I Think I’ve Found The Perfect Family Hotel

When you’re pregnant with your first child, it’s not uncommon for someone to say to you “Make sure you go on holiday before the baby arrives! It’ll be your last relaxing break for 18 years!”

This is true to a certain extent, but what I’ve learned in the two years and five months since becoming a mum, is that you can definitely have the best of both worlds. There are brilliant UK hotels out there that cater for families – and not in a grotty soft play area next to the bar way – they have luxurious touches for the parents and kick ass fun for the kids.

I’ve made it my mission to seek out these hotels. My Safari Bookmarks folder is stuffed with them. I mean, how could it not be sheer heaven to wake up to this view…

…in a room like this…

…before taking a bath in this bathroom…

…and dropping your kids off in the complimentary Ofsted monitored crèche…

…having a spa treatment…

…spending the afternoon with the children…

…and then having dinner while the hotel listening service or babysitter makes sure your kids are sleeping soundly….

This is The Ickworth in Bury St Edmonds, Suffolk. I think I’m in love with the place. Part of the Luxury Family Hotels group, it seems to have that balance of grown up chic (beautiful décor, seasonal food, pampering) and family fun (space for kids to run around, swimming pool, garden games, outdoor play area and a cinema room). If you’re looking for kids holidays in the UK, you’d be hard pushed to find anywhere more perfect, right?

My friends with school-age kids keep telling me to take advantage of having a pre-school child. “Go on holiday LOADS now!” they tell me. “While you can get good value term-time deals!” And they’re right. We should be going on at least six holidays a year, shouldn’t we? That’s the logic I’m going to be using on my husband anyway…

This is a sponsored post but all views are my own.