- Maddie Fears on Hols, The Sun, February 9 2008
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“Madeleine McCann’s disappearance has had a dramatic effect on parents holidaying abroad with their children. A survey by family travel website takethefamily.com has found British parents are less likely to use hotel’s childcare services. Sixty two per cent of parents said they are not less likely to leave their kids in the care of hotel or resort staff. Take the Family’s managing director Lucy Ace said “The Maddie case has definitely made parents re-evaluate their holiday childcare – whether it’s baby listening devices or qualified baby sitting. The result of this survey shows the incident has made parents think again.”
- Madeleine McCann disappearance putting parents off hotel childcare, The Telegraph, February 2 2008
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Parents are less likely to use hotel baby childcare services following the disappearance of three-year-old Madeleine McCann while on holiday in Portugal last year.
A survey by family travel website www.takethefamily.com showed that 62 per cent of parents were now less likely to leave their children alone in their room using baby listening, or in the care of hotel or resort staff.
"The tragic disappearance of Madeleine McCann has obviously had a dramatic effect on parents' attitudes," said Lucy Ace, managing director of Takethefamily.com. "Such incidents are extremely rare but it has definitely made parents re-evaluate their holiday childcare - whether it's baby listening or even qualified babysitting." However, a quarter of those polled said recent news stories had had no effect on their attitudes.
"Holiday childcare has become increasingly sophisticated, with resorts and hotels offering supervised cinema clubs and children's activities while parents have dinner," she added. "Fully vetted babysitting and nanny services using local or British-qualified staff have also proved popular in recent years but this survey shows that the Madeleine story has made parents think again."
A total of 425 families took part in the online poll.
- The best baby travel websites , The Times Online, March 19 2007
-
Take the family
With lively writing and bags of humour this is definitely the best read of the lot. But it is its exclusive offers that make it really stand out. Ten per cent off many exciting Imaginative Traveller holidays (fancy a trip to China anyone?), and other deals with many more run of the mill family stalwarts such as Thomson, Sunsail, Simply Travel, The Mediterranean Experience and Siblu.
It also has a meaty discussion forum. A recent thread touched on the best tour operator for new families: Mark Warner v. Powder Byrne. Clearly a much more relevant topic for new parents than the Tony Blair v. Gordon Brown debate!
- Barcelona has been voted No1 city for family short breaks, The Sun, December 02 2006
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The Spanish city pipped London to the title by just over one percent in the poll on takethefamily.com.
Dublin came third, followed by Paris and Rome. Website boss Lucy Ace said: "More and more families are enjoying short city breaks.
"City hotels are offering family packages with inter-connecting rooms, kids' menus as well as free entry to zoos and other attractions. Families couldn't get enough of Barcelona."
- Most families can't afford hip hotels and five-stars. So how do you go about finding a holiday on a budget? We show you , The Guardian, October 21 2006
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In 14 years of planning holidays with kids, one thing I've learned is that you shouldn't expect a bargain. In a way, a bargain isn't what you want, anyway; the most important thing isn't that you save money, it's that you get value for money, that you all have a fabulous time, and that everyone manages to stop fighting long enough for you to get that we're-all-having-a-wonderful-time snap for the family album. To get value for money, the most crucial thing is timing your booking. "Book either very early, or at the last-minute," says Lucy Ace of travel website takethefamily.com. "And think very carefully about timing. If you've got younger kids, never holiday when the schools are out." Families with older children should consider going abroad during the May or October half-term, he suggests, when villa rental can be cheaper (although bear in mind that airfares can be as expensive at half-terms as during the summer).
- Hey Mum, Let's go somewhere eco-friendly, The Independent on Sunday, September 24 2006
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According to a recent survey, 86 per cent of parents say they take environmental matters into account when choosing a holiday. The other 14 per cent pay no heed to green issues - they want "a holiday, not a science trip". But if you're among this minority, you're not long for this world. Eco-friendly family holidays are here to stay: the research, carried out by holiday website takethefamily.com, shows that people with kids are more likely than anyone to book low-emission escapes.
- Why
parents have to take their kids on holiday during school term time,
GMTV Website, January 2006
- More than 75% of parents say it is OK to take their kids on holiday
during school term time, according to new research. As Tony Blair
plans to introduce £50 fixed-penalty notices for parents who play
"holiday truant", 78% of them have rejected his plans in a survey
on family travel website www.takethefamily.com. Despite the threatened
fines, the "Every Lesson Counts" campaign, as well as travel industry
plans to offer discounts and free child places during school holidays,
parents are still planning to take their kids out of school during
term time to save money.
- The
Best Sites (no.2), Guardian Unlimited, Families and Children, September
2005
- Covering family-friendly resorts available to British travellers,
Take the Family does pretty much what it says on the baby-bottle.
The relentlessly chirpy pages can occasionally feel a bit too simple.
But they hold a solid mine of basic information, arranged in simple,
easy-to-navigate pages (seemingly designed to resemble a jolly village
crìche) that never threaten to flood the busy parent with superfluous
detail. The site is uncomplicated without being under-informed, and
lighthearted without being frivolous. Look, book, go - all from one
place. Recommended
- The 50 Best Travel Websites (no. 24), The Independent, April 23
2005
- Associated with the Lastminute.com empire, this family-focused site
matches the IT skills of the big company with the skills of a small
organisation to meet the holiday needs of the parent. The site points
out that city breaks can work even with young children, and suggests
"the wonderful restored carousel" in New York's Central
Park. It also provides advice on dealing with jetlag on the way home
from America, suggesting you opt for a daytime flight. "These
leave New York at around nine in the morning and arrive in London
at nine in the evening. Carriers offering daytime flights include
BA, Virgin Atlantic and American Airlines." For destinations
elsewhere, the offers - and prices - are so enticing that I almost
took my test bookings a stage too far.
- Follow
the experts, The Guardian, Feb. 19 2005
- We ask four family travel specialists for their top tips on where
to go and stay. Read
the article.
- High
season help for families, The Guardian, Feb 12 2005
- Tour operators are offering hundreds of pounds off family holidays
as part of a high-profile government campaign to discourage parents
from taking children away in term time. The Department for Education
and Skills has teamed up with the travel industry to produce a leaflet
listing special offers during the peak months of July and August to
tempt families to book early..........Andy Cook, managing director
of takethefamily.com praised the initiative. "Families are caught
between a rock and a hard place because there is such a price difference
between going in June and high season," he said.
- The
Good Web Guide, Jan. 2005 - Take the Family's website is excellent
and the place to book your holiday in the sun or snow. 5 stars.
- Take the Family specialises in hand picked holidays and breaks that
will keep everyone happy...The pages are uncluttered with good sound
advice on resorts, accommodation and what to do. It's honest and up
front with an easy reading style. If you are looking to book a night
in London with a show, a cottage hideaway or a two week block buster
holiday in the sun, Take the Family will have plenty of ideas. Affiliation
with some top travel agents, Lastminute.com ranking amongst them,
has Take the Family's finger firmly on the button and being able to
offer some fairly exclusive deals.
Monthly newsletters keep you informed of good deals and the hot places
to be seen with babe in arms.
- Yabba Dabba Hols, The Sun, Nov. 27 2004
- Are your family like the Flintstones, Osbournes or Windsors?
Family travel specialist Take the Family reckon they have identified
three levels of holiday spender and have named them after three of
the world's most famous families.
FLINSTONES are three-star trippers who look for value before luxury.
The OSBOURNES like a bit of bling at a reasonable price and are more
likely to travel four-star.
And those after a once in a lifetime, blow-the-kids'-inheritance,
five-star luxury trip could only be the WINDSORS. Andy Cook, director
of Takethefamily.com, says the company's new Family Budgets offer
a quick, fun assessment of family breaks.
He says, "Familes can switch between budget levels and, for example,
pick a Flintstones week in the Canary Islands over half-term then
treat themselves to a Windsors break at a luxury UK hotel with childcare."
Presumably, Osbournes leave the kids at home to look after themselves.
Check out the best deals for all budgets on www.takethefamily.com.
Or call 0845 644 0216.
- The
Times, Oct. 23 2004
- For every holiday sold at www.takethefamily.com, the company will
donate £1 to the Family Holiday Association, which helps provide
holidays for families disadvantaged by disability, bereavement, abuse,
depression and illness. This year, the charity expects to help more
than 1,000 families.
- The
Times, Sept. 11 2004
- Ever wondered how the family in row 19 of the plane managed to get
all their seats together and all the children fed first? A new online
service aims to take the mystery out of arranging family holidays.
Designed by parents for parents, www.takethefamily.com provides advice,
information, inspiration and booking services for flights, accommodation,
holidays and car hire. An agent will even ring you to discuss specific
needs such as interconnecting rooms.
- Our
Favourite New Website, Web User Magazine, Issue 90, Aug. 2004
- Web User Gold Award - 5/5 stars - "Get ready for a day of family
fun with the help of this excellent site - full of ideas for parents
and children."
When Nasa recruits technicians to work at mission control for manned
space expeditions, it's stipulated that they must have children. After
all, if they can organise a trip for their family, a journey into
space is a cinch by comparison. A one-stop shop for destination information
and booking, this new website, supported by travel sites lastminute.com
and Real Holidays, offers jaunts across Europe and includes exotic
locations in the Caribbean, South Africa and Sri Lanka. Each resort
has a brief synopsis on its attractions, diversions and why it makes
for a good family holiday, but crucially the breaks are geared towards
families. Worthy of a gold star and a rusk, not least because the
site has vital holiday preparation tips for mums and dads that could
save the kids from boredom and the parents from stress overload, the
essential songs and games for peace and harmony should prove useful
indeed.
- Global Magazine, Aug. / Sept. 2004
- The site has stacks of good ideas....it's well laid out with a clear
and simple design.
- Website of the Week, The Daily Express, July 10th 2004
- EVERY mum and dad who dreads the words "Are we there yet?"
when the car is barely out of the drive should log on to www. takethefamily.
com. The new site, designed by parents, features suggestions on how
to prevent toddlers and teens from getting bored. Download songs and
games, plus tips on how to cope on a long-haul flight, car trip, train
journey or ferry crossing. Users can also book holidays worldwide,
and the Where To Go section lists pros and cons of various destinations.
- Website
of the Month, Handbag.com, July 2004
- If the prospect of summer holidays is already starting to cause
panics, help is at hand from a new online travel service. Designed
by parents for parents, TaketheFamily.com is the first service to
offer advice, destinations and booking all in one place. 'We're hoping
to make it easier for parents to become more adventurous in planning
trips,' founder Andy Cook said. 'Family holidays don't have to be
just bucket and spade, although the best ones still often are. Nowadays
families can do pyramids and sphinxes, lions and tigers, whales and
dolphins and even bungee-jumping and white-water rafting. Whatever
their needs, we aim to become the first place every parent should
visit.' Supported by travel and leisure expert lastminute.com and
award-winning family-holiday specialists Real Holidays, the new site
includes a wide range of things to do, from adventure holidays in
the Far East to family musicals in the West End. It even recommends
Swallows And Amazons for the kids to read before their trip to the
Lake District.
