Holiday Inn London - Watford Junction

The hotel's only half an hour by car or train from Wembley Stadium and Wembley Arena. You can easily get to a football match, an international rock gig or a kids' show and be back in time for a nightcap in the bar. When there's no match on, you can sign up for a stadium tour to check out the changing rooms, take a seat in the Press Room, or even climb to the Royal Box and hold up a replica FA Cup.

Lose yourself for an afternoon in the tranquil gardens of Cheslyn House, five minutes' drive from the hotel. They're part formal, part wild, so you can follow wooded trails or admire the wisteria, azaleas and rhododendrons in the flower garden. Look out for the local wildlife, which includes deer, foxes and dragonflies, or make the job easier and walk among budgerigars and finches in the aviary.

Leave the car at the hotel and walk to the intu Watford shopping centre in 10 minutes. You can pick up essentials at over 140 high-street shops, or gifts and fashion at the John Lewis department store. Afterwards, reward the kids for their patience and stroll over to Cassiobury Park, where there are play areas for children, free tennis courts, woodland and a nature reserve.