With its pristine, beaches, stunning coastline and rocky mountain ranges, Sicily is an enchanting place to enjoy a family holiday. Whether you want to relax, get active or explore, there’s plenty to entertain all age groups. Making it even easier for families to enjoy a seamless, unforgettable journey, Verdura Resort introduces a new kids’ club, Verdùland. Launching in May 2016, the complimentary club will feature exciting programmes and facilities tailored to younger guests. If you’re planning a holiday, follow our guide to Sicily for families to get the most out of your Italian escape with Rocco Forte Hotels.
RBabies
Verdura Resort is set in a beautiful coastal location amid olive, orange and lemon groves, so exploring it at leisure is a must. The RBabies programme enables parents to take a break from minding their babies by leaving them in the capable hands of a specialised care team. Available for babies and toddlers aged up to three years old, RBabies has a dedicated area at Verdùland featuring a sleep room and outdoor and indoor play areas, providing entertainment in all weathers. Babysitting services are available upon request.
RKids
The main part of Verdùland is dedicated to RKids, a space for young guests aged four to 12. There are a number of interactive zones including an outdoor pool, a TV room, an arts and crafts area, a science lab and a kitchen, where activities are held throughout the day. The concept, led by mascot Verdù the hedgehog, is for children to have fun while learning. It follows four themes: arts and crafts, food, sports and education. Whether participants are budding athletes, chefs, artists, dancers, scientists or astrologists, there are activities to suit, from art classes and theatre sessions, to cooking schools, science experiments, sports activities, and more.
RTeens
Rocco Forte Hotels knows that once children hit 13 they want to be treated like adults, so Verdura Resort has created a special area dedicated to teenagers that’s far removed from the kids’ club. At The Fort, young adults can socialise with their peers, practice their favourite sports, listen to music, play table tennis and pool, challenge one another to a video game, or even plan a night out together. The RTeens programme also features bespoke wellness activities to entertain all personalities. Those who want to get active can take part in boot camp sessions, assault courses or yoga classes. Youths seeking relaxation can enjoy specially created treatments at Verdura Spa, and budding chefs can sign up to healthy cooking master classes.
Beyond the resort
Spend time bonding with the whole family by exploring the fascinating island of Sicily. Outside of Verdura Resort, there’s plenty to captivate little, and large, imaginations, from historical tours of the temples of Agrigento and Selinunte, to helicopter rides to the summit of Mount Etna, adventure trips through the countryside, water sports, culinary explorations, and much more.
While younger guests are entertained at Verdùland, parents can take full advantage of Verdura Resort’s adult facilities, from the championship golf courses and the tennis courts, to the spa and the bars.
The Grand Tour has had its day, in the most fortunate way. What was once a rite of years is now within reach of anyone with the curiosity to make it. The prescribed list of sights has loosened too, leaving the traveller free to follow Goethe's original instinct, to stand where the present is being made as well as where the past is preserved. Today, our journey through Milan, Florence and Rome begins, as it always did, in the north…
"Sicily isn't just where we source ingredients. It's very much the soul of my brand." For Irene Forte, the island shapes everything — her skincare line, her approach to wellbeing, and her own sense of what it means to live well. As Wellness Consultant for Rocco Forte Hotels and founder of Irene Forte Skincare, she belongs to a new generation of wellness leaders rethinking longevity, connecting the wisdom of those who have always lived well with the insight of modern science.
With properties in some of Europe's most culture-rich destinations, Rocco Forte Hotels creates the perfect conditions for these memories to take hold, transforming summer's fleeting firsts into formative memories full of giddy, unadulterated joy.
