Summer Holiday Essentials for your Family Getaway

But for those who have ever taken on the monumental task of packing, shopping, and arranging the entertainment for a family summer escape you’ll know it’s not easy to make everyone in the car or shack happy.

To help out, we’ve put together a list of our “must have” holiday essentials for your next family break…wine included.

A good holiday playlist is absolutely essential for family road trips, but when you arrive at your destination you have to keep the tunes coming.

Start with some peppy pop music in the mornings to get everyone in the spirit for a long day of beaching, then move on to easy-listening classical or jazz music to swing you from lunchtime reads through to afternoon naps.

When the G&Ts come out at five, it’s all about the singalong songs – think 70s classics like James Taylor and Cat Stevens, or modern Australian classics like Paul Kelly or Angus and Julia Stone.

Of course, music is completely subjective and everyone in the family will have different tastes, which is why a great way to make everyone happy is to encourage each member of the family to contribute their own playlist.

Spotify or Apple Music are simple and easy to use platforms for doing this and both come with a tone of playlist suggestions for seasons, moods and events – just make sure you pack your smart phones and speakers so everyone gets a chance to be DJ!

Without the distractions of work, family, shopping, washing, sport and Netflix, summer holidays are often the only time of the year that we can really sit down, tune out and read a book (or several) from cover to cover.

To avoid the dreaded “I’m bored” make sure everyone in the family has a good book with them to devour while sunning themselves on the beach, sneaking away for some quiet time on the bed, or laying low by the river side.

Don’t know what to choose? Simply refer to the long lists of the Man Booker Prize or the Miles Franklin Award, or for something for the kids, try the world’s largest award for children and young adult literature, the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award list.

It’s just not a summer holiday without a fully stocked esky filled with ice cold beer and refreshing summer wine.

So when the time for wine arrives, you can’t go past a good Rosé in summer, and with the style coming of age in recent years, there are plenty of great Australian Rosés to choose from.

While many prefer a dark pink, sweet, Shiraz based Rosé, we enjoy a lighter French style at Yalumba, and being Grenache lovers, we’ve created the most deliciously refreshing old vine Grenache Rosé for you to indulge in.

Our Yalumba Block 2 Rosé has wonderful aromas of white nectarine and pomegranate, as well as subtle flavours of strawberry and pink grapefruit on the palate. What could be more perfect for summer barbecues by the sea?

Just make sure you pack your own glasses – you can’t trust holiday rentals or shacks to have good drinking vessels, and according to our friends at Riedel the glass makes all the difference!

No summer holiday with the family is complete without a few games.

For some night time entertainment, make sure you pack a few classic board games like Monopoly or Scrabble; a couple of packs of cards; and a few tricky puzzles to keep you going for the whole break.

Outdoor games are also a great idea for summer days on the beach. While the classic boogie boards, beach balls and sandcastle kits are vital, we also love Finska, Finland’s answer to bocce. It’s addictively fun and easy to play with big groups, so it’s perfect for families, or when friends pop in.

A summer holiday at the shack isn’t complete without a daily platter of lavishly presented cheeses, fruit, cut vegetables, olives, dips and freshly sliced meats to devour at the end of a long day at the beach.

But the platter doesn’t have to be restricted to nibbles: it’s also a great way to serve breakfast, lunches and dinners for the whole family on holidays – and an easy solution for picky young eaters.

Start with a breakfast platter complete with cut fruit, yogurt, toasted breads and conserves; then move on to a classic chicken platter for lunch, with fresh rolls from the bakery, crisp iceberg lettuce, coleslaw and a deconstructed barbecue chook providing a “do it yourself” lunch for everyone from hungry toddlers to growing teens.

When dinner comes along, a souvlaki platter is a fresh and easy family favourite.

Just marinate a few lamb backstraps in lemon, garlic and Extra Virgin Olive Oil, then throw them on the BBQ for 4 minutes each side when you’re ready to eat.

Serve with fresh pitta bread, chopped cucumber, sliced fresh tomatoes, red onion and cubed Persian feta plus a side of homemade tzatziki – full fat Greek yogurt with a clove of crushed garlic, splash of lemon and chopped chives – delish!

After starting with the Rosé, pair your lamb with a light to medium bodied red, like our Yalumba Carriage Block Grenache, then for something more cerebral a Yalumba The Cigar Cabernet Sauvignon with cheese and dark chocolate.