Searching for the Perfect Family Holiday in the UK

Travelling can be a great big ball of stress, it is the reason why you see so many feuding families at airports. Everyone’s stress levels are turned up to the max,and getting to the airport and going through the various security checks can be many to breaking point. Petty arguments begin to take hold whilst people rush around to stand in queue for hours. It can lead to a bad start to the holiday, not the sort of thing that you planned to happen all the months ago when you booked the break.

Norfolk Broads, UK by Russell Smith

More than a stay-cation

I was fed up with the airport stress ball and decided that I would do my best to avoid this situation occurring to my family. So the airport is out of bounds this summer, no matter how tempting the last minute offer appear to be I will resist them. Instead my holiday this year will be in the UK. I was at one point considering a ‘stay-cation’, but felt that returning to the family home each evening would make the time of work feel like a proper holiday. I considered a family holiday in the Peak District, thought the natural beauty of the area, would help calm us all down and slow the pace of life. However, I decided that the summer weather has been so bad this year the chances are that the peak district will be grey and damp this summer. I wanted to focus my attention on the southern counties. Which is why i decided to focus my attention on the southern counties.

Boating holidays

It didn’t take me long to find what I wanted, a relaxed family break, and I booked a boating holiday on the Norfolk Broads. Boating on the Broads i thought I would give the perfect base for a fun active holiday full of walking, cycling, fishing and horse riding. Plenty to keep me and the kids entertained for a couple of weeks. I am even considering booking wildlife walk, which is not normally my kind of thing.

Norwich Cathedral, UK by Rachel Clarke

Do as I please

One of the big appeals of a boating holiday for me was the ability to stop and start as and when it pleased me. If I fancied mooring up in Norwich for a couple of days to experience the big city life for a while, then I could. This is pretty much what i plan to do as I have never been to the ‘fine city’ and plan to spend a couple of days seeing some of its highlights before I begin my Broads adventure. What’s in Norwich I hear you ask well this is just the start of it but to name a few;

• Two cathedrals
• A mighty fine example of a Norman castle
• Boutique shopping area – no multi national brands allowed here.
• Music and arts hubs
• Market

Plus the bonus for me is that right next door to where I can moor up is a bustling riverside area that boasts many restaurants and bars, perfect for kicking of the holiday in style.

Boat time

Once I have done the tour of Norwich, then the relaxation time begin as we enter a slowed down world where you travel along between three to six miles per hour. The thought sounds so strange as living in a big city I am used to zipping around all over the pace, normally on my bicycle which is four times that speed! Hopefully this slowed down world will help me to absorb more of what is going on around me, give me more time to appreciate nature.

Fritton Lake Country Park near Gt Yarmouth by Michelle Simmons

More than a boating holiday

I am a little concerned that too much time on a boat will begin to become a drag. So I intend to drop in a few days out to get us all off the boat for a while. When I started looking into possible day trips I realised that Norfolk and Suffolk are full of great day out possibilities. I have listed a few that are on my shortlist for you:

• Zoo – Africa Alive, Banham
• Redwings Horse Sanctuary
• Pleasurewood Hills
• Fritton Lake
• Dinosaur Park

Written on behalf of Holiday Lodges in Norfolk specialists – waveneyrivercentre.co.uk

Tags: airports, boating holiday, boating holidays, boating on the broads, feuding families, natural beauty, norfolk broads, norfolk broads boating, norwich cathedral, peak district, petty arguments, proper holiday, queue, russell smith, security checks, southern counties, stress ball, stress levels, summer weather

Category: Travel Tips, United Kingdom