THE FAMILY WAY

Travelling with children? You needn’t miss out

SCHLOSS ELMAU

Ahhh,” shouts my twoyear-old, Kit, as he splashes water across the spa pool. I flinch, waiting for the hard stares, but there are none. This is a spa with a difference, where children are not just welcome but positively encouraged – even the noisiest and splashiest.

Schloss Elmau sits in a beautiful valley surrounded by white-capped mountains and Sound Of Music-esque meadows. It’s won numerous awards and even hosted a G7 summit. The stunning scenery is as far from grey and grimy London as you could get. And after months of rushing through the nursery run/commute/work/ bedtime routine, my partner, Essie, and I are ripe for a rest.

Our suite is grand but comfy, with plenty of space for Kit to run around – every morning we fling the curtains open to watch the sunrise from our huge bed. But it’s the spas that are the stars here. There are seven of them, including two open to children, with gentler steam rooms and saunas. Kit’s favourite is the warm-as-a-bath outdoor pool with inflatables and floats to mess around with, but my highlight is the 35ºc outdoor saltwater pool in the adult-only Badehaus spa. One night, I sneak away and float like a starfish on my back, looking up at the stars – it’s the most relaxed I’ve felt for months.

The Physio Relax massage, based on neurophysiological studies by the Touch Research Institute in the US, is a must for anyone who sits at a desk all

day, and left me feeling wonderfully floppy. When we’re not at the spa, there’s plenty to do, with several playgrounds, an excellent kids’ club for under fives and activities for older children, including film-making to creative writing.

I’m not going to lie: a spa holiday with your child in tow is never going to be as restful as one without, but if this is the compromise, I’m pretty happy. I arrived tired and tetchy, but after a few days of swimming, steaming and snoozing, I feel revived. It’s been a sharp reminder that life is about more than getting from A to B as quickly as possible and that fun time as a family is a must – the noisier and splashier, the better.’ JOANNE FINNEY