Kids first time abroad and all they've done is moan.

[HolHell]

I knew they wouldn't like it (ASD/Autism is rife in our genes!) and they are real home bodies so we've never ventured abroad.

After years of feeling pressure and guilt from the outside world and thinking 'what if we're wrong and they actually love it?' we did it.

And we were right.

Won't eat the meals, won't get in the pool, eldest is burnt to buggery. They've mostly stayed in their rooms.

They did like the beach/sea once they got in. But only 1 out of 4 has even been in the pool!

Never ever again.

How old are they?

Just feeling a bit down because most kids would love it and I feel like my kids are 'broken' :( as silly as that sounds.
. They're good kids, they just Dobt like being out of their comfort zones.

And DS1 thought he was immune to the sun 😂

That sounds really hard, I’m sorry. I hope you manage to salvage some of the holiday!

Youngest is 13, eldest is 19.
Tbh I'm feeling it too, homesick. Worried about my pets. Generally anxious about the change in scenery.

Its extremely stressful.

I don't know how people do it every year.

Or want to!

eldest is burnt to buggery

How did that happen?

Oh he's an adult.

Everyone asked him half a dozen time if he had put suncream on at beach and he said yes.

He hadn't.

Yes 😂

I could try and wrestle him like a toddler but I think he would win

I wondered that but OP update says he's 19 so I imagine she had no control over the sunscreen being put on him.

I think with him never having been abroad he genuinely thought we were over reacting with the constant reminders of cream.

He's learned a painful lesson!

City breaks are more autism friendly than beach holidays in my experience.

Have you just arrived yesterday?
They may need a day or two to adjust.
As for the food if it's already paid for then they can eat or go hungry, they're not little.

Yes they've been much happier when we've been out and about.

I don't think they know what to do by the pool. It's very busy/loud.

No, we've been here since Tuesday x

My daughter has ARFID and that's what she's doing.

Even her safe foods 'mcdonalds/pizza' taste weird here apparently. So she's living off bread, crisps and croissants.

In all honesty her diets not much better at home.

If it's any consolation, loads of kids don't really like travelling, or seeing new places, or eating new food. I and every parent I know has at least once thought "never again".

Thanks.

I really don't think we will do it again. Just really not been worth it for the emotional toll.

I used to love going on holiday as a kid. Such fantastic memories.
Just wanted to try and give them the same experience.

Well look on the bright side OP - at least now you won't wonder whether you should've bitten the bullet and tried it once!

Where are you staying? In an AI resort? I love going on holiday but can't see the appeal of places where everyone all sits round a hotel pool so I don't blame them for not enjoying that.

I would take them to a supermarket and get them to pick things they’ll eat. DD liked those packets of little long life cakes you tend to get in European supermarkets.
If the 19 year old is enjoying down time in the room, would they be happy to babysit the others so you get to have a bit of relaxed pool time?
When DD had to come with us, we did trips every other day E.g water park, aquarium, zoo. We packed lots of familiar packaged foods. If in a hotel, we’d go down for breakfast and she’d have one of her safe foods in the room. I also let her have devices at all times and no expectations to leave the room unless she wanted to. I would go to the pool on my own in the afternoon while DP and dd relaxed in the room.
Its not impossible to go abroad with autistic children but it needs getting in to their minds, planning all elements and jetting go of stereotypical ideas of what a holiday should be.

I think they are likely too old to start doing pool / beach holidays unless you knew that they like laying in the sun reading a book or some such activity . My eldest had stopped liking pool type holidays when he was about 5 , we ended up doing loads of day trips . We did Disney , city breaks and theme park beaks instead .

She won't eat the supermarket food because it's not what she eats at home.

She wouldn't even eat the mcdonalds nuggets because they're Spanish.

They taste exactly the same.

So the breadsticks, chocolate bread. Cereal etc... She won't eat because it's not the exact same as that's in tesco or aldi.

She will survive. She is eating. Just not the best stuff. But it's fine.

I don't have the money to go the the zoo, waterpark etc each day. It would be £250 each day.

It was a struggle to raise enough for the holiday.

I don't think they've had the WORST time. They have had laughs and they liked the beach. We will go there again.

It's just not been the holiday people have with NT kids I guess.

You’ve done the right thing taking them away though, they can’t be leading healthy fulfilling lives being stuck back at home eating the same things day in day out, they need to see the wider world and to realise that cocooning yourself in familiarity gets you nowhere. Exposing them to a foreign country was a step in the right direction so don’t be too hard on yourself OP!

How on earth would I know that if we've never been though? 🤔

They might have loved it.

Just turns out they don't.

My youngest loves it. He's having a ball. He's the only one that's NT.