Apparently my children have never had a proper holiday

[thimblgattle167]

According to my SIL anyway
Every year we take them to eurocamp (or similar) We take the eurotunnel and have traveled all over France, Italy Netherlands Germany. We stay in a chalet and have wonderful holidays, swimming biking exploring and much more. Our kids are great in the car so it's all no bother and we have a great time.

But no apparently it's only a holiday if you get on plane and stay in a hotel. I'm utterly baffled.

What an unpleasant SIL you have!

Never had a holiday as a child as my parents couldn’t afford it. Dad had addiction problems and mum had to pay all the bills and his debts too. My first holiday was when I was 17 and went camping with my boyfriend to a site about 10 miles from where we lived. 😂 I was 18 when I went abroad for the first time with a friend but I’ve made up for it since as an adult.

I've been dying to try a Eurocamp. We had an unsuccessful Centreparcs trip years ago and even though I keep telling DH Eurocamp is different (and, like, In Europe) he won't budge.

Screw it. I'll take the DCs msyelf one year. [Looks grimly into middle distance]

I'd love to do this type of holiday! Sounds fun.

Your SIL is an idiot.

I can cap that.

Some people have bizarrely prescriptive thinking. Your SIL sounds like my parents, who (having grown up dirt poor, barely left their home city and got their first passports in their late 50s because I was living abroad and they wanted to visit) think a holiday has to involve going somewhere hot on a plane, to an AI hotel with a pool, on the coast, despite the fact that they’re terrified of flying and foreigners, are intimidated by hotels and hate eating out, hate hot weather, can’t swim, and don’t like the beach or sitting by a pool.

I’ve taken them away myself to other places, cities and towns with gentler climates and things they like doing, but they persist in booking holidays they know they will hate every year, because doing something like going to the Netherlands in tulip season or booking a seaside cottage with nice walks ‘isn’t a holiday’.

Likewise, I’ve never, in their eyes, ‘gone on holiday’ either. Going to Florence to look at art, or walking the Cotswold Way, or week in NY, or staying with friends in the south of France ‘isn’t a holiday’. Because it doesn’t involve heat, a pool and a hotel.

What an absolute test of a woman. She’s probably never had an idea.

Please tell me that she takes her family to an all inclusive hotel where they never set foot off the complex except to get on the coach transfer to/from the airport 🤣

I go away with work next week, will travel by plane and stay in a hotel. If I get a free hour I'm planning to go to a museum. I wonder whether I should confess to my boss that actually it's a holiday.

I grew up having this kind of holiday and they're wonderful! I didn't go anywhere on a plane until I was 19 and don't feel I missed out at all, I saw some amazing places. This is still my preference, Europe is magnificent and diverse and you can spend a lifetime travelling around there and still only see a fraction of what it has to offer. Your SIL must be very boring and unimaginative!

Your poor children! Imagine having to see and experience new countries, rather than getting to sit by a pool in a resort all week.

Your holiday sounds lovely OP. Please send me details of how you do this. Are the excursions pre booked?

Of course they aren’t real holidays. Your children have led a deprived and neglected life. I’m off to ring the NSPCC. Hopefully they can receive professional help for this

Back in the real world, then SIL sounds like a moron. I bet there is a backstory of SIL being a bitch, dim and / or keeping up with the Joneses. Having 2 children myself then hotels don’t especially appear

'Um yes'

That’s ridiculous! We have both car travel and plane travel , our kids travel very well on the car so we travel all over Europe . We also go further away or if we lack time to travel by plane .

My DSs are now in their 30s and 40s. They still all agree that their Eurocamp holidays when they were kids are the best holidays they’ve ever had. The cabins on the ferries, the villages that we stopped at en route, the children of different nationalities to play with at the campsites …

Your SIL is raving 😂

I see there are two definitions. I was only aware of the second. You were using the first.

As someone whose holidays were always to benidorm hotels (not slagging them off, really lucky to have had parents who could afford this) I was always jealous of my friends families who did eurocamp. Your SIL is a dick

Yes so neither of us were wrong, there was no need to 'Um no' me like I'm stupid

I apologize. As I said, I thought you were wrong. I didn't know there were two contradictory definitions.

I think it’s probably a bit of jealousy that she can’t offer her kids those sort of hols/or can’t be bothered? We’ve done both and once a year do an all inc hotel but also do ferry to France/Spain etc and drive all over. I love both types of holidays.

Thankyou for your apology 🙂

Bang on. And only ever twice. Her kids are early teens

No. Not prebooked (although may be possible at some sites). They just have loads of information and things available locally. Also most sites have things available (bikes, go carts, trampolines and so on) it really varies.

Really you need a car (although depends on the site you choose). There are so many

These are the kind of non holidays according to your sil😅 i'd like to do with my kids.

Which ages would you say is good to start going to Eurocamp? And any in particular you thought were very good?

We had some wonderful Eurocamp holidays with our kids when they were young. Your sister in law sounds very narrow minded. Reminds me of a poster on a thread years ago who said she always felt so sorry for families she saw eating packed lunches at theme parks, at the seaside etc, like they were deprived.

Some suit older kids and some are better for younger. Honestly depends on the site. If you are Facebook join the unofficial eurocamp page. Loads of people share their experiences. You can ask for specific requirements and people tell you the best ones. Honestly there are so many.