Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Only the apps you allow.

Meet the Other Phone.
Only the apps you allow.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to not want to take my children on holiday again?

33 replies

Iggleonk · 05/09/2010 17:18

We have just had a bloody awful weekend in Whitstable. Whitstable was lovely, children awful!

DD1 is 2 & a half - spent whole time moaning and whining. Wouldn't go near the sea as scared of the waves. Fell out of bed twice last night so was awake most of the night and is super grumpy today.

DD2 is only 3 months old and to be fair was pretty well behaved.

How do other people make going on holiday with children look so effortless? We never want to go away with ours again or at least not until they are much older!

OP posts:
deaddei · 05/09/2010 17:22

You are not alone.
After last years disasters, we stayed at home this year and had a relaxed, stressfree time. Mine are 14 and 11, so I can't see us having too many more "family" holidays.

MrsBadger · 05/09/2010 17:23

hang on, you have two kids
the 3mo was fine
the 2.6yo was, well 2.6

next year she will be 3.6 and a lot more rational

did you take a bed guard?
did you offer things to do you knew she would like or was it all new to her?

So overall I think YABU and were expecting too much. Next year will be better...

clam · 05/09/2010 17:24

Oh dear!

Been there, done that! We never looked like the adverts either, when ours were that age. Got round it by a) going with friends with similar-aged kids. You can therefore hope that theirs are worse-behaved than yours, and b) copious amounts of alcohol.

I promise you it gets better.

EndangeredSpecies · 05/09/2010 17:26

YANBU, holidays with children are not actually holidays. Getting four people to agree on what to do for a week is just a massive PITA.

pointydog · 05/09/2010 17:27

We had a plan for each day. That helped.

Did dd1 like building sandcastles? Would she have been better in a travel cot?

BelleDameSansMerci · 05/09/2010 17:27

I only have one DD (3 - well 2.12.3) and so far holidays seem to be harder work than being at home. We're going to France at the end of September with my parents. I suspect this will be the first relaxing holiday I've had since she was born as my mum will help out!

Just got back from "glamping" which was f*cking awful. Not the child - more her father - but even so...

LoveBeingOnEbay · 05/09/2010 17:27

Agree that hoidays are not longer holiday and mostly more effort than thye are worth.

pointydog · 05/09/2010 17:28

Is it hard for two parents and two tiny kids to agree what to do each day on holiday? Why?

Tortington · 05/09/2010 17:28

i went when ds1 was 5 and the twins were 3 and it was still awful. we waited until the twins were 6 and ds was 9 and then we could pack them off to kids clubs and sit and read for hours

borderslass · 05/09/2010 17:31

DD2 was like that she hated wet sand and would scream blue murder if it touched her feet, she still hates the beach at 14.

One year my sister and I took all our kids away to a haven holiday as we told the travel agent there ages she looked at us as if we where mad it was her ds 8 my dd 7 her ds 5 my ds 4 her ds 3 and my dd 2.
It was fun and games.
I used dh's people carrier to take us all as well.

costacoffee · 05/09/2010 17:33

You have my deepest sympathy,but rest assured it will get better,trust meSmile.
Next year will be another ball game altogether,my advice is find another family who is in the same boat as you, it always makes life easier,as you have morale support for one another.
You could try Camping?,just a suggestion but all that fresh air, and being with friends has been one of out best stress free holidays yet.

Firawla · 05/09/2010 17:38

just see how u feel next year maybe by then you will have forgotten the bad points and willing to try again? hopefully it will go better. i dont think you should give up on it altogether, would be a bit of a shame. or if you feel it is too much work you could do a holiday at home ie a week or two with lot of day trips out (things you wouldnt normally do, if there are any holidayish things nearby) but back to your own beds at home

ratspeaker · 05/09/2010 17:39

I was very lucky, when the younger 2 were babies my mum lived in a Fife fishing village.
We'd go there and housesit while she went to see my sister.
Washing machine,cots,familiar surroundings, pals up the road for the older 2 to play with

bliss

Got a bit more stressful when they grew up a bit and mum moved, trying to find something to keep 4 kids at diffrent ages happy, well, nightmare

compo · 05/09/2010 17:42

The joy of kids that age is that they change so quickly
next summer I bet they'd love a trip to whitstable
did you go to the park in the middle? The library for storytime or baby bounce and ryhme? Did you take them to Canterbury to the rupert bear museum? To the herne bay carnival? Can't see how you could have had a crap time!

Original poster
Iggleonk · 05/09/2010 17:45

DD1 is SO pleased to be home again and see her toys that I honestly do not think it is worth taking her anywhere!

Just told my Mum and she recounted a tale of taking me to Spain when I was about 8 only for me to announce that I wanted to be at home in front of a fire eating crumpets with the cat....

I think going away with other parents is prob the answer. Since DD1 was born the only enjoyable holiday was with another couple and their two kids.

Whitstable BTW was lovely and would have been a great place to take kids!

OP posts:
Shaz10 · 05/09/2010 17:47

Don't worry about it. I never went on holiday as a child (parents were very busy at work in the summer). Never bothered me in the slightest.

majafa · 05/09/2010 17:52

It's DH I dont want to take again...
The boys are happy still just to play on the beach..

spiritmum · 05/09/2010 17:53

I once heard a chid psychologist say that toddlers dislike holidays because they generally thrive on routine. The gist of it was, take your toddlers on holiday with you but don't kid yourselves that they'll like it or that you're doing it for them'. As someone whose ds thought going to Tesco was a great day out I can understand that.

It soon passes though, our dc are 8, 6 and 4 now and we can get more and more adventurous and they settle in somewhere new pretty quickly.

EndangeredSpecies · 05/09/2010 17:53

We went to Canazei in Northern Italy, one of the most beautiful, child-friendly places you could find. Looked forward to it all summer. Every day we get up, suggest various kid-centred activities for the children and what do we get? Whinge, moan, how-long-is-it-till-we-get-there on permanent loop (20 min car drive) followed by whinge, moan and "I'm tired and/or bored" non-stop on the TWO minute walk from car to said kid-centred activity. All day, every day. So we scrap the kid-centred activities and tell them we're going for a walk instead and that we'll do their stuff when they stop moaning. Which they didn't, thereby ruining whatever we wanted to do. And let's not even start on mealtimes... Total, total nightmare, couldn't wait to get home.

undercovamutha · 05/09/2010 17:56

The trick is to wipe your brain of any memories of pre-children holidays (cocktails by the sea at midnight, long lie-ins, or even better - afternoon siestas - sigh!).

We went to France this year with DD (nearly 4) and DS (15mo). Spent the majority of the time trying to create barricades to stop DS falling off the decking, and trying to get DD to speak at a volume that couldn't be heard from space.

However, it was a change of scenary, and the DCs loved it. I suppose......

hmc · 05/09/2010 18:03

I go away with the children a couple of times a year, but imo I won't be having a 'holiday' again until they have left home!

merrywidow · 05/09/2010 18:05

This Year took:

Mother - mobility issues and semi deaf

12 YR old DD - Princess of Darkness

4 YR old DS - worked out where Argos was and wanted to go there every day to buy more hotwheels.

managed to fit in the car all of the above plus walker and variety of sticks ( just in case ) for mum, enough hotwheels to stock argos.

The weather was rubbish and I came back exhausted.

The other day DD said ' next time we go on holiday can we leave the country?'

mumbar · 05/09/2010 18:25

LOL at dd being heard from space Grin
My DS doesn't reserve that for holidays only!!

DC's love familiarity of home as would most adults of we're honest. The difference is we enjoy not having housework whilst constantly worrying about the washing etc when we return. Dc's get used to being away but with everything you have to do it more for them to get used to it.

superv1xen · 05/09/2010 18:42

YANBU - my kids are 1 and 4 and have never took them on holiday...DS (4) has been with grandparents and in a few weeks me and DP are going to Sicily while my parents take them on holiday.

and i will carry on like this for as long as i can get away with :o

holidays with kids just aint a holiday :o

womblingfree · 05/09/2010 18:45

Tbh I've never understood why people take very small kids on holiday. You just end up doing everything you normally do at home without the comfort or convenience of your own surroundings. We didn't take dd until she was 4.5 and then we did Butlins 20 miles down the road.

Swipe left for the next trending thread