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Kinderhotels - a great family holiday
If you fancy a relaxed family holiday away from crowded beaches, you'll find a Kinderhotel in Austria a refreshing change
The Austrian-based brand of Kinderhotels caters especially for families, and offers a blend of child-friendly and comfortable accommodation, great activities for the kids, and relaxing 'me time' for parents. Each hotel is different, ranging from luxury hotels with spas, to simple Alpine farmsteads, but they all adhere to the Kinderhotel philosophy of 'Children are not just tolerated, but treasured'.
We spent time in Gina's Adventure Hotel at Lake Faaker in southern Austria, set amongst stunning mountain scenery. The hotel is beautifully arranged with indoor and outdoor swimming pools, children's play areas (including soft play and bouncy castle), tennis courts and a small cinema.
Family holiday fun
The array of activities, for both children and their parents is staggering. Whole family activities range from Nordic walking, canoeing and mountain biking, while kids can sign up to the diving, swim or theatre 'schools', play football, go fishing, paint t-shirts - the list is endless.
The great idea behind Kinderhotels is that the whole family can join in any of the activities together (we had a great time fishing and then took a tractor ride to the woods for a treasure hunt), or the kids can be entertained by the specially trained staff while the parents relax, take a yoga class or be pampered at the spa.
Kinderhotels love an event, and there seems to be something that every child (and parent) would enjoy, ranging from a Knight's Tournament (which went down a storm with my seven-year-old, who wore full knight's armour, wielding a sword), to Water Olympics and magic shows. For older children, Gina's offers a night spent in a tepee, with songs and stories around a campfire.
'Me time'
The spa at Gina's Hotel is an oasis of calm, where parents can indulge in cosmetic treatments and massage; they also offer a variety of Ayurvedic treatments. If you do fancy a couple of child-free hours, there are fully qualified childminders to keep the little ones amused, keeping in contact via the 'babyphone' system (you pick up a mobile phone on your arrival, which can also be linked to the phone in your room for when the kids are in bed). Kids care at Gina's is offered free from Monday to Friday from 10am until 8pm and on weekends from 2pm until 8pm.
Room to manoeuvre
The accommodation is spacious, with various forms of 'apartments' to choose from - ours had a living area, three bedrooms and a huge family bathroom (with two adult sinks and a kid-sized sink) - and come equipped with everything you need as a family. Cots, high chairs, bibs, buggies, bottles and baby food - there was even a spare dummy - are provided, along with 24-hour medical service and free laundry facilities.
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