Plan the holiday with the family, and budget for each area of spending. Arguments over money can be one of the biggest factors in many relationship difficulties, so helping everyone involved to take responsibility can reduce this.

Talk about what each of your expectations are, and what great memories each of you has from a previous holiday. You may find that some more simple (and cheaper) ideas are more memorable. Now my children are older, we each have an evening to cook the dinner on holiday, and the kids love to plan the food and spend time making it. As there are 6 of us on holiday, that means that the last night we can have chips or a meal out.

Allow time for the family to re-adjust to each other. I find that many families have a low time around day 2-3 of the holiday. This is often because they are readjusting to different routines & expectations, and the more introverted members need space to themselves. It is really helpful to factor this in when planning activities- for example, day 2 or 3 could be for doing individual activities or going shopping in the local town.

Switch off from work if at all possible. Emails, phone & conference calls all have an effect on your holiday, often taking your thoughts to your work place for several hours. Out of hours responses can be easily set up on email accounts to let people know what date you will be back in work and responding. I do not want to steal holiday time from my family, so for me, this is essential.

Take plenty of photos of the holiday- often we look back and remember holidays as much more relaxing and enjoyable when we have positive photos and talk about funny or positive memories from them.