I took my teenage daughter on a digital-detox holiday – and it shocked us both

Daftar Isi

Since becoming parents, screen time has gone from something my husband and I used to stubbornly regulate to a pressing necessity over which we have no control. From the time our daughters were old enough to manage their own timetables, nearly every waking activity has been via a device. Then in the evenings, podcasts and playlists take over. Strict time limits, once the rule, are now infrequent exceptions.

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My editor saw an opportunity for a social experiment and suggested that I experience this dystopian lifestyle myself, alongside my own teenagers. Not for long, mind you - just a short period of time, say, a few nights spent on the Aegean without

Sold on the grounds of research purposes.

” Through gritted teeth. The fact that the girls jumped at the chance was the first surprise. The second? As our departure drew near, I was the one getting anxious. The assignment required me to monitor my own phone usage: checking my inbox, reading WhatsApp, counting my steps, playing word games, tracking GPS. When my second daughter had to pull out due to a school trip, I felt a quiet pang of envy. To give up my phone for even four days felt like a genuine hardship.

Weeks later, Lola and I, both still teenagers, wheeled two suitcases containing several piles of books that had been ignored for ages into the Porto Sani resort, a Greek resort suitable for families which offers all-suite rooms. At the reception, we handed over our phones. In our room, the television had been taken apart. We inspected the room for any power outlets out of habit (Lola was pleased to discover a built-in wall separating her bed in the living area from mine in the main bedroom). We gasped at the enormous marble shower and the walls of glass that opened out onto the wraparound balcony. It was especially frustrating that we couldn’t take any photos. We had to hold off on posting and boasting.

We slipped into our bikinis and settled near one of the near-deserted pools, placing our orders for iced lattes and letting our minds unwind. Time lost all meaning. After a snooze, I slipped into the pool and called out to a lifeguard, only to discover it was almost 7pm - I'd have estimated it to be around 4.

We tidied up for dinner at a quaint taverna on the resort's small harbour. But as I sipped a glass of Cretan red, I began to have second thoughts about our achievements. Unable to watch TikTok videos, Lola started retelling them to me in detail, then explained the concept of Snap Streaks – being offline would doubtless put her streak at risk. I, meanwhile, mentally drafted an email and ran over next week's diary entries.

From her bed later, Lola recounted the most recent chapter in her book while I kept re-reading the same sentence 12 times. Poor thing: after I'd gone to sleep, she'd stayed awake reading for half the night. “I couldn't sleep,” she complained in the morning. “At least when I'm on my phone my eyes get tired.” Blue light is clearly working its magic.

Even more unable than ever to sit in silence with our thoughts. Completely into routine, we have wrongly absorbed technology into our lifestyles for both good and bad. At times, putting it on helps us turn our minds off.

I wish we all could. For every child splashing around at a resort feeling happy with a gadget in hand was a parent holding a mobile phone. According to a study carried out by British Airways and YouGov, nearly half of us in the UK check work emails while on holiday; 36 per cent of people respond to them. Half the population don't even take their full paid leave. It's why loads of off-grid hotels offer tech-free holidays, and why British Airways launched its Take Your Holiday Seriously campaign. I'm pleased to say Lola and I were taking this holiday very seriously indeed.

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But as the third day dawned, Lola seemed fed up, then worked herself into a state of distress. With three books read so far, she began to walk back and forth restlessly. She was "had it" with the beach, finding the heat unbearable and cycling too demanding. Even yoga got a firm rejection. Desperate for a distraction, she reluctantly agreed to take over reading the book I’d just completed. Her motivation for reading had shifted from enjoying a good book to staying sane.

Eventually, we started to feel a sense of pity for those poor souls stuck with email. During a late breakfast, Lola pointed out the masses of staff wandering about in their light-coloured linen uniforms – much calmer than the harried faces we're used to in our own restaurants. We spotted the neutral-coloured loungers and plain white walls, labelling them "good beige".

Other people's children, making their way back from the sweet shop with ice-cream, covered in chocolate, looked delightful to us. Our senses became more heightened. The sparrows diving into the pool sounded joyful; their chests, shining with the same blue as the water as they skimmed its surface, appeared electrified.

On our last evening, as we sipped elaborate mocktails and gazed out at Mount Olympus from a terraced house covered in white stucco, I felt cheerful about the quality of company my daughter was keeping, despite me being the only person to bounce ideas off at that time. I asked her how we might make this cleanse a regular part of our daily lives. However, she was cautious. She was grateful we'd done it, but soon she'd need to think about her next undertaking, catch up with her friends and set an alarm reminder too. The allure of the screen is a force to be reckoned with.

Still, when we got back to London and I took her phone out of my luggage, she switched it off.

“Maybe tomorrow.”

British Airways Holidays We offer a 7-night stay at the 5* Porto Sani, starting from £1589 per person, on a half-board basis, inclusive of return flights from London Gatwick.

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