Bébé Voyage Rating: 9/10
I honestly cannot imagine a better place to get away from it all in a relaxed environment. The Grand Hotel Opduin on the Netherlands’ largest barrier island of Texel has everything you need for a family-friendly vacation in a relaxed setting. The hotel caters to families, making a visit relaxing for both parents and kids.
Location
Grand Hotel Opduin is located midway along on the western shore of Texel. It is just outside the town of De Kong, giving you access to restaurants, shops and bike rentals. Yet, it is perched within the Dunes of Texel National Park giving visitors access to the stunning dunes, woodland, tidal marshes and undeveloped beach at the hotel’s doorstep. Texel is easy to navigate by foot, bike or car, so the Grand Hotel Opduin is perfectly located to explore the island.
Style & Character
The hotel exudes a relaxed beach house feel. You are instantly invited to make yourself at home. If the sun is out then you might find yourself relaxing on the patio, which is nestled into the dunes. In the early morning and again in the evening the staff puts out blankets so you can remain cozy while you enjoy a cup of coffee and the view. If the weather isn’t cooperating or you’ve had enough sun you can find the perfect place in the conservatory or perhaps a large couch in front of the fire.
Services & Facilities
Grand Hotel Opduin is full of amenities that make it perfect for a stay with kids. You’ll find the hotel well suited for whatever weather the North Sea is churning up during your visit.
The boys were each given a sand bucket and shovel at check in. This is perfect for those traveling without sand toys. We were also directed to large wooden boxes by the doors that contained loads of beach toys to play with. The large nets were the kids’ favorite. They took them down to the beach to “rescue” animals.
A children’s playroom in the basement provided a play space outside of the room. There were some toys available. Luckily, we never had to use this room since the weather was perfect for our visit. It appears that the hotel sometimes does organized activities for kids here in the summer.
The hotel has a lovely indoor pool. They’ve installed a shallow area in one corner that was perfect for hanging out with the little guys. The pool had a few fun spray features that you could turn on that the kids enjoyed. We always wish that European pool water was warmer, but it’s just a standard over here.
The Grand Hotel Opduin has a few buggies you can borrow for transporting your stuff down to the beach. It’s a bit of a walk through the forest and dunes, but the wagon made it easy to haul our stuff there. The kids also just thought this was great.
A very European service they offer is the ability to leave a sleeping child in the room while you eat in the hotel restaurant. You dial a special number on your room phone and leave it next to the crib. The phone line is monitored by the hotel staff and they will come get you at dinner if they hear anything. We’ve seen this in a number of European hotels. We gave it a try at dinner with just the Little Little sleeping in the crib and the staff even came by to inform us they had heard his little white noise machine click off.
Other hotel amenities include:
Rooms
Rooms were airy and bright and there are a variety of options for sizes. We were in a Suite which offered plenty of space for our family of five. There are both smaller and larger rooms available. Although I typically travel with a cot the hotel provided a cot for us which must have been comfortable as our little one slept very well. The bed was incredibly comfortable as was the pull-out couch where the little ones slept.
The bathroom was spacious with a tub and shower. The whole bathroom was up to date except the old school hairdryer. The room had air conditioning and a mini-fridge, both amenities that are family-friendly and hard to find in Europe outside of large chains.
Food & Drink
Breakfast was included in our room rate and is served as a buffet. There was plenty to choose from including an egg station. The staff was overly helpful bringing special things for the kids. I had a complimentary glass of champagne with my breakfast and the kids enjoyed their smoothies, which were all part of the buffet.
The hotel had high chairs available with these fun little side tables for the food. They were trendy and actually worked well as it kept the food out of the baby’s way unless he wanted it!
We also enjoyed dinner at the hotel restaurant. You will want to make a reservation, although they are happy to do that when you arrive. It appeared that the restaurant is popular even with those not staying at the hotel.
Everything we ordered was excellent and well prepared. There were plenty of kids options and the staff was happy to help the kids split one meal between the two of them.
The restaurant provided the kids with crayons and coloring menus to enjoy while they waited for their food. The kids were endlessly amused by these fun crayons. I had brought the iPads down “just in case” but never had to use them. We saw several families send older kids out to play in the dunes while they waited for their food.
Family Friendliness
We found the Grand Hotel Opduin to provide all the family-friendly amenities that you want without compromising on sophistication. We felt the kids were doted on and provided ample opportunity to play but we were not surrounded by kids stuff. It’s the perfect balance. We encountered other families in the hotel and restaurants.
Contact Info
Check out the Grand Hotel Opduin’s Webpage for more information and booking. There are always deals and packages available so check those out before you book.
Rates are seasonal so it’s best to check online.
