Should we cancel this expensive holiday??

[RNBrie]

7 years ago, my brother and his wife moved to New Zealand. They've since had two children I've never met.

They had holidays booked back in the UK a couple of times but everything got cancelled because of covid.

I've never been able to afford to visit him as we have 3 DC, I could have afforded to go alone but didn't want to use up annual leave to go away without my family.

6 months ago I was given an unexpected large bonus from work and DH and I agreed we'd spend it all on a once in a lifetime trip to NZ. It's all booked and paid for, we go at Easter. It's costing a fortune, about the cost of a wedding for flights, accommodation, all in.

I've just found out that a month after we get back, my brother is coming here with his family. My parents are paying for it because they miss them too but don't want to travel there.

My DH and I are discussing cancelling our holiday because the main reason we booked was that I was just desperate to see my DB after all this time. The money is gone, but we checked yesterday and everything is cancellable, there will be a small charge for cancelling the flights.

Our NZ trip is fancy. We stay near my brother for a bit then we have a week at a luxury resort near some other friends we've not see for years, then back to near my db and then home. This is not the sort of holiday we have ever taken and the cost of it is making me uncomfortable, we could save a bit by changing resorts but more than half the cost is the flights.

So what would you do? Go on our fancy holiday, or get our money back? We'd probably spend half of it on a much cheaper but still fancy holiday closer to home...

Thank you @OldMam

The planet is in trouble, stay home if you can. And for those saying go to NZ if you love nature, I have no words. If you love nature, don't deliberately make choices that only help to destroy it.

What about OP's love for her brother and her nephews/nieces? Are people really supposed to never fly to visit their close family members? Because that basically means that they will never see each other again.

The OP literally said in the first message that her brother was coming over anyway, so she didn't feel that she needed to go to see him and his family at this time... that was already clearly stated.

I know. I was talking in general terms if you're going to prioritise nature over family to that extent then no-one with family abroad will see them again.

As another poster had pointed out, OP's plane is still going to take off whether she's on it or not. Your advice is better aimed at business travellers who got frequently and may have alternatives.

Whether we are talking in general terms or in particular terms, all I'm saying is that the carbon footprint of long haul flying should be taken into consideration when we make these decisions. So if it's a journey that you aren't even that sure you want to make, to see family that you are going to see anyway, you might think that it isn't worth the carbon. In other circumstances, like a journey to see family you aren't going to see otherwise, you might well think it's worth it. I can't believe that so many people are so quick to reject the idea that we should even take this into consideration. Climate change is here, climate catastrophe is likely on the way, we need to talk about taking some responsibility for our own actions...

You definitely have to go!

Come to NZ you won't regret it. Especially in the summer. It's beautiful and the people are awesome. 😇

I would still go!

We no longer fly anywhere, we don't need to do it and the damage to the atmosphere is growing. Business travellers no longer need to fly either, in many cases. The cost of this holiday seems insane when the OP is seeing her family almost immediately afterwards.

let's take somewhere remote like Grenada. Tourism makes up just under half of it's GDP. Other Caribbean islands depend even more heavily.

There was a post on FB the other week when the Grenadian Tourist Authority was celebrating 5 international planes on the tarmac. Planes mean Dollars and that means Jobs, Houses and getting by.

Business travel still does need to happen on occasion, but not as frequently as it was before. All the people I speak to are travelling, but a LOT less. That is a big start. Of course atm it's about budget first and foremost, but environmental concerns are also very much the next consideration.

Just as a lot of us suddenly had an awful lot more money in our bank account because we were not buying coffee, or train tickets or fuel, the pandemic gave many companies a real wake-up call on how much was being spent on travel, so they are really reluctant to just OK every conference, or meeting that could have been an email.

Tourism however is more complex. If all international tourism just stopped, there would be a lot of hardship. We need to do more about the thousands of coal power stations planned in India and China. they put pollution from aviation into perspective.

Cancel the hotel near your brother at least and stay with him! You’re literally travel half way around the world- he can put you up for a bit of the trip!

Your DC are perfect ages to remember this. Go! Don’t live a life of regrets. You never know what’s coming for any of you.

Did you go?

Yes! It was amazing and I'm so glad we went. My DBro is here now and we're only going to see him for one afternoon during their trip so very glad we got to spend some proper quality time with them last month!

That's amazing !!

Christ Id go in a heartbeat!

Wonderful update :)

Did your DC enjoy meeting their cousins?

Fantastic update! I really glad it was an amazing trip.