Is Screen Time Ruining Family Holidays?
There. I said it. The question that every parent is thinking but nobody wants to say out loud.
Because we all know the feeling. You're sitting at a stunning rooftop restaurant overlooking the Barcelona skyline at sunset. The food is incredible. The atmosphere is magical. And your child is watching YouTube under the table.
Or you're driving through the most breathtaking mountain scenery you've ever seen, and the only view your kids are interested in is the one on their iPad screen.
Or you've queued for an hour to reach the top of the Eiffel Tower — one of the most iconic views in the entire world — and your child wants to know if there's WiFi so they can FaceTime their friend back home.
Sound familiar? You are absolutely not alone. And no — you are not a bad parent for letting it happen.
But I do think screen time is quietly stealing something from our family holidays. And I think it's worth talking about.
I've seen it with my own eyes
I spent many years working on campsites across Europe and the UK — and the shift I witnessed over that time was striking.
I remember working on a campsite in France where the WiFi was, to put it kindly, absolutely terrible. And the moment families arrived — before they'd even unpacked — children were asking about the WiFi password. Not "what can we do here?" Not "can we go and explore?" Just… WiFi.
And when we told them the signal was patchy at best? The disappointment was genuinely crushing. As if the whole holiday had been ruined before it had even started.
Meanwhile just outside the campsite gates there were rivers to explore, markets to discover, forests to walk through, and some of the most beautiful countryside in France stretching out in every direction. All of it ignored. All of it invisible.
It wasn't just France. I saw the same thing on campsites in Switzerland, in the UK, across Europe. Children arriving at some of the most beautiful places in the world and immediately disappearing into a screen.
I've watched children sit inside static caravans on the coast of Spain, curtains drawn, tablets glowing, while outside the Mediterranean sunshine and the sound of the sea waited patiently for them to notice.
I've seen families surrounded by jaw dropping Alpine scenery where the children spent the entire holiday asking about the WiFi password — again.
And it breaks my heart. Not because I blame the children — or the parents — but because the world out there is so extraordinarily beautiful and interesting and alive, and screens are making it invisible.
So is screen time ruining family holidays?
Honestly? It can be. Not always. Not inevitably. But when screens become the default — when boredom is immediately solved with a device rather than with curiosity — children stop noticing the world around them. And holidays stop being adventures. They become just a different backdrop for the same screen.
The memories that last a lifetime aren't made staring at a phone. They're made spotting a dolphin off the bow of a boat. Trying a new food and surprising yourself by loving it. Getting lost in a market and finding something wonderful. Learning to say thank you in a new language and having someone smile back at you.
Those moments can't happen if children are checked out.
But here's what I want to be clear about
I am not anti-screen. Screens have their place — on a long journey, during a rainy afternoon, as a way to wind down at the end of a big day of exploring. Used thoughtfully, screens are absolutely fine.
What I'm talking about is screens as a substitute for engagement. Screens that fill every quiet moment before curiosity gets a chance to. Screens that mean children never have to sit with boredom long enough to start noticing the world around them.
That's the problem. And it's one we can absolutely do something about.
What actually helps
The families I've seen get this right all have a few things in common:
They prepare their children before they travel — talking about the destination, looking up fun facts, learning a few words of the language, trying the food at home first. By the time they arrive, the children are already curious and engaged.
They set simple screen boundaries — not bans, just boundaries. Screens away during mealtimes. One hour of screen free exploration before screens come out. Phones off during excursions. Clear rules that everyone knows about in advance, agreed together rather than enforced in the moment.
They give children something to do that isn't a screen — activity books, journals, sketchbooks, cameras. Things that channel curiosity and creativity rather than just consuming content.
And they model it themselves. Because if we want our children to look up from their screens, we have to be willing to put ours down too.
The world is too good to miss
I created Colour the World because I believe passionately that travel is one of the greatest gifts we can give our children. Seeing new places. Meeting new cultures. Discovering that the world is bigger and stranger and more wonderful than anything they've ever imagined.
But that gift only works if children are present enough to receive it.
We don't want a generation growing up thinking the whole world exists on a four inch screen. The world is out there — colourful, extraordinary, full of adventure — and it is absolutely worth looking up for.
🎁 Before your next adventure — grab our free screen free car journey activity pack. 5 fun activities for little explorers, instant download, completely free. 👉
Gemma Herron is the founder of Colour the World, a series of children's travel activity books designed to help children fall in love with the world — one country at a time. Find out more at www.colourtheworld.co.uk