At first glance a city break in somewhere like Paris may seem ideal for a Christmas holiday with teens. It has enough culture and cool to please both teens and parents. But, if the teens decide to go AWOL, tracking them down can be a problem. And parents who believe that their teens will keep their phones on and keep in touch, need to be reminded that they might not answer parental calls if they’ve found a new group of friends or a cool new activity.

This rite of passage, as teens fight their way into adulthood, needs to be handled with care on holiday. The only way that I have found to keep my two girls happy (and sleep easily at night) is to find a group activity holiday like touring or skiing. Or find a resort where teens will be able to be independent without getting into any serious trouble.

Obviously the best option is a small, Tee-total, no-drugs desert island peopled by like-minded families with teenagers and guarded by ever-alert bouncers. Failing that, I have compiled my top ten destinations offering the Next Best Thing, for Christmas.

1. Sandy Lane on Barbados has a sensational teen club. So it should be at thousands of pounds a head for a Christmas break. At half the price you can book into Jamaica’s Sunset Beach Resort and Bar which has a pirates cove club for younger teens. And the Family Travel Files has a selection of family-friendly resorts, most of which are large and interesting enough to keep everyone happy.

2. Ski resorts tend to be contained communities, and Jackson Hole in Wyoming, USA limits alcohol use. Good skiers can join the Team Extreme course (+1 307 733 2292) which will wear the teens out and introduce them to fellow hormone sufferers. The Jackson Hole resort’s slopes here are, mostly, challenging, but at least snow is guaranteed by Christmas - check the snow conditions

3. Escape from a cruise ship can be tricky, thus limiting the opportunity to go AWOL. An increasing number cater for teens. Magic Kingdom Travel (nothing to do with Walt Disney according to the website) has teen-only discos, raft building and Karaoke nights, plus a teen-only area with a coffee bar.

4. Norwegian Cruise Line offers teen discos, pool and pyjama parties, arts activities plus a video arcade.

5. Virgin also offers a number of cruises and, unlike many others, the company makes the important distinction between young and old teens. Older kids (15-17 years) have a designated club with a DJ, state-of-the-art sound and lighting system, and ‘mocktail’ lounge serving non-alcoholic drinks.

6. Royal Caribbean Cruises is another offering holidays with the crucial distinction between older and younger teenagers. The kids club - navigators: ages 12-14 years, arranges games, parties and competitions. Older teens (15-17) have entry to ‘fuel’ a teen-only club with a designated lounge and ‘the back deck’, a private outdoor area for teens.

7. Explore has some Christmas places left on their family adventures from Kerala to Morroco. The great thing about these itineraries is that they tend to be so packed that there is no time for anyone to get sulky, bored or bad tempered.

8. Thomas Cook has some outstanding bargains in fairly self-contained resorts (i.e. not too much opportunity for teens to find trouble) but you would have make your own entertainment.

9. Teenage departures, i.e. trips guaranteed to include teenagers, are available through Exodus.The trips, many long haul, are busy and challenging and should keep teens, and everyone else, happy – at a price.

10. Christmas Island is the final, rather extreme, suggestion on my list. Getting to this little speck in the Indian Ocean is expensive, but some compare it to the Galapagos Islands because the wildlife is so remarkable. The island is peopled from a wide range of religious backgrounds, all of which encourage respectful behaviour. Therefore, with a bit of luck, teens can be relatively independent, safely. They need to be good swimmers given that most of the activities are sea-oriented. One word of warning. If any of your party is scared of crabs December is not the best time to visit as this scary video clip demonstrates.

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