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How can people afford 2 week summer holidays?

264 replies

NobilityScooter · 08/02/2024 11:39

Pre COVID we went on holiday in the UK because we couldn't afford to go abroad. £1.5-2k accomodation then £1k spending money. = £2.5-3k holiday (2 adults + 2 children).

The costs crept up each year until COVID then the UK shot up in price. We changed locations to holiday somewhere cheaper still in the UK. Then the accomodation was poorer standard too for the price but it's what we could afford. I looked at what the same place would cost the next year when we got back (not that we wanted to book it but to see a cost comparison). And it was over £1k more expensive!

So we looked at cheap all inclusive abroad. And got something for the same price as the UK post COVID but abroad. Fabulous holiday. Wanted to book it the next year over £1k more expensive! We're lucky to be gifted £1.5k that year so went back to the same place and had a great time but the DC were getting a bit old for it so needed to find somewhere new.

Everything is so expensive! Looking at last year's holiday place is £2k more expensive! So it's gone up £3k in 2 years!

So my question is how does anyone afford to go on holiday in school holidays? (2 DC at school and education jobs mean we can only go in school holidays). This is £3k - to £7.5k in 8 years. How is anyone supposed to afford that? I see lots of people on holiday and places are selling out so people must be paying those prices. Our mortgage has doubled (£650 to £1250) and our gas and electricity has tripled (£88 to £270) plus our food bills have rocketed post COVID. Where is the spare money for a holiday?

OP posts:
IIdentifyAsInnocent · 08/02/2024 18:54

People need to look away from traditional travel agents too. I'm spending less than £4.5k for 2 weeks inc spending money for 2 weeks in Thailand granted it is in school time but there are bargains to be found. Holiday pirates is great as they actively seek out cheap deals.

peppermintcrisp · 08/02/2024 18:55

@Rivercrooz We are not going this year because so many adults have said to me in earshot of my teens that they would rather not have a holiday at all than go camping, and now the teens think it is too embarrassing to go. It's a pity because they love it.

That is really sad to hear.

People are pretty stupid. Camping is cheap but it is also so much more than being a cheap holiday substitute. I would honestly not be without at least one camping trip a year.

My teens went through this between 15 and 17 years old but now wouldn't miss a trip with their own tent.

Mummyofbananas · 08/02/2024 19:01

I don't have a lot of money, things are very very tight but we managed a two week holiday. Just lots of shopping about for a good deal then paid it monthly over a year.

Julen7 · 08/02/2024 19:03

Icystars · 08/02/2024 13:10

We spent 4k last year but we only went for 10 days and didn’t go AI.

Another way to make it cheaper is to go a few days to a week before school holidays start - they don’t miss much in the last couple of days and you can save quite a chunk of money.

as others have said we sacrifice other things. We have 2 old cars. One is 14 years the other 10 so we save on car payments. We try and keep our food shop down too by shopping in Aldi and Lidl.

I’m doing this this year - similar feelings about not much learning done the last week. Taking kids out of school 4 days before end of term to Lanzarote will save me £750 as opposed to going one week later. The only downside is that when we get home we will have 5/6 weeks of nothing much.

Macramepotholder · 08/02/2024 19:09

Go somewhere less fashionable and curate it yourself. We're going to Slovenia in the school holidays for 12 days; flights £700 for 4 plus about £1400 accommodation. Self catering, will be hiking and swimming. We've always done it independently.

CaramelMac · 08/02/2024 20:36

We go for cheap accommodation, but we do t spend much time in it so it doesn’t really matter.

yoshiblue · 08/02/2024 21:54

We're high earners and we wouldn't go abroad on a package holiday in the main Summer holidays; it's a rip off and too busy.

We tend to go abroad at Whit (end of May), then a week in the UK in August.

The only way I'd do a Summer holiday abroad is a city break eg flights/hotel to Berlin or similar. We've done a self catering week in Bavaria too for £1000 inc flights, car hire, apartment.

You need to be creative and shop around. Plan early too.

ZsaZsaTheCat · 08/02/2024 22:02

NobilityScooter · 08/02/2024 11:39

Pre COVID we went on holiday in the UK because we couldn't afford to go abroad. £1.5-2k accomodation then £1k spending money. = £2.5-3k holiday (2 adults + 2 children).

The costs crept up each year until COVID then the UK shot up in price. We changed locations to holiday somewhere cheaper still in the UK. Then the accomodation was poorer standard too for the price but it's what we could afford. I looked at what the same place would cost the next year when we got back (not that we wanted to book it but to see a cost comparison). And it was over £1k more expensive!

So we looked at cheap all inclusive abroad. And got something for the same price as the UK post COVID but abroad. Fabulous holiday. Wanted to book it the next year over £1k more expensive! We're lucky to be gifted £1.5k that year so went back to the same place and had a great time but the DC were getting a bit old for it so needed to find somewhere new.

Everything is so expensive! Looking at last year's holiday place is £2k more expensive! So it's gone up £3k in 2 years!

So my question is how does anyone afford to go on holiday in school holidays? (2 DC at school and education jobs mean we can only go in school holidays). This is £3k - to £7.5k in 8 years. How is anyone supposed to afford that? I see lots of people on holiday and places are selling out so people must be paying those prices. Our mortgage has doubled (£650 to £1250) and our gas and electricity has tripled (£88 to £270) plus our food bills have rocketed post COVID. Where is the spare money for a holiday?

Buy a tent? We had a family holiday every year, either UK or France. Family of four in a super tent-kids now grown and still love to holiday with us.

NobilityScooter · 08/02/2024 22:12

MamaAlwaysknowsbest · 08/02/2024 18:00

The best holidays for kids are to spend the summer in a village, close to nature and one can skin a cat many many different ways

This isn't a holiday for us because this is literally our life - busman's holiday!

OP posts:
NobilityScooter · 08/02/2024 22:15

OrangeMarmaladeOnToast · 08/02/2024 18:20

I read that it's been getting more popular because people find it easier to budget that way. You know what you're getting, price wise.

That was our reasoning. In the UK we did self-catering and occasionally ate out (kids would always bloody order chicken nuggets and chips so why not cook that in the cottage! As long as they had a fancy ice cream pudding they were happy!)

Abroad we couldn't do that so went AI to budget and spent only about £10 on crisps (not included in AI) but the next year packed a suitcase full of them 😂

OP posts:
FunnysInLaJardin · 08/02/2024 22:16

we are going to France in the summer. Ferry, 3 hotel nights, a week in a nice mobile home on a campsite and 3 nights air BnB is about £3k for 4 of us

FunnysInLaJardin · 08/02/2024 22:19

ZsaZsaTheCat · 08/02/2024 22:02

Buy a tent? We had a family holiday every year, either UK or France. Family of four in a super tent-kids now grown and still love to holiday with us.

yep, we camped for 6 years when the DC were little in France, cost about £1.5K for the holiday. This was back in 2014-2019

MamaAlwaysknowsbest · 09/02/2024 08:17

We do split two weeks yearly holidays once for Easter ( if I am not in one of my part time jobs ) and one week in August and many other adventures along the way. The English grandparents live in Norfolk, so any visit there honestly, has always been magical. We are not rich by absolutely no means and not described as a high earner yet so far money has never been short for anything

MamaAlwaysknowsbest · 09/02/2024 08:19

what you generally do if you want to spend like couple of thousands on a really nice holiday, is to take your yearly salary and rebudget the whole year down.

OrangeMarmaladeOnToast · 09/02/2024 09:52

NobilityScooter · 08/02/2024 22:15

That was our reasoning. In the UK we did self-catering and occasionally ate out (kids would always bloody order chicken nuggets and chips so why not cook that in the cottage! As long as they had a fancy ice cream pudding they were happy!)

Abroad we couldn't do that so went AI to budget and spent only about £10 on crisps (not included in AI) but the next year packed a suitcase full of them 😂

Haha I think a lot of people do the same!

mindutopia · 09/02/2024 10:09

Well, to be fair, we don't go on a two week holiday because we can't be away from work/business/other responsibilities for 2 weeks straight. But we do often go away for a week. Honestly, I've just never paid that much for it, that's how!

We do self-catering in the UK, no more than £1000 absolute max for a week's accommodation. We get lovely detached cottages, 3-4 bedrooms, with garden's in the countryside. Almost never pay more than £100 a night, £70-80 would be more preferable, so that's less than £1000 for a week. We self-cater so we're buying food same as we would be at home, so only extra expense is maybe a few extra treats in the weekly shop. We would get some lunches/ice creams/coffees out, so maybe an extra £150-200 for the week. We do lots of free or mostly free stuff - National Trust (we have a membership so it's no extra cost), walks, beach, swimming, with maybe 2-3 paid days out. So maybe an extra £100 ish for entrance to things. Fuel costs maybe £100-200 depending on where we go. It's definitely not £3K though. I am pretty MC and particular, but I'd never pay £3K for a holiday.

silkythecat · 09/02/2024 10:26

We have a motorhome. Big expenditure to buy secondhand and expensive to keep on the road. However we SORN it for the periods we don't use it. We only ever holiday in it. All the school hols apart from Xmas and Feb. My partner is retired and I can stretch my leave with flexi.

We predominantly camp wild or use free (or very low cost) motorhome rest areas. So other than the cost of the ferry to France (not expensive really as we pick the time we travel and go Dover/ Calais) there isn't too much of an additional expense. We self cater, which is fine! We're really outdoorsy (cycling, kayaking, walks, swims)... so other than an occasional theme park day, there's no expenditure on activities.

Interestingly we're looking at changing vans this year. Ours is starting to get to the age (15 years old) where things are going wrong. Potentially we'll be without for the summer school hols. So I've been looking at Gite's in France. I can rent a lovely looking property for €500 for the two weeks. The ferry will be cheap as well be going in our small car.

Maybe it's the type of holiday and places you go? If you are prepared to change how you holiday and move your goal posts. I know self catering and having to entertain kids might be some folks idea of hell though. Give it a try.

Strugglingforanamechange · 09/02/2024 10:50

I can’t comment on how other people afford holidays I guess it depends on individual circumstances.
Have a look at Eurocamps. I’ve never been myself but the ads are showing during milkshake in the morning and it does look amazing. Also check out Sun newspaper holidays - you can book European holidays through them for a reduced price (always check direct first though) there are facebook groups that will show you how to book.
you could either drive or book cheap flights.

Underestimated4 · 09/02/2024 10:57

I think if it wasn’t for my husband having a very good paid job and my job been lesser but still good money we’d struggle. We have a ‘holiday’ account where we put money in every month. I appreciate this is such a luxury and we don’t take it for granted. We treat holidays as a bill because it’s something we absolutely need, more so my husband. However our holidays are too our means as to what we can afford the next year, we always book a in advance too. Whether this be camping, glaming, hoeseasons, or a holiday abroad.
I do know we are very lucky and I’m sorry for others not in that position.

OhSnow · 09/02/2024 11:02

It's all irrelevant really, because it's like asking how can someone afford a Rolls Royce when you can only afford a second hand Corsa, or how can someone afford a million quid house when you can only afford a two bedroom terrace.
Everyone has different levels of income and expenditure.
That said, if you do your research then there are some bargains to be had when it comes to holidays.
If you want to holiday in the UK, try looking at private let caravans etc. The classified ads in your local paper usually has someone advertising their caravan, or even FB.
Sometimes you find people advertising their villa abroad in the classifieds.

Str3bor · 09/02/2024 11:07

We take ours out a few days early in July, saves a bit of money and think the end of the school year they aren’t missing much

ElizabiffaHubblecake · 09/02/2024 11:09

Okay, so my kids are 15, 13 and 11. Since the oldest was months old, we have taken them abroad on holiday. I stayed home with my kids when they were babies so we didn't have as much disposable income as we do now. Some years we have gone away four times - always in school holidays except from 2x trips to Florida in October (half term + 1.5 weeks). Most years 3 times. Easter, May half term and Summer.

My children have been to 25 different countries on 3 continents. We've done all-inclusive package holidays a couple of times, but mostly we plan our own trips. This keeps the price down significantly. We live in the north of England and we've driven to France and Belgium before, but mostly we book cheap flights. Use Skyscanner to get the price down. Fly from Scottish airports in late August (Scottish kids are in school, English kids are not). Book AirBnB or VRBO. Hire a car and drive! Accommodation through these sites is far cheaper than hotels.

Our last holiday was two weeks on French Riviera. Booked an apartment on a golf course and rented a car. Drove all over France, as well as to Monaco and Italy. Shopped in supermarkets and cooked some nights, which keeps the price down. We had a huge swimming pool to ourselves. Next week we're off on a cruise to the Caribbean which is expensive. Eldest is sitting GCSEs, so Easter and May are no-gos this year. We can spend that little bit more.

We only did UK holidays during Covid and when we had babies a couple of times. Went to Center Parcs for the first time 2020 and - for the price - couldn't work out for the life of me why people just don't do a cheaper holiday abroad instead. Nicer weather and better value IMO.

Also look at where you go. It might be cheap to get to a destination, but expensive once you're there. We've been to a fair few Eastern European countries and it's much cheaper there day by day. Croatia is beautiful - been there twice. Much cheaper to eat out in Croatia or Montenegro than Turkiye or even Greece (which are fairly reasonable anyway). In Croatia we didn't even have to check he price on menus - ate like kings!

Holidays abroad don't have to be so expensive if you know where to look and how to book.

libbylane · 09/02/2024 11:56

It's really simple in my mind. People either earn more (or in rare cases given more), have less expenses or spend differently. It's the same for how people afford anything. Some people don't have mortgages, some people have grandparents who treat them to an annual holiday, some people don't save and whatever is left goes on luxuries.

I have a friend who is wealthy though they'd never admit it and complain about the cost of living. Two high incomes, 5 bed detached house, 2 luxury cars plus a run around, huge garden, bouncy castles and swing sets, rental properties, free childcare by grandparents who foot the bill for things like parties, Christmas, meals out weekly etc. Their dc are 7 and 5 and have never been on holiday as they see it as a waste of money. Parents have holidayed once - their honeymoon. Another friend two high incomes, live in a detached £800k home (not London so at the upper end in their community), their dc do 4 sports each at private clubs, they spend more than 1.2k a month on sports not including all the petrol for competitions, they have an au pair, yet their dc have only ever been to a rustic cottage on a lake, they return to each year for 5 nights. They've never been anywhere else at 16, 13, 9. They eat one meal out en route and that's it. Their luxury is a big box of magnums and that is as luxurious as it gets. No days out. They pay £350 for the 5 nights. Like the other friends they view spending on holidays as a waste. They can't see why people spend even 1k on holidays.

Then I have a friend who holidays 4-6x a year but they won't pay for childcare (this causes serious issues - expectation on family) and no activities for their dc that cost, always telling the dc/school they can't afford it. They go on holiday to mainland Europe 2x a year, skiing in US 1x a year, Florida 1x a year and many weekends away - Dublin, NY, Chicago, Paris etc. They pay the minimum on their mortgage, preferring the longest term possible. Both work FT, husband is a workaholic and not only works full time but takes side jobs - has worked 6/7 days a week the whole time I've known them which is 15+ years. One of their dc would benefit from specialist tutoring and they just won't do it. For them holidays are the spending goal. Similarly we have a family member who holidays at Disney four times a year and a cruise every Christmas. While their dc has a significant disability that many parents pay support privately for, they won't. All their money goes on holidays. They've stayed in their same starter home, don't do renovations, haven't decorated in 10+ years and run their cars to the ground.

The two families I know who do two week UK holidays in Devon/Cornwall both budget 3k/week. One is a family of 4 and the other a family of 5. They find cottages near the seaside and seem to make it work. I would say they choose places with amenities and aren't eating out daily. They spend their time at the seaside, one proper day out to an attraction, a meal out a week and the rest of the time it's the beach or the communal pool at one of the properties etc. It's possible, I've seen holiday photos for both from last year and they had lovely holidays with good accommodation.

I'd not make the same financial decisions as any of my friend or family members I mentioned. We have different priorities and for me it's about balance. I don't view holidays as a waste, it's important to me that dc are exposed to art, culture, history and that we have time to relax and decompress. But I'd never spend what my friend and family member who travel 6 ish times a year do, not even if I was wealthy. For me it's excessive and too focused on one thing and for me any academic or health supports for my dc need to come first. I don't think anyone I mentioned is wrong. It's just that we all value different things.

WaitingfortheTardis · 09/02/2024 11:58

I think a lot of people save monthly into a holiday fund and then don't necessarily go every year.

BumpyaDaisyevna · 09/02/2024 12:14

Hmm ...

We have 9 nights in eurocamp from 12 august- that's £1800.

We stay with friends in the south of the Uk, then we cross the channel Dover Calais - that's about £2/300 - then we take two small tents and camp for two nights as we drive down to southern France - costs next to nothing.

We cover food from our usual weekly shop budget plus a bit extra and the we take whatever we can on top of that for treats.

We have 14 nights away and it's about £2700-£3000