To wonder if family days out used to be a lot cheaper

[mrsbeeton999]

I’m sure days out like zoos and theme parks must’ve been comparatively cheaper when I was a child (I’m in my 40s). I remember my aunt who didn’t have much money taking us to Chessington and the Tower of London and they’re about £100 for a family now. Any show or day out is always £100. Luckily we love outdoor stuff and beaches and do lots of really low cost days at weekends mixed with the odd treat day but I was just thinking where my aunt used to take us and feeling guilty!

I remember there were lots of vouchers in local papers for things like reduced circus tickets, day trips to amusements parks, even vouchers for reduced McDonalds. Savvy/low income parents would save offers like this from the papers.

And as people have mentioned, packed lunches were much more socially acceptable for day trips. And at the souvenir shop I’d get something cheap like a holographic ruler (height of cool), a special pencil or postcard. Nowadays I let myself get roped into buying expensive soft toys etc!

We had National Trust membership, so most of the days out I remember involved going to the same 3 NT properties which were close enough to us, or for walks where we could get free parking.

We did go to the local (crap) theme park, but it was a once a year birthday treat, and we certainly never did a hotel stay to go to one of the big ones further away (I would have sold a kidney to go to Alton Towers!).

Always took a packed lunch, and I can't remember eating out much at all.

Panto once a year (local), cinema once a year, zoos were still zoos - maybe once every couple of years. An annual daytrip to the coast on a coach, packed lunch - if you were lucky a go on a (tame) ride or an ice cream. We enjoyed what we got.

These all-exclusive, costly theme parks just weren't there to guilt trip parents.

@Tuliprain

Yeah. We went to chessington once in my childhood. I don’t recall ever going to the zoo, bowling, out for dinner etc. we went to the beach a couple of times and the cinema once. We really didn’t have days out like we do now.

I agree with this. I grew up in the 80s and things like trips to the zoo were rare treats, for special occasions. A lot of our days out were to free museums, beaches and places that were free. Tre was no expectation that we'd go to theme parks regularly, or go bowling.

As for dinners out, I can easily count the number of times I ate out as a child on the fingers of one hand (with plenty spare).

Theme parks have always been expensive (as long as I can remember anyway). Taking kids 15-20 years ago still felt like a stretch unless you had 2 for 1 or a special offer.

I can remember the National museums becoming free when I was a teenager... 2001 apparently. Teamed with the cheap London transport, my friends and I went every couple of months (yep we were the geeky crowd).

I went to Chessington twice, school trip and Guides.

@the80sweregreat

They were cheaper in the 90s because I would save up the vouchers from the crisp packets or cereal boxes etc. Theme parks have become stupidly expensive

Theme parks. The insurance is astronomical, and unless everyone works for free ( who does ) that’s what pays wages, you can go a long time without seeing anyone, wages still need paying, cost of spares for rides are very expensive, all relevant

I'm in my 40s. When I was young we went on trips very infrequently and never to theme parks. Most trips were to free entry places or with vouchers for a discount. Same as I do now for my family.

I used to go to Chessington quite a bit as a teen with my friends (we lived close enough that there used to be a bus there) and it was cheap enough, and I'm sure we got in on child tickets, I think it was about £12.50. This was the early 90s. I've just looked and a pay on the day ticket is £54. No way could I afford to send even one of my teens off on a bus (not that there is a direct bus there anymore) for the day.

My parents were members of the National Trust so we went to loads and loads of their places as they didn't have to pay an additional entry fee. But we always took a picnic. Visits to other paid for places were very rare treats. Weekend outings were more likely to be to see family and friends.

I was rarely taken to the cinema as a child - too expensive not even once a year.

DH went much more often - his town had old style cinerma that did Saturday afternoon older films he'd watch with MIL.

Our children have been a lot more - and here we have a local arts one that is much cheaper and often has recent films. Though we haven't made to back to cinerma since covid started despite a few plans to - though we have made use of streaming services.

We also rarely ate out - it was always a big thing birthday etc our kids have eaten out way more.

Yes if you look back and 50/60s people talk about cinema being v cheap and everyone went. I grew up poor in 1980s I went once to cinema as child and then a teenager when I was earning my own money. I dare say it’s even more expensive now what £10-12 a pop.

The expectation to be regularly taken out to paying places just wasn’t a thing.

I think this sums it up tbh.

The recent stinginess thread was eye opening - the fact that it is now seen as 'stingy' in some circles to bring your own sandwiches rather than buying an expensive lunch!

These days, it's more normal for children to be taken to paying places pretty regularly, and to be bought food and drink outside the home.

It's similar with birthday parties and other events, they used to be far more basic. Nowadays there is an expectation that we all consume things in a way that we didn't 40 years ago.

I didn’t go to London until I was 11 and that’s because I’d won a competition with school and my family went.
Lots of my recollections of days out are church related and we weren’t religious?! So I went to Brownies at a church then we’d go to the summer and Christmas fayre that would be an exciting day out.
Council run parks had amenities that you’d only get paid for at attractions now. One had bunnies and budgies. One had glasshouses with flowers in. Another a paddling pool. One had a boat. Or there would be something on at the park because it was wakes week. So we’d do that as an fun day out with a picnic.
We weren’t poor it just wasn’t a thing to go to a theme park or meal out at a weekend. It wasn’t a thing to spend money on food or drink out.

I agree with others - we just didn't do that kind of family day out regularly as a child, whether that was cinema, theatre, zoo, theme park, because it was too expensive. My kids have a very different experience and expect a regular diet of bowling, zoo, crazy golf, cinema, skating etc with the odd theatre trip and theme park thrown in. We either have more of a disposable income or are more inclined to spend on the kids.

However, thinking about what we did do as a child I do think some things are more expensive, and that's sightseeing type things. St Pauls, for example, was free to go in when I was young - now you have to pay. We went to Stonehenge, and I can't think it cost that much - you just walked up to the stones. I do think all that kind of thing has massively risen in price.

I think proportionately things are the same or cheaper but now there seems to be an expectation that children will be constantly entertained so that makes it more expensive overall. Things like soft play weren’t a thing when I was younger!

So whereas we may have gone on a big day out once in the 6 week holidays now there has to always be something.

We went to alton towers once a year. Other than enforced walks we didnt really do family trips. We were occasionally taken to the theatre. I dont thik there was the same expectation in the 80s that there is now.

Let’s turn this around..... you run a cafe with your other half & maybe 3 staff. as from April those 3 staff will cost you 30£ per hour, even if they did absolutely nothing. Fridge is running, lights on,heating on, etc. Over 6hours trading, you sold 2teas @ £1 each. You don’t need to be a mathematician to work out the loss on that day. In our local paper last week, the above was written about, the owner of the cafe has been running it for 30yrs. She is very worried as her box of butter pats has this week gone from 45£ for 45 pats. This week it is now 61£ so who is going to pay for that?you & me. IF you actually go into the place

I’m in my 40s too, and we did go to theme parks, zoos, the panto, cinema all of them. We weren’t particularly well off but weren’t massively struggling either. We didn’t have foreign holidays every year for example, but we did have some lovely days out - it wasn’t every month but they weren’t super rare occasions either.

I’m not really sure how my parents afforded it really. They must have budgeted quite hard - we definitely took packed lunches though and never saw the inside of a gift shop.

I’m quite shocked how much things cost now I have a DC of my own. I wanted to take my bird/ duck obsessed DD to a nature reserve/ wetlands centre last weekend - would have cost £30 just for the adults (DD is free at the moment) plus petrol, parking etc. I will take her and understand the place does important work, but will save it for her birthday or something instead as it’s just a bit much for a random Saturday. We went to walk round a nearby town and it’s lovely gardens/park instead, free and she still saw some geese. Luckily she’s young enough to be happy with that for now.

We used to go when DC were quite small .Vivid recollections of tokens being collected! National Rail are doing half price tickets for the Tower Of London ATM, BTW plus other attractions.Also worth trying on a Monday as less busy usually

Also agree with others - we had one or two "treat" days out a year, and would always take a packed lunch. Other than that we only went to parks and places that were free or very inexpensive. I think the expectation to be doing something pretty much every weekend is much higher now.

Alton Towers used to be something like £24 in the 1990s. I went for my 11th birthday. It's now £62 or £42 if you pre-book. What I can't really remember is if £24 was "a lot" back then for a once-a-year treat (only child).

80s child here. I’m from a very low income family, DH is from a middle class family and neither of us recall going on lots of day trips.

Occasional trips to seaside, and swimming and local parks most weekends. Very occasional uk holidays (butlins). Occasional trips to cinema / ice skating / bowling. Going out for meals was a birthday treat only!

DS on the other hand has a few activities every week. And eating out nearly every week

On the rare occasions we went to a cafe we could have a drink OR a cake (or share them between the two of us)

Meals out where once or twice a year.

I think priorities have changed, or people have more disposable income.

15 years ago a trip to Alton towers would be £20-£23 now it’s over £50!
Local wildlife centre used to be free for children and £2 for adults. Now a family of 4 is looking at £15-20

Things are more expensive and the market is saturated