Holiday Return Journey

[Merryoldgoat]

We are going on holiday tomorrow about 5 hours away (longer with stops - we’re driving). We have two kids, 4 & 9.

Due to come home the Saturday of Jubilee Weekend.

I think we should leave Friday around 7pm after dinner - kids bathed and into PJs and head off.

DH thinks we go in the morning. Checkout by 10 so not hideous but quite a lot to do hurriedly in the morning.

YANBU - Set off Fri eve
YABU - Set off Sat morn

I imagine the roads would be much busier on the saturday morning so I'd personally go on the Friday evening

I’d set off Friday night so you can wake up in your own beds on Saturday 😊

That’s what I thought @TigerRag

Who is driving you or DH? And what are you doing on the friday? 5 hour drive after a day out sounds horrible tbh

Will you be sharing the driving or just one of you doing it? The roads will be quieter but you'll both be tired.

I'd say Saturday morning. Pack everything you can Friday evening.

I think who is driving is key but I would go for Saturday morning, pack everything up when the kids are alseep and then just leave on the Saturday when your up and ready.

I'd rather enjoy the last night of holiday then have a leisurely drive home stopping somewhere nice on the Saturday.

Leaving on the Friday is cutting short the break you've paid for 🤨

We share the driving.

hmmmm. Seems IABU! 🤨

Whenever we go on holiday in the UK we always leave the evening of our final day. What time depends on the day of the week but usually at around 7pm to miss the traffic - even if it does mean getting home after midnight. When I know that I’ve got to get up early and do a long drive I just can’t sleep

Saturday morning, so you can both get a good night's sleep beforehand and do plenty of stops if necessary.

I do lots of weekend driving for boring reasons other than holidays. Saturday morning is a much quieter time to drive than Friday evening.

5 hours at the end of the day sounds horrendous.

I'd do it Saturday morning and make a day of it, maybe try and stop for lunch somewhere scenic for example

Sat morning ... a five hour drive after a final day on holiday, packing up etc etc sounds horrendous.

Saturday morning, stopping somewhere nice for lunch/fresh air halfway. Enjoy the final day of your holiday!

It's five hours, not fifty! Travel home on sat morning

Why would you leave Friday? You miss out on a night of your holiday! I would just go early Saturday, smash out a few hours on the road and stop somewhere nice on the way back.

I'd leave very early Saturday morning OR plan some fun stops on the way home to take the pressure off of just trying to get home.

When we do a similar drive we've found the best thing is to stay at holiday destination til around 4pm then drive for a couple of hours. Stop for tea and get kids into pjs. Then one long drive to home while they all snooze. That way we get an extra days holiday, but no late getting back. Pour kids into bed when home around 10 and relax!

I'd definitely choose to leave Saturday Morning.

Saturday morning but pack up as much as you can the evening before. When we do similar we find somewhere to break up the journey on the way back.

So no one thinks the jubilee weekend traffic on the Saturday will be really awful?

Sitting in gridlock with two children (both of whom have ASD, one in nappies) is what had me thinking Friday might be better.

However I will deliver the verdict ungraciously to DH 😬

I think it will quite likely be worse on the Friday evening with people going away for the weekend

Saturday morning, Friday will have the cloud of needing to go home in the evening over it, it will ruin the day.

Saturday morning. Why give up some holiday to sit in Friday night traffic?

Sat am. Set off earlyish and plan a stopping place to let off steam and eat, then resume later in afternoon.