The best family hotels in the world 2023
Whether you want your hotel to provide wild spaces for children to roam or the best eco-credentials, these hotels are designed to cater for kids (with lots of attention lavished on parents, too). This is Condé Nast Traveller's list of the 13 best family hotels in the world for 2023.
Fairmont Taghazout, Morocco
All buttery sands and colour-drenched sunsets, it’s no wonder King Mohammed VI has invested in the rejuvenation of Morocco’s often bypassed Atlantic coast, a spot more usually frequented by nonchalant surfer seekers. Upmarket Moroccans are following suit, coming with their families for weddings and birthdays, hanging out playing cards and ordering fig syrup cocktails and bodacious burgers by the hotel’s swimming pools where Jamaican reggae tunes pump up the vibe. Whilst this decadently sophisticated all-singing family resort hotel may not offer the medina magic of Marrakech, it is a wildly beautiful winter sun hideaway, just 30-minutes north of Agadir and a morning stroll from the laid-back dusty fishing village of Taghazout. It’s a happening, happy scene into which to inject diffident urban teenagers, with near year-round sunshine, surfing lessons and the insanely good Morimoto Japanese restaurant where traditional tagines are usurped by melt-in-the-mouth Wagyu beef. Yet, beyond the handsome DJ spinning his decks, a quieter, softer scene awaits. The three-level spa, with gym, Yoga Shala, meditation gardens, saunas, a muscle-releasing magnesium pool and exquisite Hammam, is a clean-lined architectural temple of serenity for a parental escape. Just to soak up the light, air and permeating scent of orange blossom is a spirit uplift. Natura Bissé facials nourish and restore, body massages include heated feet-boots to rebalance tired energy systems, and ancestral Hammam ceremonies layer steams, soap and skin-scrubbing with perfumed hair wash and warm water cleanses. This is an all-round refresher for all the family. Daisy Finer
Arenas del Mar, Costa Rica
‘Where the rainforest meets the ocean’ sounds like the enchanting beginning of a children’s bedtime story. Which is fitting for this hotel in 11 leafy acres of a nature reserve. This easy, breezy escape teeming with wildlife trumps rival resorts thanks to its authentic Costa Rican soul, its sheltered stretch of sea and sand and its spirit of sustainability. What’s extra special about this 38-suite boutique beach retreat set into a sea-view hillside is that it's as suited to family adventures, whatever the kids' ages, as romantic escapes. Spotless, spacious suites have tiled floors, suitably trad tropical furnishings and impressive balconies that let you feel the sea air on your face as you soak in an open-air hot tub.
Manuel Antonio is the closest beach destination to the capital, after Jaco, which means it's one of the most accessible. As popular as this corner of Costa Rica can be in high season, the hotel’s Pacific cove always feels peaceful, private and safe as can be, which is a boon if you have little ones. The national park here is smaller than others, yet it's one of this eco-minded country’s most visited. Winningly, Arenas del Mar has so much biodiversity on its doorstep, there's barely a need to leave. From arrival, cheery team members are steering guests to spy sloths snoozing in the trees or showing you capuchin or squirrel monkeys. Say the word and their naturalist guides can take it up a gear with zip lining or after-dark explorations.
'Pura Vida' is a saying in Costa Rica that translates from Spanish to mean 'pure life'. Costa Ricans can be heard chirping it as a hello or a goodbye, spreading good vibes, and Cayuga’s hospitality exudes this way of being. What makes hotels in the Cayuga Collection especially appealing is that service is as positive in energy as the operations are in terms of social and environmental impact. It may be the panoramic views over the jungle and that crazy-blue ocean which beg sharing visually on social — the elevated outlook is uplifting from pastel-toned dawn to violet-hued dusk. But sign up for a free Sustainability Tour and have a peek at their greener back-of-house set-up and it may be the behind-the-scenes eco-savvy you write home about.
INSIDER TIP: The tortilla-making tour is an entertaining taste of Tico living – this is the nickname for Costa Ricans. Spend time with the super-friendly staff at this independently-owned hotel as they show you how to make these corn-flour classics for a true flavour of Costa Rican cuisine and culture.
Cecile Perrinet - Lhermitte styling: Elen PouhaerKasbah Ourika, el Haouz, Morocco
It’s hard to believe that this place just over half an hour from the hubbub of Marrakech was built from scratch in 2005. The 26-bedroom property sits like a majestic patriarch above the foothills of the Atlas Mountains, Berber settlements dotting the valley below. The unmarked earthen road to get here is like a portal into another world, at once breathtaking and a long exhale. Bab Ourika is the brainchild of Stephen Skinner, an Englishman whose Panama-hatted Britishness belies the past 22 years he has spent living and absorbing all things Moroccan. Such was his passion for honouring the craftsmen and their building methods that it took four years – and many workers and countless donkeys – for the original 15-room building to be completed, during which time Skinner alchemised the rich red earth into verdant landscaping and a plentiful vegetable and herb garden. Almost all the staff come from nearby villages – many were part of the construction team – and their heritage is woven in through delicious food and locally sourced furnishings.
The interior design is understated and elegant: thick rugs cover the inner courtyards, pom-pom blankets top the beds and roaring fires keep things toasty on cool evenings. Repeat guests never tire of the look, Skinner explains, because it is forever changing depending on his latest purchase: a bride’s wedding trunk has been reimagined into a display case for rugs in the reception area which doubles as a shopfront for his most recent finds. The Retreat, a new 11-bedroom villa with jaw-dropping views from its pool and soon a private chef, is the latest addition. It can be hired for any imaginable event from multi-generational family gatherings to birthday celebrations and yoga groups. Whichever part of the hotel you check into, the sense of amazement is the same – that this authentic, incredible experience is right here, only a three-and-a-half-hour flight from London.
INSIDER TIP: Book a morning hike ending with a picnic in the lush Ourika Valley to get a sense of the landscape and your place within it.
One&Only The Palm, Dubai
No one says no to anything in Dubai. When there isn’t any land left with beachfront access, they simply build another island and ship in new sand. Which is how The Palm came about, a man-made peninsula that juts out into the Arabian sea and is filling up with next-level all-glass villas the size of hotels and hotels the size of small cities. And yet right at the furthest frond of the Palm is a rather surprising oasis. Forget, if you can, the changing-every-minute backdrop of the city’s buildings and building sites. Here, all is quiet. The soundtrack is of birdsong and tree frogs. Lolloping rabbits nibble the lawns and woodpeckers tap away. Moorish archways give way to Andalusian-style villas-as-riads, where frangipani trees drop their flowers in the still heat. Lie on a sunbed facing the pool, and you could, almost, be at a hacienda in southern Spain. Of all the Dubai hotels (there are so many now, with more bedrooms than London, or Paris, or New York), this is the one where you really tune out. The swimming pool takes centre-stage, lined with day beds, air-conditioned cabanas for snoozing mini ones, shallow sections for paddling and enough space for splashing and squawking without entirely ruining everyone else’s holiday. In the Manor House, the kids’ club is like a thrilling secret, packed with toys, but actually children tend to gallop to the beach for a spin in a Hobie Cat, perfect their game on the tennis courts or get their hands henna-painted in the garden. While Stay by Yannick Alléno with its liquid-nitrogen-freezing food theatrics is a bit of a stretch for kids, the yacht-club-like overwater 101 Dining Lounge has squid-ink calamari, grilled tiger prawns and miso cod. For those with only few days to spare but in need of vitamin D, this is a ludicrously easy, no-questions-asked fly-and-flop.
INSIDER TIP: The all-singing, all-dancing Royal Mirage is more often touted as the one for families, but staying here – smaller, quieter – is a clever side-step.
Islas Secas, Gulf of Chiriqui, Panama
Most people flying into Panama City head straight for the azure waters of Bocas del Toro or the San Blas Islands, off the Caribbean coast. But the wilder Pacific side, with its scrappy surf spots and empty palm-tree-lined bays, is worth considering as a family destination, too. Especially now there’s Islas Secas to check into, a private archipelago 20 miles off the mainland. Not only are there seriously impressive eco-measures in place – all energy is solar-generated for starters, and of the 14 islands, only the largest, Cavada, has been developed – but everything here is completely customised for all ages. Each evening, sit down with the staff to hatch a plan for the next day, whether it’s hopping on a boat to Isla Pargo for a picnic on the white beach – like playing castaway but with a walkie-talkie for back-up; going on a guided nature walk through the forest, listening to tales about buccaneers and bats; or booking in for a bonding sound-therapy session in the hummingbird garden (the soothing vibrations mean the whole crew usually conks out).
For teenagers, there are thrilling watersports, including discovery dives and eFoils, while younger siblings will love kayaking or snorkelling with turtles off Isla Barracuda. Nine gorgeous wooden casitas – three more are in the pipeline, plus a four-bedroom villa – are set in tropical gardens with plunge pools, daybeds and thatched cabanas. Plus there’s the bar with a board-games nook and the breezy Terraza restaurant where children can tuck into cheese quesadillas and tuna burgers for lunch before afternoon downtime in a nearby hammock. After dark, a fire-pit barbecue and movie night under the stars is a sure-fire hit, too. To stay somewhere with this much space for running free is rare: you’ll hardly clap eyes on any other guests, never mind fretting about making too much noise. This is a new level of eco-luxury for Panama that hits all the right notes.
INSIDER TIP: The island has its own landing strip and offers direct transfer flights from Panama City – a seamless option for parents with overtired children who want to cut the final leg of the journey.
Hajra AhmadSujan Jawai, Rajasthan, India
The wilds of western Rajasthan feel utterly remote. There’s something about the vast panorama of prehistoric rocks, winding rivers and endless sky that’s like teetering at the edge of the earth. Here is where leopards live, and a stay in this safari set-up is the best shot at seeing them in their natural habitat. Crack-of-dawn four-wheel drives head out into an almost lunar landscape to view the magnificent creatures as the sun rises – these encounters are something even the grumpiest of teens will drag themselves out of bed for. After the sightings it’s time for tea and pastries lakeside, where hundreds of species of birds and crocodiles reside, before looping back to camp for a proper breakfast. The 10-tent gathering at Jawai is deeply smart: each comes with a huge bed, massive bathroom, fully stocked bar, chrome trunk desk and dhurrie rugs, all designed by the owners Anjali and Jaisal Singh. Laundry is whisked away each night, and delicious dinners are organised surrounded by hundreds of oil lamps.
So far, so grown-up, but an exciting programme of activities makes younger guests nod their heads in approval: a cubs den for the littler ones with painting classes; tracking and bushcraft skills workshops for the older set, plus photography lessons and bird watching. The Sujan team are conservationists at heart, and helping Rabari herdsmen lead goats across the hills or dropping into the schools where the group has invested in teacher-training programmes are rewarding experiences that will ingrain themselves on young minds. As an add-on to a grand tour of the Golden Triangle, and a respite from the temples, a stay here is a real adventure.
INSIDER TIP: Book the family suite which cleverly has two connecting tents, as well as its own pool and dining area, meaning not only privacy for the adults but also no shushing the children.
Karyn MilletPlaya Grande Beach Club, Playa Grande, Dominican Republic
Up on the wild northern shore, this pastel-coloured gingerbread-house set-up, designed by New Yorker Celerie Kemble, was originally a private villa for her and financier husband Boykin Curry, as well as their friends. And what a villa. With tracery on the wraparound verandahs like wedding-cake icing, mint and melon rooms and shell-studded mirrors, it is absurdly pretty, tropically sweet. Getting here is an adventure; this part of the island is remote and miles – both geographically and atmospherically – from the resorts of Punta Cana. But after the bone-shaking, potholed drive from Santo Domingo, it is a relief to sink into an unhurried pace. There’s not a huge amount to do, so time really slows down. Long breakfasts of bright mangos and papayas, bananas straight from the tree, thick yogurt and sticky local honey are followed by general pottering and pootling. Everyone heads down to the deserted mile-long beach – where it’s not the flat, turquoise Caribbean Sea, but the thrilling, wave-crashing Atlantic – to explore, followed by a splash in the pool.
There is no scene, no particular sightseeing, so it becomes somewhere for children to enjoy adventuring under their own steam, settling into a lo-fi momentum with a gentle sense of freedom. Coconuts plop onto the sand and staff in the background keep an eye out while grown-ups doze. You can of course sign up for outings, such as whale watching and rainforest hikes, or just take a bicycle to pedal around nearby villages. The nine plantation-style bungalows, spread out among the grassy gardens, are tucked away, with huge copper rolltop bathtubs, retro kitchens and crisp linens on the vine-wrapped four-poster beds. Despite the elegance of the design, it’s mixed with all the technology needed: on-the-button air conditioning, filtered water in all the taps. Food is delicious and incredibly healthy, but the menu is short, so pop to the beach restaurant next door for lobster lunches, or to Amanera, up on the bluff, for evening drinks. Kemble and Curry’s friends still populate the place – it feels like one big Manhattan house party, with everyone hanging out at the clubhouse, eating supper together, playing cards into the night. An extraordinary oasis from the real world.
INSIDER TIP: The in-room spa treatments are very good – book one of the hour-long massages for each day of your stay and you’ll feel utterly horizontal.
Alphonse Island, Outer Islands, Seychelles
This island is famed for its saltwater fly-fishing, the ocean rich in the ultimate prize – the giant trevally – but with a commitment to preserving the stock, it is on a catch-and-release basis. The exception is the Bluewater kitchen run, where would-be Hemingways can reel in tuna and wahoo, which then reappears on a plate, sashimi’d or freshly grilled, with an array of inventive salads. The transparent shallows are dreamy for young paddlers, and older children can kayak or snorkel above reefs teeming with fish, or learn scuba skills at the dive centre. Swimming with manta rays or sailfish is another singular experience. An Attenborough documentary can certainly ignite enthusiasm for conservation, but a trip to a pristine wilderness like this will really show children the hands-on importance of looking after the natural world.
INSIDER TIP: A barbecue lunch on a sandbar, surrounded by vast blue sea, shows how small we truly are – it later disappears in the rising tide.
Mireille ROOBAERTPatrick’s Lodge, Palmarin, Senegal
This is where the French come; while we are piling across the Channel on a ferry to invade their shores, they are hopping on a plane to Dakar to feel the African sand between their toes. But the year-round sunshine of Senegal is now within reach via direct flights from London. The Petite Côte is a pristine swathe of beach that stretches for about 62 miles. At its southernmost point, at the gates of the Sine-Saloum reserve, between mangroves, white sand and ocean, is this private lodge designed by Belgian architect Coralie Michiels. It opened quietly last year and through word of mouth has quickly become one of those places whispered about in the playgrounds of the 6th arrondissement. It’s exactly the kind of barefoot family hideout that we all want to find, where kids really can roam free. The main house has a soaring, open-sided sitting room decorated with wooden masks, rattan lampshades, coffee tables made from felled trees and gorgeous graphic cushions. A four-bedroom villa and a handful of smaller houses – jungle-print tropicana in one, Santorini blues in another – are spread out across the 11 hectares.
Older children will beg to stay in the four- and six-bed dormitories for late-night pyjama parties. And the littler ones will be captivated by the kids’ club, where sweet staff will help them pick tomatoes from the vegetable patch to make their own pizzas and climb on the wooden giraffes, zebras and elephants in the playground. After paddleboarding in the shallows, meandering the lagoon on a pirogue and taking quad bikes out on the savannah, everyone returns for fish tagines and shrimp-salad lunches with tall glasses of cool hibiscus tea or Provençal rosé at the large table set up facing the surf. Despite the laidback look of the place, the infrastructure to keep young ones happy is turbo-charged: cooks, nannies, a sports coach and drivers are on tap 24 hours a day. After evening beach barbecues, musical workshops take place to the beat of djembes and children fall asleep with stars in their eyes. A gentle, authentic taste of West Africa for little folk.
INSIDER TIP: Patrick’s Lodge has its own sewing workshop, where bespoke tunics, pyjamas and household items made with stunning local fabrics can be ordered.
Mark WilliamsBoschendal Wine Estate, Franschhoek, South Africa
We all know Franschhoek first and foremost as an epicurean hub for world-class wines and forward-thinking restaurants. But, of course, it’s also home to working farms and next-gen organic estates that make for a wholesome holiday. One of the oldest and loveliest, 2,200-hectare Boschendal, is certain not to rest on its laurels. Stays here can involve taking the run of the historic Rhodes Cottage, the elegant Werf Garden Suites – or, best for families, the Orchard Cottages with up to four bedrooms. Backed by plum orchards and vineyards, with clear views to Paarl Rock and the Franschhoek Pass, each Orchard space is equipped with a mini kitchen, wood-burning stove and veranda with daybeds for lazing with a book while keeping an eye on the pool action in the park-like gardens. There are plenty of dams on the property for wild swimming and trout fishing and a network of trails, mapped out through fynbos on the slopes of the magnificent Simonsberg and Groot Drakenstein peaks, to run, hike or cycle along. Mountain bikers in the making will love the single-track practice run near the cottages and the gnarly little pump track attached to the new Tree House.
At this adventure centre, doors are open to kids from four to 14, and they are supervised by sustainability graduates, making it much more than simply a childminding service. Gardening, foraging and cooking over coals are some of the activities on offer, along with baking, upcycling and arts and crafts. The best way to cram everything in is to book a farm tour, horse-riding session and picnic lunch at reception the minute you check in. Breakfast, a bountiful farm-to-table spread served on the cottage stoep, is included. When wine tasting turns into an early supper of small plates at Werf Restaurant, order fish and chips or bowls of pasta from the Deli for the little ones. If too tired to eat out, take organic provisions from the farm shop back to the house or order in a wood-fired pizza or barbecue box for DIY burgers. On Friday evenings, there’s a farmers’ market under the oaks
with Boschendal wines and live music. This is a dreamy rural bolthole to settle down in after a whirlwind few days in Cape Town.INSIDER TIP: The Wine Tram may sound gimmicky but the hop-on, hop-off tour of the Franschhoek Valley is great fun.
Tim Evan-CookGili Lankanfushi, Maldives
As one of the best hotels in the Maldives, this waterworld wonderland is quite surreal. Lying in bed at night or out on the starlit terrace you feel like you’re adrift on a yacht. The stilted villas are open air and open-sided, all thatch, decking and shutters, totally surrounded by toothpaste-blue shallows. Tropical fish, stingrays and (vegetarian) reef sharks visit daily at high and low tide, swimming through the coral. These were the first all-overwater villas in the Maldives, and they are still just as special. Once Soneva Gili, now owned and run by Singapore-based HPL group, the hotel has retained much of what makes the Soneva properties so special – that bleached-wood vibe, the simple design, the pops of colour in the canary-yellow cushions and, first and foremost, a meaningful pledge of sustainability. For anyone wanting to educate their children in environmental good practice, perhaps flying to the Maldives isn’t the best way to start, but that is quickly set back on track with the commitment to all things eco.
Reducing the impact on the surroundings is the goal here, from the building materials to the compost schemes, growing organic vegetables using recycled waste and having a strict zero-plastic mantra. A tour of the garden shows rows of herbs and leaves, providing 80 per cent of the restaurants’ needs. The food is sensational: the freshest sushi at the Japanese restaurant built above the beach-side forest, noodles and Vietnamese spring rolls at the Asian street-food market, home-made mango and lime lollies from the Fini Foni ice-cream shack. And you have plenty of time to take it all in: Gili runs one hour ahead of Malé to make sure sunrise, sunset and all that life-giving sunlight in between is fully maxed out.
INSIDER TIP: Parents concerned about the potentially treacherous combination of small children and overwater villas can breathe easily: brilliant fencing is quickly knocked up to keep any wandering sleepwalkers safe.
Jakes, Jamaica
One of the nicest things about Jakes is how different it is to the Jamaica of the postcards. It’s part of a community-tourism scheme on the more rural south side of the island and feels a world away from the hawkers and all-inclusives of Negril and Montego Bay. Instead, its winsome draw comes from cheery painted houses decorated with bright fabrics and seashells, a rugged coastline (though there is a small beach next door) and gorgeous staff who are not just friendly but also fascinating, telling stories about the island’s sporting history.
There’s nothing as organised as a kids’ club yet little ones find plenty to occupy themselves with: watching pelicans swooping, counting geckos, learning to snorkel off the jetty, drawing pictures in the sand, jumping in and out of the pool for hours and eating pizza at Jack Sprat. It’s also the best spot for a sundowner and, after dark, great (often live) reggae (tip: asking for the music to be turned down might not be the best way to endear yourself so check your cottage location on the online map before booking). The rooms aren’t fancy but the outdoor shower and lived-in day-bed on the balcony feel fun, relaxing and safe.
INSIDER TIP: Book the kids in for a mosaic lesson for a truly memorable keepsake. It’s also fun for adults, as are the farm-to-table dinners using the best local ingredients that happen once a month (so time your trip right).
Scarp Ridge Lodge, Colorado
Nicknamed America’s last great ski town, Crested Butte could easily double as the set for an old Western and its mountains as the backdrop for a film by Warren Miller. Colourful Victorian-era buildings and old mining shacks – remnants of the town’s silver-mining past – line the streets. And the high elevation and cold temperatures result in some of the lightest snow in the whole of the USA. That is why you would make the pilgrimage here, rather than taking an hour’s flight to the Alps. Another draw is the bar-setting flagship lodge of the adventure collective Eleven Experience. Scarp Ridge sits unassumingly behind a saloon-like exterior a few blocks away from the main drag. The former brothel and dance hall has been reimagined as the most thoughtfully appointed chalet in the Rocky Mountains, right down to an oxygen system that helps guests acclimate to the altitude (9,115ft). The six bedrooms are alpine modern chic; a seven-bunk dorm is a snakes-and-ladders children’s fantasy (without the snakes). You can ski incredibly well on-piste at Crested Butte Mountain itself, which is known for its serious double-diamond terrain and fantastic ski school. But little-known Irwin Mountain is the real attraction here. Forty-five minutes from town, Irwin gets double the amount of snow as Crested Butte, averaging nearly 450 inches per year. Turbo-smart snowcats (leather seats, flatscreen TVs) whisk you to 1,000 acres of exclusive-use terrain, and the in-house guides are some of the best in the business, seeking out powder stashes and secret tree runs. When littler legs start to wobble, refuel with a lunch prepared by a chef at one of two on-mountain cabins. Back at the lodge, there’s a sauna, steam room and rooftop hot tub with starry views of Crested Butte Mountain.
INSIDER TIP: Eleven’s guides can take the children out for the day and capture their turns with GoPro cameras. Watch the edited footage later on the drop-down projector screen in the media room.