Good family holiday destinations for every type of family

Where’s a good place to take your family on holiday? Well, it depends on what kind of family you have! Are you thrill-seeking adventurers, active relaxers, or happy just chilling at the beach? Do you love or hate the summer heat or the winter cold? Young children might need a few home comforts, whereas teenagers will want to know if there’s Wi-Fi. (Or maybe the whole point is to get them away from their devices!)

Whether you’re looking for a family trip close to home or a completely new place to explore, a short break or a bucket list adventure, we’ve got some great family holiday destinations for you.

 

Holiday ideas for young families

Finding the right destination is the key to holidaying with small children. Staying close to home on an Australian staycation can be a good option since there’s no need to organise passports, worry about what to feed fussy eaters, or think about airline luggage limits. It’s also not impossible to find an overseas holiday destination that caters to your whole family’s needs, especially if you opt for an all-inclusive resort which offers kids’ clubs and babysitting services. Let’s look at both.

 

Holiday at home

Start making a list of good family holiday destinations for young children in Australia and you’ll soon find you’ve got enough activities to keep you busy until your toddlers have grown up and left home! Here are a few you may not have thought about. 

  • Canberra – visit The National Dinosaur Museum, check out the petting zoo and miniature train rides at the Yarralumla Play Station. 
  • Tasmania – take a trip through the rainforest on the West Coast Wilderness Railway.
  • Kangaroo Island – the kids will love tobogganing down the sand dunes, and meeting the kangaroos, of course!
  • Phillip Island, Victoria – cute penguins, beautiful beaches and a chocolate factory, what more could you ask for?

 

All-inclusive family resorts

The Pacific Islands are known for their relaxed way of life, which sounds like the perfect vibe for a family holiday, especially if you’re travelling with toddlers. Check out Fiji, Rarotonga, Vanuatu or Samoa for some fabulous family-friendly resorts offering a full range of kids’ activities and childcare facilities so the adults can also relax into holiday mode. From family-size suites to kids-eat-free deals, your every need can be catered for.

 

Holiday ideas for active families 

Some families just don’t like sitting still! If holidays with your tribe involve constant questions like “What are we doing today?” or complaints about being bored, you’re going to need a way to keep them entertained. We suggest a family ski trip or cycle tour. Both are ideal ways to explore Australia’s great outdoors and work well for shorter holidays if you’ve only got a week or so to enjoy your time away together.

 

Family ski holidays

With the Southern Hemisphere’s largest ski area right on our doorstep, why not take the family skiing or snowboarding at Perisher? As well as a wide variety of terrain to cater for all abilities, there’s tobogganing and tubing available for the younger ones. If you’d like an overseas experience, check out our guide to the Southern Hemisphere’s best ski resorts. A short flight across the ditch to New Zealand's adventure capital, Queenstown, will also put you in easy reach of the mountain resorts of The Remarkables, Coronet Peak, Cardrona Alpine Resort and Treble Cone. Never tried skiing or snowboarding or don’t have the gear? Don’t worry, the resorts all offer lessons and equipment hire, usually as part of a package, and the instructors can teach anyone from toddlers to grandparents!

 

Family cycling holidays in Australia

If it’s a summer holiday you’re after, riding The Great Victorian Rail Trail is a fun way to spend time with your family. The 134km long trail between Tallarook and Mansfield is graded ‘easy’, so you don’t have to be a super-experienced rider to tackle it; however, it does pay to have a reasonable level of fitness. There’s a range of accommodation types available along the route, from caravan parks to luxury lodges, and the trail itself is free, so taking the whole family along for the ride doesn’t have to cost a fortune.

 

Family riding bikes

 

Overseas holidays for active families

If you’re looking to venture further afield, how about a family surf holiday in Hawaii? With warm weather all year round, beautiful scenery, friendly locals and, yes, some of the world’s best surf beaches, Hawaii ranks as one of the top holiday spots for kids. Away from the water, Hawaii is also a great place for hiking. Tire out the teenagers on the Koko Crater Trail with its 1,048 steps to climb or start younger children off with a gentle stroll through the rainforest of the Manoa Falls Trail.

 

Holiday ideas for adventurous families

If you’re looking for family holiday ideas which include a healthy dose of adventure, we’ve got you covered.  Thrill seekers will love the Gold Coast’s theme parks, or if you’re feeling intrepid, how about trekking in the jungle, exploring ancient ruins and seeing wild elephants in Sri Lanka or Thailand?

Flying to Thailand or Sri Lanka takes around 12 to 13 hours, but once you arrive, you’ll find food and accommodation are much cheaper than at home, which frees up more of the budget for fun activities! Think: an exhilarating zipline ride (with a licensed provider!) in the hill-country village of Ella in Sri Lanka or visiting the beautiful waterfalls in Chiang Mai, Thailand. 

 

Family at a waterfall

 

Gold Coast theme parks

Closer to home, the Gold Coast’s many theme parks make for a great destination for adventurous families. With a different theme park for almost every day of the week, there's fun for every age group, but it does pay to do your research before you arrive as some rides are not suitable for young children. Dreamworld offers more gentle family and kids’ rides as well as a chance to meet friendly characters like the Bananas in Pyjamas. If your big kids are game to ride Australia’s largest rollercoaster, head over to Movie World for your adrenaline fix.

 

Holiday ideas for beach-loving families

For many of us, the best family holidays simply require a good beach. Whether that means a tranquil spot to sit and read a book while the kids build sandcastles, or somewhere that offers water sports galore, we’ve got some great suggestions on where to park your towel.

 

Family on the beach

 

Family beach holidays in Australia

We’re lucky enough to have many of the world’s best beaches right here in our own backyard.  The hard part is narrowing down where to go. Noosa on the Sunshine Coast is the ideal spot for first-time surfers. If you’re looking for warm, calm waters where your little ones can paddle, Sydney’s beaches deliver in spades (pun intended!).
 

Bali beach holidays 

With its family-friendly resorts and welcoming atmosphere, Bali ticks the boxes for a good family holiday destination. Add in its beautiful beaches, and you’re all set for the holiday of a lifetime. The calm, shallow waters on Nusa Dua make this an ideal spot to bring young children while Lovina Beach in the north offers swimming and snorkelling as well as dolphin watching. 

 

For nature-loving families

A Kiwi family holiday

New Zealand’s Rakiura Stewart Island is the ideal overseas destination for nature-loving families with its rural location and variety of walking tracks. Here, you can spot kiwi birds in the wild, rare marine life such as hioiho/yellow-eyed penguin and kororā/little penguin, as well as mutton birds and albatross.

 

Meet the local wildlife 

Of course, we also have all sorts of interesting wildlife right here in Australia, and a family holiday is the perfect excuse for a nature tour. You’ll come across kangaroos and emus in The Grampians just three hours from Melbourne, crocodiles in the Daintree Forest near Cairns and cute quokka on Rottnest Island near Perth. There’s nowhere quite like the Great Barrier Reef for swimming, snorkelling and scuba diving with clown fish and turtles amongst stunning coral gardens. 

 

Do I still need travel insurance for a family holiday in Australia?

Family holidays take a bit of planning, but if you’re staying in the country one thing you might not have on your to-do list is travel insurance. While Medicare may cover medical treatment, what you won’t be covered for is costs incurred if you must cancel your trip. We recently covered a claim for $4,685 for a family when, during a trip to Mackay, in central Queensland, their 15-year-old was hospitalised with acute appendicitis which required surgery. The family had to cancel the remainder of their trip and return home early. 

Learn more about our domestic travel insurance.


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