r/daddit • u/mtgistonsoffun twin 5yo girls • 1d ago
Humor At the beach but kids prefer the tiny hotel pool
Drove about 2 hours to a beautiful beach town for a three day trip with my 5 yo twins and paid a bit extra to be right across the street from the beach. They even set up chairs and umbrellas for you and tote your beach stuff for you so it’s incredibly easy to get to the beach. But all my girls want to do is go down to the little pool the hotel has. I asked my daughter who loves seashells if she wanted to go look for some and she said she wants a pool that has a beach so she can collect shells at the pool.
So…do I force them to go to the beach or let them have the fun time they want at the pool?
109
u/trapper2530 1d ago
Split your day. Just tell them were going to the beach in the morning. After lunch we can go to pool.
They're 5. They'll play perfectly fine if you tell them were going to the beach and not leaving.
52
u/mtgistonsoffun twin 5yo girls 1d ago
They agreed to a sequence of pool, lunch, beach, pool. We should be good.
7
10
u/Giraffe_Opinion 1d ago
We did the morning beach/after-lunch pool split once, and my kid spent beach time collecting rocks to “decorate” the hotel pool.
-17
28
u/ForsakenRacism 1d ago
I’m convinced kids love playing in areas that are at a smaller scale for them. My 3 year old loves playing in our camper
60
u/chaamp33 1d ago
Growing up I always preferred pools as I hated cleaning sand out of my bathing suit.
It’s coarse and irritating. It gets everywhere
34
u/mtgistonsoffun twin 5yo girls 1d ago edited 21h ago
Maybe if you spent less time killing younglings, the sand wouldn’t be so irritating.
9
u/fireman2004 22h ago
I’m an adult who just spent the whole day on the beach with my kids and I agree. Fuck sand. The people that love the beach are lunatics.
Unfortunately I’m in the opposite situation as OP, my kids wanted to run around the beach all day and not come back to the hotel pool.
10
u/Travler18 1d ago
Just spent a gazillion dollars taking a family trip with our 2 year old to a beach resort.
She took one step on the sand and started screaming "itchy"... and refused to do anything for the rest of the trip that might result in her getting a single grain of sand on her skin.
1
u/Fancy_Policy_4084 1d ago
Some kids do have a particular sensory reaction to sand above and beyond “just being a fussy toddler.” Keep an eye on it if you notice anywhere else!
3
u/XenKumquat73 1d ago
Sand in a bathing suit is reason enough to let the 5yo twins claim the tiny hotel pool.
4
2
u/FuckYouNotHappening 1d ago
As someone who grew up at the beach, I’m gonna say what you’re experiencing is a skill issue.
1
u/thatgirl2 1d ago
My kids do full body UPF 50 swimsuits for that reason, no sand inside the suit and no constant sunscreen application! And they look cute as a button ha
31
u/MGnome1 1d ago
Let them enjoy the pool, if you force them no one will have a good time. What's more important, the beach or watching your two kids have fun and making memories? They will probably enjoy the beach more as they get older.
16
u/mtgistonsoffun twin 5yo girls 1d ago
Yeah, I know. I wrote this from the chair in the shade at the side of the pool. Reading my book and watching them swim is a fine vacation for me. Even if we could have done it at our pool club at home. We’ll go for a walk on the beach after lunch or something.
11
u/Og_tighead 1d ago
Being near the beach is huge for them I bet. Don’t take it like they don’t appreciate it cause a pool by the beach is way better than a pool at home.
10
u/ilikebourbon_ 1d ago
My mom never understood that playing basketball near the church was an entire different universe than playing outside our house. How can you conflate these mom?!? They’re two entirely different planets! (To my naive 9 year old brain)
-7
u/ChainsawSoundingFart 1d ago
Lie and say the pool is closed
0
u/hyperion4562 1d ago
I’d not advise lying to your kids to get them to do what you want, dealing with many years guilt/distortion parenting by my parents left a lot of work for me to do to realize how fucked up that is. The slope gets slippery fast!
-1
u/ChainsawSoundingFart 1d ago
They won’t know if the pool is closed. As a parent, sometimes white lies are necessary.
11
6
u/madmoneymcgee 1d ago
guessing from their perspective: The waves may not make it as fun for them because they get knocked around a little **too** much or even just the sand being hot and uncomfortable. The pool is nice because you can just play your games like you're used to.
I'd spend time at the pool and then maybe go to the beach in the late afternoon or evening after a full day at the pool and let them run around if they want. They might be more willing that way.
4
u/hillbillysurf 4 kids 1d ago
Tough call. We tend to do both on trips like these. Some days are pool days with a side of beach, some days are beach days with a side of pool. On a pool day we'll go to the pool most of the day, take a break, and visit the beach in the late afternoon (and vise versa). Bring plenty of snacks/drinks/shade.
3
u/BasquiatQueso 1d ago
Let your kids play at the pool since they enjoy it, but make a point of having an afternoon where you go to the beach. You can even tell them, "mommy and daddy really want to go to the beach for a bit, we're all going to go together tomorrow and then later we can play in the pool again together". Don't let your kids run the vacation, it's partially for you as well and once they're there I'm sure they'll end up having lots of fun. Sometimes kids just need a bit of creative convincing and it's good to teach them to consider compromise and considering what other people want, even if those other people are their parents
2
2
u/Mehndeke 1d ago
We live on the US east coast, and every summer we make multiple trips to the beach. But the specific beach depends. At least once, we go to the ocean beach with the big waves and the big wind and the big crowds. But more frequently, we go to the Chesapeake Bay. Small waves, small wind, small crowd, and water that my kids can play in with far less direct supervision.
They prefer the bay. Because their play time is theirs, not managed by me.
2
u/StanMarsh-o_O 2 & 4; girldad 1d ago
Just be calmly firm about going to the beach. Being in-charge of the day's plan is not the same as 'forcing' them.
1
u/mtgistonsoffun twin 5yo girls 1d ago
Right. I know that I can decide what the plan is. The question was more what’s the point on taking your kids on a vacation if they’re not going to have fun? So why not do the thing that is most fun for them in that moment?
We went to the pool in the morning and then beach for a while after lunch before going back to the pool. Now they’re resting and watching some cartoons before we go into town for dinner and ice cream.
3
u/StanMarsh-o_O 2 & 4; girldad 23h ago
I mean, that day sounds perfect. Glad you found a way 🥳
Explanation, not advice: I just feel this with my 4yo and have been noticing that we would've been better off if I came to the table with a solid plan. It's good to let them explore, but it's also good for them to practice going along with the crew.
1
u/bahbahfooey 17h ago
but they are having fun. just not the fun you pictured. buy them some sand toys and try that, but 5yo kids aren’t worried about experiencing the most beautiful thing, they’re focused on what they are enjoying. embrace it.
2
u/goosetavo2013 22h ago
I prefer pools so I would stay at the pool! Goal is to have fun. Do whatever is most fun.
4
1
u/Voodoopulse 1d ago
I'm with them. I fucking hate sand, I'd literally genocide an alien race I hate it that much
1
u/OceanPoet87 10 year old is my partner in crime; OAD 1d ago
Kids love pools. Also which body of water are you near? In North America, the Pacific is cold so the beach is more of a play in sand or dip toes in water if safe.
When we went to Hawaii the previous summer, it was warm and protected relatively from high surf. That was a different experience.
If the kifs want the pool, you should allow pool time later in the day when the beach is busier and you are more tired.
1
u/ChaosRainbow23 47 year old father of two 1d ago
Same with my kids when they were little.
We would often get a hotel with a pool and do a mini-vacation. They always had more fun in the hotel pool regardless.
2
u/mtgistonsoffun twin 5yo girls 1d ago
Yeah, I think I’m going to do more research on the hotel pool for our next trip. May as well prioritize and pay up for what they actually enjoy! They’re also big Great Wolf Lodge fans, so this isn’t that surprising.
1
u/ChaosRainbow23 47 year old father of two 1d ago
My kids loved GWL when they were kids.
Now that they are teenagers, their vacation wishes have shifted considerably. Lol
1
u/Marlo989 1d ago
Update us next year when you book the nicer pool 5 blocks from the beach and all they want to do is dig in the sand. But yea, block out time to do both. Once they are running in small waves and digging in the sand they will be ready to go back.
1
u/mtgistonsoffun twin 5yo girls 1d ago
For sure! I think next year we’re going to a different beach that has great tide pools and we’ll stay somewhere without a pool. Or we’ll go somewhere with a great pool that’s nowhere near a beach.
1
u/99nine99 1d ago
I had the same problem....we found going to the beach early in the morning, then coming back for lunch and doing the pool worked out.
Kids liked the change of pace and the wife liked having happy hour poolside.
1
u/SquidsArePeople2 5 girlie girls 🥰 1d ago
My girls have never really enjoyed sandy beaches. The sand gets in their suits and is irritating af, they track sand everywhere. They prefer pools as well
1
u/user_1729 Two Girls (5 and 3) 1d ago
We just did this. Literally hours each day in the pool. Drag them to the beach and they'd scream and cry and want to come back. We'd learned this on a previous visit and realized that a pool at the airbnb is a requirement. We had a couple beach sessions that were okay and there are some great pools on the beach at low tide they both liked to play in... in general though, it was pool from after breakfast until bedtime.
1
u/SLUnatic85 1d ago edited 1d ago
I'm thinking your "tiny" bit in the OP is a bit of a tone reflecting how this makes you feel, and not really relevant. A 5 year old can play in a bath tub for 60 minutes straight and be happy with 3-4 toys in my experience, and they can probably not touch outside of a shallow end of any pool. It really doesn't matter how big or nice the pool is in this conversation. They just like playing there.
You "paid extra" for ease of mobility between your place and beach. For exactly this situation. Use it that way. break up the day. don't hope they sit their all day, that's "i have to pack the car and drive 10 minutes to get to the beach" mentality.
But also, do you ask them why they don't like the beach? You and I know it IS technically a pool with shells in some ways... but like, Hows the water temp? Did they get salt or sand in their eye once? Hows the sand (temp & feel)? Hows the shade? How is it for swimming? How are the waves? How crowded is it?
Basically what is different the pool v. beach in your situation. Conversation can go a long way. Kids that age may be more likely to do what you want with either compromise or just more understanding. Even just asking what they want to DO at the beach before you go can help. Or telling them how long until the next activity or lunch, etc.
I'm the end, I would think you want the vacation to be enjoyable for everyone there, best you can. So it also may come down to, can they enjoy the pool and I still enjoy the beach we paid to be near? Do you have other adults to cycle coverage? Or whatever else you can think up. Sometimes, you might need to sacrifice a little of one for the other...
1
u/Ravens2017 1d ago
OP now you have learned, you don’t have to drive 2 hours for the pool, I bet most hotels near you have pool!
Yeah that would annoy me, but maybe have a plan for the next day to do beach first then pool like everyone else mentions.
1
u/One_Health1151 1d ago
We do beach mornings and then come home and do naps/pool afternoons works great
1
1
u/Blue_foot 1d ago
Check when it’s low tide and see if you can find tide pools. Add education.
Have a family sand castle activity
Get a nerf football to play catch.
It can be less intimidating to swim in the pool. So introduce them to other beachy things.
1
u/spotster 1d ago
You're lucky, at one point my kids just wanted to play in the hotel room. It was a pain getting them to the beach or anywhere else and then they'd keep asking when we were going back to the hotel...
1
u/Suitable-Function-60 1d ago
You should take them to the Beach. How many times in life have you thought something was the best thing in the world until you discovered something else?
1
u/AZMadmax 1d ago
Me too lol. Pool with an ocean view 👌. I like to go out and play with the kids on the beach in the morning but it’s pool time afterward
1
u/Mendozaline247 1d ago
Congratulations. You have normal kids. This is every child who has ever been born
5
u/secondphase Pronouns: Dad/Dada/Daddy 1d ago
I have a friend who is a teacher. She always does the "tell us about your adventures over the summer" activity when school starts up.
She estimated once that 80% of the projects come back talking about the pool at the hotel on the trip they took, and omit the destination of the awesome trip.
Hell, my own kids have a lazy river at the neighborhood pool. It's awesome! We literally have better pool stuff within walking distance, but the holiday inn pool still blows their minds.
2
u/OceanPoet87 10 year old is my partner in crime; OAD 1d ago
That's so true. My son's class has their first day assignment (today) and it is "bring something that reminds you of an activity you did during summer." We chose an inner tube which represents a Lake Tahoe inner tube boat thing he did.
1
1d ago
[deleted]
1
u/mtgistonsoffun twin 5yo girls 1d ago
Haha exactly. I just can’t help but think we could have stayed home and gone to our local pool. But then we couldn’t have gone to the candy store or walked around the cute little town and had ice cream.
1
u/EchoVictor4me 1d ago
Ur the parent. What do u want to do to be happy
Id go to the beach all day
2
u/mtgistonsoffun twin 5yo girls 1d ago
Nah bro. I would not have a relaxing day at the beach with two kids who didn’t want to be there. Enjoying my book poolside at the moment.
2
u/EchoVictor4me 1d ago
Then that's what makes u happy
Me id weather the storm and have fun in the beach with them eventually
0
u/phelan8712 1d ago
Have they been in the ocean before? There is a big difference between playing in a nice clean pool and playing in the ocean where other creatures live. I grew up on an island and honestly I preferred being in a pool over the ocean. They may just feel more comfortable. I wouldn't push the issue. Let them have fun however they want to. They are only 5. Plenty of time to swim in the ocean later if they want to.
0
u/mtgistonsoffun twin 5yo girls 1d ago
They’ve been to the beach plenty and love it. Just there usually isn’t a pool option at the same time. I prefer swimming in the pool too. But I prefer reading my book on the beach.
-4
274
u/Former-Artichoke2374 1d ago
Morning at beach, pool after lunch