to think this 'campaign' is inane and moronic

[AgaPanthers]

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-25894902

"With about 250 friends on Facebook, Paul Cookson did not expect a "rant" he posted to have much impact.

He wrote that he was "sick to death" of being "ripped off" by companies which put up holiday prices outside school term time.

A few friends agreed, and followed his request to "share this post if you have also had enough".

It soon went viral, and more than 143,000 people have shared it so far.

Supporters also began signing an online petition calling for government action and this has now gone far beyond the 100,000 signatures needed for a possible debate in Parliament."

--
It follows with some illustrations about the extra cost of an all-inclusive week in Lanzarote during half-term compared with the following/previous week.

For fuck's sake. It's February. Not many people are going on holiday. Despite the price increase, the AI in Lanzarote will be FULL during half-term. The following week it will be nearly empty because obviously family resorts are going to get booked up mainly during school holidays.

So if they make the price the same all year round, they will get even fewer visitors in non-peak times, and it will probably be more economical to close the hotel down and put people out of work/on zero hour contracts, than to keep it open, because obviously if the price is always the same then the popular dates will book up first.

Ridiculous bleating on about their human rights to jet off to Playa De Las Americas for a week of egg and chips and sitting on the beach.

Next they'll be complaining that they have a human right to dinner for two on Valentines Day at the midweek lunch rate.

It's February, the weather is shit, unless you fly a good distance south. There is a capacity in terms of planes and hotels to plonk people on the beach in the Canaries that does not meet school holiday demand, so prices are high. Simples. (Although if he did want a family break, there are plenty of places in Europe, that while not enjoying bucket + spade weather, could still be nice for a family trip, and very affordable.)

Wait till Easter, even, and the weather will be better, and hence more short-haul destinations open up for family breaks and you can find something more affordable.

But fundamentally you do not have a right to cheap holidays in the sun in February half-term.

[CalamitouslyWrong]

The holiday companies can't just spread the cost out as a flat price across the year because the demand is variable. August is popular, February (not half term) is much less popular. If they reduce the price in the summer, it won't make non-half term February any more popular. In fact, it'll make it less popular because the price will have gone up to the new evened out flat price. So the companies will make a lot less money overall, and probably losses rather than profits.

[Grennie]

When I was a kid, many people never went abroad. Loads of my friends went on holidays to their cousins, or to a caravan park in Britain.

Yes it would be great if everyone could afford to go lovely holidays abroad. But they can't and many never could.

I care about families struggling to feed their kids. But I wont lose any sleep over the fact some families cant afford to go abroad.

[TunipTheUnconquerable]

But PlumpPartridge, when was there an assumption that regular foreign holidays were the norm for families with kids?
When I was a child with 2 working parents in the 70s and 80s we sometimes camped in France, sometimes England, and while some of the kids in my class had been to Spain, not everybody had by any means. And we were a middle class family, not particularly deprived.
I just don't understand how expectations have got so high wrt holidays.

[MeepMeepVrooooom]

Juno77 I do agree with you. My comment was for people saying it's not an entitlement. I think every knows it isn't just as I said disappointing.

[DuckworthLewis]

Meep

a) You are (factually) incorrect, see here for further info.

b) The 'way someone means' an offensive term is largely irrelevant.

You wouldn't condone the use of the word 'retarded' would you? This is no different.

[JonSnowKnowsNothing]

I think maybe the holiday campaign is symptomatic of a wider dissatisfaction in society. We've been told for a long time that we CAN have everything, that nothing is out of our reach, that we can live the life we want to live. And now it's turned into 'no of course you can't, don't be so silly, you've got to be sensible'.

I wholeheartedly agree, plump I do it myself - I find myself thinking "but I work bloody hard, why shouldn't I have XYZ?" But sadly, at the moment, it's the way things are!

[PlumpPartridge]

then the campaign should be to increase the living wage, and prevent recession by encouraging businesses, promoting apprenticeships, lowering education costs etc.

I agree with you wholeheartedly, Juno77!

Tunip I was very lucky in that I grew up with people who all thought that an 8-hour flight 'home' was normal, every summer, plus extra holidays in the middle. Then I went to uni and met more of the same. Since we are now scrimping to afford a camping holiday in France, it's a bit of a change.

[JonSnowKnowsNothing]

Lots of wholehearted agreeing going on!

[marmaladecatbob]

YANBU....but they do have a point. It's impossible to get some holidays out of term time,people have a right to be angry, it is not insane.
However, it is like this for a reason. Everyone wants to go in season(ie.summer) ,so businesses can raise their prices accordingly.

[Juno77]

I was also very lucky and grew up in a family where we took very expensive, exotic holidays at least once every year from 6months old up to 18. More often twice a year.

But I am not naive enough to not realise this was an absolute treat, a luxury and not something I am upset about not being able to afford.

[PlumpPartridge]

I do this with life in general too JonSnow.

I did a science degree because 'science is better than arts'.

• all my arts friends are raking it in and I am empatically not.

I did a PhD because 'you should get more qualified as that's the right thing to do.'

• still no bags of money being flung at me.

Admittedly these messages are from my parents, but they got them from somewhere and the lies just burn.

[Juno77]

marmalade but why on earth do you think people have a 'right to be angry'? They absolutely don't!

I'd love a jaguar. I can't afford one. I have no right to be angry!

[PlumpPartridge]

When did I say that I didn't think it was a luxury, Juno? also, I think I am perfectly ENTITLED to feel upset about whatever I like. So ner.

[candycoatedwaterdrops]

I don't think non-term holidays have ever been the same price as term time ones. I can remember being told as a child that it was too expensive to go away during the school holidays, so we used to visit my grandparents instead.

[CalamitouslyWrong]

There's never been a point where everyone could have anything they want though. People have always been constrained by their own budget. It's more of a 'you can have what you want if you get a job that pays enough for you to buy it' deal.

[marmaladecatbob]

Stupid campaign tho, it's never going to change.

[FiscalCliffRocksThisTown]

completely agree with OP.

the prices are not "hiked up" for school holidays, rather they are reduced out of season.

people are so entitled.

[marmaladecatbob]

What I was trying to say was that they have a right to vent out their anger on a social network. It won't make a difference-the holiday industry is like that for a reason.

[MeepMeepVrooooom]

DuckworthLewi

Moron is a term once used in psychology to denote mild intellectual disability from your link. It is incorrect now in modern day language to use this word for that purpose. As I said it isn't to say people don't do it but the actual definition is very foolish or stupid.

Many words have questionable origins that are now used without the original meaning and vice versa there are words once used with no offence that are now the most offensive words in the English language.

I don't deem it offensive providing it is used within the correct context. If used the other way then absolutely it is an insult.

Anyway de-railing here... Sorry OP.

[PlumpPartridge]

Being constrained by your budget is one thing, but the 'just because we can' price rises do usually cause anger. Look at train commuter fury gazes bitterly at £4856 season ticket

[Dahlen]

You may as well have a campaign against capitalism. Supply and demand is what it's all about as many others have said.

I think this is largely off the back of the recent case where a family got fined. I think there should be more recognition of the fact that many, many people (and therefore their children) lead the sorts of lives that prevent holidays during school holidays, not only because of cost, but often because of working practices. Are we saying that people in those jobs are not entitled to family time together or that they shouldn't have children? It's a mistake to think time off school means a five-star holiday in the Maldives. For many it would be a week in Skegness or even just the benefit of being together as a family at home for several whole days in a row.

The old system where parents could take time off needed tweaking but is better than this blanket rule which uses a sledgehammer to crack a nut. What is needed is a case-specific rule rather than a one-size-fits-no-one rule.

I think time off in school hours should be restricted to a week apart from in exceptional circumstances. EWOs should have the ability to prosecute parents who abuse the system or parents who are taking holidays when they are clearly not engaging with the education system generally. I think HTs should reserve the right to veto requests where they worry the negative impact on the child's education is greater than the positive impact any holiday/family time would have. But I think other parents should be able to manage their time together as families in a way that works well for them. And I would include teachers in this, although I think most of them would use it not so much for holidays but for things like being able to take term-time hours off to see their own children perform in the school play, for example. I am happy to have to make a greater input to my child's education to facilitate a teacher having more input into their own family life on the understanding that we all recognise that education is about more than academia and that people matter just as much as qualifications.

[DuckworthLewis]

No, it's not 'derailing'

OP has used a disablist term, I am calling her on it. A lot of people use casually racist/sexist/disablist language, often through ignorance.

It is unacceptable, and I would like OP to acknowledge that.

[Juno77]

It's not 'just because we can', it's supply and demand.

Businesses don't put prices up for fun. They dictate prices based on market value and demand.

Hence why booking hotels in advance is cheaper - they increase the price on dates which are more in demand. People will pay, that is how business works.

[marmaladecatbob]

And I totally agree that the prices are being lowered out of season. I give up. I don't know what I mean

[PlumpPartridge]

So, prices are never elevated because they know people will pay it then? What about profit margins?