Has anyone else completely lost the desire to go on holiday?

[TrueCrimeFanatic]

When I was young I travelled a lot. First with my parents, then as a young adult. I travelled far and wide, to the USA in one direction and the far east in the other. I loved it and lots of places inbetween. After I met and married DH and had kids we settled into the Mediterranean style 2 weeks in the sun style holidays and breaks in the U.K.

we're now in our 60s, been retired for some years and just gone completely off holidaying, home or abroad. We think about the hassle at airports, the crowds in the cities at both home and abroad. The rain and general bad weather in the U.K.

We are away right now in England and it rained a lot of the day yesterday so we only went out for a couple of hours, did a museum and a cafe at a seaside resort, returned to our lodge and just sat and read. It was quite boring. Infact we are returning home today, a day earlier than planned.

Discussing it last night we realised we’ve both lost the desire to holiday, we miss having our stuff around us particularly as all our hobbies are quite creative. ( can’t exactly take a piano on holiday)

Have others reached this point where they just have no desire to holiday any more. Am I abnormal? Just curious if others have come to this conclusion or have opinions on this?

She’s gonna have very high expectations!! lol - but I’m with you - one of my favourite pics and memories is my son ( now 28) sat playing a kettle drum at the Shirley heights fish fry in Antigua aged about 10

Nope, I’m retired and for various reasons haven’t been able to go on holiday for a while and I’m desperate to do something! A change of scenery, seeing life somewhere new, that “ I’m on holiday “ feeling when you step off a plane and it’s warm and smells like holiday! So many places I want to see.

I find your last paragraph an odd thing to say. Visiting different places is not a "break" from my life, it is part of my life, which I am very happy with. It's a bit like saying that people who like to spend time with a wide range of friends (not just their family and closest friends) are not happy with their life because they want a "break" from the people they see most often. Or people who like to do things outside their own home are not happy with their life because they want a "break" from their home.

Am not finished yet but planning to have 3 years off going abroad after my kids were fighting on the plane recently until the youngest is at least 7. will have long weekends away the UK for now.

I think some people do think like that though, they have very small worlds and are happy with that, live close to where they grew up, do local jobs, kids go to schools they went to, marry someone local, holidays are a financial stretch and a few days somewhere cheap and cheerful, can’t wait to get home, even want to eat familiar food when there.

nothing wrong with that, it’s not for me, we’ve lived in 3 different countries inc mainland Europe, travelled a huge amount, had wonderful experiences, everyone is different.

where I struggle though is being offensive about someone who lives their life differently to you, like the poster you quoted, saying people must have something wrong in their lives if they enjoy a holiday. I can’t work out if it’s a genuine thought or a bitter one as they can’t afford or don’t have the confidence to travel.

I understand what @EmpressStorm means and don’t think it comes from a place of bitterness at all. He/she mentioned people who are obsessed with holidays perhaps feeling unhappy with their lives which is different from people who just enjoy holidays every now and again. A friend of mine goes away almost every month and she definitely does this because she is unhappy with her home life (she told me). She is constantly seeking an escape. Of course you can’t travel your way out of unhappiness, you just take it with you like literal baggage so not sure the non stop breaks really help her.

Personally I love holidays but as I’ve gotten older (and grumpier) I cannot be dealing with airports and travel stress. We drive to France most years and I love it as it’s a 35min journey to Calais and then we drive to our favourite parts of France, stopping off in nice towns and villages en route. It’s all quite leisurely and stress free. DS shares my interest in museums, art galleries etc and DD just loves good food so it’s a winning destination for us. Pembrokeshire is also a perennial favourite and DP likes to hike out there. Weather is not always great but we love the area so not an issue.

When DC were younger we did a lot of hotel beach holidays in Spain/Greece/Portugal but that’s really not appealing to me now.

I have reached an age when I would rather be at home than anywhere else, but it does not follow, nor is it true, that I no longer enjoy travelling. I do have certain requirements though -

1. Within Europe I do not fly; outside it I keep flying to a minimum, e.g. for West Coast America I would fly to New York then continue by train.
2. I try not to go on holiday in the summer - spring, autumn and winter are less crowded and more temperate.
3. I dislike sightseeing. I want a trip where either the journey is the point - the trains, ferries, long-distance walks - or where I can stay in a place as if I lived there - this year I spent a week by a lake in eastern Finland, used the local shops and buses, got to know the barkeepers, took walks around the lake shore etc.

What all this amounts to, I think, is a desire for fresh atmospheres and a slowing-down of pace, both physical and mental, whether I am moving or static. It enables me to see how home might get closer to what I have on holiday. I can then return with pleasure.

Myself and DH love a holiday, we’re both early retired, are fortunate to have a good income with relatively cheap outgoings so we have at least one long haul holiday a year, a week in Europe with a few city breaks thrown in. We make it easier on ourselves, get a lounge, fly BC on long haul, decent hotels or Air BnB, we do appreciate how lucky we are.

We do this now as kids, neither of us travelled abroad when we were growing up as our parents couldn’t afford it, we had a week in a caravan at a holiday camp. We did the same with our DC until our finances improved.

We both have a love of travel, be that either a relaxing week or so, experiencing new cultures or a mixture of the two.

@FlorbelaEspanca what’s train across USA like?

People go abroad for day trips. No way.

It is notoriously slow and unpunctual, as the railroads' main business is freight and this is given priority. However it is comfortable - you don't absolutely need a sleeper (and they are expensive) because the seats are spacious enough, lean back enough and there is enough legroom to sleep tolerably well. And the scenery can be splendid, especially in the Hudson valley in upper New York State. Intermediate stops are long enough to allow you to get out and stretch. Chicago is the hub: if you are going right across you will have to change there.The dining and observation cars are good places to meet people. Coast to coast takes about three days.

I don't think I've ever had the desire to go on holiday.

No desire at all to spend some time anywhere other than your home area? Ever?

I think some people do think like that though, they have very small worlds and are happy with that, live close to where they grew up, do local jobs, kids go to schools they went to, marry someone local, holidays are a financial stretch and a few days somewhere cheap and cheerful, can’t wait to get home, even want to eat familiar food when there

That's so condescending, it's almost satire!

I'm the exact same. I don't think that staycations are holidays at all. These days they aren't even any cheaper than going abroad!

I relate to this. I still like a holiday but I travelled and lived a lot abroad when young and have no desire to do longer trips or live abroad again. My neighbours are recent retirees and constantly off on exotic trips to places like India, Africa, Latin America and Antarctica and I have zero interest in taking such trips myself, primarily because they involve a degree of health risk and physical discomfort. I still travel for work reasonably frequently though.

I am in my 60s and have no interest in going abroad. My passport ran out earlier this year and I didn't renew it.

I do like UK breaks though, but we have a dog, and I like us getting away from it all with him.

I love loading up the car and setting off to discover new places. But it's largely based round the dog.

I understand where you’re coming from op.
I’ve carved out a very nice home and life for myself so unless it’s a really beautiful and easy holiday (usually expensive) I’d rather be at home than in a crap hotel or air bnb. I used to love exploring but I honestly just get quite tired now doing that and the idea of big cities/ big crowds and crap tourist restaurants turns me off.

I travelled in my 20's. I still love holidays, but it's so overcrowded now and there's hoades of people pushing & shoving - not to enjoy the experience - but to get perfect photos. Having to go super early, pre book almost everything, and pay to access previously free natural attractions, puts me off as it takes away the freedom of holidays.

But, I still love them!!

I still love holidays, to change scenery, explore, and feel like I'm experiencing life, especially as our daily life is a drudge, but I admit I am finding it hard work now.

Same as many other posters on this thread. Travelled extensively when I was younger and through work when in my 50s. This has included some unusual places now considered risky such as Iran and Syria. I used to treat each trip like a military expedition so far as packing, preparation and reading up was concerned. Travelling solo is a challenge as you have no one to share the responsibility for luggage, queueing and being in the correct place.

As my mobility issues have increased Ive got more reluctant to travel and just cant be doing with the hassle standing and queuing. I used to find airports exciting places but now I hate them and any other large buildings (such as supermarkets) which are noisy, brightly lit and crowded. I just cant be bothered with other people and don't even answer the door unless I'm expecting someone or a parcel.

I never had the desire (for holidays/travel) in the first place.

I am going very summer holidays where it’s just beaches. I do like a 3 night city break though for a change of scenery and so I can getaway from cooking and washing up

I’ve lost it a bit. It feels the world isn’t as safe anymore but could just be that I’m getting older

I’ve never really liked holidays, other than a night or so away when I had a caravan. I don’t like packing and unpacking, I don’t like leaving the cats, and I absolutely hate sleeping in a bed used by different people every week. I know the linen is washed but the number of bodies that have … slept … on that mattress, head on those pillows just with clean pillowcases, under that duvet. Can’t be avoided in hospital, but otherwise I want to be in my own bed, even if it’s my bed in my caravan.

Our last holiday outside the uk was in the spring of 2019. Since then, DH has aged a lot more than seven years and has various health issues. Unfortunately, I struggle to persuade him to come with me even on a short uk holiday - and once we're away I have to make all the decisions as to what to do and where to go each day. He tags along for some of it, other times I need to just do stuff by myself.
I've been pondering about going abroad on my own. But the thought of hiring a car and navigating myself out of a foreign airport on the wrong side of the road and in a car with the steering wheel the wrong way around is very daunting! I doubt I will ever have the courage to do it. So, I'm pretty much resigned to staying here.
It's sad. We used to have lovely, low key but very enjoyable holidays in Spain, Italy, France and the Canary Islands. But it seems those days are behind us now. I'd never be able to get DH onto a plane.