How much do you do on holiday

I don't see the point of relaxing in a resort

I do wonder what all the posters who have posted this sort of comment, do for work. To me the whole point of going on holiday is exactly to relax. Just to switch off from all the 'busy-ness' of normal life.

I can understand people who say they aren't very good at sitting still, or that they are really interested in seeing the area they are holidaying in, but to say you "don't see the point of relaxing" is bizarre.

Me and DH used to do a lot of seeing stuff all the time on holiday before we had kids. We did it on our first full family holiday too and quickly decided it wasnt worth it. It was hot, kids were cranky and it was too much like hard work. Turns out they dont remember much and just wanted to be by the pool anyway.

They're young adults now and still just want to lounge by the pool unless we do adventurous activities like theme parks, water parks, high wires or water sports. Otherwise they prefer to be by the pool with WiFi. They just dont like sightseeing or doing stuff for the sake of it. It's their holiday too. And now 20 years on I also prefer lounging by a pool, with maybe a little sightseeing or trip to the beach on one day only!

My next holiday is an absolute do nothing holiday, it’ll be up and by the pool until lunch, couple of hours in the shade having lunch at the pool bar and back to the pool for the rest of the day and then out for food in the evening

When the kids were younger we stayed in the hotel most days and had one, maybe two half days out. It could be a boat trip or we’d go to a local market for example. Now it’s just me and DH, we like to go out most days. We do a mixture of theme park holidays and cultural holidays. On the cultural holidays it will be a mix of food walking tours (love those), boat trips, museums, spa days, bunkers (that was in Tirana), general wandering in the local area…that sort of thing really.

Yes boat trips and also watersports are a great way of doing activities without getting hot and bothered.

You should get in the pool. It’s more fun that way. 😬

It’s been a while since I’ve been on a boat, but aren’t they a good way to cool down because of the breeze? I’ve also been on a few that stop and let you swim in the sea for a while. I can understand wanting to relax on holiday but for me, that doesn’t exclude boat trips. I would understand your husband’s hesitation if you had to get up early, travel miles and hike all day or something, but I would also be bored staying in the resort all the time.

A bit of both! Some days just flop by the pool than good book. Other days a bit more adventurous and go exploring. I get bored just lying on a sunbed every day for a fortnight

It sounds from what you are saying that your DH is pretty much suggesting that the temperature means you are compelled to stay around the pool, and it sounds as though you, not unreasonably, find that limiting. And maybe that your youngest, and actually, all of you, are struggling a bit with the heat.

We ten to do lots on holiday. We prefer mildly warm conditions over hot conditions, so in summer we holiday in places where the temperatures and local environment are more conducive to being active and doing things we enjoy doing. It's pretty normal for us to be in full length wetsuits on our summer holidays, and long sleeves and trousers in the evenings.

Our holidays away often look something like:

• coastal camping, with beach (paddleboarding) time morning and evening and local cultural stuff, or other active stuff (cycling, hiking) during the day;
• a self-catering stay somewhere mountainous, with hiking, cycling, gorge-walking, and a few meals out in quality establishments.
• shorter city breaks out of high season, soaking up the local sights, sounds and cuisine.

I think what I would want to do would be very different if it was 35 degrees in August to what I would do when it’s 22-25° in May or September, which is when I take holidays. If you have a young child and it’s very hot I can see why your DH would want to just stay on the resort site, and presumably if you are on a large resort, there will be things for the children to do there. If you aren’t confident to go out and about by yourself, you could book on one or two of the organised trips (assuming you are on a package).

We are normally out and about visiting local towns, but we tend to do one thing a day, get up late, back to accommodation to relax late afternoon and we don’t holiday in main summer any longer. Nor do we have young DC, so very different situation.

@DreadedInn

a family holiday doesn’t mean being joined at the hip 24/7! It’s ok to have time apart to do different stuff

@Bedroomdilemmas113

because OP isn’t she…she’s a bit bored. She presumably paid for, organised, planned etc this holiday why shouldn’t she get to do what she wants to do?

DH is happy with his book by the pool for 2 weeks. I’m a scuba diver so I tend to take myself off diving in the morning, sometimes with one or both of the DC who also dive, then I’m back round the pool in the afternoon. I might manage to get DH out on a boat trip, and we do sometimes head out of the resort in the evening for dinner/a wander to a local town. I quite enjoy having a bit of time by myself, as we can find we’re all a bit on top of each other otherwise!

I've always taken the approach that the holiday is for everyone so there needs to be a mix of activities, not just things for the kids, so some stuff is for their enjoyment and some stuff is for the adults. That's how my parents approached holidays too and I appreciate now why they dragged us along to things we thought boring (or thought would be boring but turned out interesting) because it wasn't just about us, they deserved to do things that interested them too and I appreciate the exposure I got to different experiences. Even now we often go on holiday with my parents and we do different activities to please 3 generations with different interests and my children get new experiences which they may or may not enjoy but will always have the memories of (sometimes its the worst part of a holiday that makes for the best memories that everyone laughs over years later)

It’s not morally superior to go out and explore places. Let people just lay for a week. They may run themselves ragged the other 51 weeks of the year and just want to lay horizontally for a week. They’re enjoying themselves equally as much as you are going out and about.

I love the idea of doing nothing for a week but I am rubbish at it. I now book nice hotels, with a pool or beach, but with cities or places to explore nearby.

We normally go out and about and sight see. However we went to Turkey last year and only left the hotel for 2 walks up and down the beach. It was a great holiday I felt like I'd really relaxed!

I’m currently on holiday and we had the same discussion last night, we have done lots of trips but the majority of the people we see are at the pool when we leave and return. Haven’t seemed to have left all week. Can’t understand it, seems odd to go to another country try but not explore but everyone is different.

Same. I don't see the point of relaxing in a resort. I prefer to go out exploring and see a bit of the world.

You’re in the Balearics not on a once in a lifetime trip to somewhere it’s taken you 24 hours to get to.
If everyone is having a good time hanging out together in the resort that’s a great holiday.
Please don’t waste good family time thinking about what you should be doing, or what other people are saying you should be doing.
What you should be doing is what’s right for you guys.

We do a lot on holiday, always have.

We also acknowledge that sometimes those interests don’t match up and when the children were small they were not always suitable for children. So in Budapest DH took children to the science museum which was also his strong preference while I went to the house that was now a museum that had been the HQ of the Secret Police.

DH also liked building extensive and huge sandcastles with them, so at that point I would nip off for an hour or two to peruse local shops for gifts. The last holiday we had as a family as all grown up now we took DS and his GF away with us. I did my usual early morning swim alone, they like swimming but not as much as me. Plus I’m a much earlier riser.

I like to see the place too. But only with equally enthusiastic company. There is nothing worse than going with a partner who has 'warned agsinst' it being unpleasant due to heat, crowds, DC behaviour, traffic, whatever. Because those things will be issues and at best you'll have their silent I told you so face. At worst it will end in tears.
In your shoes I'd either gather my courage and go with eldest. If you plan the logistics well and use a reputable tour it will be fine as you'll be literally taken where you want to go.
Or I'd suggest a short trip first thing or in the evening.
Next time, at holiday planning stage, be assertive that you want to do X and Y while there. Get it on the agenda so everyone knows this is going to happen.

I would get so bored just ‘chilling’ all day. But we purposely book sport holidays.

My dc have made comments about going on a ‘do nothing’ holiday. But then they soon realise they would also be bored very quickly.

I agree… but not as harshly! I think yabu because you won’t do it on your own.

As a family, we used to go for longer than a week, never stayed in a resort and chose places where there were a variety of sights or destinations for trips.
The general rule was days 1 and 2 chill and get familiar with hotel and local area. Thereafter doing trips, walks or organised activities, like reef snorkelling or sea canoeing, every other day. Child was between 10 and 15.
We definitely did not want to visit far-flung, exotic places without exploring the local culture. If we had just wanted to mooch round a pool, we would have stayed in our home country.