Family-Friendly Fun: Discover Asia’s Top Cities for an Epic Vacation

Asia is a continent blessed with diverse cultures, mesmerizing landscapes, and unique experiences that make it an ideal destination for a memorable family trip. Whether you seek thrilling adventures, historical wonders, or simply want to relax on beautiful beaches, Asia has something for every family to enjoy. In this article, we put together the top five destinations in Asia that offer a perfect blend of fun, adventure, and cultural exploration for families of all ages.

Chiang Rai, Thailand

family trip

Rarely mentioned as one of Thailand’s tourist destinations, Chiang Rai is undoubtedly an underrated city that locals would recommend you visit for all the hidden gems you can see at this place located on the Northern side of the country. Particularly, the White Temple (Wat Rong Khun), the Blue Temple (Wat Rong Suea Ten) and the Black House Museum (Baan Dam Museum), which are all architectural wonders constructed with such attention to detail, will leave you admiring the building for minutes before you can even enter. There is also the historical Mae Fah Luang Art and Cultural Park which houses a plethora of ancient artifacts ranging from Lanna art to 19th-century mural paintings. Some of the other spots you should visit during the family trip include scenic standouts like Doi Hua Mae Kham, Mae Fa Luang Garden, Singha Park and Doi Chang, which are all spacious enough for the kids to play around and beautiful enough for the grownups to take as many pictures.

Baku, Azerbaijan

family trip

Baku is surrounded by a magnificent seaside view and has pleasant weather with the city being windy most of the time – it is literally nicknamed the city of winds. The city is perfect for witnessing both modern skyscrapers and archaic buildings. In fact, you may want to set aside a day just to explore the UNESCO Heritage site Old City (Icherisheher) which has many fascinating places where you can look at the culture and history of different civilizations that go back to the 12th century. A few such areas include The Palace of the Shirvanshahs, The Maiden Tower and The Museum of Miniature Books. Plus, while you are there on your family trip, don’t forget to take some family photos because you cannot ask for a better backdrop than the alleys of this walled city. For something more contemporary, you can take the kids on a fun riverboat ride after sunset and look at the iconic Flame Towers, or if you and your family love to go swimming, you can do that on private beaches surrounded by the Caspian Sea.

Udaipur, India

family trip

Ardent travellers often look back at Udaipur as one of the most stunning cities, even comparing it to Rajasthan’s capital city Jaipur and choosing Udaipur as an alternative for its much more peaceful and less bustling presence. Udaipur has an array of marvellous places that you should add to your itinerary like the City Palace, Monsoon Palace, Fateh Sagar Lake, Lake Pichola and more. Aside from these tourist attractions, there are also several exciting activities that you can enjoy as a family such as watching puppet shows at Bharatiya Lok Kala Mandal, rafting in the Gomati River, helicopter rides over the city and many more. You can add more extravagance to your trip by staying at the coveted palace-turned-hotel Taj Lake Palace and devouring a hearty meal at the Jagat Niwas Palace. You should also stop by some nice antique shops where you will surely find something incredible to take back home.

Jeju Islands, South Korea

family vacation

For families that love partaking in fun activities in the waters and are always fascinated by the many wonders of nature, Jeju Island is certainly a paradise. There is so much you can plan to do here to keep the family trip fun and exciting throughout. You can climb the Seongsan Ilchulbong Volcano; watch performances by women divers who will bring back fresh fish from the sea and cook them right there for you to eat; or visit one of the beaches. Also, the entire family can challenge themselves to find their way out of the human-sized Gimnyeong Maze Park which can apparently take less than five minutes or an hour to complete. Also don’t forget to visit the UNESCO World Natural Heritage Manjanggul Lava Tube, Osulloc Tea Museum and the Aqua Planet.

Malé, Maldives

family vacation

Another top-class destination for an amusing and luxurious vacation is Malé, an island in the Maldives. It offers a wide selection of hotels, shops and accommodations. There are a couple of family-friendly resorts like the frequently applauded Banyan Tree Vabbinfaru and the Angsana lhuru where your entire family can relax. Simultaneously, if you are looking for something adventurous, you can try surfing, diving, snorkelling and more. Besides, as the capital city of the archipelago situated over the Indian Ocean, you can even book a submarine tour to explore the marine ecosystem there. When you are looking to explore the city, there are places like the Victory Monument, Sultan Park & National Museum, Tsunami Monument and more.

Your Guide To Easily Planning A Trip To Anywhere In The World

travel-friendly tools

Travelling is certainly the most popularly loved and desired form of recreation. While some people can impulsively pack that bag and go on a vacation to any part of the world, there are travellers who need to plan every single detail of the trip. 

If you fall under the second category, then here is a step-by-step guide and some travel-friendly tools that will help you plan your trip assuming you have already finalised your destination. 

Say all that is too much work for you, then we have also suggested websites that can do all the planning for you.

P.S: You don’t have to be familiar with the place.

travel-friendly tools

Choosing the places to visit

Whether you are interested in the arts and want to check out museums and galleries, or into adventurous activities like zip lining, you want everything you do during your trip to be fun-fullied. That is why planning your itinerary comes with a great perk. You get to cater everything your way.

For this, you can always head to Google Maps or Trip Advisor which will you give you thousands of suggestions on the things you can do. There is a reason these apps are trusted by so many travel fanatics. You can read reviews and decide if the place is actually worth the visit.

Facebook is another brilliant resource. Join a travel group or two, and ask for suggestions there, and people will share their opinions. If you are lucky enough, you may even end up discovering a hidden gem that locals of the city go but tourists overlook.

Also Read: 48 Hours of Bliss in Bangkok – A Two-day Itinerary to the City

travel-friendly tools

Mapping them

Next, it is time to put it all on a map. That way you can cover all the places that are in close proximity in a day or two. One of the best travel-friendly tools to do it is hands down Google My Maps. 

Add the places on your list, and the website will create an interactive and user-friendly map that will allow you to see which spots are close to one another. You will also definitely stumble upon other things you can experience.

Research for important details 

First things first, you need to check the website or social media pages of each location for opening hours and holidays. You don’t want to head to a museum on a Wednesday and find out that it is closed on that day every week.

At this point, you should also check if you need to book any entry tickets, so that once your itinerary is ready you can reserve the tickets if needed.

travel-friendly tools

Create the timeline

Depending on what pace you want your trip to be, and how many days you are at the destination, create a timeline. You may prefer to have a busy and fully-packed schedule or one that is more chill.

All-in-one

If all this planning is just too hectic, it is good that there are websites that will do everything for you. Two excellent travel-friendly tools are Klarna.Trips and Trip Hobo where you only need to enter your destination, and preferences, the site will generate an entire itinerary which you can edit if you wish. 

Now that you have your itinerary ready, book the flights and hotel, and you are all ready to go. Happy Journey!

(Text: Renuka Kennedy)

Verdura: The Perfect Spot for a Family-Golfing Getaway

Set on the southern Italian island of Sicily, Verdura – UK-headquartered Rocco Forte Hotels’ first golf and spa resort in the region – has an ideal view looking out across the Mediterranean. Perhaps more crucially, it also boasts three luxury golf facilities – two 18-hole courses and one-nine-hole variant – making it the dream destination for the family that likes to tee-off together.

Verdura

With European Tour Performance Institute also close at hand, it is also the perfect locale to improve your posture and streamline your swing under the expert tutelage of obliging professionals. It additionally delivers access to much of the game-enhancing technology favoured by many of the current generation of peerless pros.

Verdura

It’s also a resort that has won a number of awards, not least Best Golf Hotel (Italy) at the 2015 World Golf Awards and the Golden Award for Golf at the 2015 Voyages & Hôtels Readers Awards.

Of course, there is more to the resort than just golf, with a range of other five-star experiences – including spa treatments, wine tasting, cooking and mixology classes and a six-day lifestyle wellness programme – also on offer. For the culinary inclined, there’s also an opportunity to be initiated into secrets of the region’s most renowned recipes and to sample some of the finest local produce.

Verdura

It goes without saying, of course, that all the rooms and amenities are absolutely the last word in comfort, luxury and sheer indulgence.