Wazzup Pilipinas!?
“Staycation” remains one of the most popular words in everyone’s travel dictionaries today. It’s the perfect solution for families who want a change of setting and scenery and to relax for a day or two without the hassles of going on a long trip.
However, going on a staycation in Dubai with your family sometimes comes with a few challenges, particularly if you have young children. Kids thrive in familiarity; bringing them to a place they haven’t been to before can affect their routine, making them cranky or less easy to manage.
When your children are irritable and more challenging than usual because they are in an unfamiliar place, everyone’s getaway will be affected. Therefore, you and your family won’t be able to enjoy your staycation as much as you want to.
Fortunately, there are various ways you can make the apartments in Dubai you rent for your staycation feel like home for your family.
And when everyone feels comfortable in your accommodation, you can make your getaway more fun, relaxing, and memorable.
Creating Homey Staycation Accommodations
Below are some tips you can follow to make your accommodation more comfortable for your staycation in Dubai:
Bring your kids’ creature comforts.
As mentioned, children thrive in familiarity and routine. Staying in a strange place for a few days could cause them to display unlikeable behaviours that can lead to stressful and unpleasant situations that will affect your staycation.
To minimise your little ones’ tantrums and unpleasant behaviours during your getaway, ensure you pack everything that will bring them a sense of familiarity and home.
Some of the important items you have to bring for your young children include:
Favourite toys, stuffed animals, and books
Baby blanket
Small pillow
Favourite pyjamas, slippers, shoes, and towel
Don’t forget to bring plenty of their favourite foods. These include packs of biscuits, cereals, pudding cups, dried fruits, and juice boxes.
If you’re still formula feeding your kids, make sure you bring their bottles and cans of their milk as well.
Introduce familiar scents.
The right fragrances can also make your staycation accommodation feel homier for your family.
If there are vases in the flat, put the same fresh flowers you often use to decorate your abode. The fragrance they release will remind everyone of home.
If you often use an air freshener spray at home, bring it and spritz it in each room to introduce this familiar fragrance to your accommodation.
You can also bring your humidifier and favourite essential oils if you use these at home. Aside from giving the accommodation a familiar scent, the device and oils can help clean the air and provide everyone with some health benefits, including reducing stress and uplifting everyone’s moods.
However, avoid bringing and using scented candles since they are fire hazards.
Add homey touches to the bedroom.
Holiday rentals have beddings made of great quality textiles to make the guests’ stay as comfortable as possible.
However, even though they are pretty to look at and soft to touch, most of the time, they don’t remind you of home.
Since you don’t have to travel far, consider bringing some of your beddings. It won’t be difficult to carry pillows, so bring your own, particularly the ones your little ones use to reduce their unfamiliarity and homesickness.
If bringing plenty of pillows is not possible, opt for pillow covers instead.
Additionally, remind everyone to bring their own slippers so that their feet will stay warm and comfy as they walk around the accommodation.
Make sure everyone packs their favourite pyjamas and bathrobes as well, which are also a must for feeling cosy in their bedrooms and after taking a bath. Lastly, encourage them to bring books if they often read before turning in.
Use the kitchen.
Food is another thing that can remind everyone of home even when they are in a different place. As such, use the kitchen a few times during your staycation.
Drop by the supermarket to buy the ingredients for your family’s favourite dishes so that you can cook them. Shop for some pantry essentials as well so that everyone can have something they can snack on anytime.
To ensure you’ll have everything you need to whip up some meals, find out beforehand what equipment and utensils are available in the kitchen. If there are some missing items, you’ll have to bring them.
The smell from the dishes you’ll cook won’t fail to make everyone feel at ease, even in an unfamiliar place. Moreover, your family will appreciate the home-cooked meal.
However, don’t cook every meal. Remember that you’re still on vacation, so don’t spend all your time in the kitchen.
Bring basic cleaning supplies.
Although your accommodation is clean and organised when you arrive and it will be tidied up once you leave, keeping it spotless during your stay will go a long way in helping everyone feel comfortable during your staycation.
As such, during your grocery run, buy the following:
Baby blanket
Small pillow
Favourite pyjamas, slippers, shoes, and towel
Don’t forget to bring plenty of their favourite foods. These include packs of biscuits, cereals, pudding cups, dried fruits, and juice boxes.
If you’re still formula feeding your kids, make sure you bring their bottles and cans of their milk as well.
Introduce familiar scents.
The right fragrances can also make your staycation accommodation feel homier for your family.
If there are vases in the flat, put the same fresh flowers you often use to decorate your abode. The fragrance they release will remind everyone of home.
If you often use an air freshener spray at home, bring it and spritz it in each room to introduce this familiar fragrance to your accommodation.
You can also bring your humidifier and favourite essential oils if you use these at home. Aside from giving the accommodation a familiar scent, the device and oils can help clean the air and provide everyone with some health benefits, including reducing stress and uplifting everyone’s moods.
However, avoid bringing and using scented candles since they are fire hazards.
Add homey touches to the bedroom.
Holiday rentals have beddings made of great quality textiles to make the guests’ stay as comfortable as possible.
However, even though they are pretty to look at and soft to touch, most of the time, they don’t remind you of home.
Since you don’t have to travel far, consider bringing some of your beddings. It won’t be difficult to carry pillows, so bring your own, particularly the ones your little ones use to reduce their unfamiliarity and homesickness.
If bringing plenty of pillows is not possible, opt for pillow covers instead.
Additionally, remind everyone to bring their own slippers so that their feet will stay warm and comfy as they walk around the accommodation.
Make sure everyone packs their favourite pyjamas and bathrobes as well, which are also a must for feeling cosy in their bedrooms and after taking a bath. Lastly, encourage them to bring books if they often read before turning in.
Use the kitchen.
Food is another thing that can remind everyone of home even when they are in a different place. As such, use the kitchen a few times during your staycation.
Drop by the supermarket to buy the ingredients for your family’s favourite dishes so that you can cook them. Shop for some pantry essentials as well so that everyone can have something they can snack on anytime.
To ensure you’ll have everything you need to whip up some meals, find out beforehand what equipment and utensils are available in the kitchen. If there are some missing items, you’ll have to bring them.
The smell from the dishes you’ll cook won’t fail to make everyone feel at ease, even in an unfamiliar place. Moreover, your family will appreciate the home-cooked meal.
However, don’t cook every meal. Remember that you’re still on vacation, so don’t spend all your time in the kitchen.
Bring basic cleaning supplies.
Although your accommodation is clean and organised when you arrive and it will be tidied up once you leave, keeping it spotless during your stay will go a long way in helping everyone feel comfortable during your staycation.
As such, during your grocery run, buy the following:
Toilet paper
Kitchen roll
Microfibre cloths
Sponge
Dishwashing liquid
Disinfectant wipes
Bin bags
Laundry bags
Spot-clean whenever there are spills or dirt on the floor, tables, and counters. Also, avoid piling used pots and pans, dining ware, and utensils; wash them as soon as possible.
Make sure to put all rubbish in the bag-lined bins. Replace and put them in the disposal area once they are full.
Also, give each of your family members a laundry bag and instruct them to put their soiled clothes here instead of piling them on the bed, chairs, or closet.
Plan some entertainment.
Lastly, keeping your family entertained is an excellent way of making them feel more comfortable during your staycation.
Find out in advance if the accommodation has Wi-Fi so that you can plan on binge-watching some movies and TV shows. If there is an Internet connection, give everyone time to check their social media pages and play some games on their devices.
Don’t forget to bring an HDMI cable so you can connect your laptop to the television in case it is not a smart TV.
Also, pack some board games and playing cards so that you’ll have alternative sources of entertainment.
If your accommodation has a swimming pool, beach access, or a nearby park or garden, make sure you visit these places so that you don’t end up spending all your time indoors during your getaway.
With these simple tips and techniques, your staycation with your family in your choice of accommodation in Dubai will be more fun and memorable.
Kitchen roll
Microfibre cloths
Sponge
Dishwashing liquid
Disinfectant wipes
Bin bags
Laundry bags
Spot-clean whenever there are spills or dirt on the floor, tables, and counters. Also, avoid piling used pots and pans, dining ware, and utensils; wash them as soon as possible.
Make sure to put all rubbish in the bag-lined bins. Replace and put them in the disposal area once they are full.
Also, give each of your family members a laundry bag and instruct them to put their soiled clothes here instead of piling them on the bed, chairs, or closet.
Plan some entertainment.
Lastly, keeping your family entertained is an excellent way of making them feel more comfortable during your staycation.
Find out in advance if the accommodation has Wi-Fi so that you can plan on binge-watching some movies and TV shows. If there is an Internet connection, give everyone time to check their social media pages and play some games on their devices.
Don’t forget to bring an HDMI cable so you can connect your laptop to the television in case it is not a smart TV.
Also, pack some board games and playing cards so that you’ll have alternative sources of entertainment.
If your accommodation has a swimming pool, beach access, or a nearby park or garden, make sure you visit these places so that you don’t end up spending all your time indoors during your getaway.
With these simple tips and techniques, your staycation with your family in your choice of accommodation in Dubai will be more fun and memorable.
Ross is known as the Pambansang Blogger ng Pilipinas - An Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Professional by profession and a Social Media Evangelist by heart.
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