Katy Holland: It's good to be grand these days

Are we there yet? Grandparents are the new travel trend

Grandparents, listen up: you are the Next Big Thing in the world of travel. If you thought your only purpose in life was to provide free babysitting services, think again. You can now extend your duties to taking the grandkids on holiday with you, too. And with the half-term break almost with us, there are all sorts of incentives designed to convince you that this is a good idea.

The timely launch of Grand Breaks (01323 730889; grandbreaks.com), a new family-run holiday firm aimed exclusively at grandparents and grandchildren, is the icing on the cake for this trend. Choose from a selection of day trips or short breaks around the UK and you'll be provided with a personal agenda tailored to meet the joint requirements of the older and younger generations (no mean feat).

Book a "discovery" break to New Hall in Warwickshire, say, and you and your little grand-treasures can spend one or two nights in luxury, with everything from trips to butterfly farms to games of croquet laid on.

Other companies also do their bit to inject some intergenerational fun over the school holidays. Eurocamp (0844 4060402; eurocamp.co.uk) offers "grandparents stay free" deals, valid until next July, while the Headland Hotel in Newquay (01637 872211; headlandhotel.co.uk) has discounts for families of three generations.

And family-oriented company Baby Friendly Boltholes (0845 094 9864; babyfriendlyboltholes.co.uk) has some unusual treats in store to tempt grandparents, too. Stay at North Bradbury Farm in Devon this half-term and a complimentary farmhouse meal will be delivered to the cottage for Gran or Grandpa when they're babysitting. Other properties offer complimentary facials or massages and even 50 per cent off your very own Granny cottage.

There's no doubt about it: it's good to be grand these days.