To ask if it’s worth having a holiday in the UK?

[TigerLils]

Right, I’ve coped pretty well so far, the past 16 months has been pretty difficult for many and I feel pretty bad about this but I need a holiday. A change of scenery! Some nice weather chilling food and drinks. Obviously it’s limited where you can go at the moment and we are looking at a staycation perhaps (it’s just me and DP) but everything is booked up or seriously overpriced in the UK.

Not sure if it’s worth it but I’m pretty desperate here… ( I need this for my mental health)

Can any of you recommend places to go for a couples getaway in the UK?

Me and DP are very keen hikers and trail runners and really enjoyed a week in north Wales recently. Hiring the cottage was £300 odd for the week? Just careful scouring of air Bnb!
We are going to Scotland again for about £300 odd for the week staying in different places every night.

We aren’t beach holiday people so aren’t looking to replicate that.

the atmosphere, the sights, smells, the barmy evening air

The air's barmy abroad? I'm definitely staying in the UK

[quote GrandDuchessRomanov]@TheDevils Well good for you. I AM actually supporting businesses in this country (the airline industry that is on it's knees) as well as the economy of much poorer countries than ours.

Do I win the virtue signalling comp?[/quote]
That's all fine. So am I - I have a foreign holiday booked too. I love travelling at home and abroad but it's the dismissive attitude to the UK that's depressing.

It was referring to wasting your money that was a bit odd!

I love Dartmoor in Devon. That's what it looks like in heaven I think. Also not too far from the coast, which is also great down there.

I've also had some really lovely holidays in Pembrokeshire in Wales.

I do like going abroad, but there really are amazing places to visit in the UK and they'd be my first choice, not just now, but any time.

Hope you have a lovely time, wherever you go.

Uk holidays can be fantastic if you can go outside school hols and can book at the last minute when the weather forecast says it's going to be great weather. We've had great breaks in Snowdonia and the far end of Cornwall (two fave places in the UK). Otherwise though the chances are it'll rain, be packed with people and hugely expensive (unless you're camping which is even more miserable in the rain).

IMO if you wanted something for the summer you've waited far too late unfortunately and most places are completely booked up for the next 2 or even 3 months. If I were you I'd be looking asap and plan to go asap before the school hols kick in. As I say I recommend Snowdonia area or the end of Cornwall.

Judging by these sorts of threads over the years some people are determined to find everything and everywhere “boring”. When you ask someone what they actually do like they can’t say.

I remember a poster a couple of years or so ago complaining they couldn’t afford a UK holiday. I linked to some nice places we had stayed in the Isle of Wight and Norfolk, and they snapped back, “No, I only want Devon or Cornwall.” Whaddayado?

How sad, and entitled, that some people feel that the only holiday some people feel is worth having is an overseas one.

Please stop calling it a "staycation" it's a holiday and you sound like a spoiled brat if you don't think you can have a fantastic holiday in the UK.

@Whammyyammy

UK holidays are a rip off..overpriced to begin with, you'll gey fleeced while there, shit weather, dog shit on the beaches, no parking anywhere.... I refuse to support British tourism

Pahaha! Where are you going?!

We always have a couple of UK holidays every year and never have a bad one. I think you need to pick better places...

@Skinnytailedsquirrel

How sad, and entitled, that some people feel that the only holiday some people feel is worth having is an overseas one. Please stop calling it a "staycation" it's a holiday and you sound like a spoiled brat if you don't think you can have a fantastic holiday in the UK.

Exactly. Plus all the shop local/support local businesses feeling from last year is obviously gone when you see some of these posts talking about “wasting their money in the UK”

@Blankscreen

I hate self catering holidays full stop. So the thought of having a UK sled catering holiday when it probably rains is not my idea of fun!

I love them. The amount you save on hotels means you can go out for some seriously good dinners at different restaurants. You get way more living space than in most hotels so you can slob about in the evenings if you are knackered and just cook a quick pasta and pesto or have a salad. Young DC get familiar food so are less likely to melt down. It has some advantages.

Many places are much rainier than the UK,, yet you don’t hear people there whining about not being able to go “abrooaaaard”.

It’s a fair point that this year is expensive and no doubt will be overcrowded in favoured spots, but dissing everywhere out of hand is peculiar.

Wow, I've not been abroad on holiday for nearly 10 years! I've got a dog and I like to go somewhere he can come too. There's some amazing places in the UK - Scottish Highlands, Snowdonia, Brecon Beacons, Cornwall, Northumberland, the Lake District.

Even if it rains, this time of year the chances are there will be sunny spells and it won't be cold. You just have to pack for every eventuality!

@Runningupthecurtains

I'm slightly alarmed at how many people are heading to Northumberland - I better not find you all on "my" beach. Those of you that are doing so under sufferance please go with an open mind and embrace the beauty, history, miles of stunning beaches (just not "my" beach) and fantastic food. If the weather lets you down Newcastle is a wonderful vibrant city with lots to do and Edinburgh, Durham and York are all easily accessible. Beamish offers lots of undercover parts to dodge showers. On sunny days there are miles and miles of glorious golden sand, lots of walking/cycling opportunities through breath taking scenery in Kielder and the National park. More castles than you can shake a stick at. Fantastic local produce and booze. I could go on but it sounds like it will already be full of Mumnetters when I make my annual trip this August.

I know. It used to be UK's best kept secret. All those castles and miles of untouched sandy beaches with seals and puffins and islands and rockpools. It's become the latest craze.

@everybodysang as a Chester resident it’s got loads of accommodation in all price ranges but it has nothing like the number of attractions as York within the City itself. It’s lovely for a wander and an afternoon exploring the Rows is great.

It is however a fantastic base for exploring this part of the world and is right on the Welsh border with a direct train to Holyhead that makes North Wales accessible.

Chester is ok for a short break but add on a few days and you can see an awful lot

I find it really odd when people say they don’t count the U.K. as a place for a holiday.

It's a very different experience though. Culturally no different, the weather is no different, the food is no different, the landscape may or may not be different to your usual location but it won't feel alien and exotic in comparison. That's not to say it won't be fabulous, but it's not comparable to seeing a new country and experiencing a different culture.

Both are valid choices, but as much as I enjoy British breaks, they are always a supplementary holiday for me, not the main event. Except this year, obviously.

@TheDevils Odd to you maybe but not to me!

I have already had two short breaks in this country ( far from being dismissive of the UK) which, as I said in my original post I didn't consider (for me personally) to be a proper holiday.

So yes, spending all of my holiday funds and time on a holiday in this country WOULD be a waste of money

@Whammyyammy

UK holidays are a rip off..overpriced to begin with, you'll gey fleeced while there, shit weather, dog shit on the beaches, no parking anywhere.... I refuse to support British tourism

You have to look around, but you can get incredible deals even in high season. We are going to a beautiful newly renovated cottage - six adults, three bathrooms, three living spaces, in the height of the season in a very touristy area for less than £150 each per week. Self catering, but at that price we can afford to eat out most nights.

I love them. The amount you save on hotels means you can go out for some seriously good dinners at different restaurants. You get way more living space than in most hotels so you can slob about in the evenings if you are knackered and just cook a quick pasta and pesto or have a salad. Young DC get familiar food so are less likely to melt down. It has some advantages.

Me too ...we tend to do SC holidays with another family so the burden of cooking etc is shared. We've just had a fabulous week in Norfolk - fabulous beaches, loads of activities for the kids and we even had a picnic at a Tudor mansion. We did a mix of eating out, take aways and some cooking. The evenings were spent lounging about our converted barn drinking wine and local cider. It was lovely

@TheDevils

I love them. The amount you save on hotels means you can go out for some seriously good dinners at different restaurants. You get way more living space than in most hotels so you can slob about in the evenings if you are knackered and just cook a quick pasta and pesto or have a salad. Young DC get familiar food so are less likely to melt down. It has some advantages.

Me too ...we tend to do SC holidays with another family so the burden of cooking etc is shared. We've just had a fabulous week in Norfolk - fabulous beaches, loads of activities for the kids and we even had a picnic at a Tudor mansion. We did a mix of eating out, take aways and some cooking. The evenings were spent lounging about our converted barn drinking wine and local cider. It was lovely

Exactly @TheDevils. I love the space and flexibility you get on SC holidays. My DSis is the opposite. She dreads SC and squashes her DC into the cheapest family suite she can find at the cheapest hotel. My idea of hell, while our holidays are her idea of hell.

[quote GrandDuchessRomanov]@TheDevils Odd to you maybe but not to me!

I have already had two short breaks in this country ( far from being dismissive of the UK) which, as I said in my original post I didn't consider (for me personally) to be a proper holiday.

So yes, spending all of my holiday funds and time on a holiday in this country WOULD be a waste of money[/quote]
Nobody is saying you have spend all your holiday funds in the UK!! Individuals are free to choose where they go on holiday.

It's the term wasting money in the UK that I find sad. But then I have friends who work in the UK tourism and hospitality industry who are relying on UK tourists so they can feed their children and pay their mortgage. To hear people talk about not wanting to waste their money in the UK makes me feel very sad for these friends and others in similar situations.

Many places are much rainier than the UK,, yet you don’t hear people there whining about not being able to go “abrooaaaard”.

Where? Who? How do you know they don't if you don't live there? I imagine the Irish, the Swedes and the Danes moan every bit as much as we do about wanting some sunshine and warmth - possibly more, given their weather.

DH and I needed a break after the year we've had, we needed time together away from the house and work.
We found a lovely rental in the peak district on VRBO (Old Millers Cottage) and it was perfect. The house was lovely and the location was better than we could have hoped with walks straight from the door so no faffing with car parks. It was at the quiet end of a popular walking route so there were a few people about during the day but before 10am and after 4pm it was deserted.
Managed to get a food shop delivered and there was a pub a little walk away and a great gastro-pub in the next village that was only doing takeaway when we went but we would definitely eat there if we go back!
This is probably outing because I've raved about this place to anyone who will listen

Why feel bad about wanting to get away?
U.K breaks can be great we tend to stay in U.K. due to crippling childcare costs and love devon and South Wales
One of the best holidays I’ve had was on a holiday park in Dorset, beautiful weather, beaches etc and I’ve been to some fantastic places in the world

[Chester] is however a fantastic base for exploring this part of the world and is right on the Welsh border with a direct train to Holyhead that makes North Wales accessible.

It's also within reach of Ironbridge, which is a must-visit for anyone interested in industrial history - there's enough to see and do there to keep you occupied for several days. My friends and I did it in reverse - we were staying near Ironbridge and took the train to Chester one day.

Seems a bit sad to think you are wasting money on a holiday in the UK. So far in the last year we have- been to the North Norfolk beaches, been on a boat in the Norfolk Broads, had a week on Skye. We have also been on a short break in Liverpool. This summer we plan Northumberland and also the Outer Hebrides. Hopefully a trip to a London and a night in St Andrew’s when dropping off my son.

All of them were brilliant in different ways.

I am craving a trip to the Greek Islands so I do understand but I have really valued our UK trips. It’s so fabulously diverse, scenic and historic. ❤️