To think going away in the UK is very expensive?

[Walkingqueen101]

Still weighing up what to do for our Summer holiday.

We were going to do a UK break this year as the past few years we’ve spent out on a very nice all inclusive abroad.

Found a UK holiday park that looks amazing To be fair we wanted something with an onsite pool, gym, hot tub, modern accommodation so hardly a cheap week camping, but It’s coming up £1700 for a week! There was a sale on but we missed because we couldn’t make up our minds.

For £2000 we could go to Greece self catering, but the hotel is very basic, been there before and it’s clean but dated and no real facilities just your accommodation and a pool, plus we’d all be sharing a room including teen.

For £3300 we could go to a small hotel in Greece half board with a few facilities. We could also go to Turkey for about £3500 all inclusive. They’re not the fanciest of hotels but they look perfectly clean and reasonable.

Just seems that abroad is good value considering your getting a flight and almost guaranteed sunshine.

WWYD?

We are going to Menorca, 4* all-inclusive for a week, right on the beach with an on site included waterpark for just under £3000 (2 adults and one 5 year old). Just out of curiosity I had a look how much Center Parcs would be for the same week as we used to be big fans before we had to go in school holidays. It's insane!

@ImFckingMattDamon I'm going to CP with a big group for a long weekend then. We booked in advance though as it's an annual thing & it was cheaper.

Yeah looking last-minute will have probably added a fair bit on to the quote but it's still very expensive considering it's self catering at Center Parcs! And then you've got to pay for activities on top if you want to do any whereas our all inclusive covers things like mini golf etc. Its a shame because we used to love going but the school holidays prices make going abroad seem so much better value for money!

Really? Roughly whereabouts? I briefly looked out of curiosity in the Lake District and found multiple 4 and 5 bed houses for less than £1000 for a long weekend.

@ImFckingMattDamon the thing is to me Menorca and Center Parcs are very different holidays.
It's not really comparing like for like.
(I've never actually been to either but they don't seem the same...)

TBF I'd sooner have the CP holiday. We're not keen on beach holidays as a family and like to be active. A lot of people go on about how CP is a rip-off but we like it, it meets what we want from a holiday

When we go to Center Parcs for us the main thing is using the fantastic pool and the playparks (5 year old). Where we are going abroad has a children's (and adults) waterpark and a park and beach to play on so for the things that we compare it is similar. Lots of nice hikes and walks too! We are not drinkers but it's nice to have the food cooked for you in all-inclusive 😃 I'm not bashing Center Parcs, i love it there, just wish we could still go midweek in off season.

We always stay in the UK as up until the year DH has a South African passport so when you factor in visa and time off to sort that, it wasn't worth it for abroad.
But the UK is getting more expensive. We camp mostly to save money but do 1 CP trip a year. Even that now is £1200 a weekend at a cheaper time (we use training days to find the cheapest weekend to go)

Booking holiday parks and airbnb with the facilities you mention is so expensive in school holidays. They key is to book about a year in advance or wait until a sale is on.

I find it cheaper to abroad.

@ImFckingMattDamon I will confess I associate Center Parcs as typical England woodlands and being very peaceful, calming and quiet.
I could be completely wrong 😂

Yes you are absolutely right.

But when you consider the Turkey holiday includes all food/drinks it doesn’t seem bad value.

However, the more ‘upmarket’ I suppose all inclusive’s we’ve been to previously have been more like 4-5k. So you are right that the holidays aren’t like for like.

But it’s nice to go to another country where you can swim in warm, crystal clear seas and wander round in the warm evenings.

I would rather go abroad everytime, UK holidays are a rip off. If you get a miserable week weather wise, you also end up spending a lot on indoor activities and the costs rack up.

The UK holiday is in Devon. Mind we usually go to Cornwall, we’ve camped recently, but the nice Lodges and cottages there are thousands. So makes the Devon one seem cheap.

@ImFckingMattDamon it's definitely not cheap but it does work really well when going with family or friend groups so we suck it up.

@Needmorelego they are very different. TBH CPs isn't a holiday for me, it's exhausting! 😆

The UK one isn’t Centreparcs by the way. It’s a Hoseasons, probably very similar, I’ve never done centreparcs.

But it’s by the sea, has indoor and outdoor pool, gym, restaurant, Lake, hot tub, playgrounds and football pitch.

Plus it’s 3 bed so the dc get their own room.

It will hopefully be a lovely and comfortable holiday.

Indeed. We're going back the last week of August to the lovely cottage we rented in Scotland in early May. It has 2 double bedrooms, amazing big garden (with summerhouse) which our dog adored, fabulous walks from the door (a mile through the woods to the beach) and is in a gorgeous village. Town with amenities is 4 miles away.

It's costing us £620 this time but was a hundred quid cheaper in May.

Conversely, I was in a local town recently and Hayes Travel was advertising late pa Kames in Greece and Turkey for a lot less than people are suggesting it costs.

It depends on your demands, doesn't it? We don't require hot tubs and onsite facilities - and these often come with the proximity of lots of other people so that would put us off!

I think holidays in school holidays are criminally expensive wherever they are! We’ve mainly done UK breaks as both DC’s are young, and I do sometimes wonder what on earth we are getting for the money! But looking abroad, and factoring in flight costs, luggage costs, spending money etc. it doesn’t seem like we’d make much of a saving going abroad.

But isn't a bit like the USA - where each state is very different so even travelling to a different state is like a holiday in a foreign country?

Try Landal Holiday parks - I find them a bit cheaper (although not looked this year). I found Hoseasons expensive last time I looked. They do hot tubs with lodges too.

Haven is good too but again a bit expensive.

It’s not really comparing like with like. I find that I the UK you get a bigger place, and no sharing rooms or beds. I get excited trying to find holidays abroad, but by the time I’ve added 2 bed apartment, quality meals, activities, nearby airport and reasonable flight times it’s cheaper to stay in the UK. We tend to eat out in any case, which is pretty expensive everywhere.

Good facilities on the coast for dch. Have a look on the Travel boards for ideas.

@DuckieDodgyHedgyPiggy
What does dch stand for?

if it's children, we've already got an abbreviation for that, which is DC. Can't you just use that for simplicity's sake?

It may have just been a typo or autocorrect...

@VickyEadieofThigh

We had an ensuite and there were two other showers as well. It was so quite, just the stream at the back of the property burbling away and the birds singing. It did get a bit busy when a storm was forecast and all the tractors were out getting the crop in. So many cows and just so green, going back again in October

For devon try john fowler holidays, they often have some good deals.