The short answer
- Routine and familiarity matter more than the destinationThe same room, the same faces and a settled daily pattern tend to do more good than a new place, however pleasant.
- Three main ways to arrange itA supported group holiday run by a charity, a familiar break with a carer or family member, or staying closer to home if travel itself is the harder part.
- A carer who already knows them can often come tooFor their normal rate, £15 to £20 an hour for company, plus their own travel and a room, agreed in writing before you book.
- Declare the diagnosis to the insurer, every timeNot declaring a pre-existing condition is the most common reason a travel insurance claim is refused, and it can invalidate the whole policy.
Figures are what carers on PrimeCarers charge, with our fee included, and government rates for 2026/27. September 2026.
What makes it work
Why routine and a familiar face matter more than the destination
A holiday can be a good thing for someone with dementia. Many families come back from a short break with a parent who has enjoyed the change, slept well and had a restful week. Whether that happens depends far more on how the trip is planned than on where you go.
The change in routine that makes a holiday feel like a treat for most of us is often the part that is hardest for someone with dementia. A new bed, an unfamiliar bathroom in the night and a day with nothing fixed about it can be unsettling rather than refreshing. The trips that go well tend to keep as much the same as they can: a familiar kind of room, meals at roughly the usual times, and one or two faces your relative already trusts rather than a constantly changing cast of staff.
The second thing that matters is supervision. At home, a family manages with an occasional check-in and a phone by the bed. Away from home, in a place your relative does not know, somebody needs to be watching for the whole trip, not just the parts you have planned for. That is usually the difference between a holiday that works and one that does not, whichever of the three routes below you choose.
If you are still weighing up whether to go away at all, should people with dementia go on holiday? covers that wider question. This guide assumes the answer is yes, and sets out how to make the trip itself work.
Three ways to arrange it
A supported holiday, a familiar break with support, or staying closer to home
Most families end up choosing between three routes, depending on how much they want organised for them and how far their relative is comfortable travelling.
A supported group holiday
Run by a charity, for a small group
A holiday organised for a group of people with dementia and the people who care for them, with staff trained in dementia care there for the whole trip. Dementia Adventure runs holidays of this kind in the UK; check their site direct for what is currently on offer.
A familiar break with a carer or family member
You choose where and when
A trip you plan yourselves, with a relative, friend or a carer who already visits at home coming along for support. It gives more control over the destination and the pace, in exchange for arranging the accommodation and the routine yourselves.
Staying closer to home instead
If travel is the harder part
Some families decide the journey itself would unsettle their relative more than a change of scene is worth. A day out, a short stay somewhere familiar, or respite care that gives a family carer a break while their relative stays at home, can do a similar job with less upheaval.
A supported group holiday takes the planning off your hands, at the cost of your relative being away with people they do not already know, in a group rather than one to one. Dementia Adventure is the main UK charity running holidays of this kind, with dementia-trained staff throughout. A familiar break gives you control over where you go and who comes, but you organise the accommodation, the routine and the support yourself. Where to take an older person on holiday in the UK and where can I go on holiday as a disabled person? both cover destinations that suit this route well, with step-free access and fewer changes of scene built in.
Staying closer to home is not a lesser option. For a lot of families it turns out to be the one that gives everyone a change without the parts of travel that tend to go wrong. Respite care covers how a carer can stay with your relative at home while you take a break, and dementia care sets out the wider picture of day to day support. A charity called Revitalise gives grants that a disabled adult or family carer can put towards a break of any kind, worth applying for whichever of the three routes you choose.
Some families ask about a cruise as a fourth option. It can work, but it depends heavily on the stage of the dementia rather than on the cruise line, and it is covered in full on should a person with dementia go on a cruise?
Choosing where to stay
What tends to make accommodation easier, and what tends to make it harder
Whichever route you choose, the accommodation itself makes a real difference. A few features are worth checking for before you book, whatever the brochure says about being welcoming.
What tends to help
- A ground-floor room, or one close to a lift
- A quiet room away from a bar, a lift shaft or a busy corridor
- A bathroom with a walk-in shower or a seat, if mobility is also a factor
- Somewhere that will tell you plainly what is and is not accessible, rather than a vague "we can accommodate most needs"
- A pharmacy or GP practice within reach, in case of an ordinary illness while you are away
What tends to make it harder
- Several flights of stairs with no lift
- A large, open-plan dining room with no quieter corner to retreat to
- Unfamiliar clutter, low lighting or reflective flooring that can be read as a hazard or a hole
- A room where the layout changes daily, such as a different cabin or unit each night
- Fixed meal times with no flexibility if your relative has a bad morning
Ask the accommodation directly whether they have experience with a guest who has dementia, rather than relying on general accessibility marketing, which is usually written with a wheelchair user in mind rather than somebody who needs a familiar layout and a calm room. Some venues carry a dementia-friendly accreditation, such as the Purple Angel scheme, which is worth checking for locally, though the absence of a badge does not mean a place will not work.
Who travels with them
Somebody needs to be watching them for the whole trip
Away from home, your relative needs somebody with them for the whole holiday, not the occasional check-in that works day to day. Deciding who that is comes before deciding where to go.
- 1
Ask a carer who already knows them
£15 to £20 an hour, plus travel and a roomIf your relative already has a carer through PrimeCarers, ask whether they would consider coming away. It keeps the face your relative trusts, at their normal rate, agreed in writing before you book. - 2
Or bring a relative or friend who already helps
No fee, but no cover if something happensThey know your relative well and need little explaining beforehand, but if they have a bad night themselves or a fall of their own, there is nobody else there to hand over to. - 3
If neither is possible, search near the destination
Checked the same way as any carerA carer found through PrimeCarers near where you are staying has had the same identity check, right to work check, enhanced DBS check on the Update Service and online interview as any carer on the platform. - 4
Put Attendance Allowance towards it
£77 or £115 a weekAttendance Allowance is paid in cash with no rule about how it is spent, so it can go towards a carer's fee on holiday the same as it would at home.
If neither a carer who already visits nor a family member can travel with you, find a carer near the destination instead, checked the same way as any carer on PrimeCarers. Can you take a carer on holiday with you? sets out the full cost breakdown, including bank holidays and mileage, and companion carer costs has the fuller figures for what company costs at home, which stay the same rate away from it. Attendance Allowance: who qualifies and how to claim covers the benefit above in full. If your relative already has a direct payment for care that has been assessed as needed, that funding does not stop the moment they travel: a council can agree extra hours to cover a holiday as part of the care and support plan, so it is worth asking before you book. How local authority funding works.
Before you go
What to have ready before you leave, in case a day goes wrong
Before you go
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Insurance
Identification and a safety plan
The day itself
What are dementia assistance cards? explains the ID card options and how to get one before you travel.
Questions
Questions families ask about dementia-friendly holidays
Routine, familiar surroundings and somebody watching your relative for the whole trip, rather than any particular destination. Accommodation that keeps the layout simple, a quiet room away from crowds, and a plan for what happens if a day does not go well all matter more than a brochure promising an accessible break.
Often, yes, and many families have a good trip. Whether it works depends more on the stage of the dementia and how the trip is planned than on the destination. Should people with dementia go on holiday? covers the wider decision.
Yes. Dementia Adventure is a UK charity that runs supported group holidays for people with dementia and the people who care for them, with dementia-trained staff for the whole trip. Check their site direct for what is currently on offer, since availability and destinations change through the year.
Yes, and the rate does not change under the standard PrimeCarers contract: £15 to £20 an hour for company, or £18 to £25 if personal care is needed, plus the carer's own travel and a room agreed separately. Can you take a carer on holiday with you? has the full breakdown.
Attendance Allowance is the most reliable source for most families, worth £77 or £115 a week in 2026/27 and yours to spend on a carer. A council will rarely fund the leisure side of a trip, but if your relative already has a direct payment for assessed care needs, a council can sometimes agree extra hours to cover a holiday. Attendance Allowance: who qualifies and how to claim.
Carry a recent photograph and a note of what they are wearing, and consider filling in a Herbert Protocol form before you travel, which gives the police what they need to start searching straight away. A simple ID card that names a contact number is worth having too.
A cruise can suit somebody in the earlier stages of dementia, but a new cabin, moving crowds and a different port each day are often the hardest kind of holiday later in the condition. Should a person with dementia go on a cruise? sets out what to weigh up.