On the whole, a self catering or rental holiday is cheaper and more flexible as a family accommodation option than staying in a hotel and a very family friendly accommodation. It gives you flexibility and space to fit your family’s needs and your children’s routine and you have more privacy than staying in a hotel. There are great self catering options here in Ireland and you can book them here with Gulliver Ireland the biggest provider of self catering properties in Ireland with over 2,500 Tourist Board Approved properties.  Most self catering requires a few nights stay and in some cases can mean a seven night stay with a Saturday arrival so take this into account in your search. 

The Apartment Service also offers a range of apartments in major cities as does booking.com.

If you have any tips or great experiences do let others know on the forum. You will also find lots of family friendly travel tips and advice in our research and advice section.

Self catering facilities can vary enormously and it is really a question of getting what you pay for. Top end properties will have TVs with satellite channels, DVDs, dishwashers and good quality furniture and more basic accommodation can mean that you have more simple facilities.

At first glance self catering holidays may not seem much of a family holiday or a break from the home routine. The reality is however, that you can always eat out and in fact you will probably end up doing this anyway if you stay in a hotel. Self catering is also a great family accommodation option for large family reunions and groups of friends who wish to holiday together, perhaps staying in cottages or houses around court yards with shared facilities.

Top tips for booking self catering accommodation

Check with the brochure, the owner or on the booking website whether the property is suitable for children. If it is not appropriate such as being filled full of antiques or has extremely high quality furnishings both you the owner and you may be uncomfortable with this as an option.

Before you book, check out how far the accommodation is from the facilities you wish to visit such as theme parks, local towns, shops, restaurants and public transport. Investigate whether the property is on a busy road or down steep steps and whether you will need to hire a car. If times are given check if they are by car or by foot and read between the lines.

It is important to check how many bedrooms and beds there are. If children are supposed to sleep in bunk beds, whether or not there are safety rails.

Enquire also about linen and how often it is changed and if you need to bring any towels or sheets. Proprieties at the lower end of the market may be more limited in this regard.

If you are going for the self catering accommodation option, organizing babysitting can be a little more difficult. Try to make contact with the owner or the self-catering company where possible and see if a good reliable baby sitting service could be made available.

Children have a finite amount of time that they can spend in the back of a car and while you can fill your car with interesting car games and things to do, getting to new destinations with children can bring obvious difficulties. We would suggest that you check the directions carefully before you set off and be absolutely clear as to your check in times as to allow for changeovers and cleaning you are not usually handed the keys until mid - afternoon whereas you have to leave a property usually first thing in the morning. Consider this also before you book your flights as you may wish to avoid a very early morning outbound flight.

If you are booking self-catering accommodation in an aparthotel or where the self catering accommodation is attached to the hotel check what facilities you are allowed to use. In some cases there are no restrictions on your use of the hotel facilities and in other cases there are restrictions so you need to manage your expectations. In other cases it may be possible to eat breakfast in the hotel to you really get the best of accommodation and the benefits are off the use of the hotel in its entirety.

You will find lots of family friendly travel tips and advice in our research and advice section to help you book the right family holiday. Check out also the experiences of other parents and travellers in our parents forum and add your own experiences as we are a great believer in real parent's experiences as the best measure of whether somewhere will suit you for your family holiday. 

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