Going on - or preparing for - a family holiday can be stressful especially if you are trying to please various age groups and have a relaxing time yourself! So a book that gives you the facts and highlights is most welcome.
Travel with Kids is an attractive book, clearly laid out, well-written and packed with useful information and tips especially in the Essentials chapter which covers everything from tour operatiors and best buys to what to eat and drink and staying healthy.
Then follows sections on countries or areas of the world. Each chapter starts with a map, an interesting introduction outlining a few highlights, plus two pages is billed as Kids' Stuff which includes books to read and a recipe to make a typical speciality of the region. There's also a Tots to Teens spread which somewhat incongruously includes a paragraph at the end for single parents!
The amount of space given to a country or area was probably decided by the popularity of the destination so France, Italy get their own chapters, Spain and Portugal and Greece and Turkey share one while the countries of Asia or Africa are all lumped together and therefore have less information.
This is my one criticism of William Gray's Travel with Kids really, I - and probably most parents - would have liked more information on the more unusual or far-flung destinations especially from a family holiday point of view.
Travel with Kids is a great book to dip into and it will certainly give you a taste for travel and perhaps make you consider places to holiday that you would never have thought of before.
I don't think Travel with Kids is the "definitive guide" but it makes a great starting point for any family holiday.
To order a copy of Travel with Kids from Amazon, click the link below:
