To force dh to Disney world

[squareears]

We have a limited budget for everything to come in for a 2week holiday in July for two adults and 5yo for up to £4K. We get travel discounts from friends.

Dh has found a deal to a not great hotel in Caribbean for £3k in July (st kitts)
Or all stars resort (3*) in disneyworld Orlando including park tickets (with mates rates) for £3k.
Both have no food included and I’m pretty aware £1k isn’t a lot for extras in Disney world but I realllllly want to go.

Husband says he doesn’t want to go to DW. He keeps comparing it to DL Paris which imo is ridiculous as hes not been to Florida one.

I really want to go to DW and actually am not keen on a non resort hotel in Caribbean with our hyper, never ever sleeps 5 yo. I can’t see what we’d do with her once it turns nighttime and whenever I’ve been to Caribbean pre dd I just used to go to bars etc.

Aibu to insist we go DW or are we going to end up breaking the budget?! It would not be holiday of lifetime or anything like that so would really be food and maybe trips that need the extra money.

I think it would be mad to drag DH on holiday,

But I dont think that’s the bigger problem.

You have a non sleeping kid. But fortunately you have a non sleeping kid and a decent disposable income.

In your boat id ditch the foreign holiday, moving timezones will mess the sleeping up even more. Use the cash to pay for help, either medical help -a specialist to look at the sleep issue or help wrangling the child during the school holidays -like a nanny who can take them out on walks and to museums and parks and stuff.

And I’d go to butlins, as pp suggested. Stay in gold standard accommodation, it is a holiday totally designed for keeping kids active from 8am till midnight. I was very reluctant when DH suggest it whe ours were little. Omg it was perfect. No hassle keeping a kid entertained at all. So it was restful for us despite the lack of Caribbean beach bars.

"I think my dh ibu for not having booked a bloody holiday yet"

If I left it to OH to book a holiday we would never go away. I have always been the proactve one for booking holidays, but we have a discussion before I book to decide where to go, so I don't book anywhere he doesn't want to visit (Florida excepted)

Can you not choose a hotel that caters specifically for young families? We went to Lanzarote last year and stayed in a hotel that had kids entertainment all day until about 11pm. There was stuff for adults too and we were near a town so weren't tied to the hotel . It was perfect for my hyper 4 year old.

Squareears, if you remember rightly, it was you who called your husband a "holiday snob" I just said by the way you kept stressing you could afford to pay more that £4,000 it should be you who takes that crown.

DW is great - DP and I went in March this year and had a great time. We didn’t just do Disney though we did Universal/Kennedy etc and had some days by the pool. Water parks are really good fun. We were actually talking this morning about how good it was! Other posters are probably right about it being crowded and hot though - we had some days of 30degrees and that was only spring. And standing in lines when it is that hot is massively uncomfortable and likely to lead to strops!

Maybe save your money and go in Easter break next year?

I wouldn't go to Disney world because I have a brain and do not require artificial, mind numbing commercialism to make a holiday fun for a 5 yr old !!
Amazingly they will not need psychotherapy if they are deprived of unbridled commercialism and instead will have a fantastic, amazing time going ANYWHERE that there is sand, a bucket, warmth and the sea.

Disney isn't actually obligatory.
I can think of about 40 places right here and now that would be much more fun and half the price.

Take a bucket and spade to Italy/scilly , Montenegro, Dubrovnik , ALL the Greek islands and have two holidays. Stuff for adults as well.
Showing kids the natural world is ten times more beneficial than commercial nonsense. AND more fun !

dh won’t take annual leave as he feels it’s wasted if he doesn’t do something he likes with it which I get.
But it’s not a waste if he gets to spend time with his daughter.

You mention you’ve got a stretch of ‘boring summer holidays’ and it sounds like you are dreading it. Maybe try to change your way of thinking, it doesn’t have to be boring. You get to spend quality time with your DD, you can have a lovely time. They are only little once and you’ll never get this time back. Make the most of it, enjoy it.

I would also get her sleep looked into as what you describe does sound really extreame.

For those with energetic kids - what they actually need is to learn how to slow down and relax! Not feed them more excitement - just a thought

How about Cornwall?

I divorced XH after 20 years of marriage, but it would have been sooner if he had ever suggested Disney World.

I'd concentrate on getting your DD into a decent routine of gentle activities and sleeping properly, and forget about long-haul holidays for the time being.

@greentulips my very energetic child can sit still when required but there is nothing wrong with taking him somewhere that allows his energetic side to thrive - especially while he's young

@fontofnoknowledge hear hear - exactly how I feel. I would hate to be persuaded to go.

OP did I read that correctly, your dd has been on 20 long haul holidays in the last few years, as well as trips to Europe? No wonder she has no sleep routine

What do you actually do with your time?
You have 1 child who is in school giving you 30 hours a week free to do stuff and do not work but still think booking the holiday is your DHs job. Yes housework will take much (but far from all) of that time but it seems that you rather see your DH as an ATM and servant.

@user139328237 haha is that aimed at all sahm who’s husband don’t sort holidays or just me? I study full time. When I did work ft until last year I spent many a time sleeping in the work loo because I was so tired and once dd started school I was missing out on things with her, I didn’t see her mon-fri so I quit work. I’ve had many a person assume that’s easy. It’s not.
Dh is abroad a lot so it’s worked out for us. I am in college during the day and I study in the evenings as well. I haven’t quit my career despite quitting working.
Not that I have to explain myself to you for what I ‘do all day’ as a sahm.

Anyway we are now back to the drawing board. We don’t really like hotel entertainment, what I meant was with dd who is up all the time it’s a bit boring when it gets dark outside and we spend the next few hours with dd stuck in a room.

It’s boring for all of us. When we’ve been to cities or places that stay open past darkness (ie not like a Caribbean island unless it’s a bar) we are able to just take dd out and see things and it’s always worked for us. We’ve done long haul and short haul and the long haul holidays have always been better so that’s why we prefer it. It was budget driving us to the above two choices. I mentioned the £4K not being a big budget for us because people kept saying save for your holiday of a lifetime but we can do DW ‘properly’ next year if we wanted to as well but this year we want to go away at Christmas again so save the money for that and go cheaper in the summer.

Thanks for the replies. They have really helped and also helped me take a step back from my Disney fandom. Ps to anyone that asked, I really didn’t enjoy DL Paris that much and have no desire to go back. I love the Florida one.

YABU. Leave DH at home.

Have you priced up cruises at all ? From your description of what you like on holiday, it might work very well for your family.

I know this is off topic but saying you are not wealthy because you pay for your two 4K holidays a year from half of your husband’s annual bonuses is the most ridiculous thing I have ever read on here. Re your dilemma, I would do Disney for your Winter holiday and go a lovely four or five star resort hotel in Europe in July. Plenty to look forward to doing that.

Go to Disney, it wins every time.....staying on resort is v expensive and we normally save a lot of money by staying off resort and using uber.

Food can be expensive but bring in your own supplies for breakfast and lunch, have the odd takeaway pizza ..... and never buy Disney gear in Disney, triple the price of other shops!!!

@fontofnoknowledge what a ridiculous thing to say.

Disney (and Florida overall) is an amazing place for a holiday, you can see that in the happiness in peoples faces and that those who do go, choose to go back. I'm a 30 year old, working in a management position in the NHS but because I like going to Disney, that means I'm brain dead right?

Just because it's not your thing and is beneath you, don't belittle others.

Do Disney but don’t stay onsite, eating onsite is eye wateringly expensive. I’d get a car and a nearby villa, self-cater a bit, eating out in Orlando is cheap and easy. I’d be tempted to only do a week Disney and a week at the beach as a compromise with your dh. We got a great air bnb in Naples last year. WDW needs a fair bit of planning, book fast pass tickets 30 days out or 60 days out onsite to avoid spending all your time in queues. Also book any meals in WDW in advance. The Disney website has all onsite restaurants and menus to give you an idea of how much food will cost ($4 for a bottle of water!)

I find most the people who tell you how dreadful DW haven’t even been.

"I find most the people who tell you how dreadful DW haven’t even been."

That is probably true because it is the type of holiday that doesn't appeal to them. I have been to Disneyland in California and Disney in Orlando.

I loved California (but it was 31 years ago), and quite enjoyed Orlando, but not enough to want to go back. It just isn't my kind of holiday. I must admit that I don't understand people who go back every year, but they probably don't understand why I would enjoy a non touristy, low key resort in Greece. It's horses for courses really.

I be been to Dw Paris and California, and hated both. I've been to Florida but didn't go to Disney there.

OP - go on holiday on your own, make dh take a week off work to look after his dd and he can do as he wishes with her. Spend the second week having a family holiday.

I would rather rip my arm off than do any Disney holiday to be honest I hate theme parks.

Surely you both have to agree on a holiday destination together

YaBVU could think of nothing worse than time at Disney World. But on your budget I’d also reconsider the Caribbean.