How do you decide on your next family holiday? Possibly glued to a laptop screen. Well here’s an interesting alternative that involves the kids.
Today I took a trip to Olympia (10 minutes’ walk from West Kensington tube if you don’t fancy waiting for an Olympia train from Earl’s Court). It’s a small exhibition taking about a third of the second floor exhibition space but proves inspirational for parents looking for holiday ideas and fun for the kids.
Most of the stands offer something to amuse the kids while mum and dad talk holidays. There was a floor world map where you had to place country stickers in the right place. Tree identification on The Woodland Trust for the outdoor enthusiasts. Many stands offered sweets too.
The Mark Warner stand had bright red deck chairs and a fabulous photo booth where you could dress up before having your photo taken. In the Bushcraft zoned there was a table where you could sit and complete the survival quiz. The diving zone had lots of fish pictures. There was a geography inspired game of Twister on the Catalan Tourist stand. Lots of small people got quite excited about getting a free furry hippo at the Explore! stand.
The Lonely Planet Kids stand had lots of tables and bean bags and a host of colouring and creative materials. There were two amazing play dens – one fairy pink and another seaside blue – on the Win Green stand for those whose travels are of the imaginary kind.
On the CBeebies stand – featuring the Sharp Shooter Photo Club – you could learn about taking photos. One young participant was taking shots to make his toy dinosaur look giant size. There’s an Around the World Theatre where you can watch videos and listen to talks about some of the most amazing holiday adventures available – there’s a jam-packed schedule running through both days of the event.
Kids enjoyed interacting with a unicorn character on the large Go Jetter stand – where again there were lots of low tables and chairs where kids could get involved in a variety of creative crafts including mask making.
And there were lots more stands with ideas for family holidays – including skiing, catered chalets, safaris and resorts - in such far flung places as Black Forest, Botswana, Malaysia, Norway (Northern Lights), Saint Lucia, Sri Lanka, Tenerife, Thailand and even Zambezi. But there were also some domestic holidays featured – including those in Scotland and Poole in Dorset.
I was intrigued at the volunteering opportunities at Kaya Responsible Travel Company and the 30 free sports available at Lanzarote’s Club La Santa. Although I was surprised that there weren’t more exhibitors offering holidays of the camping kind.
And there’s Slice café if you need some refreshment.
The show is open today and tomorrow (2nd October). Adult tickets are £10 and kids go free.
http://familytravelshow.com/
