Club Med
Its all-inclusive price and all-out pursuit of enjoyment makes Club Med a natural choice for couples deciding to indulge in the joys of raising a family without pausing to consider the flip-side of their offspring learning to say 'no'. The nearest 'villages' - nothing so generic as a 'resort' - are in Phuket, Bintan and Cherating (Malaysia).
Each has the trademark kids' clubs that really do keep them off your hands from after breakfast until dinnertime, when they reappear sufficiently exercised to be overjoyed at the prospect of going to bed. Children aged over 14 have no dedicated club but are free to join in adult sports sessions. Given that the four-day/three-night price of about $5,500 an adult (and as little as $1,060 a child) includes airfare, three meals a day plus wine and a wide range of free, organised sporty fun, this can work out as a very cheap option. (Cherating will be closed from mid-November for refurbishment.) Full details are at
www.clubmed.com.hk/home.asp.
North Borneo Railway, Sabah
In this computer age the rarity value of a steam train exercises more than a little curiosity, and nowhere more so than aboard one of Asia's few remaining puffers. This one plies the route from Kota Kinabalu to Papar, 58km along the coast. The British Vulcan 6-015 locomotive was built almost 50 years ago, just before the factory switched to making diesel engines, and is one of the last functioning wood-burning engines left in the world. With a gleaming green and brass livery, the views from its five meticulously restored carriages and open-air observation car provide a unique perspective of Sabah.
The train stops once en route, at Kinarut, where passengers can disembark to visit the Buddhist temple of Tsim Shen Tsui. At 160 ringgit (HK$326) for adults (130 ringgit for children, under-fives free), the trip is one of the best tourist bargains in the region. More at
www.northborneorailway.com.my. Three-day Dragon Air (
www.dragonair.com) packages to Kota Kinabalu start at $3,980.