Holiday Type:            Villa Rental

Where:                        Cala D’or, Mallorca, Spain

Tour Operator:           www.hoseasons.co.uk

Na Burguera SMC021

Travel:                        Plane and Rental Mini Van

Party Size:                  8 (4 adults, 4 children)

Duration:                    7 days

Overall Rating:          Successful but hard work

Total Cost:                 £3,500 approx

We attempted our first holiday since the birth of our second set of twins when they reached 17 months.  Grandparents had agreed to come with us and we were glad that they did because we definitely needed the extra pair of adult hands.  We decided to find some sun and give the older kids a much needed beach holiday.

Our first hurdle was getting to the airport and managing the load that was our luggage, kids and buggies.   A friend of ours who also has 4 children gave us a number of a taxi driver who specialised in group bookings.  He drives a Mini Van which was ample for our needs.  We were dropped at the terminal so the struggle from the car park to the terminal building.  The cost of the taxi service was equal to the cost of parking two vehicles in long stay at Stansted Airport with the bonus of eliminating the hassle of getting from the car park to the terminal building.

Our second hurdle was checking in.  And a massive one it was!  Although we had arrived early and the check in desk hadn’t yet opened we experienced a long hold up with the process.  For some reason the Airlines check in system didn’t like the fact that we had two passports for two children of exactly the same age with the same date of birth in our family!  It didn’t mind the first set of twins but couldn’t cope with the second batch!  The Airline representative was frustrated and we were getting more and more delayed.  Why they couldn’t make the decision to use the old methods of pen and paper I’ll never know.  We had to go immediately to boarding from the check in desk.  There was no time for nappy changing, lunch or even a drink.  The 6 year olds could cope but it really wasn’t fair on the little ones.  We had to empty their beakers of water before going through security and we had no time to purchase refills on the other side because our names were being called over the loud speaker.

After struggling with our hand luggage and a double buggy and 4 children we were told by the ground staff to hurry up and run because they were holding the plane for us!  We had to climb down two flights of stairs to get to the tarmac and no assistance was given.  We had to carry the luggage, the buggy and the baby twins.  When we got on the plane the crew were much more relaxed and could see we had our hands full.  Of course, we got a round of applause and some sniggers from the passengers who were in a hurry to take off.  Typically those people are the non-thinkers of this world and I did politely ensure they knew it was out of our hands!

Finally, seated and aboard the plane ready for take off.  Very stressed and annoyed and hoping this would be the last struggle we had with our journey. All four children were brilliant on the plane and the surrounding passengers (the nice ones that is) all commented on their good behaviour.

Soon enough we touched down in Majorca.  It was hard work getting from the plane to the baggage arrival section because once again we had to lift the twins until we could claim their buggy.  It was apparent to us that we wouldn’t have managed at this stage without the help of our parents.

We had hired a Mercedes Mini Van which needed collecting at the airport.  To our dismay this meant being collected by a representative shuttle van outside the terminal building with all our luggage and being driven to the rental collection area.  There were other passengers doing a similar thing and as you can imagine it was a free for all when boarding the shuttle and no consideration was given to the fact that we were struggling with two young children plus everything else!  We needed 8 spaces but we managed with 6 and held the babies on our laps – not suitable.  Anyway, we got to the rental place and waited for our vehicle to be ready.  Eventually, it came and we climbed in happy to be independent from other means of transport.

We had the Mercedes Mini Van which took our entire luggage and our family comfortably on our journey to find our accommodation for the week.  The van was air conditioned and spacious.  Despite the children being hungry and tired of the travelling they all managed well and soon enough we arrived at our destination.

We were absolutely delighted with our accommodation, a beautiful old farmhouse which had been converted into a holiday home.  Very spacious, sleeps 8 comfortably and personally I feel you could fit more in with blow up beds! It had a large family table plus an area for al fresco dining, 3 bathrooms and was generally well equipped.

We chose the property because of the separate gated pool area.  Not many of the villas seem to have this safety issued covered and it was one less thing for us to worry about.  There was a garden area where the children could run freely and the view was of farming fields.  We often saw the goats walking with their neck bells ringing.  The only downside to the accommodation was its location.  Situated down a secluded country lane it was close by to everything but not on foot with small children.

The resort itself is fabulous.  Cala D’or is definitely somewhere I would like to return.  The beaches are perfect for children.  They are cove like and small with soft sand and tiny gentle waves.  We enjoyed the beach everyday despite our overcast and rainy weather – we were unlucky.  Once again, we realised that we wouldn’t have managed without the grandparents.  With the ages of children we needed a ratio of 1:1 to ensure their safety.  The 6 year olds were happy but still needed close supervision in the water.  This left two adults, one each for our very adventurous twin girls.  They would run off in different directions, they constantly wanted to be in the water.  In fact, it was far from the relaxing on a sun bed, sipping a cocktail and enjoying a book I remembered doing as a single woman!

Dining out in Cala D’or was easy as there were numerous restaurants and everyone wanted to make a fuss of the girls who seemed to be the main attraction.  Some restaurants were better equipped than others in terms of highchairs but we managed regardless.

There are plenty of shopping opportunities in Cala D’or should you wish to indulge.  We took a trip to one of the water parks which was a fun day out but other than that are holiday was focused on the beach, eating and drinking and relaxing in our farmhouse.

The return travel arrangements were the same as before but in reverse but without the problems at flight check in.

Would we go back?  Yes, when the girls reach aged 3 maybe 4 and we can manage without a buggy.