Operators Offering Childcare

Specialist Reports Just For Families With Specialist Childcare Operators Offering Childcare Mark Warner 

	Mark Warner
10 Old Court Place, London W8 4PL			MAP
tel: (0870) 770 4222

Good coverage by happy journalists who've tested these family holidays has done much to keep the Mark Warner name in the eye of the well heeled market the operator aims to cater to.

Where

Corsica, Greece and Turkey.

Style

All inclusive beach resorts, rated two, three and four palms, this last including the flagship property in Greece which is classified as a Centre of Excellence for Childcare and a main Mark Warner tennis centre, with 10 astroturf courts, a shaded boules area, beach volleyball, aerobics and table tennis, an astroturf soccer pitch, two pools, one mainly for exercise - swimming, aqua aerobics, water polo and scuba diving - and another for families and fun. There is one main restaurant with outdoor grill and barbecue, a pizzeria, plus beach taverna (over 13's only), and a dining area for kids only main meals.

Care Offered

All clubs operate six days a week 9am to 5.30pm with a break 1-3pm for children to rejoin parents for lunch. The number of nannies varies according to the size of resort but at the larger ones is as many as 50 in high season.Baby Club 4-12 months. Aims to maintain a ratio of one nanny to every two babies though the company admits this may not always be possible. The clubs try to ensure each baby has the comfort and security of the same nanny through the holiday.Toddler Club For 13 months to 2 years, split into Toddler 1's (1 year olds) with a ratio of one nanny to every three children, and Toddler 2's (2 year olds) with one nanny to every four children. There is an indoor and outdoor play area and a range of games plus quiet times. Mini Club 3-5 years are based in in-house creches equipped with games, toys and arts and crafts. There are also nature walks, swimming, paddling and games on the beach as well as trips on the water. Junior Club 6-9 yeas years offers a supervised programme usually including snorkelling, seashore expeditions, swimming races, volleyball, canoeing and the like. There are watersports sessions through the week. Excursions outside the resorts generally cost extra. Kidz Club 10 - 13 years Lively programme of watersports and activities throughout the day with expert tuition in windsurfing and sailing. Children in the Kidz Club are slightly more independent than the younger children and therefore can sign themselves in and out at any time of the day. Indy Clubs 14-17 years run a selection of sports and social activities to dip in and out of when they like. These include a welcome meeting, picnic, sailing expeditions, evening beach parties and occasional disco. Trips out may cost extra. The emphasis is less on supervision and more on breaking the ice and a social club for like-minded young adults. Supervision of organised activities ceases at 10.30pm.

Cost of Care

Baby Club £230 per week, over and above the £100 holiday cost for children under two. The Toddler 1's cost £200 extra per week, plus the £100 per week holiday cost. Toddler 2's is free (included in the holiday cost). Care for over 2s is free.

Other Features for Families

Group courses for adults and children are available for tennis and for example football at some resorts at an extra cost.
Single parents travelling with an infant will not be charged a supplement for a twin room. If a single parent travels with one child the child pays the childshare price instead of the usual price for its age band. One adult with two children pays one adult price, one full child price and one childshare price for children of 12 and under.
All children's clubs are reported inspected and approved by a British safety specialist.
At resorts offering Baby or Toddler Clubs travel cots, bottle sterilisers, nappy changing facilities and potties are all supplied, along with full fat UHT milk and purees for baby meals. Local brands of nappies, processed baby foods and powdered milk can be purchased locally.
Nannies are mostly NNEB or equivalent qualified and trained by Mark Warner either in the UK or at the resort. Each nursery is supervised at all times by a fully qualified nanny, barring emergencies, and backed up by assistant nannies.
Nannies tour rooms to listen in and check children between 8pm and midnight at all resorts.
For under 13s there is the option of high tea at 5pm instead of dinner. This is designed to be ‘simple but wholesome'.
Babysitting is available at £5 per hour but clients are urged to book this well ahead as there is great demand, particularly early and late season.
Children who are not toilet trained are required to use aqua nappies in the pool and sea.

Sample Price

One week at San Agostino departing between 18 July and 22 August would be £1,095 per adult, £657 per child (sharing with parents), £821 per child ( 2-6 years in own room), and £931 per child (aged 7-12 yrs in own room). Infants under two years are £100 per week at all times, plus childcare if required. Prices include return flights from London Gatwick, resort transfers, accommodation, three meals a day with free wines at lunch and dinner, windsurfing and sailing with tuition (excl RYA), canoeing, free play tennis, exercise classes including aqua aerobics, baby listening and children's club for over two year olds. Not included are kite surfing, PADI, football, tennis and RYA courses.

Reader Reports

"My wife and I have always told ourselves that we hated beach holidays - particularly "holiday camp" packages. As knackered new parents, though, we took the advice of friends who said "don't think - book a Mark Warner holiday", and returned converts.

Caveats first: a two-week stay might be over-long. The grub is more than a little reminiscent of school food. The bright young studenty staff can grate. Some of the regulations seem stupid.
For us the childcare utterly swung it. Not only were we impressed by the creche facilities, but also the way the hotel was adapted to kids (kitchens with fridges, kettles, sterilizers - endless high chairs in the restaurant - ramps everywhere for buggies - baby listening every night - a launderette). Not stylish, but very easy.

Fears that we would be forced to become "Happy Campers" proved unfounded: it is easy to isolate yourself as a couple if that's what you want. In the restaurant we were asked whether we would like to eat alone or "with people". In the bars people would plonk themselves down and just about make it OK by cooing sufficiently over our son Tim. We made ourselves very scarce on Murder Mystery, Quiz and Line Dancing nights (but did watch the entertaining Teens Club Rock Concert). We found some truth in Mark Warner's reputation as "Wandsworth on Sea". The rumoured prohibition on those from north of Watford Gap mercifully proved illusory.
The supply of windsurfing and sailing kit for beginners was a little short and the tuition rather shakey. For intermediates who knew what they were doing, kit seemed in good supply. Water-skiing was readily available, but our week seemed less demanding than usual. There was a fair range of other activities: bikes, walks, aerobics, tennis.

The week we were there, during school holidays, there were only two babies in the creche. The previous week, when it cost less, there were eight. Apparently the club operates in cycles - early season, parents with babies, high season, parents with kids. Those who swore most strongly by the place were parents with kids of different ages who could be farmed out into different clubs.
Lower season apparently it is much more singles getting off with each other - perhaps not the tranquil time new parents are looking for.
P Harden
London


"We have been on two Club Med holidays: Ibiza and Marbella, and enjoyed both but the French side was a problem for the kids. So this summer we went to Pateros in Greece with Mark Warner.
It is basically the same price as Club Med ie £4,500 for a family of four plus drinks, and the accommodation was very basic. I would tile better than the Greek workmen. I gather that Mark Warner lease the site from a Greek timeshare organisation and input their equipment in April and remove it in October.

The activities were basically the same as Club Med but we didn't feel we had gone abroad It was 'Wandsworth by Sea'. I bumped into people I knew, people I had worked with, and people who know people I knew in London. There was no foreign atmosphere, sound of foreign language, or even waft of foreign food.

A week was fine, two weeks was boring. I took up tennis and aerobics but the kids were getting fed up with the activities after a week, especially my 4-year-old. For her it was like school, painting, making things (flags etc) and not enough outdoor fun.

The disaster happened in the second week. The teenage offspring of people due to go back after our first week trashed the main swimming pool. They threw in flower pots, dinghies, but worst of all, glass cafetieres from the restaurant.

The pool had to be drained and re-filled which took three days. For the inconvenience we were given a bottle of Greek red wine.

Then one of the kids was climbing the railing between the mini pool and the large pool on our last day. He slipped and ripped his cheek open on the ragged tiles along the edge of the higher terrace. He needed 40 stitches and an overnight stay in a Greek hospital.

I'm convinced it would not have been nearly so bad if the tiles had been whole. He would have got a hasty bang but not a tear. It just highlighted the tattiness of the complex.

I've written to Mark Warner and had two acknowledgements but as yet no comments.
It could so easily have been one of my children. They all climbed the railings and jumped over the wall (again very ragged) between the miniclub and the bar.

On a lesser note, the shop was hopeless - the staff very studenty. When asked why they only stocked regular tampons one said they always only stocked one size. This, I discovered from another member of staff, was a complete lie.

It was suggested I get a taxi to the nearest village to buy some. The complex was three miles from Pateros. They even ran out of aftersun lotion. It all seemed so Mickey Mouse - and for £4,500."
Elizabeth Wynne-Roberts
Chislehurst, Kent