The “Boring” Holiday Weeks Might Just Be the Best Ones
Everyone chases peak. School summer holidays, the hottest weeks, the busiest resorts. And I get it - when you've got school-age kids, you're often forced into those exact weeks.
But when you're not - when you've got any flexibility at all, a younger child not yet in school, or an inset day to build around - the shoulder season is where the best family trips quietly happen. Here's why.
What "shoulder season" actually means
It's the quieter weeks either side of peak. Not the dead of winter, not the height of summer - the in-between. Late spring, early autumn, the edges. The weeks most people overlook because they're not the "obvious" holiday times.
And that overlooking is exactly what makes them good.
Why they beat peak, honestly
Fewer crowds. The pool isn't a battle for a lounger. The kids' club isn't oversubscribed. The restaurants aren't a two-hour wait. Everything is calmer, which with children is worth its weight in gold.
Lower prices. You're not paying the premium that comes with everyone travelling in the same fortnight. The same resort, the same room, often noticeably less - purely because of the week on the calendar.
Staff who have time for you. A resort running at 60% instead of 110% is a completely different experience. The people looking after you actually can. Requests get met. Problems get solved. It feels like a holiday, not a scrum.
Gentler weather for little ones. Peak summer heat can be genuinely brutal for small children - the kind of heat where you're hiding indoors at midday. Shoulder season often means warm-but-manageable, which is frequently better for a family than relentless sun.
The catch to be aware of
Shoulder season isn't magic - there are trade-offs, and being honest about them is the whole point.
Some facilities run reduced hours off-peak. The kids' club might not be full-time. A pool might not be heated if it's early or late in the season. Some entertainment winds down. None of this is a dealbreaker- but it's exactly the sort of thing to check directly before you book, rather than assume.
That's the difference between a shoulder-season bargain and a shoulder-season disappointment: asking the boring questions first.
Who it's genuinely for
If you're tied to school holidays for everything, this might not be your moment - and that's fine. But if you've got a pre-schooler, some flexibility, or you can occasionally travel around the edges, the shoulder season is the closest thing to a family-travel cheat code I know.
Same resorts. Fewer people. Lower prices. Calmer everything. It's not the obvious choice, and that's precisely why it works.
The Takeaway
The best family trips aren't always the peak ones. Often they're the quiet, slightly unglamorous, off-peak ones nobody's competing for. If you can travel around the edges, do. It's genuinely my favourite way to book.
Want help working out whether a shoulder-season trip works for your family - and which resorts actually deliver off-peak? That's exactly the kind of thing I love figuring out. Come find me. I've usually already done the digging.
Get in touch at www.letsgo-travel.co.uk
*Jenny Willcock is a luxury family travel specialist and founder of Lets Go Travel.
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