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Henrik Trygg www.imagebank.sweden.se
Post from 15/12/2011

Why not something more sociable?


Melissa lives with her husband and children in London, grandma Mary and grandpa James are in Manchester, Jason and his girlfriend call Brighton their home – they like many other families are spread out over the whole country! Make use of public holidays or a week of vacation for a family holiday. Instead of visiting the grandparents at home meet up in a chosen holiday domicile. Start the day with a family breakfast and afterwards everyone can find something that they want to do. A large holiday house is ideal for this: Every family member has enough space and in evenings one can sit together, cook, play, talk and recite old family stories. A charming aspect: When the grand parents are on board then the parents will have some time for themselves.

Bewirtschafteter Bauernhof in Gelderland
Choose one person who will assume responsibility for organising things – someone who knows the preferences and tics of all fellow travellers and will consider them when selecting a holiday property.
Long queues in front of the bathroom can be avoided if the property has several bathrooms.
Does grandfather James snore? An adequate number of bedrooms and a sofa bed can help avoid conflicts.
Melissa needs to work on a concept? No problem in a house with internet access.
Are your kids still small? A house which caters for small kids will provide security: Should a high chair and kids bed be available this will save you packing it into the car. Also important issue: Not too many steps, a secure oven and protected sockets.
A big garden, recreation room, maybe even a swimming pool ensure there is enough variation. Should the garden have a playground or be in close proximity to the beach then this will not only please the children.

Groups are advised to agree on a travel date and destination in good time as large holiday properties tend to be very popular and booked in advance.

Following countries and regions are very popular with extended families and groups of friends: European ski regions, Tuscany, Italian lakes, Spain, Denmark and of course Germany and the Netherlands.

Cottage in southern France
Some customer ratings for all those who do not bother travelling farther away:

Cottage for 9 people in southern France. Customer rating from 2009 "...Very nice place and very well maintained. Every detail taken care off or present in the house. Great swimming pool and very quiet area. Friendly owners. We had a wonderful time and enjoyed it very much. However I find that for the quality of the house and swimming pool, the price for lease requested is still undervalued. The pictures placed on the site are a bit outdated as it looks so much more pretty in real..."

In August 2009 customers especially liked..."the clean, quite and beautiful location..." this 8 people holiday home in Slime is situated at. It is "...close to Maskara en Omis and yet remote enough not to have any influence of the highly touristic activity. Sea at 5 km, large and totally private swimming pool." The customers found it "Highly Recommandable!!"

This cottage in Austria is even suitable for younger groups, states one guest, who visited the location in 2009: "I stayed in the house with 9 people between 17-19 years of age ... and I would like to highly recommend this house. It has a beautiful location - on a mountainside overlooking a valley and some slopes...and the most incredible thing is that you can ski (snowboard) down to the first skilift, and later when returning home, you can ski via a slope straight to the door of the house, so even though the house is on a hill, you never have to walk uphill anywhwere." Also nice:"...if there are problems with cooking, Pizza can be ordered easily..."

Ferienhaus für 24 Personen in Ski Amadé

Winter vacation with friends and family

Customers that have travelled with friends and family have recommended these holiday domiciles for a winter vacation. What is more cosy than after an active day outside on the slopes to spend the evening in front of the fireplace, drink a hot cup of tea and reflect on the adventurous events of the day.

Customers very much liked this apartment in Längenfeld, Tyrol  which can accommodate up to 11 people. The rating from 2009 states “…Very nice and spacious house, clean and well furnished. The host lady was very polite and helpful. Bust stop is right in front of the house and the busses run in 20-minute interval. So you can leave your car for the whole week. I definately recomment this house.”

Every year following holiday houses for large groups are very popular with atraveo customers:


Of course all large houses are equally suitable for Melissas’s family reunion, grandpa James’s tennis group and Jason’s former fellow students.

Tip: In order to coordinate dates with your friends and family Doodle offers a great tool which makes this process very easy.