Re this woman coming on holidays

[Daisymasie]

A group of us who have been friends for years are thinking of going away for a week in the sun together. However, one of the group keeps talking about clubs and nightlife and where 'the good bars' are. We're all mid to late forties and the rest of us have absolutely no interest in that kind of holiday - most of us can't remember the last time we were in a nightclub.

We really just want a relaxing holiday chilling by the pool with good books, going out for something nice to eat in the evenings, maybe have a bottle of wine on one or other balcony - that kind of thing.

AWBU to think this woman is being a bit immature and to be regretting we've included her. We've known her for a few years but not as long as each other. We knew she liked a good social life but didn't realise she still associated a 'girls holiday' with clubbing and pubbing.

Personally I don't see the point of going on holiday if you're going to spend all night standing around crowded pubs or hanging around a nightclub, and then sleeping until noon with the curtains closed, ignoring the beautiful sunshine outside and the lovely beach/pool.

And I would far rather sit on a balcony with a bunch of friends and a few bottles of wine, chatting and laughing, than stand in a packed bar trying to lipread and stop my drink from spilling all over me everytime someone pushes past. That is my idea of 'boring'.

all they did was sit round the hotel pool or in the bar. Didn't even go to the beach let alone look round the area

That was us last year. We'd returned to the hotel we went to in 2012, because we'd had such a great time.

In 2012 we did all the sightseeing, shopping, culture bollocks. Last year we just wanted to relax, so we did.

DD make friends on day 1 with some lovely girls and spent every waking moment with them - she had her "best holiday EVER!". DH did his bit for foreign relations and propped the bar up with a United Nations worth of similar blokes. I lay on a sunbed with my kindle and escaped into the world of fiction. I have NEVER felt so relaxed, so free and so happy.

In the evenings we sat at one of the pool bars and chatted to the parents of the girls DD was friends with - and have kept in touch with them since.

2013 was a pretty shitty year workwise, I was beyond stressed and ready to throw the towel in. I returned from that holiday revitalised and refreshed. It was JUST what we needed.

This is why we go on holiday to Tenerife in october every year. We relax, maybe go to the water park, catch waves on the beach, sit by the pool.

We don't need to worry about missing the cultural highlights - because there aren't any, YAY !

I would get utterly bored if I did nothing but sit on a sunbed by a pool all week.

I love soaking up the sun and reading, interspersed with the odd swim, but I also love soaking up a bit of culture and exploring where we are on holiday. I can't bear the idea of an all inclusive holiday and never leaving the prison camp compound. I don't holiday in places where there is nothing to see.

Last year we went to Dubrovnik and Lake Garda, both places with plenty to see and do, and both utterly beautiful.

This year we are holidaying in Crete and want to visit Knossos, Spinalonga and one or two other places, as well as lounge by the pool.

If all you want to do on holiday is lie around somewhere with a good book, you would save a lot of money if you just booked yourself into the nearest Travelodge. That gets you away from your own housework/job/relatives. Pick one that's near a M&S and you can have a naice picnic in your room with a bottle of wine every night.

Some Travelodges have swimming pools and I believe some might be near tanning salons as well. And none of this nasty going abroad to foreign countries or having to fly on a scary aeroplane or anything. And so much cheaper.

She isnt immature, her zest for life is just different. Good for her. Tell her very directly what kind of holiday you are planning then she can decide if its for her, or not. Simple. It wouldnt be nice for her to come along then be met with 'nope' when she wants a night out, or a sea of huffing, disapproving faces.

SolidGoldBrass but what about the weather

Mind you...Im thinking about many years ago took the DCs to Alton Towers and nearby was an enclosed tropical water park. Complete with Caribbean music and themes. Baking hot in there, people were lazing around on sun loungers by the artificial beach. Yep, some were reading books. Brill idea for those who only go away to relax and read....

Yeah, and I managed to persuade my demented mum that we were on holiday in the Caribbean, returning home ( after a very confusing visit to the doctor) , in a cab. The cab driver was playing calypso music and has roasts hair.

He did not have roast hair but Rastafarian hair.

at roast hair.

I've always wanted roasts hair - looks so cool!

If all you want to do on holiday is lie around somewhere with a good book, you would save a lot of money if you just booked yourself into the nearest Travelodge

But my local travelodge can't give me 40 degree heat, a pool, poolside massage or 32 water slides for DD. Nor a bar for DH to prop up with dodgy Russian millionaires! All part of life's rich tapestry.