Holiday with friends?

[Lala727]

Posting on behalf of a friend as she's not in mn.

Is it common or normal to be going on a family holidays abroad (friend, partner, child 4 and child 4 months) and invite friends (another family) to go with you? I can think of nothing I'd e joy less than to think I'd be getting alone time in with my partner and children away from it all and then have others there for a 12 day holiday but maybe I'm the odd one!

Is this other people's idea of fun?

I absolutely would not do this. I go on holiday with friends, yes. But the idea of going somewhere as some kind of pack gives me the frights.

Some people love it though. What are your friends concerns?

It would depend entirely on how close you are with your friends I guess? Similar age children would be wonderful for single child families too, more fun for the kids etc.

Date nights are possible because each couple can baby sit. Group dinners and lazy lunches etc.

Like I say it depends entirely on how much you get on with your friends.

I go on one holiday a year with friends. We have great fun.

We went on holidays with other families as kids. Grest fun for us and the adults babysat for each other. Win win

This will only work if you have very similar parenting styles, and very similar ideas about what you want to do on holiday.

I would never do it.

Sure. I've been single on holiday with a mum and her two young kids, or me, that mum and her kids snd another and her baby. Or a couple and me (there was to be a fourth but she dropped out last minute), or my family (me, hubby two kids) with two single (not a couple) people, or another family of five. I have a house in Spain and it's more fun with other people there (no TV or anything).

It's my friends partners friends who they've met before but not close friends and the partner suggested they go with them

My friends relationship hasn't been the best since before their 2nd child so they are wondering if it's a sign that the partner doesn't want to be alone as a family unit as all they got was a 'x family fancy coming too, that's alright right'. It's the 2nd child's first holiday too

Perfectly normal. Only on Mn would this be viewed as a strange and suspicious suggestion.

No one said suspicious?!

There's no right answer. Some people love to holiday with friends especially with kids so they've got a ready-made pack to play with, others would hate it.

We used to do this with friends but as DD has got older we have found that her autism makes this more tricky. I would say it’s pretty common in my wider group of friends though.

Used to be one of the kids on these holidays year in year out, worked amazingly well for us. Very very good memories

my idea of hell on earth.
We used to go to a big Eurocamp park in France every year and apparently many many people holiday with friends. I can't think of anything worse, but it's very popular!

I imagine some people would like it and others wouldn’t. 🤷‍♀️

Well this is eye opening lol it would be my version of hell, I want a holiday with the people I love most and to leave others behind😆 not in a judgemental way as each to their own but I've always found it odd when couples can't spend time with just them. A weekend away at a family centric resort with friends, absolutely. 12 days in a hot country with beach, pool, my children and oh, never, I'd relish the quality time

I can't delete that enoji for some reason

Deciding to go on holiday with another couple / family does not mean that a couple can’t or don’t spend any time together.

Absolutely not for me. I went on plenty of group holidays with mates when I was young free & single, but these days holidays are sacrosanct quality time together for me & DP. No way would I want anyone else around.

Love love love a holiday with friends. Proper catch up time as our friends are far flung so we don’t see them that often, plus I like to get a chalet/ apartment or villa vs an hotel and it’s easier with a bigger group.

Agree need consistency on parenting or at least willingness to compromise on things like bedtimes/ sugar intake/ screens etc.

We always have a great time though.

No, but I see it the same as all the other things I like but leave at home lol it's not something I'd ever want to do or occur to me to invite anyone else on my quality time with oh and children

That's how my friend feels

We have always done a mixture of both.

The kids are often easier to entertain when with other kids, unless they really don't get on.

Most people I know holiday with friends at least sometimes.

I would say both common and normal. But also common and normal not to.

Your friend shouldn't agree to it if she doesn't want to. It doesn't suit everyone.

If it's already booked and then someone's gate crashed then no, neither common nor normal.

I can't think of anything worse! A weekend possibly, an actual holiday no way.

A recipe for disaster.

I would not want to go on holiday as a mum with such young kids.
4 years and a 4-month-old baby.

Is this their father's idea?

Tell him he can take on the mental load and all the organisation, includes baby-sitting - there is none abroad.

I'd be staying home. More relaxing.
Airports and travelling are hell at the moment, Just got back and that was just me

The holiday was my friends idea so it's not the abroad part she minds, the other family coming is

Love a holiday with friends