A Westport mum and dad swapped their usual relaxing, poolside villa getaway for an adventure-laden surprise holiday, planned entirely by their children, and all captured by a television crew for a new show to air this weekend.
Rhona and Jason McDaid handed over the planning of the €3,000 family holiday to 15-year-old Alex, 12-year-old Molly, and eight-year-old Rory for the reality show Whose Holiday Is It Anyway?
The kids controlled the budget, the location, the activities, and even packed their parents’ suitcases before sweeping them away for a totally different type of holiday experience.
“It was quite a nerve-wracking build-up,” said Ms McDaid. “We left for the airport with no idea about where we were going. We weren’t even allowed to pack.”
The activity-filled holiday which the children devised had plenty of surprises for the mature student mum, who suffers from a fear of heights.
“I usually watch on while the rest of the family are doing the activities,” she explained. “But not this time. The children threw a lot of stuff at us.”
Daughter Alex said taking part in the show was ‘great fun’.
“It was our dream holiday but I don’t think they’ll ever trust us again,” she laughed.
Whose Holiday Is It Anyway? airs on Sunday at 6.30 pm on RTÉ One.
