"TO THE VILLAGE, TO AUNTIE..."
A "self-organized" vacation at grandma's in the countryside is not bad. It means fresh air, healthier food, and fruits and vegetables. Maybe this is the optimal variant?
Viktoria KORNYUSH, psychologist, family therapy specialist:
– As a rule, a city child feels quite good on vacation in the countryside. In a group of peers, he is usually a leader – he knows more, is better dressed, and has better toys and "gadgets". Children who often and for a long time rest in rural areas have an established circle of acquaintances. And, unfortunately, it is they who adapt to the level of development of their village peers. They seem to freeze in their development – after all, they get nothing new for intellectual nourishment. Therefore, it is still optimal to set aside a week or two during a child's summer vacation for some bright, memorable trip.
So draw your own conclusions. That is why many mothers bring home at the end of August their healthier little "Tarzan" children...
VACATION "FAMILY STYLE"
Often parents try to "kill two birds with one stone" – both to rest themselves and to improve their children's health. So, a family goes. Or a couple of mothers with children. Or a dad with two boys. Or... Various options are possible, but the disadvantages of such recreation are the same – different interests of the vacationers and, as a result, instead of resting, everyone gets nervous. Such a vacation is successful if it is active: two or three families go, for example, on a hike. Family "sightseeing" rest is difficult to organize (whatever travel agencies offer) – a child will prefer the cherished Disneyland to any museum, and a hamburger at McDonald's to dinner at a Chinese restaurant.
Sometimes, wanting to maximally improve a child's health at the sea, parents resort to the so-called "relay" rest: first, a month with the child by mom, then by dad, grandmother, grandfather, etc. This can rather be called "rehabilitation" rest – the main emphasis is on nutrition and water-air procedures. For an adult, such rest is a big burden, since one must be almost constantly "with the child". As an option, there is rest with a nanny (governess). At the same time, the need to additionally process documents for an unfamiliar person is added.
The biggest drawback of such a vacation for a child is the adult, alien circle of acquaintances. These are cafes, bars, markets, shops... A dad with an invariable can of beer. A mom haggling for a hryvnia or two over peaches or grapes. A grandmother dozing in a corner at a "children's disco". The daily route "sea–dining room–home". And so it turns out, as a little girl said late in the evening in a Greek restaurant to her father: "So, do I have to fall asleep in a cafe every evening now?" Boring, dear parents...
VACATION "ON THE WHISTLE"
Children's camp recreation also varies. First, rest in the suburban area. Its advantages are relative cheapness, proximity to home, the same climate. For example, vouchers to a children's camp near Kiev (Koncha-Zaspa, Pushcha-Vodytsia) for 14 days cost about 300-500 hryvnias. Paradoxically, all this is also its disadvantages. Much more interesting for children is thematic recreation – various excursion routes, children's ecological and archaeological camps, etc. In this, by the way, lies the undying attractiveness of Artek.
Viktoria KORNYUSH, psychologist, family therapy specialist:
– For a teenager, it is very important to learn how to properly build relationships with peers. A modern schoolchild, as a rule, is in poor health, and also overloaded beyond measure with all sorts of activities: constantly changing school curriculum, language courses, tutors. The widespread craze for computer games reduces the need to communicate with peers. Therefore, summer camps are often the only opportunity for children to actively relax, socialize, and make new friends.
And yet, children's summer camps are many pluses. First, it is an organized, well-thought-out rest. The program of a 10-20-day rest includes outdoor games, excursions, water procedures, discos, and so on. At the same time, older children may be attracted by tourist routes. In Russia, for example, the Boy Scout movement is being revived – life in tents, cooking over a fire, night watches, rafting on rivers. As a result, they come back grimy, smelling of smoke and sweat, but bursting with delight.
One Kiev travel agency offered vouchers to a Boy Scout camp in Crimea. The program includes horseback riding in the mountains, archaeological work on Scythian burial mounds, paintball "Royal Hunt", underwater swimming, fishing. At the same time – accommodation in summer houses, water on schedule, amenities on the territory. And what do you think? All vouchers have long been sold out until the end of August...
In our pragmatic world, children eagerly await adventures, dream of the unknown, search and hope. No amount of multiple meals can compare for them with the opportunity to show courage in crossing a mountain stream or in lighting a fire in pouring rain. Romance, you know...
Irina BORSHCHENKO, "Irina Borshchenko's Travel Bureau":
– The main thing in children's tourism is an interesting and rich route. You should not pay special attention to abundant nutrition. It happens that it is chicken legs with the notorious horns or vermicelli. It is much more important to pay attention to what children will do during their rest.
After all, rest is rest, and fattening is fattening. And there is no need to confuse these concepts. Therefore, when choosing a camp for a child, you should not focus only on a "refrigerator in each room" or "six meals a day (!)".
VACATION "ABROAD"
In addition to family vacations, travel agencies usually offer two more options: rest at a children's recreation center or living with families.
Foreign camp holidays are not too different from similar ones at home – the same substantial meals, the same sea, the same discos. The landscape of the area is necessarily taken into account: there should be no cliffs or steep banks; it is important to have a good beach and a shallow bottom. Sometimes parents complain about the remoteness of the base from large cities and resort centers. Such remoteness is often quite justified and is determined by safety concerns for the children on holiday: the creation of a special children's "oasis". Of course, it is very desirable that various excursions are provided during the holiday.
By the way, children's excursions are a separate topic. One should not think that modern children are little receptive to "eternal" beauties, whether the work of nature or of human genius. What they have seen will certainly be stored somewhere in their memory and become a vivid impression, a memory that can be shared with friends in the autumn.
Leokadia GERASIMENKO, General Director of the travel agency "Ruada":
– We have been engaged in tourism for a long time – both adult and children's. We offer children the Crimea, Bulgaria, Slovakia, and much more. But we have a route that makes both children and adults' eyes light up at the mere mention of it. That is a holiday in Vietnam. For ten years now, Vietnam has annually invited a group of Ukrainian children for a free holiday and health improvement (parents pay only for the flight). By the way, children necessarily undergo diagnostics by doctors of traditional Vietnamese medicine. In general, Vietnam is a completely different world – nature of amazing beauty, colorful and unfamiliar folk traditions and customs. I have known this country for twenty years and still discover something new for myself. What can we say about children! They find themselves in a real fairy tale. You can watch how the "unknown beast" – papaya – grows. You can treat yourself to frog legs. You can bring home a magic shell, and then all winter listen to the sea singing in it. And Vietnamese water parks are among the best in the world! There are countries whose memories are kept for a lifetime, and Vietnam is one of them.
Impressions of a completely different kind remain with those children who had the chance to live in foreign families. Such a holiday can last up to a month and a half. To some extent, for a child this is an exam for maturity. He must be able to perceive a somewhat different culture of behavior and get used to a different way of life.
Tatyana BABIKOVA, UNIAN, mother of two daughters:
– A lot depends on what family the child ends up in. And parents need to find out about this before leaving home. My daughter ended up in a wonderful, friendly Italian family that had its own young people. So there were excursions, picnics, and trips to other Italian cities for national holidays. And a six-year-old boy from her group spent the whole time with very elderly Italians and never went beyond their garden. Well, judge for yourself – can seventy-year-old lonely old people fuss over a little boy!
But in any case, it is very useful for a child to discover the world. This is an introduction to a foreign culture, a new language, new friends. When my daughter left for Italy, she could only say hello and goodbye in Italian. And when she returned, she chatted quite tolerably. And even now she happily watches Italian TV channels and writes letters to Italian friends. Foreign friends send visas to the children of our acquaintances and help arrange study abroad.
This is sometimes the first opportunity for a child to feel like a "citizen of the world". Even the opportunity to buy souvenirs for relatives oneself, communicating with sellers in a foreign language, is already a "spacewalk".
And, finally...
HOLIDAYS FOR YOUNG "YUPPIES"
"Young professional perfect urbanist" – young, urban, professionally advanced... They exist in America, they exist in Europe, and they are gradually appearing here too. All sorts of international business schools, combinations of "holiday + foreign language" – these are for them, the young and cheeky, who greatly value their time and try to fit in as much as possible. This pleasure is expensive, but the result is tangible. It is a huge investment in a child's education and a holiday in the best sense of the word, plus the experience of surviving without parents and adapting to unfamiliar conditions. Firstly, the child loses the fear of a foreign language – willy-nilly, he will start speaking. Secondly, it is a good springboard for possible further study abroad. But that is a topic for a separate conversation...
EXPERT OPINIONS
And what does the interested party, namely the parents, think about the organization of children's holidays?
Tatyana BABIKOVA, UNIAN, mother of two daughters:
– If you have decided to send your child on a package tour, it is best to choose a travel agency on a recommendation. In any case, the choice should be made in favor of a proven travel agency that has been organizing children's holidays for more than a year. My advice to all parents is to try to find out in detail everything related to the holiday itself: where, how the children will be accommodated, how far to the sea, what they will do. For example, we sent our daughter to Bulgaria. So, part of the group ended up in a beautiful seaside town of Nessebar: clean air, sea two steps away. And another part of the group was housed in a large industrial city of Burgas, and they were taken to the sea (16 km!) by bus. Or the issue of room allocation. It is better for parents to insist back in Kyiv that children be housed in twos or threes than later on the spot the children will tearfully refuse six-bed rooms.
There are also age-related problems. Nowadays parents send even six-year-olds on package tours. And inexperienced managers accompanying children's groups can put both seven- and eight-year-old rascals and fifteen-year-old young ladies in the same room. Can you imagine – some are getting ready for a disco in the evening, while others are playing "Cossacks and robbers" on the beds...
TIPS FOR PARENTS
When purchasing a tour package, ask the manager to show advertising brochures or photo albums of the camps. Some travel agencies even provide video cassettes about children's life at camp. It is worth finding out the program of events for the shift, daily routine, menu, and list of necessary items for the child going on vacation.
Be sure to get from the travel agency the phone number to contact the manager accompanying the children's group. It is necessary to insist that he call the travel agency once or twice during the vacation and report on how the rest is going.
Regarding pocket money for your child. The amount of money for additional expenses depends on the country of stay and the age of your child. As a rule, it is $50-100. Your child will use this money for personal purposes, since everything necessary has already been paid for at the time of purchasing the tour package (except for some additional excursions). You should be prepared for the child to spend everything given to them. As a rule, the money will go to ice cream and sweets. But it would not be superfluous to teach the child how to call home if necessary.
Never entrust your child's vacation to random individuals – school teachers, firms without a license, and other "mass entertainers". Random people who take on this work often do not understand what responsibility they are taking upon themselves and do not have special knowledge. A sad example: during a bus tour of Europe, a child fell ill with pneumonia. In Amsterdam, he was hospitalized, but the accompanying person, who was afraid of everything and certainly had not even read the insurance policy, took the child from the hospital under his own responsibility and continued the route with him. For the child, the tour ended with serious health complications.
Advice could be given endlessly. But parents somehow intuitively manage to make the right choice. For example, my acquaintance shared a story with me. She wanted to send her son to a children's camp by the sea. She called travel agencies. And – interestingly – in many of them they talked to her for a long time, telling her in detail about the conditions of meals, accommodation, and entertainment for her child. Never once asking whether she had a son or a daughter. And she bought the tour package from the agency that finally asked her about it. That's how it is!
Organizing children's vacation is hard work and great responsibility. They say that you should write for children as you do for adults – only better. The same can be said about children's vacation.