A bit disillusioned with holidays- is it an age thing or just me?

[MakeMineADigestive]

I seem to like going away less and less, although I like a change of scene and new places. I like my own bed, my own kitchen and my own bath, regardless of how 'luxurious' the accommodation is. (We mostly do UK self catering, often combining it with long distance family who we visit.)

After 30+ years of self catering I feel I've now had enough of sleeping in beds that aren't my own (and always too soft), kitchens that look wonderful but are usually impractical, curtains or blinds that let in the light (waking me up at dawn) etc.

I find it almost impossible to sleep in a strange bed for at least 2 nights, and often come home feeling more tired than when I started off.

Hotels- we've had disasters with rowdy guests coming in late, shouting in corridors, TV on full volume till late and waking us up - whether it's Premier Inn or 5* luxury.

Am I just a miserable old woman or are there any kindred spirits out there?
I didn't used to be like this in my 20s and 30s and could sleep anywhere.

I would never consider a self catering holiday or even a five star hotel an actual holiday if it is in the UK.

The whole point for us is to be culturally somewhere brand new and unknown. The decompression that comes with truly being away from home and forgetting about our problems for a week or two. There is literally nothing like it! A long haul holiday somewhere amazing is needed op! Take your pillow, comforts, favourite tea and bubble bath and enjoy the best of both worlds, discover somewhere incredible like the Maldives or the rain forests. You will never look back!

I live to travel. I can not understand how anyone can not love it - it keeps me going!

I'm kind of the same now too, having travelled extensively in my 20s and 30s I quite like my own bed. Thing is, at home I sleep with all the windows open and the sea breeze coming in. Hotels you can seldom do that and I can't bear air conditioning. I'm also partial to my own cooling pillow.

I hear you OP!
I’ve stayed in so much disappointing accommodation that I now pack the following:
Ear plugs
Spare bed linen (doubles up as extra thick curtains)
Electric heater
Safety pins to join curtains together in the middle
Sink plug
Blu tack for covering up TV on switch and other annoying lights
I also hang towels over the curtain rail if they let light in
Put clothes along bottom of door to stop corridor lights shining in
Cafetiere
Potato peeler
Weighing scales

@MakeMineADigestive you’re not alone - I feel exactly the same! Im going through peri menopause and struggle with sleep at home but at least at home I have a superking sized bed with memory foam, when we go away the beds aren’t wide enough and are usually spring-loaded so that I feel every movement my husband makes. As a result I come back f**king knackered! Not to mention all the washing, packing etc you have to do - staying at home and relaxing is so underrated!!

I guess it depends on what turns you on!

We like walking, so going to beautiful UK national parks out of season is our idea of fun! On with the walking boots, a small backpack, and off into the hills or a deserted beach, even in winter, appeals.

I am not a city person although I can do that in small doses.

I like space, peace and quiet, and no other people!

I have had lovely trips in the past like one in Florence for a 'zero' birthday at a beautiful old hotel. Even that was marred as they had plumbing issues for one night so we were sent to another hotel (for one night) and were kept awake by an amorous couple next door. The booked hotel did upgrade us when we were allowed back!

I think I'm just a bit jaded with it TBH as even the beautiful cottages we have booked have had something not quite right, or even stuff going wrong (not our fault- old buildings) where the owners had to get guys in to fix stuff.

I think it's just you - I'm older than you and still love holidays pretty much anywhere (altho a hotel is always better than self-catering). I was miserable during the pandemic when we weren't allowed to travel anywhere and I had to keep looking at my own walls week after week, with no break.

With u OP.
DP suggested to go away b/w Xmas & new year and I just can't think of anything worse.
All I can think off is wasting a day finding my way around on arrival, seeing how understaffed/underpaid hospitality industry is, eating some pre-prepped defrosted food and wasting the night trying to sleep.
Give me home cooked festive treats, Xmas TV in small doses, a walk in the open air park and my own bed.

YogaLite I have enjoyed some lovely little holidays between Christmas and New year. Last year we went to a lovely hotel in the New Forest, a previous year it was a hotel near a Dublin. This year we going to Prague for New Year.

Thank u @PottyDottyDotPot, much better deal in Europe because the festive celebrations go on there till 6 Jan mostly, the decs don't get pulled down on Christmas Eve as here. We have been to the continent before post-Christmas but not yet confident enough post-covid to brave the crowds.
Prague should be lovely, I have been in the past although not at Christmas.

Maybe because I’m in my 30s but I can’t go on enough holidays/trips. Just need a clean bed and bathroom!

We used to go away 3/4 times a year to a beach resort, then covid happened, and now I’ve no desire to go away at all. I much prefer my own home, and don’t want to leave my dog. I’ve no desire to take the dog away in this country. Just want to stay at home.

MakeMineADigestive and those who agree with you, do you think you are generally more 'home birds'?
Do you like eating out in fabulous restaurants, finding amazing theatre productions, hearing live music etc?
I am nearly 50, love my local areas/home but also am enthusiastic about visiting places, known and unknown. I think perhaps you are just different.If I need sleep, I sleep.
I notice you are negative about a cruise having not even been on one! I have been on quite a few and never had any health issues.
My BIL sounds similar to you, but is very happy at home and so holiday plans no longer happen.

@MakeMineADigestive it does sound as if you are quite fussy, plus you do seem to have been unlucky with your stays.

Maybe try West Coast Canada, the beds we had there were all superb.

I have always hated holidays. Always wanting to come home after three days.
However this year we did a villa holiday in a secluded area and it was amazing. Realised I just don't like people and schedules on holiday. Change your holiday maybe?

Not really fussy just wanting the basics done well- comfy beds, blackout blinds/ curtains, warm, very clean, thoughtfully equipped kitchen.

We have a favourite cottage (one of 6 on an estate) where everything is perfect. They have got it right.

The most recent cottage stay well..it looked like something out of The White Company catalogue/ Country Living and we know the area well. It was £160 a night , out of high season.

Very rural- nearest town and pub were 7 miles away on single track roads. That's fine- we like that, but...There was 1 baking sheet and 1 muffin tin in the kitchen! No casserole dish, no roasting tin, a couple of smallish ceramic oven dishes. Oven chips and fish fingers would have been a challenge with one baking tray!

The idea of a long haul to lie on a beach in the Maldives leaves me cold. I'd be bored silly.

Horses for courses!

@Hbh17 I don't think I've said how old I am? 😁

I don't think you have found the right holidays yet. Regarding cruises we have been on 15 and never been Ill once or known anyone else be tbh. There are lots of adult only ones and the kids clubs are so good that you rarely see kids, even when we took our own!
Tui blue platinum sensatori hotels are amazing. We do a lot of walking holidays UK and abroad and often book a spa type hotel. If we're self catering we always eat out for breakfast and lunch, then have easy or ready meals at night and we book something with a log burner, hot tub and sauna if possible.
Couldn't imagine having our main holidays based around visiting elderly relatives and not being dissatisfied though.

I have to say I agree with you OP.

I am 60 and desperate to travel more! I love going to a new town, and definitely love going to a new country!

I’m in my 40s and adore travelling. None of the things you’ve mentioned would bother me, I can sleep anywhere and have never had any issues with noise or plumbing. Some places we’ve stayed have been better than others but I guess I don’t go assuming it will be as good or similar to home, I’m going for different things and experiences, not for a home from home.
I love city breaks, coastal places, countryside. I don’t think I’ve ever had a bad holiday - even the week in the pouring rain in Menorca was fine as DH and I whiled away time tasting lovely food and exploring the city.
Travelling is something I plan to do for as long as I’m physically able!

I've never been a fan of holidays. I like home, it has everything I want in it, which other places rarely have. The only holidays that work for me are when I've found very specific holiday cottages in a place I already have some connection to - so a home from home if you will. If I was loaded, I'd have my own place elsewhere and then it wouldn't have any of the problems you describe. Hotels-wise, it works if it's only for a night or two and there's a nice (and not too busy) spa, as I couldn't have that at home. But wherever I go, I've had enough after 3 or 4 nights max. A lot of people think I'm strange because they're holiday-mad, but I feel like I'm lucky because I like my everyday life and don't want a break from it.

Worth saying - I'll go anywhere in the world for work. So happy to stay in hotels or apartments when I've got something purposeful and work-related to do there, and I feel like that gives me more of an experience of the other place/culture than tourism would. Sightseeing or sunbathing does nothing for me at all. A cruise would be the worst - I'd feel totally trapped in holiday purgatory!

Certainly an age thing for me - I’m probably quite a bit older than you, OP! I increasingly dislike planes and all the wretched hassle of airports, especially long haul with jet lag thrown in. I don’t sleep well - up and down a lot at home - so unless it’s for just one night, I can’t bear being cooped up in hotel rooms.

Increasingly I prefer home, my own bed and home comforts - this is a far cry from how I used to be - I always had itchy feet and loved travel. And dh and I have done a lot in the past, inc. quite a bit of out-of-the-ordinary long haul. But I just don’t have the urge any more.

I still do shortish flights - two this year, and one was just across the pond to see a Dsis I hadn’t seen since before COVID. And driving anywhere is fine - we still go to a BiL’s place in France. Dh still enjoys it though, so I’m glad that he’s happy to go on his own, or with one of his brothers.

Might add that at least two female friends from way back, who now live far away feel much the same - will not do long haul any more, so their dhs make any such trips on their own.

@GETTINGLIKEMYMOTHER I am late 60s. Feel younger and supposedly look younger.

Couldn't imagine having our main holidays based around visiting elderly relatives and not being dissatisfied though.

They aren't. It's just one of the things we do. Relatives live nr national parks so we stay within an hour's drive or closer to them and call in for a day or two.