Travelling with children isn’t always simple, with the shortest of trips often requiring extra thought and planning. But families thinking of a holiday to Abu Dhabi are in luck, as the emirate has just been ranked the world’s best city for a family getaway.
The Family Vacation Guide has released its 2022 index of the top cities to visit with kids.
Abu Dhabi tops the study, scoring 8.05 out of 10.
The capital of the UAE has the highest safety index score in the top 10, and also performs well for how many family-friendly attractions it has including the world's first Warner Bros hotel and several theme parks. It also scored highly for its sunshine-laced weather, which averages 13 hours per day in the sunniest month of the year.
Dubai is another great choice for a family getaway, ranking second in the 2022 Family Vacation Index with a score of 7.76.
Home to the world’s tallest building, plenty of resort-style hotels and several water parks, the emirate loses points for its higher-than-average hotel room rate, which is $124.50, compared to Abu Dhabi’s $94.50.
Third-placed Antalya in Turkey scores 6.27, and is lauded for its white beaches and incredible Mediterranean scenery.
The annual index from the travel website ranks destinations on 11 different factors including safety, pollution levels, number of family-friendly sights and attractions, and the average cost of a hotel room.
The top 20 cities for a family holiday
1. Abu Dhabi, UAE
2. Dubai, UAE
3. Antalya, Turkey
4. Madrid, Spain
5. Heraklion, Greece
6. Las Vegas, USA
7. Alicante, Spain
8. Singapore, Singapore
9. Cairo, Egypt
10. Melbourne, Australia
11. Bangkok, Thailand
12. Palma de Mallorca, Spain
13. San Diego, US
14. Marrakesh, Morocco
15. Lisbon, Portugal
16. Miami, US
17. Phuket, Thailand
17. Prague, Czech Republic
17. Istanbul, Turkey
20. Sydney, Australia
The research also reveals that the world’s safest city to visit with children is Sapporo in Japan, while the most affordable city for a family holiday is Bangkok, Thailand where average hotel rates are only $43 per night.
Thailand also performs well when it comes to things to do. Phuket — the smallest city in the index — ranks highest for family-friendly attractions with 115.92 sights or landmarks per square kilometre, meaning families visiting Thailand’s biggest island have more than 1,500 attractions to choose from.
For sun-seeking families, Cairo in Egypt and the US’s San Francisco top the list, each has 14 hours of sunlight a day in their sunniest month, giving travellers plenty of daylight hours to enjoy exploring.
When it comes to getting away for some fresh air, Switzerland’s Zurich is the best spot for a family trip. The Swiss city has the cleanest air in the index with a pollution score of only 17.58, thanks to the city’s substantial efforts to reduce its air pollution.
The specs: 2019 GMC Yukon Denali
Price, base: Dh306,500
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Power: 420hp @ 5,600rpm
Torque: 621Nm @ 4,100rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.9L / 100km
Results
2.30pm Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 1,200m
Winner Lamia, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel.
3pm Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 1,000m
Winner Jap Al Afreet, Elione Chaves, Irfan Ellahi.
3.30pm Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 1,700m
Winner MH Tawag, Bernardo Pinheiro, Elise Jeanne.
4pm Handicap (TB) Dh40,000 2,000m
Winner Skygazer, Sandro Paiva, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.
4.30pm The Ruler of Sharjah Cup Prestige (PA) Dh250,000 1,700m
Winner AF Kal Noor, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel.
5pm Sharjah Marathon (PA) Dh70,000 2,700m
Winner RB Grynade, Bernardo Pinheiro, Eric Lemartinel.
Company%20Profile
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LAST 16
SEEDS
Liverpool, Manchester City, Barcelona, Paris St-Germain, Bayern Munich, RB Leipzig, Valencia, Juventus
PLUS
Real Madrid, Tottenham, Atalanta, Atletico Madrid, Napoli, Borussia Dortmund, Lyon, Chelsea
Tributes from the UAE's personal finance community
• Sebastien Aguilar, who heads SimplyFI.org, a non-profit community where people learn to invest Bogleheads’ style
“It is thanks to Jack Bogle’s work that this community exists and thanks to his work that many investors now get the full benefits of long term, buy and hold stock market investing.
Compared to the industry, investing using the common sense approach of a Boglehead saves a lot in costs and guarantees higher returns than the average actively managed fund over the long term.
From a personal perspective, learning how to invest using Bogle’s approach was a turning point in my life. I quickly realised there was no point chasing returns and paying expensive advisers or platforms. Once money is taken care off, you can work on what truly matters, such as family, relationships or other projects. I owe Jack Bogle for that.”
• Sam Instone, director of financial advisory firm AES International
"Thought to have saved investors over a trillion dollars, Jack Bogle’s ideas truly changed the way the world invests. Shaped by his own personal experiences, his philosophy and basic rules for investors challenged the status quo of a self-interested global industry and eventually prevailed. Loathed by many big companies and commission-driven salespeople, he has transformed the way well-informed investors and professional advisers make decisions."
• Demos Kyprianou, a board member of SimplyFI.org
"Jack Bogle for me was a rebel, a revolutionary who changed the industry and gave the little guy like me, a chance. He was also a mentor who inspired me to take the leap and take control of my own finances."
• Steve Cronin, founder of DeadSimpleSaving.com
"Obsessed with reducing fees, Jack Bogle structured Vanguard to be owned by its clients – that way the priority would be fee minimisation for clients rather than profit maximisation for the company.
His real gift to us has been the ability to invest in the stock market (buy and hold for the long term) rather than be forced to speculate (try to make profits in the shorter term) or even worse have others speculate on our behalf.
Bogle has given countless investors the ability to get on with their life while growing their wealth in the background as fast as possible. The Financial Independence movement would barely exist without this."
• Zach Holz, who blogs about financial independence at The Happiest Teacher
"Jack Bogle was one of the greatest forces for wealth democratisation the world has ever seen. He allowed people a way to be free from the parasitical "financial advisers" whose only real concern are the fat fees they get from selling you over-complicated "products" that have caused millions of people all around the world real harm.”
• Tuan Phan, a board member of SimplyFI.org
"In an industry that’s synonymous with greed, Jack Bogle was a lone wolf, swimming against the tide. When others were incentivised to enrich themselves, he stood by the ‘fiduciary’ standard – something that is badly needed in the financial industry of the UAE."
