Holiday Apartment with Kids: Space, Safety and a Checklist for Families

By Daniel Schulz, residir GmbH · Last updated: 14 October 2026

A holiday apartment with kids is worth it above all for the space: parents and children sleep in separate rooms, you eat in your own kitchen, and the day revolves around your child rather than the breakfast buffet. What matters most are the bedrooms, child safety, equipment such as a travel cot and high chair, and a quiet location with a playground nearby.

We are currently fitting out a building with 54 apartments in Lehel, and many of our enquiries come from parents. The questions are often the same: where will the baby sleep, is there a washing machine, is the balcony safe? This guide brings together, from a guest’s point of view, what to look out for in a family holiday apartment, whether in the city or in the countryside. Information correct as of October 2026.

In this article:

• Why a holiday apartment with kids?
• What to look out for
• Safety with toddlers
• Travel cots, high chairs and hiring equipment
• Large holiday apartments for groups
• Checklist before booking
• Planning your days with children
• Conclusion
• Frequently asked questions

Topic	What matters	Check in advance
Sleeping	a separate room for the children or for the parents	Number of bedrooms and proper beds
Kitchen	hob, fridge, dishwasher or large sink	Crockery, kettle, microwave
Safety	stairs, windows, balcony, sockets	Photos of stairs and balcony, childproofing
Equipment	travel cot, high chair, bath	Availability, surcharge, bedding for the cot
Laundry	washing machine in the apartment or building	Detergent, tumble dryer or clothes horse
Location	playground, park, supermarket, public transport	Walking time, traffic noise, floor and lift

Holiday apartment with kids: why it often suits families better than a hotel

In a hotel, the family usually shares one room. By 7 pm at the latest, when the youngest needs to sleep, the parents end up sitting in the dark on the edge of the bed or retreating to the bathroom. In a holiday apartment with children, you simply close the door to the kids’ room and have the living room to yourselves for the evening.

The second reason is the kitchen. Bottles, baby food and dinner at half past five are hard to organise in a hotel, whereas in an apartment the hob and fridge are ready and waiting. Booking a holiday apartment instead of a hotel as a family often saves money too, because not every meal has to be eaten in a restaurant. On top of that, there is room for the pushchair, toys and muddy waterproof trousers.

A hotel, on the other hand, offers a reception, breakfast and daily cleaning. If you are only staying one night, a family room is often the better option. Somewhere between the two sits the aparthotel in Munich and in other cities: apartments with a kitchen, but with a little hotel service still included.

Bedtimes and afternoon naps

Young children need their routine on holiday too. If you can put the children down for a nap at midday without everyone else having to sit silently in the same room, your afternoons will be far more relaxed. A bedroom that can be darkened with shutters or blackout curtains is worth more than a large balcony.

The search works in much the same way almost everywhere, whether you are looking for a family apartment elsewhere in Germany, a holiday cottage on the coast or holiday apartments in Munich for a long weekend: decide on the number of rooms first, then check the location and facilities.

Child-friendly holiday apartment: what to look out for

Whether a child-friendly holiday apartment really lives up to its listing comes down to a few details. Photos of a cot and a play corner tell you less than a floor plan and honest answers to a handful of questions.

Separate bedrooms

For a family with two children, a holiday apartment for four people with two bedrooms is the norm. Check whether the second bedroom is a proper room with a door or an open mezzanine above the living room. Mezzanines look cosy in photos, but because of the stairs they are often not a good choice with toddlers.

Kitchen and dining area

A kitchenette with two hotplates is fine for coffee and breakfast, but not for a week with children. Ask about an oven, a dishwasher and a dining table with enough chairs. Small things matter too, such as a kettle for bottles and enough plastic tableware or unbreakable cups.

Washing machine

After a day at the playground or in the mud, a washing machine is no luxury. In many holiday apartments it is inside the flat; larger buildings have a laundry room for all guests. Check whether detergent is provided and where the washing can dry.

Location: playground, park and short distances

Even the nicest apartment is of little use if the nearest playground is 20 minutes away and there is a four-lane road outside the door. Look on the map for a playground, park, supermarket and bus or tram stop. With a pushchair, the floor and lift matter too: a third floor without a lift quickly becomes tiring with shopping and a toddler.

Noise and neighbours

Children are loud, even at six in the morning. In apartment blocks, it is worth asking whether someone lives below and what the quiet hours are. Rugs or felt pads reduce footstep noise, and a ground-floor apartment takes a lot of worry off your shoulders.

Safety in a holiday apartment with a toddler

No host can make an apartment completely childproof, because every child finds different corners exciting. So when you arrive, go through every room once at knee height before the children set off exploring. These are the most common hazards:

• Sockets: pack socket covers or ask about them in advance; they cost very little and fit in any bag.
• Stairs: open stairs to a mezzanine or upper floor need a safety gate. Ask whether there is one or whether you should bring your own.
• Balcony: check the height of the railing, the gap between the bars and any furniture in front of it that a child could climb on.
• Windows: low sills are dangerous. Leave windows in the tilt position and do not put chairs or beds directly beneath them.
• Kitchen and bathroom: put cleaning products, medicines and knives up high, and use a hob guard or knob covers if available.

Safety also means being prepared for emergencies. When you arrive, note down the apartment’s address, the nearest paediatrician or children’s hospital and the emergency number 112. A small travel first-aid kit with a thermometer and children’s medicines belongs in your luggage anyway.

What to ask the host in advance

Many hosts welcome specific questions, as they help avoid disappointment later. Ask for photos of the stairs, balcony and children’s room, and find out whether safety gates and socket covers are available. An answer such as “everything is child-friendly” without any details is a reason to follow up.

A holiday apartment equipped for children: travel cot, high chair and more

A holiday apartment with child-friendly equipment saves you a lot of luggage. This list shows what is typical. Not every host has everything, and some items cost a small surcharge.

Equipment	Commonly available?	Tip
Cot or travel cot	often on request	also ask about a mattress and bedding for the cot
High chair	often on request	bring a booster cushion as a back-up for toddlers
Stair safety gate	rare	ask specifically if there is a mezzanine or stairs
Socket covers	rare	pack your own
Baby bath, changing mat	rare	bring a changing mat for the bed or sofa
Toys, books, games	varies	pack a favourite toy anyway

Request a cot and high chair in advance

If you are looking for a holiday apartment with a cot, do not rely on a tick box in the listing. Ask in writing whether it is a fixed cot or a folding travel cot, how old it is and whether bedding is included. The same goes for the high chair: a clip-on table seat is not the same as a sturdy chair.

Hiring a travel cot and other equipment

If you are flying or travelling by train, bringing your own travel cot is a nuisance. In many cities and holiday regions there are baby equipment hire services that deliver a travel cot, high chair, pushchair or car seat to your accommodation. Before you hire a travel cot, ask your host: they often know a hire service nearby or have equipment of their own in the cellar.

What else to pack for children, from a night light to children’s cutlery, is in our packing list. The rule of thumb here: anything your child needs to fall asleep comes from home, while anything bulky is organised on site.

Large holiday apartments for families and groups

A large holiday apartment is in demand when grandparents come along, the family has three or more children, or two families travel together. Apartments for six people are much rarer in cities than those for two to four, so it pays to start your search early.

Holiday apartment for 6 people: bedrooms and bathrooms

A holiday apartment for 6 people is not automatically big enough. Many listings include the sofa bed in the living room, which has to be pulled out every evening. If you filter booking platforms for “3 bedrooms”, you will find apartments where six people can genuinely sleep separately, for example in two double rooms and one room with two single beds.

The bathroom is at least as important. Six people with one bathroom means a morning queue, while two bathrooms or a separate WC make the day much calmer. Also ask about the size of the dining table: accommodation for six people with only four chairs is more common than you might think.

Large family or two families: dividing up the space

For a large family with lots of children, what matters most is that the little ones sleep close to their parents. If two families share an apartment, on the other hand, a clear division is important: one bedroom per family, a children’s room for all the kids and a shared living and dining area. If you are housing family and friends in a large holiday apartment, agree beforehand who cooks and shops when, and who defends the peace in the children’s room in the evening.

If no large apartment is available, two apartments in the same building are often the more relaxed solution. Each family then has its own front door, and everyone meets up for dinner.

Cost per head

Large apartments have a higher nightly rate, but shared between six people they are often cheaper than several hotel rooms. A worked example with assumed figures: if a holiday apartment for 6 people costs 300 euros per night all in, that is 50 euros per head; over four nights with a 120-euro final cleaning fee, it comes to around 55 euros per person per night. Always calculate using the total price, including cleaning, linen and any visitor’s tax.

If you are bringing a dog as well as the children, you also need accommodation that allows pets, which narrows the choice of large apartments even further. We have gathered tips on dog-friendly apartments in Munich on a separate page.

Finding a family-friendly holiday apartment: checklist before booking

You will rarely recognise a family-friendly holiday apartment by a seal of approval, but rather by the answers to these questions. Get the most important ones confirmed in writing:

1. How many bedrooms with a door and how many proper beds are there?
2. Is there a cot or travel cot and a high chair, with or without a surcharge?
3. Does the apartment have stairs, a mezzanine or a balcony, and how are they secured?
4. Which floor is the apartment on, is there a lift and room for the pushchair?
5. Is the kitchen fully equipped, with an oven, dishwasher and enough crockery?
6. Is there a washing machine in the apartment or in the building?
7. How far is it to the playground, park, supermarket and nearest stop?
8. What are the quiet hours, and does anyone live directly below?
9. How do arrival and check-in work, including late in the evening?
10. What are the cancellation terms if a child falls ill?

Compare your travel dates with the school holiday calendar. During the school holidays, family-friendly apartments are snapped up quickly and prices rise. We have compiled the dates of the Bavaria school holidays 2027, including all public holidays and bridge days.

If you are looking for a holiday apartment with children in Bavaria, you will notice the demand especially at Whitsun and in August, when families from Bavaria and from other states and countries are all travelling at the same time. For a family holiday apartment in Bavaria by a lake or in the mountains, it is therefore worth booking as early as the winter before.

Planning your days with children from a holiday apartment

On holiday with children, one outing in the morning and one in the afternoon beats five items on the agenda. The holiday apartment is your base, where you can return for a break at midday. The closer it is to a park and public transport, the easier that becomes. If there is a guest book in the apartment, children love drawing their favourite moment in it on the last evening.

For school-age children who love films and TV series, Bavaria Filmstadt in Geiselgasteig makes a half-day outing, with film sets you can touch and a 4D cinema.

Young football fans are more likely to be drawn to the north of the city. A stadium tour of the Allianz Arena can also be planned on non-match days and does not take a whole day. You will find more ideas for museums, playgrounds and rainy days in our Munich guide.

Conclusion

A holiday apartment with kids is worthwhile from about three nights, provided you have checked in advance that there are separate bedrooms, a proper kitchen, a washing machine and a safe layout without open stairs. If you are staying with your family for several weeks, for example because of a job move, it is also worth looking at furnished apartments in Munich.

Frequently asked questions about holiday apartments with kids

Is a holiday apartment with kids better than a hotel?

From about three nights, usually yes. A holiday apartment offers a second room for the children’s bedtimes, a kitchen for bottles and meals, and more space to play. For a single night, however, a hotel with a family room can be more convenient.

What makes a holiday apartment child-friendly?

A holiday apartment is child-friendly if parents and children can sleep separately, the kitchen is fit for proper cooking, and hazards such as open stairs, low windows or unsecured balconies are either absent or made safe. A travel cot, high chair and a washing machine in the apartment or building are further pluses.

Do holiday apartments provide a cot and a high chair?

Many hosts provide a cot and high chair on request, but it cannot be taken for granted. Before booking, ask in writing whether both are available, whether they cost extra and whether bedding for the cot is included.

How many bedrooms does a holiday apartment for 6 people need?

For six people, three bedrooms are the most comfortable solution, for example two double rooms and one room with two single beds. Two bedrooms and a sofa bed in the living room will also work, but then there is nowhere to retreat to in the evening.

How do I make a holiday apartment safe for toddlers?

When you arrive, go through every room once at knee height. Fit socket covers, move cleaning products and medicines up high, keep windows in the tilt position and check balcony railings and stairs. A door stopper and a night light help on the first night.

Can you hire a travel cot at your holiday destination?

In many cities and holiday regions there are baby equipment hire services that deliver a travel cot, high chair, pushchair or car seat to your accommodation. Ask your host first, as some keep children’s equipment in stock or know a hire service nearby.

Is a large holiday apartment cheaper for two families?

Often yes, because the nightly rate and final cleaning are shared among more people and you cook together. Even so, compare the total price per head with two smaller apartments, as large apartments are rare and correspondingly in demand during the school holidays.