Alternative family vacation ideas

Children are as programmed to want to go to Disney World as we are to want to go to the pub after work on a Friday, and though Disney's Animal Kingdom may try its best to immerse visitors into an African 'theme', why go and see animals in a faux-safari when it's just as easy to see them in Africa proper. 'But what about malaria?' we hear you cry. Don't let the prospect of taking antimalarial medication put you off a family trip to Africa and don't be fooled into thinking Disney's Animal Kingdom is the only alternative either. Step into South Africa: a safari destination that could have been designed for families, with incredible wildlife which you can watch while on safari without all the pill-popping and mosquito nets. Much of the country is malaria free, with a low risk only in Kruger.

Brits have a bit of a love affair with Benidorm, but while there's nothing wrong with a fly and flop family vacation in the sun (what kid doesn't like a bit of bucket and spade action?) venture beyond the Costas and Spain is a fascinating country that's far greater than the sum of it's warm-weather parts. There's the sun-scorched Moorish cities of Andalucía to explore, or the beautiful beaches and green hills of Galicia, not to mention cliffs, caves, mountains and plains where you can hike, bike and canyon together. Try whitewater rafting on the rivers of the Pyrenees, kayaking around the turquoise lakes of the Andalucian Altiplano or even hiking in the breathtaking Picos de Europa, a frequently snow-draped limestone massif - enough to keep kids of any age and their parents occupied.

Now call us old fashioned, but we were under the impression that there was a lot more to Finland than flying there and back in one day to visit a former nuclear bunker and queue to see a man impersonating Father Christmas (because of course he's very real and also very busy in his workshop at the mo.) Doubtless an experience about as memorable as yet another overpriced toastie at Center Parcs. Here's an idea: go to Finland, see the fat man dressed in red if you like, but stay for longer than a day? That way you can take your time and waste not one drop of its splintered archipelagos, 188,000 lakes, back to basics nature and seriously characterful locals, not least miss out on a husky safari, which is an experience akin to a great big snowy bubble of adrenalin-charged happiness. Remember, a Finnish vacation is for life, not just for Christmas.