Planning a trip to Phuket with kids? Wondering where to go, what to see, and where to stay? Blogger Aleney De Winter from Boy Eats World recently visited with her children Raffles and Sugarpuff and has some tips to share…

There is no doubt that the accommodation can determine the success or failure of a family holiday, because let's be honest: when traveling with small children, you spend a considerable amount of time in the accommodation, and the possibilities for activities can be severely limited by its location.

The Novotel Phuket Karon Beach Resort and Spa is definitely a win, not a loss. A fun, family-friendly resort in close proximity to all the shopping, restaurants, and beach life of Karon Beach – a much more family-friendly place than Patong with its ping-pong princesses – offers my family a truly unique holiday.

Novotel always treats children like VIPs, but the Novotel Phuket Karon Beach goes even further with special attention and numerous activities for its young guests. Raffles particularly enjoys a Thai cooking class with the resort's head chef. There's also the option of a private Muay Thai training session, where Raffles really lets loose.

Sugarpuff focuses on arts and crafts and games in the excellent, free kids' club. Every morning, after a generous breakfast buffet, she spends an hour getting creative with the friendly, trained staff.

But it's the resort's fantastic swimming pools that truly capture guests' hearts. There are three to choose from: one exclusively for adults, one for children, and a huge lagoon pool for everyone. The children's pool features a water slide that little ones love to zoom down at high speed, as well as a fountain where Sugarpuff dances with delight.

Right next to the kids' club, numerous supervised activities take place during the day. Raffles even has the opportunity to demonstrate his zorbing skills… which are, at best, questionable.

I manage to lure my children away from the pool and walk the five minutes to the Karon Temple Market, where we eat street food and the children stock up on cheap souvenirs.

After stuffing themselves with quail eggs, grilled fish, and inexplicable things on skewers, the children decide to explore Wat Suwan Khiri Khet temple. Raffles confronts the two enormous blue monsters (yaks) standing guard there and is fascinated by the endless, bright green snakes (naga) that slither cunningly through the colorful temple building.

As the temperatures drop in the late afternoon, we cross the road to the beautiful Karon Beach, a three-kilometer stretch of squeaky-clean sand, where we watch the daring parasailing riders in action.

On the first night, we continued our walk along the beach to Karon's main street to enjoy local seafood specialties, but quickly discovered that the prices at our resort were just as cheap and the food just as good.

For the remainder of our stay, we decide to dine at the Novotel's Asian restaurant TAI and enjoy Thai delicacies (and ice cream) at Joe Kools Pool Grill, where Raffles also entertains our fellow guests with a spontaneous live performance of Green Day.

There's a separate bedroom for sleeping, as well as a cozy sitting area with a sofa bed for the children. At least, there would be, if they actually slept in it instead of jumping into my king-size bed and performing acrobatic feats all night while I try to get a nap.

With one pair of feet in my face and another in my back, I don't sleep too much, but I don't mind, since I don't need too much energy for another day spent being pushed around in the stroller, lazing in the pool, and drinking cheap piña coladas.

Click here to read the whole story – and see many more pictures!