MY NINE-YEAR-OLD daughter was absolutely clear that this holiday was about two simple but brilliant things: sitting in the hot tub at night when it was cold outside and ordering pizza “off the telly”.

Naturally, I tried to convince her that staying a beautiful, North Yorkshire forest was a good opportunity for long, healthy walks, strenuous bike rides and deeply appreciating nature.

But, of course, I, secretly, knew what she meant. The temptation really was to forget the muddy walk in the cold and just lie around the place in cozy comfort.

The cabins at Cropton Forest, near Pickering, offer 21st century luxury a world away from the camping trips with soggy feet and soggy sandwiches of my own childhood.

There are sumptuous bedrooms, deep baths and huge flat-screen TVs – which do indeed allow you to order food and drinks direct to your cabin.

And, delight of delights for my daughter, there’s the outdoor hot tub. She was so excited about it we even walked around in only our bathing costumes to get extra cold so we could have the absolute bliss of lowering ourselves into the warmth.

A game called “squirting-off-the-drinks-cartons-with-another-carton” off the side of the tub followed. Glancing around at other cabins, it soon became apparent that vastly more sophisticated families simply enjoyed sitting outside for an hour sipping wine and probably eating vol-au-vents.

It was good fun, doing nothing much, for a bit. And you can go further on your luxury break with in-cabin spa treatments and ordering champagne and chocolate.

But, as always, my own father’s voice popped into my head: “You’re in a beautiful forest, get off your backside and do some exercise.”

It’s easy to hire bikes at a fair price if it’s too much of a hassle to bring your own and this forest is perfect for the sport, with well-marked pathways for cyclists and walkers and two shops/cafes in the area. Dalby Forest, which is dedicated to cyclists, is nearby, making this a perfect spot for cycling families.

There are also guided walks for young explorers (£8, and adults go free) or, my favourite, bush skills lessons (£10 adults, £8 children). Night vision walks (£10) with forest ranger guides and twilight walks (£10 adults, £8 children) are also on offer. There are also zip wires and tree-top walkways for older families, run by the GoApe organisation at peak holiday times, and archery lessons costing £10.

However, a decent cycle ride and then a walk was enough for us on what was a cold day.

“Now you can really enjoy the hot tub and food – and know you properly deserve it,” I informed my little girl. “No Daddy, you can just go in the hot tub all the time,” came the adamant reply.

I said nothing and ordered a pizza off the telly.

Chris Webber