Help-First Christmas holiday with new son in law along?
 

Help a soon to be new mother in law out-please?
We are a family of four from the US who have been celebrating our Christmas holidays overseas since both sets of grandparents have passed away 8 years ago. My daughter is getting married this year and her soon to be husband wants to continue our Christmas family vacations together .

I am racking my brain trying to come up with a fun and exciting vacation for my new son in law and the rest of the family. My daughter and son in law will be living in the UK and we are coming from the US so will want to meet somewhere that is convenient for both of us.The vacation will probably be at least a week and possibly upwards to 12-14 days the latter part of December.We love vacations that involve seeing some history /sightseeing of the area;enjoying the food and wine along with somewhere that has temps around 50-60F. The "kids" are in their early 30's and love hiking,the ocean and exploring.
We usually rent houses or flats to have the choice of cooking facilities and the chance to play cards/board games at night with wine.

Some of the places we have gone on our previous Christmas vacations in the past years have been:
Egypt/Jordan;Cyprus;Madeira;Morocco;Canary Islands;Crete; and Southern Spain.

Please suggest any places that you think might make everyone happy this year?
I appreciate any and all help as I want this Christmas for our new family of five to be special!

I assume you are looking for places in Europe. Based on your interests Italy and Turkey immediately come to mind. If you are thinking further afield, with two weeks, you may enjoy Sri Lanka.

Oh, and congratulations to you and your family.

Thanks tripplanner001 for your kind words! We have done Turkey and alot of Italy in the past which is our favorite country.Hubs has back problems so probably won't go as far as Sri Lanka as its a long trip from Chicago.

You're welcome. Happy planning.

Congratulations on extending the family.

Portugal? Combination of Lisbon and Algarve.

Brits used to (late 1800s - early 1900s) overwinter in Nice and Pau.

We have been to Lisbon in the past but was wondering how Faro would be in the winter time?

Don't know - I'm not into beaches so just go to Lisbon. I believe there's a big expat community in the Algarve, you might try one of the expat boards.

Nice can have very pleasant weather at Christmas time, and there is plenty to do to keep you occupied for a week. Lovely markets to do your food shopping. Hiking, ocean, exploring, historic towns, food and wine - it's all there.

I would to the caribbeans.
Not exactly Europe but
- it will be less 'stress'
- will give in law time to blend in
- weather is more propitious to cocktails and some outdoor activities

I would keep a trip to Europe for later when you are more sure of how your tastes mix.
An in law should remain so for your full life so I'd go easy on The start.

And of course I'd do it 10 days max.
Imagine for whatever reasons the in law doesn't like it so much after all he ll be stuck for 2 weeks ...

Cynical ?maybe but I'd protect such a relationship and overdo it.

My 2 cents - you know him better than me of course !

Yes, I think Barbados in particular has merit. It is a popular direct flight from the UK, and you can break up the flight from Chicago in Miami to give your husband's back a break. It also has a real airport as opposed to a landing strip with the ocean at one end at a mountain at the other.

There is crashing surf on the east coast, gentle Caribbean waters on the west, the weather is reliably warm, and the people are very friendly. There are resorts, and there are houses for rent.

Your young people may really enjoy traveling around the island on the inexpensive local buses, and if you don't, taxis are readily available. We hired a taxi twice to take us on tours. The terrain and architecture vary a lot, so it is nice to get out and see it. If your young people are already comfortable driving on the left, you can rent a car.

It is an island that is making a successful transition into a modern economy, despite bumps in the road, education is universal, and while many people live simply, there is no grinding poverty to induce guilt in the vacationer.

I prefer Bridgetown to Gustavia on St Barth's or Philipsburgh on St Martin, though it does get cruise ships.

Why don't you ask your daughter for suggestions ? If she has been on all the other family Christmas trips, she will know what you like & presumably have a clue what her husband would & would not like.

IME what works pretty well in these group situations, is an Itinerary / location that allows for people doing their own thing during the day & coming together for dinner. If some/ all want to do the same thing now & again,fine.

My inclination is to pick what you would like & run it past your daughter, with the option to tweak it to something she & her husband would like.

What do your daughter and her fiancé want to do?

Cape Verdi islands

Algarve

Majorca

Dubai

Azores