To want a holiday with wifi

[notanaturalmum]

Just about to book a holiday with me, DH and baby (who'll be 1 when we go)

It's not cheap but we've had a tough year adjusting to parent life and I'll cry if we have to forgo another year without going abroad

We've opted for a lodge because there is a separate lounge - meaning that we won't have to sit in the dark once the baby has gone to bed. --

I've discovered the lodges don't have wifi. I think this might be a dealbreaker.

Not because I'm an avid facebooker but just simple things like being able to watch nursery rhymes on you tube, or watching films on the iPad once the baby is asleep. We do like chess and scrabble etc but I think 14 nights of no wifi will be hard.

On the other hand, if we move to the main hotel block then we'll just have one room meaning we'll have to sit in the dark or on the balcony once the baby is asleep.

Am I being silly. I love my DH to death but I need wifi. Do I ?

Oh dear,, this is all quite amazing, as having to have gadgets and stuff on a family holiday in a beautiful place.. this addiction to things as such is very worrying.. It would be lovely to go somewhere, and never see a phone or some other gadget all over.

I am reluctant to go to my little village pub these days, as 80% of people are just sat there tapping and scrolling on their phones all night, and not speaking to anyone.. I suppose if you were to climb up mount Everest. there would be several people texting and scrolling and whatever they do up there.

Not all children will sleep in a buggy in the evening - its certainly worth a try as many will, but not something you can bet on unless you've done it before with that child.

None of my children would have slept in a hotel room with us awake - some children sleep like the dead, but many are light sleepers (like adults) so people saying you can have TV and lights on and talk and laugh in the room with your toddler are failing to understand that their personal experience is not universal, but simply one possibility among many - and in fact likely a minority experience.

Having tried the one room with toddlers thing we will take space over luxuries every time. All sharing a room is OK for a night but in my personal experience is not a holiday, it's absolutely pants for more than a night or two max.

I'd take a basic lodge with separate rooms over a much more luxurious and well equipped room.

If you have wifi you'll use it, but we've found not having wifi is one of the good things about being on holiday - you reconnect with the kids as well as each other. You're kind of forced to.

1forAll74. You could easily go somewhere where there are no phones or gadgets. It's not the big deal you are making if out to be at all

We're all different! Isn't that amazing! OP I'm with you. I wouldn't go anywhere that didn't have wifi.

Can't you manage without TV for two weeks? We never watch TV on holiday

Is it really that shocking that people are different? Some children will happily sleep in a buggy and let you go out in the evening, my eldest would but my youngest wouldn't and he'd just cry.

Did you never go on holiday as a child OP? What did your parents do before WiFi existed?

I can see where you're coming from OP but don't forget holiday is different to home. You're not rushing for work or trying to clean up, food shop etc. You have more time to relax and be together. You'll want to spend time together doing things and take them out for dinner in the evening etc. When we went away last year both times the WiFi was rubbish, we had DVDs though which were great. But we only really used in the morning if they work early (1&2)

I actually love not having WiFi on holiday, I spend way too much time on my phone at home so it's a detox and I don't miss it really. Take some DVDs and download some stuff and you'll be fine

I'm currently looking for holidays where we won't all be stuck in a dark room come night time - but have no idea where to look. can I ask where you're staying?

DH and I are fortunate enough to have been able to have 3 holidays abroad a year in the last few years. We spend all day every day seeing the sights.
We absolutely loathe 'nightlife' and most 'entertainment' so wifi is a non negotiable for us!
We do usually download a couple of series to watch too.
Don't worry about people getting sniffy about it, OP. When we went to Turkey, we had left the hotel every day by 7.30am to go on excursions so were mostly in bed asleep by 10.30 in order to make sure we could enjoy the excursions.
It is your holiday, do what works for you and your family.

It's really nice that some people don't want WiFi when they're on holiday but other people may want it and that doesn't make them inferior.

The OP has said she would like WiFi on her holiday so all the posts telling her she shouldn't want it are not helpful.

NerrSnerr this is an I being unreasonable, and the question is am I being unreasonable to want WiFi on holiday?

In that context it is daft to say posters are unhelpful for saying she is being unreasonable!

unicorn most self catering accommodation is more than one room. Are you only looking at hotels?

My DH bought a portable internet thingy - you buy data packages and it basically works like a wireless router - it is really good, we always take it on holiday with us and we have lent to friends who have been hospitalised so they can watch tv etc - it was from EE if that helps and was less than £30

How sad.

We've reached the stage where people don't think they can cope without access to WiFi for 14 days while on holiday. Can people really not entertain their children the old fashioned way without a computer for a fortnight? Like we did for decades?

Loved the crossed out bit that you'd cry if you have to forgo another year of not going abroad. I'm 44. I didn't go abroad for the first time until I was 38. Only been once since. I seem to have coped.

Download stuff before you go?

Having holidayed regularly with dts we are not blessed with children that will snooze happily in the buggy while we eat dinner.

Unfortunately holidays at that age until about 3.5 were same shit different location and not particularly relaxing.

No Gnu, surprising as may be I don't think OP and her husband should leave DC in bed whilst they go out sampling the local nightlife

But OP and her husband could well take a buggy where DC could sleep while they go for a walk after dinner, as has been suggested by others before me, or sit on the patio and enjoy the night air while DC sleeps inside.

@ShatnersWig
I'm 44. I didn't go abroad for the first time until I was 38. Only been once since. I seem to have coped.

NO. Just NO.

Why the hell should she cope. If they have the finances and ability to go abroad then why not.

So bloody what if she wants to take her bloody iPads and sit and watch films in the evening. Bloody help guys get a grip.

My daughter never ever would sleep in her buggy and when we tried to take her out in the evenings would just scream blue murder and ruin everyone's evening then be tired in the daytime.

I would still want to chill with a film in the evening.

OP please ignore everyone's comments and do what you WANT to on your holiday.

I need to have WiFi on Holiday because I need to check e-mails on a daily basis (self employed). I also use it to plan days out, check museum opening times, check restaurant reviews etc.

That being said it doesn't bother me if I don't have it in the room and it is only in the hotel lobby, as long as it is somewhere and it is free.

This is your Holiday, you get to choose what you want within your budget and choose your accommodation accordingly.

Evelyn - was looking at hotels only really for the other amenities that come with them. Have rented private accommodation years ago but keep reading horror stories about people turning up to find they've been scammed! Also looking to book through an agency so I can pay it off in instalments - not had a holiday abroad since having the kids so not clued up on options unfortunately

Did you notice the bit about children, pasturesgreen? Or do you think OP and her husband should leave them in bed whilst they go out sampling the local nightlife?

Children enjoy holidays too. There is no reason you can't just bring the baby along with you while you go to restaurants and drink wine and talk, rather than sitting in the dark on your phone in a hotel!

@ShutYoFace not all babies will tolerate being out in the evening. My eldest would happily be in the buggy all evening and would go to sleep. My youngest won't. He fights sleep in the buggy as he wants to see everything and then gets over tired and grumpy and no one needs that in a bar or restaurant.

It's really not hard to grasp that not everyone is the same.

@ShutYoFace
With my kids bed time had to stay at 7. Their is no staying out until 9-10 at night my kids never would sleep in the pushchair. Ever.
Late nights mean grumpy kids that never ever sleep in.
It's just not worth it.

So on holiday when the kids are asleep me and hubby still like to pop in a film and chill.

They changed the rules last year about using data abroad. It now costs no more than at home in most EU countries. Perfectly fine for e mail checking and browsing though cost could rack upif you streamed films.

Even hotels that offer wifi seldom have enough of a signal to do more than browse in my experience.
Having said that when mine were tiny it was before smartphones and we just sat on the balcony and drank wine chatted or read. I did envy those people who could put a sleeping child into a pushchair and cart them out and about in the evening.

It's really not hard to grasp that not everyone is the same

which was actually my point, if you had't noticed I was responding to someone who assumed that to go out in the evening the parents would have to leave the kids alone in the hotel

I've hired a mifi with unlimited wifi before from here:
www.tepwireless.com/

Book it and it will arrive a few days before you depart by courier. Turn it on when you get to Greece and it will have instructions on how to connect your devices. They send a prepaid bag to send it back through the Post Office when you get home. It's small so you can put it in your pocket or bag and take it out and about with you. It does work on local mobile signals, so there are areas where we had no signal (like out at sea on a boat trip or up in some mountains) but it was fine in the hotel and main resort areas.

I have teenagers who cannot live without wifi and they have loved this!