To enjoy self catering holidays.

[PumpkinPie2016]

I have seen a few threads lately where many posters say they hate self catering and Would rather stay home!

If course it is each to their own but I can't n alone in loving self catering surley?!

We have one DS who is 4 and generally go self catering in the UK. Did Cornwall last year and are going again but to a different area this year. We stay in cottages with 2 bedrooms.

I love not having to go to eat at certain times, relaxing mornings, the space and being away from hustle and bustle.

We have a relaxing breakfast and then tea out for the day, usually with a picnic. A do eat out sometimes but generally we prefer eating in.

Both myself and DH did caravan holidays as children so maybe that's why we like it.

So, am I alone or do any other mumsnetters like self catering hols?

I'm with you op. We have had some great self-catering holidays. We stick to UK but go to various different areas.

We make sure our rental property has a dishwasher, and we pre-order a supermarket delivery that includes easy-to-construct meals that are just a few minutes prep, and of course we eat out too when we find a restaurant we like (and sometimes find a local chef-at-home service for a treat).

As vegetarians and with a dc who is insanely fussy about unfamiliar food I would find being at the mercy of someone else deciding what we could eat extremely stressful and unrelaxing. Meals are only a small fraction of a holiday and I like making sure they are under our control. Even if you don't enjoy cooking, the rest of the time obviously there is plenty of opportunities for enjoying the holiday.

I prefer to SC- I like things like my own space, eat out where i like, separate rooms for dc. Dont need big hotel breakfast or to buy lunch out if im hot by the pool.

I dont like the idea that theres masses of people by the pool. Prefer a private one or small apartment complex where there are enough sun beds for everyone

I like SC as it gives you the freedom to do what you want. Stay in, BBQ, go to restaurant, get a takeaway. It kindof gives you more licence to venture away further and longer without having to be back at a certain time for dinner.

Some people just like to get away, sit on a sun lounger all day and eat and drink without any hassle. Others want more activity and use their accommodation as a base.

We prefer self catering when we go on holidays to the Mediterranean. We like the flexibility of doing our own thing and I find buffet style food generally not very nice and it gets very samey after a while. Our children tend not to each much on holiday, so having a small kitchen means we can prepare light snacks as needed.

We have breakfast in our room, like tea, toast, cereal or fruit. Lunch will be a sandwich, noodles, hot dogs or we buy lunch out. We always eat out for dinner.

I remember seeing a programme about AI type hotels not benefitting local economies as tourists aren't leaving their hotels and spending money in local economies. I like the idea of supporting local people, so I always try to do this.

I won’t do more than 2 nights In a hotel
I love SC, more room and the ability to make a drink and eat when you meat and what you want. We do eat out a lot though as well
We own a property abroad so obviously that’s SC but if we go anywhere else we do as well.
I was looking at hotels for the summer but the thought of being surrounded by people arguing over sunloungers, queuing for food and being stuck in just one room with the dc made me shudder.

Happy with hotels for short trips. Prefer self catering for proper holidays. DH will not queue for his food and takes no pleasure in a crowded dining room. Only time we did it was EuroDisney and he declined breakfast and we ate in the proper restaurant because he took one look at the buffet and turned heel.

YANBU I love SC too. We have 2 DDs, 2 and 4 and have been on lovely holidays in the uk. We tend do do a holiday site and stay in a caravan. Kids love it and there is always evening entertainment/kid friendly things to do on site.
We do a small shop when we get there of breakfast and lunch stuff. Breakfast before we go, we make a picnic for lunch as tend to be off site, then eat out for dinner. Works for us!

I like SC.

More space. More freedom.

I don’t have difficult children or an arsehoke DH tho which helps.

If your the skivvy at home then you’ll be a skivvy on holiday if you don’t have a nice family dynamic.

We always self cater, in a villa abroad. Suits us, we can come and go as we please, no fighting over the sunbeds, dc love having the pool to themselves, we can choose what to eat, where and when.

We always go self catering, it's much more relaxed, and we have more space. We're on our way home today from a week in Swanage, Dorset (another week booked in September). The flat we stay in has a terrace right above the beach, at the quiet end of town. I love sitting out on the terrace in the morning with a cup of tea, watching the boats go by, and at night, stargazing, all with the background of lapping waves on the beach. The view is gorgeous. It's bliss.

This flat has a washing machine, so very little dirty laundry to do when we get home, and a dishwasher. We've only cooked twice this week, as we've eaten out mostly, which is much more flexible than being tied to hotel mealtimes.

Only 4 months until we're back here!

We quite often go self-catering but it depends on where we are.

We love self catering if we’re in a villa in Europe because DH adores foreign supermarkets and trying weird stuff from the meat counter etc. But I really would not consider self catering on a city break - that would be crap.

Another one with a very fussy child here - we do eat out sometimes on holiday, but being able to prepare your own food (by prepare I mean bung in oven) that your child will eat combined with not having to get said child to behave in a restaurant while waiting for food makes for a more relaxing holiday for me. As does having space for DH to sleep elsewhere if he snores too much!

No dc, but big fans of self catering here.

I like not being tied to meal times. Dh and I like to eat late which is not always possible in the UK.

Quite often we'll have a late breakfast/brunch and then meats, cheese, pate and bread for a late tea. I love going round the local butchers and delis.

Or a big pub lunch and a lighter tea.

Or going out for tea.

When we have gone b and b or half board we ended up eating out most nights anyway so it's worth it for the extra space for us.

Having said that, I quite enjoy cooking and choosing food - I can see why if you consider that a chore it might not be so relaxing.

We love our cottage holidays. We have no DC though, just us and the dog. We always get somewhere with at least two bedrooms and a bath, not just a shower. We stay for two weeks in the summer. It’s great not to have to get up for a hotel breakfast, to have time to chill around the cottage and not feel we have to rush off somewhere, to be able to stay indoors in comfort if the weather is crap, to play scrabble and watch DVDs in the evening, not to have to eat restaurant foood every night but have simple meals in if we want.

I agree with a pp - I enjoy a SC holiday in the UK but wouldn't consider it abroad. Having to negotiate foreign food markets is fine for snacks and bits but not for full meals. My idea of hell.

Definitely self catering,who wants to get dressed before breakfast.Also if you have kids it's nice to have somewhere decent to relax with your wine when they're asleep.

I much prefer SC, too. Flexible, better quality food, better value for money.

I spend at least 2-3 nights a week in hotels for work. I don't want to spend my holiday in one if I can help it.
Pottering around a street market or local butcher, baker, deli choosing whatever takes my fancy, lounging around on the balcony or in the garden in the evening with a bottle of wine, while the dinner is cooking...
I love self catering!

Ds has a limited diet so it works well with the three of us. If there’s more people with us not so much as they tend to get up late then half the day is gone.

We are doing two weeks in Cornwall self catering for our honeymoon. Can't wait. Our own space, bbq in the garden of the cottage, easy to sort out stuff for the baby.
Have always loved Airbnb apartments in cities. Gives you freedom to self cater or eat out as you want.

I like a mixture of types of holiday.

I get bored with AI all the time as I miss the fun of choosing restaurants but it's nice sometimes and the kids like the variety.
I like self catering with a large group as it's more sociable than eating in a restaurant where you can only really talk to the people sitting close by. I wouldn't want to be the only one doing the catering though. We normally all help or rotate people/couples.
I like to alternate eating out and having meals in, when it's just us and the kids.
I like to eat out if its just us as a couple, as that's our entertainment.

It varies.

I love SC and don't feel it's not a holiday because I have to cook. It's so much more affordable, meaning I can spend the money on activities with DC instead.

I cook easy meals that we can have when it suits us, rather than waiting to be served in a busy restaurant serving food I don't really want to eat. It's also good for getting picnics ready so you can have a day out without worrying where and when you're going to be able to eat, and you have food on hand for hungry DC.

The only non SC holidays I like are all inclusive where you're not so restricted by when you can eat and how long you have to wait for food, but I still think for a family holiday SC is the best.