket money?
• Does the company offer insurance and what does it cover?
• Will there be any extras to pay?
• If the center is in Britain, does the cost of the holiday include VAT?