Mid April to mid July 2012 - where to go with the kids?

You could go to parts of Australia from there, or you could head to Malaysia and Thailand. Both carry a low to no risk of malaria, although you will hit the monsoon. Dengue is one of the bigger risks in the tropics these days.

I just return from 3 weeks in Malaysia with my kids, 10 and 5 years old. Its a beautifull country with plenty to see and do. Also check Singapore, it was a nice surprise.
Its very easy to travel from Indonesia and very friendly and safe to travel with kids. The beach is much better than Bali. We went to the Perhentians, pulau Lang Tengha and Redang. Beautifull white sandy beach with warm and quiet waters and lots of good snorkling spots and if you like to dive its amazing. you can visit also some cities like melaka, kuala lumpur and Penang wth beautifull sites and very good food.

The whole of SE Asia is very child friendly so this is not limited to Bali. The problem with Bali is that it is full of tourists who have the classic western approach to kids. It is a bit odd being somewhere the locals like kids and the tourists expect something else!

We just had a holiday there and it is a great place for families - our favourite places were Nusa Lemongan (safe swimming for kids) and Pemuteran in the north. This region was very laid back and I was impressed with the various projects that are going on (from turtles to reef restoration). Sanur also had safe beaches for kids, but I didn't like it very much. Kuta is insane and probably the least enjoyable place with families, but the water park is great and you can take young kids on some of the rides. Other unexpected highlights were the bird and reptile park and also the dolphins off Sanur (not Lovina).

We just had a lovely month in Bali with our two little ones. The highlight for us was staying on the Amed Coast in a town called Lipah. We met some very nice people there. We also spent time in Sanur, Ubud, Lombok & Gili Air. Lombok was really very different to Bali & very interesting. We had our last night there in Kuta and were very glad we didn't spend any longer there.
East Coast Peninsular Malaysia's monsoon season should end in May & be OK until November.
Where are you from? America has a lot of options? Or Australia, New Zealand, Europe (Greece, Croatia, Turkey?)

Hi, folks!

Thank you very much for your answers. Looks like Bali with either parts of Malesia and Thailand or north Australia should be the right choice...or is there any other location in the world you could recommend?
Remember, mid April to mid mid July, monsoon free, malaria free, safe to travel, good for swimming, cheap, kids friendly..
Since I am from Slovenia, Europe and having 3 months off I don´ t want to stay in Europe or close by. I am thinking of Pacific ( Fidji & Samoa) or Hawaii & California as well. My main concern about these places is costs.Do you guys have any figures on the costs in these countries? Staying in budget apartments, eating local food or self catering, public transport or car rental..?
Any other destination you would recommend ? ( not Africa or Middle East )

Thank you

Edited by: stasic

This time is a good period for the Pacific. It isn't as cheap as Asia but Samoa, Fiji, Tonga and Cook Islands are OK for prices. Samoa and Fiji are probably better because you don't need to fly to get to the best parts (which increases the costs). Whale watching is the big attraction for Tonga though and near the end of your trip you should overlap with this season. You could do something like Bali - Australia (or NZ) - Pacific - West coast of US to make the most of being far from home.

I like Egypt and Jordan in the middle east - but the first at least would not be relaxing with two young kids! I have always found beaches and a bit of nature go well with young kids.

We just returned from 3 weeks in Japan. Despite what everyone thinks, it was really quite cheap. Especially compared to Australia. We stayed in family rooms in backpacker hostels and guesthouses, ate boxed sets from the supermarket or 7/11 and drank beer from vending machines. Averaged on $300 total a day for 4 of us. We have a 3 year old and a 1 year old.

A few days in Tokyo, Nikko and Kyoto and then a lovely week at the beach. We travelled around by the trains. It was easy to get around with two kids in strollers.

We'd love to go back and see some of the mountains and do some hiking.

Otherwise I would suggest a campervan holiday from Darwin to Alice Springs. You could do Kakadu, Litchfield, Katherine Gorge, Bitter Springs, Alice Springs, Uluru, Kings Canyon and the West Macdonald ranges. We've done that with one kid in a Britz campervan over 2 weeks. Highly recommended! You could even continue down into Adelaide.

Happy travelling!