Family bonding

John and Jenny Barrett, farmers from Warwickshire, have been enjoying Bond holidays with their family for the last 10 years.

“We became Bondholders when our grandchildren were very young,” says Jenny, “and we’ve been getting together at a Bond site, 12 of us all together, for a week in the summer every year since. We’re a close family so it’s a very special time which we all very much look forward to.”

Something for everyone

So far their adventures have included Constant in the Dordogne, Le Manoir du Hilguy in Brittany, Rocha Brava on the Algarve, El Pueblito de Alfaix in southern Spain and their favourite, La Reserva de Binorella in Mallorca, as well as various UK sites. “They are all such wonderful places,” Jenny continues, “Constant is peaceful, rural and full of character and Le Manoir is grand and full of history, while Rocha Brava, Alfaix and Binorella are perfect for fun in the sun. Wherever we go the accommodation is always very comfortable and the surroundings beautifully kept, but it’s the onsite facilities that really impress us. Swimming pools, tennis courts, spas, gyms: all fantastic. You can do Pilates, yoga, aqua aerobics, you name it, there’s something for everyone. There are even onsite Kids’ Clubs for the younger ones, which our youngest granddaughter Georgina, who’s 11, absolutely loves.”

Space for everyone

“Nowadays we tend to take a number of apartments and split ourselves up giving everyone some space to do their own thing,” says John. “The teenagers love to sleep in and sometimes we don’t see them until lunchtime. Which leaves us grown-ups free to be as active or as lazy as we please. Evenings, however, are always spent together; at the onsite restaurant, having a barbeque or going out. It’s our ‘family Bonding time.’”

Holidays for life

“The Holiday Property Bond has given us the chance to enjoy our growing family, to unite and have fun all together,” Jenny concludes. “I think we’re very lucky. I recently asked my grandchildren if they still wanted to come away with us now they are older, and to my delight they all replied, without hesitation, that they wouldn’t miss their Bond holidays for the world! Long may it continue.”