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.

Well I'm eurocamping at the end of June but going on a plane, is that a minibreak?

This is our third one and we are taking a few families with us this year who have never been away at them before. I'm fully convinced I will have converts at the end of the break!
I remember as a teen my friend and her family went to France every year and drove... from Ireland and I was so jealous!

Here is the perfect response:

SIL: "They've never been on a proper holiday"
You: "Oh. What makes a holiday 'proper'? They've never been on a mass tourist package holiday, however they've been on an independent travel holiday self catered holiday which allows greater freedom and opportunity to have a proper traditional family holiday experiencing the natural environment rather than having to deal with anti-social pissed up Brits abroad, Ryanair, or insufferable snobs on a city-break-by-numbers".

Watch her implode.

You too, can out snob her if you wish.

we went on eurocamp holidays as kids. Perfect family holiday. Myself and my parents are some of the most well traveled people I know. I don’t think it’s necessary to take a plane everywhere though. We are doing eurocamp this summer, really looking forward to it. Funnily enough though a relative of my husband said a similar thing to your sil, and she has form of talking bollocks. Ignore.

Thank you for this, I'll do that

That's not a holiday, that's a mini retirement (according to Gary Neville)

Gary Neville accidentally discovers a 'mini retirement' is a holiday (yahoo.com)

OMG. Thats gold dust.

I wouldn't call that a holiday. I'd call that hell!

My children, who go on lots of holidays, have never been outside of the UK. Your SIL would weep for them.

She's stupid.

I really dislike hotels.

I know right @MenoRageisReal. I really am the original wicked stepmother.

I totally agree with your username btw. It totally is.

Your children are already more well travelled than me...

I'm unsure, by your sister's standards, which to do first... Call the nspcc about my childhood neglect or start a go fund me to get up to speed on expected levels of travel for my age...

Do we have the same SIL?!!

It's good to know where she is. I am unlikely to ever meet her on my improper holiday

My mum hated caravaning it was her doing housework in a different setting. It was horribly sexist tbh. She deserved a rest herself.

We went to European Centreparcs every year for 10 days, DC loved it, they had brilliant children's clubs and so much to do. Apart when babies they didn't go on an airplane holiday until mid teens.
Don't start me on a staycations , a poster on MN claimed they hadn't been on holiday in UK but only had a staycation.
I had a brilliant holiday in Wales last month, much better weather than friends who have been abroad last few weeks. It was a proper holiday as much as when we went to Iceland last year.

To be fair - I've been known to say 'I just need a proper holiday' by which I mean plane to hot place, lie by pool, eat food, drink wine'. Maybe she is just thinking of that. Mind you, I don't know why she'd feel sorry for your kids for not doing that. I'd think they'd be bored out of their skulls.

my mum said this to me too! we've always had uk caravan or cottage holidays and had some lovely holidays which the dcs have really enjoyed but my mum said why don't you save up to take the dc on a "proper" holiday abroad. it actually made me feel like shit and a rubbish parents and that I'd let dc down as I've not taken them abroad.
I wouldn't mind but mum rarely took me anywhere as a child only had 2 caravan holidays my entire childhood and never abroad!

Does she mean I.e a real break to just do nothing and chill?

Rather than saying it's less than, it's just a different experience. And in her opinion one is a proper holiday as it's a chance to literally sprawl on a sun lounger doing nothing? So a 'proper break' if you like?

Why would any sane person take children to a hotel?! So you can sit in silence in the dark when they are asleep?!

I made that mistake once. Accommodation with separate living space is required!

Gosh my poor nephew is really suffering I’ll be sure to tell my sister. He’s only been to Jersey, Brighton, Norfolk, Suffolk, Bournemouth.
where can I report her?

You've met my SIL then. That's the sort of nonsense she'd come out with. Funnily enough my lot have survived into their 20s without feeling overly hard done by.

Because it’s lovely. Connecting family rooms exist you know lol? We favour hotels because I’m a single mum, I want the ease of all inclusive food and drink, entertainment and room cleaners.

OP I grew up doing the holidays you do, definitely a holiday and a fun one at that. Im not sure why she said it’s not a proper holiday. Though I’ve gotten those comments loads myself growing up, I think people that exclusively do hotel holidays can’t understand there’s any other way to holiday and have fun!

She has no children, i assume?

She is a nutcase.

I've only stayed in a hotel with the kids once and I definitely wouldn't describe 5 sharing a family room much of a holiday for anyone - saying that your SIL wouldn't class it as one anyway as it was in the UK when we went to Legoland.

My kids have never been on holiday either then, despite having gone to Disneyland Paris 3 times - we drove and stayed at the Davy Crockett Ranch which is self catering (shock horror). An then to top it off we went to Eurocamp afterwards - the poor mites!