I don't want to do "days out" because everything is so expensive and I feel like I'm being ripped off

[doesthismakemeodd]

We are on holiday in the UK in a place well known for tourism staying in a house that belongs to relations so is free us (we are lucky, we know that) we have been here before and know it well but even then haven't done a huge
There is a beach nearby. House owners are joining us later in the week and want to know what we will be doing beforehand and when they join us.
I feel they think we are odd when I say we will just chill, and go to the beach.
They have suggested a place with amusements or a NT place that is outdoors and costs £20 pp to get in (there are 6 of us)

I have looked at the "what's on magazine" . I don't want to do any of it.
I just find "days out" in this country such a let down
Am i the only one?

It's not miserable and tight to want good value for your hard earned money and a nice experience.

Most people would not consider queueing for ages and spending hundreds of pounds to go to an attraction as either of those things.

Plus there's lots of easy ways to go to most places for far less than paying full price at the door and eating in the on site cafe.

For example, a one off family ticket to a NT place could be as much as £50. If a family of 4 eat in the cafe it will be a minimum of £30-40.

Or they could join and pay £10 a month, so only need to go a couple of times to make it worth it, but in reality could go somewhere dozens of times a year.

They could half their food bill by buying supermarket meal deals on the way there or knock even more off the cost by taking food from home.

Some are completely free. Look on the English Heritage website. Tick the 'free entry' filter.

I've been to quite a few free and paid ruined castles and abbeys etc, and in a lot of cases there's not a huge difference between the two if all you want is to look at some old stonework, read some history boards, have a picnic and let DC run around.

I really resent spending money on days out. Mainly because the price of the entry ticket bears no relation to how good it is or how much there is to actually do once you’re in there. But also because it’s another reason that holidays in this country are extortionately expensive. The price of holiday let’s and cottages is absolutely shocking. Then once you’re there the weather is often shit so then you have to spend a load more on random days out just to have something to do.

I can see why so many people just do a cheap AI in Spain instead. Staying in the uk is as much if not more work than a normal week once you’ve factored in the self catering, the meals, the driving, the traffic etc. yes I’m very grumpy about holidays this year can you tell

Surely it’s boring just to sit about the house!? Pretty much what’s the point in going away if that’s all you are going to do?

not saying every day out has to be expensive but surely you planned some days outs with the children?

I love a day out and our NT membership is definitely worth the money- the NT places near us have brilliant play parks and trails for the dc. Also do lots of walks on holiday and also recommend Treasure Trails.

You do sound a little miserable op.

I don't understand what you expect really from a UK holiday.

Housing in the UK is expensive so it makes sense that holiday lets charge a lot. The weather is variable but to be honest I would rather have that than risk the high temperatures often seen in Spain etc. I'm not even just talking about the current heatwave, my family would not enjoy how hot these countries get in an average summer. We are lucky that there are so many fab places to visit in the UK and I think the value they offer is completely subjective. Everything is more expensive than it used to be, that's how inflation works and the attraction will be paying more for its staff and to keep everything running. Some people on this thread have completely unrealistic expectations of how much they 'should' pay which seems to be based solely on how much they would 'like' to pay without a thought of how much a business would need to charge in order to remain viable.

I'm not saying you're wrong to prefer a cheap AI holiday in Spain but I think you're wrong not to accept that the UK can be a great holiday destination for the right people and that it's not intrinsically a rip off or too expensive. I have holidayed in Scandinavia which has similar weather in the Summer and can be even more expensive than the UK but I enjoyed it thoroughly and never thought to compare it to some cheap AI package which is just a completely different (and in my view inferior) thing.

crab fishing was always the most fun for my dc, most memorable.
@Goshdarnitgoofy i dont think op is sitting around the house, they are going to the beach i believe

You have 4 children so adjust what you're doing as things will be very expensive. It's different for families with 1 or 2 kids. Your hosts probably don't understand/ haven't thought about how expensive these things will be for you.

Another vote for Treasure Trails. Great for kids and adults and a brilliant way of exploring a new place. Wellies raincoats and umbrellas if it rains. Ice cream or hot chocolate once you're done.

I agree.

If you don't want days out/ UK holidays then don't do them - the're not for everyone.

There is no point complaining about the prices - they are what they are, and it is not cheap to keep things afloat.

If you go to an attraction then it's wise to do your research beforehand, know how much things cost and read reviews so you know what to expect and won't be disappointed. Then you can make an informed decision.

Packed lunches and a flask always for days out. National Trust family membership is good value for us. Days out during school hols, free parking on lots of beaches near us. Christmas house displays and trails in the autumn. I think we get out moneys worth.

That said, there is also nothing wrong with wanting to chill out on holiday either op, especially when you are so busy during term time.

£50 is the new £20. It sucks.

DH and I love UK holidays in our campervan and it's never once occurred to us to do a paid attraction whilst on one of them!

A typical day would be:

• have a lie in in bed and drink a coffee and have breakfast
• walk along the coastal path to the next village. Explore. Enjoy taking some photos. Look around the little shops. Find a pasty shop and sit on the harbour wall to eat it. Find an old pub and have a drink.
• walk home.
• chill back at the campervan and read
• walk to the beach and play with the dog
• come back, cook dinner, have a glass of wine and read again, maybe go for one evening drink

Like others have said, you need to be creative.

Tesco vouchers- I changed loads over before they stopped their deals being as good so we've things to do this holiday.

I agree with pp that mention treasure trails, really good.

We ALWAYS take a picnic. My children would never expect to buy sandwiches or chips from a cafe 🤣. We usually buy ice creams but one place we visited they were nearly a fiver each so they all said no and I treated them to proper magnums on the way home!

Crabbing and 2p machines. Again mine know they have £2 worth of coins each and when it's gone it's gone.

We are NT members as family membership is quite reasonable some have brilliant parks.

Geocaching is free, download the app and get walking.

@Bumpitybumper its not unreasonable to expect to spend less to go on holiday in the country that you already are in than to go abroad. Holidays in the uk should be a more affordable option. However it seems like the UK mainly has self catering accommodation which for most people women is not a holiday with young kids. The only way to make it a break from all the usual cooking and cleaning is to spend out on meals which is obviously very expensive for a family. I do really like the uk countryside and I’m trying to reduce our carbon footprint so would prefer not to fly abroad. But you can see why people do it because the weather is more likely to be good (on average) and it is very easy to find a nice all inclusive hotel and the pool and hotel facilities provide ready-made entertainment. Similar offerings in the uk are eye-wateringly expensive especially in the school holidays.

For adults I think it’s much easier to do uk holidays but kids get cabin fever and need to get out. They do own puddlesuits but…!

Where did I say dont try and find a deal and pay full price? I didn’t.

But things cost money, you have to spend it most of the time to do an event, go to a place and do nice things.

Unless you just want to go for a walk constantly then you have to put your hand in your pocket and pay up.

I do wonder if the relatives feel that as you are enjoying a free holiday, you should be using some of the money saved to experience some of the local attractions and pump some money into the local economy.

I agree places can be expensive, but now you know bring a packed lunch and flask of coffee to most places and eat out as a separate day out.

It's all very well saying how expensive the UK is - as if somehow attractions abroad are free - but if you had to pay for your holiday, you'd have more grounds for complaint.

You don't say where you are but maybe getting a national trust yearly pass would feel good value. Think a family one is about £150 but there's usually 3-4 in each area.

Again I don't know where you are from but if it's the uk then you could continue using the pass in your home area for the rest of the year.

@ThisIsACoolUserName - that’s ok for adults. But trying to entertain a 3 year old with a lie in doesn’t really cut it.

Hi, just an idea, but can you look in your local library? Sometimes, there are pamphlets or notices about events that might be happening, you don’t have to be local to enjoy some of those and especially now, there are things to do during the school holidays that are sometimes very cheap or free. Also, local newspapers have some good things sometimes.

I think it is absolutely unreasonable to expect a holiday in your home country to automatically be cheaper than a holiday abroad. If someone lived in Hong Kong or Switzerland then it would still cost them a lot to holiday in these countries as the cost of living is expensive. Conversely people are often paid more in more expensive places so it generally balances out. Spanish salaries are 50% lower than British salaries so the price of things will also be lower to reflect this. You can't expect a British attraction to compete with the prices of attractions in somewhere like Spain which has much lower running costs.

It reminds me of the Brits who like to go to Thailand for extended periods to spend their British earned money and then come back and complain everything in the UK is a 'rip off'.

My top tip is to take a picnic, extra drinks and treats because it's those that can really add up - yes entrance fees aren't cheap but so many here seem to think it's then £££ to eat, just take your own. As I personally don't do beaches I much prefer a stately home trip - my dc loved them too and bought their own memberships once over 18

A day at the beach is perfect if the weather is on your side. We used to go to Cornwall when the DC were younger; if it was raining on one side you could always drive (very early) to the other coast. Beaches are something we can't do at home so beach days were always a priority.

However, in bad weather or during long weeks at home then well chosen days out are a godsend.

As others have said, definitely a picnic. Tesco Clubcard points are a good starting point, as is NT membership. In our experience they have lots to do for DC during the year including trails, adventure playgrounds, farms Lots of NT places have picnic areas with cover for wet days.

The NT membership is not just for holidays either. We used ours for days when DC were bored during the year too. We also used to stop at NT places near ish to the motorway instead of services when we had a long journey. There was space for the DC to run around and a decent cup of tea.

Too late if you are already there but with little DC we took dressing up stuff, knights and princesses to an EH castle and they had hours of fun pretending!

Have I suggested that it should?

@Bumpitybumper but the money you save on travel should account for that. Food and drink and activities in Thailand are a lot cheaper but then I’ve got to pay £2k+ to fly my whole family out there so it’s not going to be cheap overall. So if you have low travel costs then overall it should be possible to do a cheaper holiday in the uk.

France has similar wages and costs as the Uk but holiday accommodation is lots cheaper in comparison.