Help, dh and I can't agree, who is bu?

[Notasunworshipper]

Dh and I can't agree on a holiday.

He has decided last minute that he wants to do a package holiday abroad. I'm fine with that, but having researched I don't believe that we can afford anywhere decent.

Dh is talking about going to a 2* in Benidorm because it's cheap, I don't want to.

We usually go to a nice cottage in the UK in a beautiful location and I don't want to trade that for somewhere crap abroad.

It's not that I don't want to go abroad, I want a peaceful, family orientated destination but everything I find he says is too expensive.

Also to add to my pp - the 2* I stayed at in Benidorm had the world’s most uncomfortable beds (was like sleeping on concrete) and we kept getting covered in bites from bed bugs. There was no air con in the rooms either. The view from the balcony was of a concrete wall. Worst holiday I’ve ever been on!

@Dvg, can I have details please?

Have you tried the TUI app?

2* in Benidorm - no way in hell!

I'm with you, OP.

BUT ... We usually go to a nice cottage in the UK in a beautiful location

Maybe your DH wants to do something different for a change. I don't think it's unreasonable to go somewhere completely different for a change, especially if he's been accommodating the 'nice cottage in UK' for you all this time. Has he been?

I did a 2 star in Benidorm once thirty years ago. Benidorm was a dump then and I doubt it’s improved. But a holiday in the UK never felt like much of a holiday to me either, so I sympathise with your husband. Surely there is something else? As others have suggested, I always loved Turkey, and it’s pretty cheap. I always foundd holidaying in the UK a false economy, you need much more spending money.

There are holidays available in his budget, but when you research you find that they're right out the way from the beach and restaurants, or they're extremely basic, stuff like that.

Look, first one that came up (if this works)

www.onthebeach.co.uk/helios_deals/1459690163/e9c4aa5c1748fbb56be633a59397238a?adults=2&child_ages%5B%5D=13&child_ages%5B%5D=5&children=2&deal_source=helios&destination_ids%5B%5D=101&destination_ids%5B%5D=102&destination_ids%5B%5D=103&destination_ids%5B%5D=2808&dfdp=39265&dffp=4a759b434f0e013cf9c423c861d934c169370294&duration=7&hotel_id=3046320&infants=0&on=2018-08-16&redirected=true&variant=AB

Under 1600, in school holidays (will probably be cheaper if not flying from Newcastle too)

www.onthebeach.co.uk/helios_deals/1430655429/ab54658595623767dffb1b69c54cb180?adults=2&child_ages%5B%5D=13&child_ages%5B%5D=5&children=2&deal_source=helios&destination_ids%5B%5D=129&dfdp=40916&dffp=10fbf302846abdee37b683aa901326def134af8a&duration=7&hotel_id=275226&infants=0&on=2018-08-14&redirected=true&variant=AB

Majorca, just over 1600.

There are loads of decent places you can go for that price. Fuck benidorm 2 stars!

I thought you meant your budget was like..500 quid with what your partner is suggesting

@CrochetBelle check out Teletextholidays and Loveholidays.com they have lots of cheap ones, some even cheaper.

Was going to choose Alcudia, Majorca 3 * for £163 per person :)

I stayed in a one star self catering apartment in Rhodes once, it was spotlessly clean and lovely.
Stars vary so much abroad.
Benidorm is probably not the place for you though.

Could you go at a different time of year to get a cheaper deal? I went to Gran Canaria in November once and we had one rainy day (but it was still warm outside) and the rest of the holiday was 25 degrees and very sunny.

Why don't you try to book it yourself.

Separate flights and accommodation. We book with easyjet/jet2/Ryanair.

Book apartment with HomeAway.co.uk. Or alpharooms.

Can get some good deals.

Fuck that. 2* in Benidorm? Nope nope nope.

I don't blame him for wanting a change, I just don't want to go somewhere crap.

We don't usually spend much when we go in the UK. We usually do a big shop when we arrive and tend to eat breakfast in, take picnics out for lunch then eat out in the evening in all the lovely restaurants.

What about booking a cheap flight with Ryanair (they fly to all sorts of sun destinations) and then getting a self catering air B&B studio flat which can be very cheap but really nice

No way would we ever have booked a 2* place particularly in Benidorm. I would not go either. Why not do as we used to if you cannot afford more than £1600 and skip a holiday one year and save and do a really nice one the following year abroad? I think it is a bit unfair you always do the holidays you like and your OH should get a say too.

If your DH wants a package Hols abroad under a certain price, during the school hols, I think he should be doing the search himself.

And the he can find something that everyone will enjoy and that isn’t a dump.

Tbh this reads like you don't want to go abroad really. There will be loads of options for that budget. You both need to keep looking until you find one you can agree on. I don't blame him wanting to do something different if you usually do a cottage in the UK, it'll be nice to try something else.

Star ratings mean facilities available rather than quality of stay! I've stayed in lovely 2 and awful 5. I don't usually need an internal phone system!

This article from Which? explains it: www.which.co.uk/reviews/uk-hotel-chains/article/hotel-star-ratings-explained

I think you need to find a compromise, I wouldn't do the 2* in Benidorm but I'd find somewhere other than doing the same as every year.

Drive to France & rent a gite or caravan? Cheap flight to Greece & an apartment? If he wants to go to Spain, stick with flying to Alicante but rent a car and an apartment elsewhere on the coast, there is plentiful, inexpensive accommodation on that coastline.

Oh and get onto getting those passports now!

First things first, get the passports organised.

Benidorm is an armpit.

In your position, I'd go camping by the seaside in UK - Camping and Caravanning Club will enable you to access some very cheap temporary sites, facilities will be basic but it could be as little as £10 a night which leaves plenty of cash to acquire tent etc if you don't have kit. And book Canary Islands for autumn half term.

To be fair, it's not actually that we do the same thing every year. We have been abroad many times, the Canaries, Greek Islands, Majorca.

We have only missed going abroad since we had ds2 as we both agreed we didn't want to take a baby abroad.

We've also done different in the UK, Devon, Cornwall, London, Wales, we just happened to make a really good find with these holiday cottages and so have returned 3 times now.

I'd love to go back to to Greece, we've had some fab holidays there, dh and I both agree we want daytime flights, and to be near to a sandy beach and some restaurants.

I'd like to try Portugal too.

The problem is dh keeps finding holidays in all the boozy places, Benidorm, Albufeira.

You sound like you've made your mind up already anyway.

Get your passports in line for next year and start planning early ... and do a UK based holiday this year.

I haven't, truth is I'd probably rather dig a bit deeper and find something a bit nicer even if we pay and extra few hundred quid.

non daytime flights are fine - I think removing that is going to help immensely - and if he wants to go abroad