How the fuck can people afford to go on holiday?

[Figuringitout]

I’m wondering if I am just super naive about how much everything costs. I earn an okish amount, have a small mortgage and don’t feel like we live extravagantly. I have 3 kids who I’d like to take on holiday. My husband earns seasonally (and is trying to increase that) but at the moment his main contribution to our budget is in looking after kids so we don’t have to pay for childcare.
Back to holidays, I cannot find anything somewhere hot for less that £4k and even France we’re talking about £2.5k.
So, do people have holiday funds that they pay into each month? Please tell me how everyone seems to be affording to go abroad once a year.

Because I chose to have no children? With 3 dc there is no way we could afford the holidays we have now and I’m sure there is no way you’d swap your 3 dc for some holidays.

Everyone has different priorities, we earn a healthy amount and holidays for us is a priority. We both have busy jobs and have 2DC. We booked our summer holiday over a year in advance. We have paid 4.5k for a week in Greece with a private pool. We have already booked for next summer, 2 weeks also on a Greek island, it's over 7k, it's eye watering but we save all year.

A holiday doesn’t have to be “somewhere hot” there’s plenty of options in this country.

If you want to go abroad, go for a mini break in term time over a weekend with friends. For family holidays just go camping like the rest of us who hate hot expensive holidays with young children.

You have three children and an ok salary. Tbh - of course it’s not going to be easy. You are effectively paying for 5 people on one salary.

It’s a combination of this or not insisting on expensive all inclusive deals.

were a family of 7 and got our flights to Spain for October half term for less than £300 in total for all of us because we’re able to fly Thursday night (all kids have inset days on the Friday). The return flights were £900, accommodation (4 bed villa) is £750 and minibus hire is £500. So we’re looking at £2450 plus spending for a family of 7. Since we’re going for a family wedding at least 1 day will be expense free and the rest will be beaches so not extremely pricey.

I do appreciate lots of people don’t have that spare, we’re really prioritising this as it’s a family wedding, but some of my family can’t afford it and we all understand that. We went on camping and static home holidays in the uk for the past few years and would do again if we can’t afford a foreign holiday. Sunshine at the cost of money stress for the next year isn’t worth it in my eyes.

I do as much of my spending on my AmEx as I can all year and then use the points (and companion vouchers) for holidays.

We do have a lot of expenses at the moment with renovations etc but with the cost of living even the weekly supermarket shops do add up to some points.

We go to a Greek island most years.
Family of 5, package holiday with flights, room and transfers 2.3k for 14 nights.
Self catering so we take 1.7-2k spending money for meals out in the town (lunch and dinner).

It's easy for us as we know what to expect and the costs when here etc.

We always book between Sept and Dec the year before. Often just before Christmas has worked out cheaper.

Average income, just save all year and always have so we never 'feel' the expense from our monthly income as we've never had it.

We go away in October or May half term not August as it's cheaper (Oct the best for value)

We save monthly over two years to afford bog standard week in the sun all inclusive
Would be cheaper self catering but I love being lazy on holidays.
No way we could afford every year

There are hundreds of different kinds of holiday. Sometimes reading MN it seems that the only kind of possible holiday is a package deal in an AI resort. Just as well I can't afford that, because it sounds like hell to me.
Our annual holiday budget for one lone parent and 2 DC is always about £1500, and we usually go to "France this, Italy that..." We never fly- it's always either Interrailing- with a £50 per night accommodation budget- or driving and camping.

This year we're driving down through France, visiting the Pyrenees and the Picos de Europa, and getting the ferry back from Santander. I booked the Santander- Plymouth ferry- by far the most expensive part of the holiday- in Novemberalso, we're coming back 2 days into the school term, when prices have dropped considerably We're camping, but again, we don't stay at these bells-and-whistles Eurocamp style campsites, we stay at simple campings municipale or similar, which cost 20- 30 euros per night for the three of us.

You have three children and a husband who only works seasonally.
I have one child and we both work full time all year

We prioritise travelling, usually driving. We stay in airbnbs and camp and eat out every few days, at lunchtime, somewhere local and cheapish. We cook with ingredients from the local market/shops the rest of the time.

We spend out time while away walking, sightseeing and exploring places a bit off the beaten track.

We live reasonably frugally at home and tend to travel off peak - still in the school holidays as I'm a teacher and we have two children but a week in France in October half term, for example, or Italy over th Christmas holidays. It helps that the children are very tolerant of being in the car (with audio books) for long periods of time.

I think it’s really hard on one salary. I work full time and earn ok, Co-parent with an ex and I can’t imagine having £££ to do a summer abroad.

Perhaps your husband should find either find another job for off-season or another job if you want more disposable income.

I think there is a personal preferene thing as well re prioritisation once you’re over a certain household income. I’ve got friends who live for their annual holiday. They’d happily have a month eating only beans on toast and otherwise living frugally to get that holiday. I like a holiday but wouldn’t compromise my living standards the rest of the year for a week. My husband doesn’t get holidays at all- he’d much rather have tangible things than experiences.

I’m not from the UK so go home to see my family and friends a couple times a year. Only need to pay for flights, parking at the airport and some supermarket items when staying at my parents. Occasional day out there but mostly stay home as they live by the beach or visit friend I don’t see often. So maybe £1k in total.

Other than that people earn different amounts, have different outgoings so spending isn’t going to be universal 🤷‍♀️

We shop around for best deals and tend to stick with Eurocamp. We're going to Spain in August, 2 adults and 4 children is costing us just short of £3k for 14 nights. Prob another £2k spending money on top though.

I saved for holiday by booking it and making monthly payments, this was only a u.k one though with haven. I saved for wedding in a 18 month isa, that I can pay into but not withdraw.

I thought the same recently OP, me, DP, 2yo, 11yo and 15yo was coming out at about 4.5k for a week in Spain in May!!
It's so so much and just not doable for us.

Unless you are super wealthy you need to book early or go last minute. I dont think most people are doing that sort of holiday for 5 unless they are both good earners.

We didn't go abroad every year with primary age children but managed it often enough by booking cheap flights as soon as they came out and then going for very cheap self catering accommodation. No frills. We'd go to a city where the airport isn't too far from the coast like Split or Lisbon. Also we drove to France and camped twice.

Why not go away at the Easter holidays somewhere like the canary islands?

Because I have an ok salary but don’t support 3 kids and a husband. In fact I have no kids or a husband so can be very extravagant.

And holidays are a priority for me.

The good hotels arent

But if you scale up your spending it’s basically the same as what OP was looking at.
Your holiday was £900 because it was only 1 adult and 1 child, and only for 4 days. If you have 2 adults and 2 kids for a week then it’s £4k.