Taking the kids to France

the realpigiron

Hi

Wondering if any Boards posters with kids could give us a bit of advice about bringing kids on holiday to France. Our kids are 2 and a half and 1 and a half. We were thinking of going by boat because last time the 2 year old kicked up a fuss on the plane. Nothing serious but embarrasing for us and probably annoying to other passangers. Does anybody have any experience of bringing kids to France by boat. If so would appreciate any insights you may have.

Thanks

Wantobe

We go over one or two times a year.

Do you intend to go off season or in Summer?

I would highly recommend you look into booking a good cabin. At this stage we go for the best cabin but it adds serious money to the price of the fare. The best cabin is 330 one way in Summer. In this kind of cabin you get a double bed, a tv ( to which you can hook up your own dvd player), a mini fridge stocked, two breakfasts, and another 'room' with a sofa bed which is also like a double room but all joined together. Two windows, a coffee table where the kids can do colouring etc, your own bathroom, bathrobes, etc. Very nice.

If that's too expensive do try to go for an outside one ( ie with a window) and be aware that if you go for the four bed ( ie two sets of bunk beds) the space is too small for a travelling cot, so you should bring a bed guard to prevent the tot rolling off in the night. Go as high in the boat as you can as the ones lower down tend to have more fuel fumes.

In the summer there are all sorts of entertainments on the boat, but your children are a bit too young for them anyway. There is a soft play area, restaurants, a cinema, a swimming pool, hairdressers etc.

On Irish Ferries the food is horrible( don't get me wrong, you'll survive, the breakfast is okay and there are chips and nuggets, sausages etc for the kids). On Brittany ferries the food is nice. If we go via IF we bring as much food as we can with us for the journey.

If the weather is good the journey can be smooth. If the weather is bad, yes it can be rough. We've been a couple of times when it was very bad off season but nothing you wouldn't handle.

The quality of the room you can afford will determine the amount of sleep you get!

Our children love the boat but have been going over and back since they were babies. Honestly it's fairly nice for kids, we bring colouring books, small new toys as distractions, our own dvd player and our own food and we usually have a grand time.

Any questions, just ask.

the realpigiron

Thanks Wantobe. Useful info there.