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Tasha and her daughter at Vivosa Apulia Resort, heading to their hotel room. Our first family holiday to Majorca with two young kids was nothing short of a disaster. My eldest, then three years old, face-planted the sea after briefly escaping the clutches of her dad (cue: a lot of coughing, spluttering and a week of water-related anxiety for all involved). My youngest, who had just started crawling, developed a fascination for European plug sockets – she also managed to catch impetigo (probably from constantly licking everything she shouldn’t). The hotel’s kid’s club only accepted children from the age of four, we weren’t travelling with anyone else we knew so there wasn’t really any respite from childcare duties. We were just parenting in a new location, but with additional dangers to navigate. It was exhausting. I’d written off another family holiday until our youngest was at least four. That is, until I heard about Vivosa – an all-inclusive eco-resort in Puglia. The luxe hotel is sat a five-minute walk from a stunning sandy beach and crystal-clear ocean, with a plethora of pools and activities for all ages (including an award-winning spa) and, perhaps most importantly for toddler parents in need of a break, their Kids Club starts from age two. Go on, tell me more... Where is the resort? After an almost three-hour flight from London, the hotel is a 90-minute drive from Brindisi airport, so I made sure to pack lots of snacks and travel toys/activities for the kids. Check-in was quick and easy, we were given wristbands, room cards, WiFi codes etc., and then taken by hotel buggy to our room, which was in the ‘Corte Lilla’ (the hotel’s split into 10 different courtyards, with over 330 rooms in total). The first thing that struck me was how big the resort felt – and also how calm. It was early evening by the time we arrived and we were met with rows of palm and olive trees, manicured lawns and birdsong. (The serene resort is set in the protected pine forests of the Litorale di Ugento Natural Park.) What are the rooms like? After staying in multiple hotels where our kids have been sleeping in the same room as us (usually on a sofa bed and in a travel cot, cue: zero sleep), my fiancé and I were delighted that they had a separate (!!) bedroom with twin beds. Due to my two-year-old still being in a cot back at home, we opted to push the beds together and she slept on the side nearest the wall. This setup worked quite well overall – although I did see on our last day that the hotel has some bed guard rails on hand, so I’d definitely ask for one of those in future! The room itself is spacious with multiple wardrobes for clothes and shoes. The bathroom has a large sink, toilet, bidet and double shower. I loved the small details, like the retractable washing line that you can pull out in the shower. There’s also a door leading from the master bedroom to the garden area, where you can sit and read on a sun lounger during nap time (or simply nap yourself). The beach is a five-minute walk through the forest from the hotel. Let’s talk more about the Kids Club This is, without a doubt, what made the holiday so special. I love my kids fiercely and I enjoy spending time with them, but I’ll be the first to admit I was feeling a bit burnt out after months of work, parenting, and general life stress on repeat. My youngest caught a cough/cold the night before we went away and was then super clingy for the first few days of the holiday, which meant the first few days were spent lazing around the pool or heading back to the room for marathon-length naps. My eldest, meanwhile, got stuck in at the Kids Club and had a blast. Here’s what the daily schedule typically looks like for under-fives: 10am: welcome 10.45am: beach 12pm: back to hotel to get changed 12.30pm: lunch (yes, they all go together) 1.30pm: nap time (the older kids can watch a film and chill out) 3pm: pool 4pm: get changed 4.30pm: snack and activity (ie. crafts) 6pm: time to go back to parents. At 7.30pm the kids can meet again and have dinner with the rest of the children and the Kids Club team. There’s then a party/disco for them at 8.15pm. For children ages 5-7, the schedule is similar however they might do football instead of heading to the pool in the afternoon. For those aged 8+, they’ll do sports in the morning and then hit the pool, then they tend to head to the beach for water sports and fun in the afternoon. By the end of the holiday, both kids were obsessed with Kids Club (or “club house” as my toddler called it) which left my partner and I some much-needed time to unwind in the spa, grab a coffee (or cocktail) in the pool bar, or simply put our feet up and read for a bit. It was heaven. We visited the outdoor pool at the rear of the spa for a moment of serenity while the kids were at Kids Club. What are the best features of Vivosa Apulia Resort? The award-winning spa - you can get relaxing massages, facials, body treatments, beauty treatments (waxing, manicures, pedicures etc) and use the spa facilities like the outdoor pool, sauna, ice bath, gym etc. I got a 30-minute back massage and it was bliss. You have access to the beach which includes sun beds and parasols, as well as use of the beach bar (included in the all-inclusive package). You can book experiences through the hotel such as wine tasting or scuba diving. There’s a large playground on the way to the beach which is shaded by pine trees (and a great place to burn off extra energy). It also has a zip wire, which was a firm favourite. There are multiple pools including a shallow baby/toddler pool; a slightly deeper (but still relatively shallow) pool with three slides, which my four-year-old was obsessed with; and a couple of larger/deeper pools for bigger kids/adults, as well as the pool in the spa. Many of the pools are flanked by sun loungers and cabanas (the latter have curtains and are great for outdoor toddler naps in the shade!). There are tennis and padel courts, and also a football pitch, as well as several planned activities throughout the day such as sports tournaments, archery, volleyball, hydro fitness etc. The evening entertainment: live music starts up from 9.30pm outside the pool bar, while more fun and frivolity kicks off at the outside theatre from 9.45pm. The Kids Club, which welcomes kids from age two up to 17, keeps them busy from 10am until 6pm, then starts up again from 7.30pm until 9.45pm. They’ll even take your kids to lunch and dinner. What’s the food like? The hotel has two restaurants, however one of them (the pizzeria) wasn’t open when we visited. The main restaurant has a huge offering, though; in one room to the left of the food court, meat and fish are cooked to your liking on the grill in front of you; back in the main area, there’s a huge salad bar and I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many different types of bread. (The focaccia is also 10/10.) For those with wee ones, there’s a ‘bambini’ buffet area with pasta, rice, ragu, tomato sauce and veggies (basically all the stuff kids love). The salad bar has cucumber, cherry tomatoes and sweetcorn – which were our go-to greens – and there’s loads of fresh fruit available (apples, nectarines, pineapple, watermelon, kiwis, bananas etc). There’s also an antipasti area, soup, meat-based and vegetarian pasta dishes cooked fresh in front of you (these vary on a daily basis). And don’t get me started on the dessert table which changes regularly but you can find all kinds of fascinating tarts, cakes and flans. My toddler has a delayed egg and milk allergy so I was a little nervous about how easy it would be to find information about what she could and couldn’t eat, but every dish (except the desserts/cakes, although I presumed they all had egg and dairy in!) had a card in front saying which allergens were present. I would’ve loved to see more vegan (aka dairy- and egg-free) dessert options as I think she was a little bored of pineapple and watermelon by the end of the week, but we were certainly thrilled that the hotel’s delicious ice cream offering (served at the pool and beach bar) was all dairy-free. How much does it cost? All inclusive rates are as follows: Family Classic Room (1 king, 2 twin beds, 1 bathroom) from €289pp (approx. £245) per night Family Superior Room (1 king, 2 twin beds + extra bed/cot, 2 bathrooms) from €340pp (approx. £290) per night Family Superior Plus (1 king, 4 twin beds, 2 bathrooms) from €340pp (approx. £290) per night. Would I visit again? Without a doubt. We visited during half-term and the hotel is so huge it didn’t even feel busy – despite hundreds of families being on holiday there. We never felt the need to get to the pool early to bag ourselves sun loungers or had to fight our way through queues at the restaurant or bar – everything was very laidback, staff were friendly (especially the Kids Club team who clearly have the patience of 1,000 saints) and, in the end, everyone got their dream break. Natasha visited Vivosa Apulia Resort on a press trip. Related... I Was A Cruise Holiday Sceptic. 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