A family with children and couples without in one cabin: how to split the accommodation

By Milan Martiniak · 1 November 2026 · 3 min read

This is probably the most common argument on shared holidays. The family of four suggests splitting the cabin per family, while the couple without children quietly works out that the two of them pay as much as the four next door. Discussions on the topic have a familiar ending too: the couple who paid over the odds for years booked their own place the next time.

You can avoid it by agreeing on the split in advance, based on what you are actually paying for.

The example

A cabin for 4 nights at €672, three bedrooms:

• The Smiths (2 adults, 2 children) have the family room. The younger child is two and sleeps with the parents, so three beds are enough.
• The Taylors (a couple) have a double room.
• The Clarks (a couple) have a double room.

This is what each way of splitting comes to:

What each way means

Per family is the simplest and perfectly fine when the families are a similar size. When they are not, the couple pays twice as much per person as the family of four. This is where most bad feeling comes from.

Per person counts a toddler who sleeps with the parents as an adult. Where the owner charges per person, it is exact. For a cabin at a fixed price, a family with small children may feel it goes too far.

Per bed is a good compromise. Everyone with a bed of their own pays the same. A child who sleeps with the parents or in a travel cot pays nothing. In the example the Smiths have three beds, the Taylors and the Clarks two each, seven in total. One bed costs €672 / 7 = €96.

Per room makes sense when the rooms really differ: apartments with their own bathroom, one room with a balcony and a view, another in the attic. If the owner prices the apartments separately, the simplest is for each family to pay for its own and split the shared spaces per person.

What we recommend

1. If the owner charges per person, split per person. Children the owner does not charge for count as zero.
2. If the cabin has a fixed price, split per bed. It is fair to the couples and to the family with a toddler.
3. If the rooms differ a lot, split per room, or add an agreed extra for the better room.
4. If someone arrives later or leaves earlier, split by nights as well. See the guide on New Year’s Eve at a cabin.

Food is a different matter. Even when the accommodation is split per bed, groceries are usually split with children at half. More in the guide on splitting costs when families have children.

How to set it up in Spolu

In Spolu accommodation is split per person by default. To split per bed, choose “Custom ratio” on the expense and give each family its number of beds. In the example the Smiths have 3, the Taylors 2 and the Clarks 2. Each family’s share shows right below, before you save.

The ratio applies to this one expense only. Other expenses keep their own rules.