Being a single parent is not the easiest job in the world, you may never have anytime for yourself, or you may have limited time with your children and then going on family holidays as a single parent can then throw up its own separate challenges on deciding what to do where to go and what type of holiday you’re going to do. Whether it’s going to be just you and your children or if you’re going to join a group trip with other families, both have their benefits, and as a former single parent traveller these are my pointers, suggestions and stories about what it’s like as a single parent traveller.
Benefits of Solo Travel with Kids
Bonding Time
As a single parent I didn't see my child every day, and so holidays with my son were an extremely important part of the year as it allowed me to spend an extended period of quality time with him, without the distractions of home life. During my holidays with my son we have learnt to surf, scuba dived, seen some of the world’s fantastic sights and most importantly to my son, met Spider-Man!
Create Memories They'll Never Forget
You can often have shared laughs and the chance to build some highly treasured memories for your family on holiday - and we certainly did that!
One of our favourite memories, particularly for my son, was in our attempt to get as much time as possible away, we ended up having to charge through Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris in a mad dash to catch our flight with both the luggage and my son on the trolley and me running it all across the airport … we made the flight of course!
Planning Your Ideal Getaway
Choosing Kid-Friendly Destinations
Firstly, you'll need to pick a time and country to visit that's suitable for both parent and child. The process that worked well for me was looking at places that would appeal to both of us, whether it was down to something linked to what he’d learnt at school, whatever his current interests were - as we all know, children often like a lot of things and that this can also change quite quickly - I would think if there were any activities or places linked to a TV show or film we’d seen that may interest him. Next, I’d narrow it down to three different options and talk him through the ideas to see which one he would become most excited about.
Budgeting for Single Parent Holidays
Part of the planning process was to make sure I had enough time to book well in advance, as this would allow me to secure the best price for the trip as possible, and put me in a position to be able to pay for it over time. Now this can be particularly important as the earlier you can do it the cheaper or more economical it can be, particularly for flights. Many airlines, if you book early enough and you book through a tour operator, mean you can pay a small deposit and manage the cash flow in a less stressful way. Or if you have to use a low-cost airline, the fares are cheaper and again means the deposit you pay, although higher, is much less than if you leave it to closer to the time.
How to choose between a Group tour or private family holiday?
Now, probably the biggest choice in your planning process is whether you choose to do a private trip or join a group trip. I have done it both ways and enjoyed both, and my personal opinions of the two are:
Group Trips
Group trips are great fun and can take a lot of the pressure off you as a single parent in trying to organise which accommodation to stay in and what to do when you’re on holiday. Many parents choose to go on a group trip for this exact reason - after all, we’re busy people and free time to do all this is not always easy to come by! If you’re embarking on your first holiday as a single parent, and you’re not overly confident about travelling as a single parent, then a group trip is the best option. The reason for this is that you have the support of your tour operator, assistance of local guides and everything planned out for you, with the added bonus of other families on the holiday with you, meaning that your children get the opportunity to make new friends and enjoy the company of other children. Let's be honest, as they get older, they don’t want to hang out with us the whole time! On group tours, there are other adults around, so that you can also get some much-needed adult conversation and company.
Our Active Croatia, Northern Lights Adventure, Vietnam Family Adventure and Wild Costa Rica trips are regularly guaranteed departures, meaning we already have other families booked on them.
Private or Tailor-Made
This type of holiday means you can have all that time together with your children and have real quality time together, which is so precious, for me, this was the main benefit of taking a private trip. Other positives are that you have much more control on where you go and what you do on your trip. You can tailor your holiday to tick the boxes for everything you and your children want to do, which hotels you want to stay in, plus have the services of a local guide to show you around.
Both our group tour and tailor-made holidays have 24-hour support, meaning someone will be on hand if required whilst you're abroad.
Packing and Preparation Tips
Essential Items for Smooth Trips
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Snacks for the journey
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Travel games, devices for when you're on downtime and travelling, books etc.
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Favourite soft-toy for bedtime
Organising Travel Documents
Certain destinations require proof that you're actually a parent or legal guardian of the children, and/or permission from the other parent that you can take the child on holiday. This information and documents required can be found on the relevant page on the FCDO website.
Stress-Free Travel Strategies
The most important thing about a family holiday is to go out there and enjoy it together. All the hard work has been done, and now it’s time to relax and make those memories! When the holiday is finally here, there are a couple of handy hints to consider.
Navigating Airports & Flights
Get to the airport early, allow yourself plenty of time to negotiate checking in and getting through security. No child likes having to wait in long queues, and it reduces everyone's stress, making for a more relaxed and enjoyable start to the holiday. I always get to the airport 3–4 hours early so I can get rid of luggage quickly, go straight through security and then have time to sit down and have a meal and for my son to be able to watch planes take off and land. This also allows plenty of time for toilet stops before having to get on the flight!
Keeping Kids Entertained on Journeys
Take enough snacks, books and entertainment for the children to eat, read and use on the flight, as they'll get bored just sitting there not being able to do anything else. This also applies to any transfers you have during the holiday, your guides will do their best to keep everyone entertained, but a long drive is a long drive, and they’ll need it!
Our best holidays for single parent families
There are some great places to go as a single parent. We recommend countries like Spain, Gozo, Malaysia, Thailand, Egypt, Morocco and Montenegro - all of which are family-oriented countries. I've also taken my son here, and they were easy holidays as he was looked after well by everyone - from guides to hotel staff.
Whilst it seems daunting at the beginning, single parents can rest assured that any family holiday you take through Families Worldwide, we understand the process and what support both you and your children need in order to have the best time together! All our family holidays are action-packed with activities that are perfect for kids, with some great for teenagers too.
To find the perfect single parent holiday for your family, speak to our expert team. Alternatively, browse our holiday search or calendar, which details each trip per school holiday.
