Y
ou know that wonderful feeling where you are about to book your summer vacations and the possibilities are endless? We felt super excited checking out resorts and trying to find the one that fitted us perfectly for our first vacation as a family. Non-negotiable resort facilities for us were: closeness to the airport, a lot of greenery, a sandy beach for Doen to crawl freely, and a nice room to wake up to.
Our agency (Fly Travel Agency) showed us endless possibilities and we were able to catch a last-minute offer for Selectum Family Resort in Belek, Antalya (Turkey). After having booked the hotel we only had 4 days to get ready and instantly that worrying feeling started: we are going to fly with a baby? How are we going to handle it, will she cry..scream? Will everyone on the plane start looking at us because of the loud noises? What should we take with us?
Having kids is reason to travel, never a reason to stop
Among the best tips we received on an Instagram poll, were to breastfeed during takeoff and landing (or take a bottle), bring pacifiers, toys for her to play with on the plane, and a blanket as it always gets cold during a flight.
So that’s what we did! When we left home at 2 am, Doen was sleeping and slept during the whole ride to the airport, only to wake up during check-in. But luckily for us, she wasn’t agitated and kept smiling and looking at her big cousins. During take-off, she was breastfeeding and shortly after fell asleep. That was the instant we felt our anxiety leave and fell asleep ourselves while holding her tight.
Tickets ready
my beautiful nieces
Waiting at the gate
just a little more
Doen kept sleeping through landing, passport control and woke up when we lifted her to get on the bus for transportation to the hotel. Thankfully the bus ride was only 30 minutes because she was overtired and could not stay still.
As soon as we arrived at the hotel our mood changed because we were greeted with amazing scenery and immediately knew we had made the right hotel choice.
For this trip, we brought with us our ToteSavvy® Original which is an amazing removable bag organizer with 11 total pockets including an insulated pocket, key clasp, and washable changing mat. It was so easy to keep everything organized and not get confused about where everything was throughout the trip.
We were accommodated in the Family Large Suite, which was 64 m² in size. Family Large Suites consist of two bedrooms, one living room, one kitchen, and one dining area, as well as three balconies. In one of the rooms slept mommy, daddy, and Doen. In the other room, slept grandpa. This was a huge help because we just opened our room door and off went Doen crawling towards grandpa’s room. Next to our Suite, Doen had our auntie, her husband, and their beautiful 2 daughters. What can top off family vacations?
Here are some videos of our room:
And some more photos:
We loved the fact that Selectum Family Resort is a kids concept hotel and you could find it in all the carefully thought details: a huge mini-club, Pirate’s Island ( a beautiful space with kids sliders), small playgrounds spread out between all the garden bungalows, slippers for kids in the rooms, and a separate buffet corner only for kids and babies.
In all the restaurants you could find a huge number of baby chairs carefully cleaned and wrapped with a set of table cover + bib, made out of paper.
Doen struggled with sleep and eating during our holiday and a lifesaver for us were the HiPP jars with fruits and vegetables. When Doen refused to eat the soup of the day or steamed veggies, they were our only rescue.
In regards to daily activities, the hotel offered one main pool, a semi-Olympic pool where aqua aerobics was available every day at 11.30 and we all loved to join in. Then between the bungalows, you could find a relax pool only for adults and a garden pool which was secluded and very nice. Us parents enjoyed both the Kids Aquapark and the Adults Aquapark as well. The Adults’ Aquapark was made up of dry sliders, which were so much fun. We didn’t get to visit the indoor pool though as the weather was perfect outside.
To protect our baby from the sun we used the Jack N’ Jill Kids sunscreen and it was indeed as great as described. Their Natural Sunscreen is Broad Spectrum SPF30 and suitable from 6 Months +. Non-Nano and Reef Friendly, 3 hours Water Resistant and contains soothing Calendula & Chamomile to protect your little one’s skin.
Apart from all the pools that were all amazing, the resort was divided by a river and through a wooden bridge, you could reach the 500 m long private beach. An amazing space indeed.
We would spend the afternoons strolling with Doen throughout the resort and by the beach as well. That was her favorite stroll.
And on the times Doen would take a nap, mommy and daddy relaxed on the hotel bars drinking a beer or cocktail. These were the precious moments for us as parents:
Let me dump in here some random photos as well that we loved:
And some more:
Some more of Doen:
Doen having fun with mommy on Pirate’s Island:
This is how we used our ToteSavvy on beach and pool days:
Everything necessary is in there: pampers, wipes, soothers, water bottles, sunscreen, hand sanitizers, sunglasses, headbands, food, biscuits, wallets, books. Everything you can imagine in an 11 pocket organizer.
The last night at the hotel, we used the a la carte service and booked a dinner at the Fish Restaurant which was Greek-themed. What a lovely restaurant and the food was amazing. It was the best way to conclude a perfect holiday.
The next day we headed back home with an amazing experience, that thanks to these photos we will never forget.
This is Doen crying when we were about to leave our room and check out. I think she could feel that the holiday and fun were over, at least until the next holiday. Lucky for us, she slept on the way back as well.
Hope you enjoyed this article as much as we enjoyed writing it.
Lot’s of love,
Bica the family
Notes:
Below you can find links to products and references mentioned in this blog article:
Hotel: https://cutt.ly/Tm43zyF
Travel agency: https://fly-travel.al/
ToteSavvy bag organizer: https://cutt.ly/tm43vaS
Fish A’la carte Restaurant: https://cutt.ly/Vm43O9U
Matchstick Monkey baby soother: https://cutt.ly/zm43KOD
BICA FAMILY
Hi, we are Bica family! We are Eneida, Dolsin, our 3-year-old Doen and our golden Shadow. As a blogger family we love to share our stories, experiences, and trips with the world! From fashion to parenthood, parenting to travel, we have a wide range of experiences that we love sharing with our online friends. We strive to bring our followers unique content that is both informative and entertaining.
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