In the family way

The economy may not have spurted to full recovery, but the uptrend has been enough for the ubiquitous Indian family to consider taking a vacation. In fact, the abating recession has made families the new VVIPs for travel service providers, who no longer want to save their best deals for business travellers, their longstanding cash cows. Instead, the new buzzword is multigen (short for multiple generation) trips, with kids at the centre of the industry's focus.While most hotels have always provided play areas, kiddie pools and children-stay-free deals, the luxury brands have had kid spas, special activities for different age groups, including teenagers, and all-day baby-sitters. So if you had the moolah, you could buy relaxation and recreation even as the children had fun. Now, as the toprated hotels are upgrading their services, even three star hotels are going all out to woo the kids. This means that there are a host of family-special packages that you can avail of in the coming months.

Take the deal offered by Trident Holidays. Available at the brand's properties in Agra, Bhubaneswar, Kochi, Chennai, Jaipur and Udaipur, this three-day package includes a double room for parents, a complimentary additional room for two children up to 12 years (subject to availability, so book early), breakfast, happy hours at the bar, and free access to the kids club. The cost, excluding taxes, ranges from Rs 12,000-17,000. This means that the per night cost per person works out to just Rs 2,125. The offer is valid till 15 April.

Westin resorts too has similar family packages on offer at select properties abroad. For details, visit http://familyfunspecials.com.

Perhaps the best way to bridge the generation divide while ensuring a pleasant holiday is to take a cruise. With land-based resorts increasingly eating into their USP, cruise liners are now offering 'kids travel free' deals. For example, the Disney Cruise Line has announced that children under 17 years can sail free on select Mediterranean cruises between 24 April and 26 May if they travel with two full-fare guests in the same stateroom.

Not to be outdone, travel facilitators are carving out a new niche —family adventure vacations. Says T.S. Anand, president, Adventure Tour Operators Association of India (ATOAI): "Today, two family holidays in a year is the norm and everybody wants an activity-based vacation. This is why I see the trend of family adventure tours taking off in a big way." It could be a rafting trip, a camping-cumtrekking holiday, a cycling vacation or even a multi-activity trip combining a host of adrenaline rush pursuits. Camp Wild, Delhi's largest adventure-based resort located in the Aravali valley, is offering such a package for a family of four for Rs 5,999 a night. This includes all meals, activities like wall climbing, rappelling, hiking and free entry to an obstacle course where you can play GI Joe.

Meanwhile, insurance firms have come up with attractive travel insurance packages for families, which are cheaper than individual plans. With deals like these, family outings should be fun this season.