Why don't people take their kids on holiday?

I don't know anyone who CAN afford to go on holiday but never do. Your friends are the anomaly here.

I thought from your title you were saying they leave their kid at home but you're saying they just don't go on holidays.

Meh, we all have different disposable incomes, different priorities, confidence, different upbringings. I was lucky enough to have parents who took us all round Europe with a tent. But that's a form of social capital, a privilege that many don't have, especially if they have other stuff going on in their lives like disabilities and the financial hit that often comes with that. And it's simply not something that everyone else values like you do.

YABU to say that you take your disabled child abroad therefore everyone else can or should. It is not that simple. I think you should be less judgy of your friends. Maybe they just have different social capital, priorities and resources to you.

My son has ASD. He HATES holidays. Hates every second we are away, cries the whole time, hates staying away from home, hates the food, hates the weather, is just utterly miserable until we are home. No amount of planning would change that.

So do I then spend thousands of pounds for a week somewhere where I know one of my children is going to be utterly miserable?

My teens hate flying, so we stick to uk holidays, but even they are expensive, trying to coordinate time off together is also tricky so we have had 1 holiday this year. But kids are happy at home, have the option to go away more/further away, they genuinely aren’t fussed ( but do like it when we are away)

Possibly could be genetic actually.... My parents used to take us abroad every year. Some of my most vivid and happiest childhood memories are from my holidays abroad with my family.

That's not genetic OP, that's about you re-living, or trying to recreate happy memories. In the 'nature vs nurture' debate that definitely comes under nurture.

We probably all 'don't try things we've not experienced' simply because they don't really cross our radar.
Like I find it strange that so many people just go to work, come home, eat their tea, watch tele, and go to bed. I can't imagine living my life without belonging to different communities and doing different things outside of work. But I know there are millions of people who do. I should imagine a lot of us copy the sorts of experiences we enjoyed as dc, when we have our own dc. For you that includes holidays. For other people, it isn't.

Newsflash - people are different.

As I said, insufferable.

You feel sorry for children who don’t go on holiday enough for your liking?

And “excuses” being people doing things you don’t approve of, like going on holiday as a couple? Or even not going at all.

MN is a very funny place indeed, now we can add ‘not holidaying enough’ on the list of things we all need to feel bad about😑

so do I, it's not common.

Even the kids talk about their holidays at school, they all go somewhere. Mine moan when we don' t go, because (long list of names and their destinations) have all had a holiday and they didn't 😂

Kids can enjoy cultural experiences and eating different cuisines without going on loads of holidays. We take ours abroad and enjoy UK breaks yearly - guess which holiday destination is their favourite and they insist on visiting yearly? It's Anglesey. Kids don't need to get on a plane to have an amazing holiday or enjoy family time.

What is India and China doing? Sod all, so shut up. If I wanna enjoy a holiday abroad. I shall. Hasn’t stopped Greta from flying all over the bloody world. Oh she’s sailing now. Forgot.

yes, people dont' understand - why would they? If we do it, we know it's not a big deal, how could we understand?

Don't call us "annoying" because we make the effort. Again, wouldn't mention it to you, it's your life. I feel sorry for the kids, that's all.

You must know a REALLY limited circle of people.

My husband was healthy up till 3 years ago, and if I did that he would get utterly depressed at home without us. I know him better than anyone and couldn't do it on him. He loved travel more than me, and I know he would dwell on what his body can't do.

We are saving for a holiday abroad in 2027, it's just a one year in five event.

Proving my point here…..

I think there may be a lot of truth in this. I definitely have the "explorer" gene, and this is reflected in my wider family.

Could just be shared values, I suppose -if your parents/grandparents have travelled, then you'll naturally see the world as a place to explore. But I can quite imagine that there could be a genetic factor.

It's entirely up to you, but you don't need 2 adults, Nothing stops you from taking the kids alone for a long weekend or something.

You don't have to do anything, but when you want, there are easy solutions. it's not just about money - it's cheaper with only one parent 😂

I can't understand it, because most people do it, so it's not a big deal 😂

Yes, you still have to parent and it's never going to be an "adult only" holiday, so? I wouldn't question you, or even mention it to you, because I don't care that much, but I do find it weird.

Outwardly we have good jobs and could seemingly afford it, but DH has a chronic health condition that makes insurance expensive and travel logistically more difficult, plus with teenagers we only go away in school holidays which adds to cost. Also due to cost of living, kids hobbies and mortgage our annual holiday budget is 2k for the four of us. We do holiday but in UK.

Not everyone is as rich as you think they are.

My oldest is 8 and never left the country. I've not flown for over 10 years due to environmental concerns. We do however go on two small UK holidays a year and are planning on doing day trips to France, Belgium and the Netherlands next year.

The thought of a holiday abroad with three young kids fills me with dread and the expense is eye watering for a family of five

People who live travelling are annoying. It’s be had friends who just cannot understand that we don’t all have to live the same life or do things the same way.

The idea of taking small children is off putting. Even older kids are limiting

ETA: Some people aren’t even interested in going abroad every year (gasp)

OP I completely agree, I do not understand it one bit. We have traveled quite far and wide with our 7 year old. In my opinion, travel is amazing for a child - it broadens their horizons, fuels ambition, makes them more understanding of different cultures and the way others live, increases their confidence and makes them realise there is a bigger world out there than on their back doorstep. And even if it didn’t do any of that it is proper quality time together as a family.

I don't know anyone that doesnt take their kids on holiday, except for financial reasons. I have never met anyone that doesn't unless they are strapped for cash that year.
Lots of people I know didn't do abroad holidays when their kids were smaller and did caravans or holiday parks in the UK instead. But that's still a holiday.
We have skipped a couple of years and not gone on holiday some years when we had other financial commitments that took priority. But never just not gone on holiday because we don't want to.

I would take my kids on holiday abroad 6 months a year from birth if I could, so I am not the best example 😂

I don't understand it either. If only to show them that there's a bigger world than our tiny island, that travelling is no more difficult or scary than commuting in London. Even if I hated it, I would make an effort to show them a tiny bit of the world, and to give them the experience of flying, taking ships or ferries.

I don't think I know any child who hasn't been abroad.

If you can afford it, no I don't understand it at all .I know each to their own, but still.

Maybe we should all try and be more like you OP? You sound absolutely perfect and I can only aspire to your level of greatness.

Travelling is great fun with our two, different, but fun. They like a plane, we don't really need to book seats by them anymore, usually we are not too far away but you know it's not essential they know what they are doing and how to behave.

Why have them if you leave them behind?

It's different with them, which is fine. Will miss it when they no longer want to waste their holiday days with us. But will of course adapt again (and we suspect there are some holidays we plan to offer them a spot they won't say no to because it will be on our account).