Kinderhotel Buchau Austria

We just returned from an amazingly indulgent week at the all-inclusive Kinderhotel Buchau in Austria. In February there is a two-week school holiday, where everyone goes skiing, called sportferien. For the second year in a row, during sportferien, we have gone for a week to the Kinderhotel Buchau. Last year we had a very nice time. I did not ski once, did not spa once, just sat blissfully happy at the open bar, with my laptop and Kindle on my tablet, all day until the family finished skiing. This year we had an incredible holiday as three other families joined us as well as my father. I couldn’t believe what an amazing time we had. We are three families from the USA, now living in England and Switzerland. Our kids got along so well, eating all their dinners in the kid’s club and then on to the night’s kid lantern parade, disco, dance party, game night, or movie night. There are so many amazing things about this Kinderhotel and bringing friends and family along made it unbelievable. Here is our visit to this Kinderhotel from last year. It was so nice to see so many familiar faces from last year from the guests to the employees. This just may be one of the happiest places on Earth.

Top 7 reasons we love this Kinderhotel:

Seven adult dinners! The Kinderhotel was so amazing in seating our large group together for the week. So the nine of us sat together for leisurely indulgent dinners and drinks while the kids had the time of their lives at their own dinner, bouncy house, soft play, or one of the many nightly kid activities. The staff was so friendly and wonderful. We enjoyed long, leisurely dinners each night from starter, soup, salad, entree, to dessert. Every night, by the time we finished our salads, we couldn’t believe we were still leisurely eating. We were stuffed and relaxed. Each morning at breakfast we chose our appetizer and entrée for the night.
Ski Lessons. The mountain next to the Kinderhotel (a 2 minute shuttle ride, provided by the hotel for drop off and pick up and any time) was perfect for our kids learning to ski for the week. The instructors were fantastic, keeping all the kids going for full days of skiing. We signed the kids up for 6 days of ski lessons. We all skiied 6 days as well. Last year the girls skiied only 3 days and I didn’t ski at all! The ski instructors are absolutely fantastic. Hadley left for ski lessons each morning at 9:20am and returned at 4pm. Heike also left at 9:20am and returned for lunch in the kid’s club around 1pm. By the end of the six days, all our kids were skiing. Five of the nine that joined us had never skiied. It was amazing to see them at the end of the week, excited and amazed at their new abilities. Fridays are race day. You get to see your little skiier come down the slalom course with the count down and the loud-speaker with their names called and cheering section. Quite a highlight.
Our Room. We stayed in a house this time since we wanted an extra bedroom for my Dad. We had a gorgeous three bedroom house, room #116, with more than enough space for another family or a sleepover. The house included a large living room, play area, three bedrooms, and the children’s bedroom had two end to end beds with a box of Lego (not to mention a TV in every room! If only we were in our rooms to watch it!). I would highly recommend this room if you are bringing a family or grandparent for the third room. If we go again next year we will probably get a room like ours from last year, room #120. These rooms have a separate bedroom for the children with three beds, a TV and the Lego box. Absolutely perfect as you only really sleep in your room after full days and nights of activities.
The Food. This is like a cruise on land. There is always food. For breakfast we would all pass like ships in the night arriving at different times before setting off for a morning of skiing. For lunch the girls ate with their ski lessons or kid’s club. When they finished their lessons, they would get a snack and meet us at the bar for their own children’s cocktails. The bartender was so wonderful with the children. My girls talked about him all year and couldn’t wait to go back for their cocktails. For dinner the kids went back with their friends to the kid’s club and we finished our drinks at the bar and headed in for our completely gluttonous dinner.
Kid’s Club. Our kids couldn’t wait to get to the kid’s club each day to play with their friends and the lovely women who looked after them. The kid’s club was a hub of activity instead of a daycare type situation. The kids loved going there to make cookies, muffins, lanterns, play hide and seek or whatever was the activity of the day. Hadley and Heike’s favorite part of the week was the magic show. They are still talking about it!
All inclusive. This is the only all-inclusive holiday we have ever been on. I see why a lot of my friends who don’t have their family around do this type of vacation. It is so wonderful to have your kids in a small, safe hotel with a friendly staff who know them. Food, drinks, strollers, wagons, humidifier (right?!), kid’s club, swimming, hot tub, playground, bouncy house, soft play, movie night, magic show, lantern parade with campfire (and marshmallows!), yoga, horse rides, shuttles, etc. (I’m sure I missed a ton of other activities that are included, but there is so much to do!) Everything was included. Also, all the drinks are included. From espresso drinks to Hugo’s to our drinks with lunch and dinner. Goodness.
Staying put. I love that last year I did not leave the Kinderhotel once during our one week stay. This year I went skiing every morning, but otherwise stayed put in the hotel bar. Ha! This holiday is stress free without having to worry about a thing. Next year, I think I will book a spa treatment!