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Having lived in Asia for over a decade, including Indonesia for a few of those, Lucy draws on her experience living in Indonesia with a young family, to share tips for families travelling to this part of the world.
Sumba is off-the-beaten track, in the best possible way. Within a short hop from Bali you’re transported to another culture. Cap Karoso is a remarkable place and the first hotel of its kind on Sumba to host families in a way that is both personalised yet organised, with the children’s activities front and centre. When I asked our children, aged 8, 6 and 3, about what it was that made the holiday special, their response was all about the friendly and kind staff, who looked after them and made them feel special. The children were constantly entertained yet we were able to enjoy special family time too, around the pools or at mealtimes.
Cap Karoso offers guided visits to traditional Sumbanese villages, which was one of our trip's most memorable parts. The locals were so welcoming, and it was incredible for the children to see and learn about their way of life. It sparked so many questions and meaningful conversations, particularly seeing how the Sumbanese sourced and prepared food by hand at the beginning of their day – the idea that it took a whole day of work to live efficiently off the land, taking care of livestock and their homes. We also visited the on-site farm. We could compare to our own vegetable garden at home, commenting on the variety of tropical produce and sweeter taste of papayas that they grew compared to our potatoes and Mediterranean tomatoes.
Cap Karoso understands children and the hotel is set-up in a way that they won’t fail to be entertained. Depending on the size of your family, there are several types of studios, suites and villas that will fit your needs. The team’s flexibility was brilliant, and the children would run up to the kids club after lunch to rejoin the plethora of activities on offer, whether it was making masks or crab hunting down on the beach. Our little 3-year-old would follow suit and even though the children’s club is freely available for 4+ year olds, the hotel kindly organised for a babysitter to take care of him at the club – he wasn’t going to miss out on the action that day! The hotel also has a brilliant and nutritious children’s menu and there’s a pizza oven that went down a treat. Our boys would look forward to bedtime where they would find a little gift waiting for them at the end of the day.
Of course, it was the Little Adventurers Kids Club with its roster of unique experiences for little people. The staff carefully tailor activities to the hotel’s youngest guests. The boys learnt all about the island of Sumba, the local sea creatures and enjoyed crafts such as Ikat weaving, or simply drawing beautiful beach scenes under the shade of the trees, with the sand beneath their feet. The boys also loved jumping the waves at the beach or into the pool (with huge ledges for younger ones to play with toys) made it fun and easy for us all. The adventures beyond the hotel were brilliant too and the boys particularly loved cycling to Weekuri Lake. The hotel arranged electric bikes and our children wheeled quite a way themselves, waving and chatting with Sumbanese children along the way. At the end we stopped for a thirst-quenching drink next to the turquoise blue of the ocean-fed lagoon. They loved swimming there in the serene and crystal salty water, quite mesmerised by the ocean coming through the holes in the cliffs, reminiscent of ‘The Beach’ scenes.
My top tip is to remember that Cap Karoso is in a remote location, so there are limits to what can be sourced by the staff locally. Having lived in Indonesia with young children, I’m always mindful of mozzies, particularly at certain times of the day and year, though they’re less of an issue in summer. Suncream is another essential; those unfamiliar with tropical climates often underestimate how much they’ll need, and in Sumba, it’s not as readily available as in other destinations. The same goes for specific brands of nappies and other baby essentials. I used to travel with half a suitcase of ‘kit’, though thankfully, as the children have grown, our luggage has become more streamlined which is helpful when dealing with airline baggage limits!
For the journey, each of our children carries their own backpack with a snack pack for the day, a water bottle, sun hat and suncream, plus a book suited to their age (water magic, sticker books, or reading books). An LCD writing tablet is a great addition for drawing or message-writing, and often, a cuddly toy sneaks in too. I also have a tradition of smuggling sweets for take-off and landing to help with ear equalisation. This is now a pre-requisite for travel where they turn to me expectantly on the runway anticipating the (un)surprising treat!
Everything we do is personal, and our goal is to create the most memorable family holidays for our guests.
Many of our team have travelled the world with their children from a young age, giving us firsthand insight into what makes a seamless and enriching family trip. Whether you're exploring the remote beauty of Sumba at Cap Karoso or discovering other incredible corners of Indonesia, we understand the little details that make all the difference. While some travel elements are beyond our control, we always go the extra mile to ensure your experience is as smooth and special as possible.
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Photography credits: Images 1,2,3,5 by Callaghan Walsh, cover and images 4 & 6 by Cap Karoso
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