AIBU to think a cottage is not a holiday?

[Jogonpolly]

Looking to go away in half term (DH and 2DC age 7&10).

I'd ideally like a short haul all inclusive somewhere - good weather and easy for them kids to be occupied. But with the jet fuel issue I don't feel confident booking incase we lose our money.

I suggested going somewhere in Europe by train. A hotel, pool and play area some places to visit, maybe a city or something.

DH has suggested a cottage in the UK, Devon or somewhere. Problem is, I just don't see a cottage as a holiday - in a hotel someone makes your bed and cleans the bathroom. You can choose to eat out or in the hotel restaurant, you don't need to drive anywhere, decisions are easy, everything is easy. My experiences of cottages in the UK are of same shit, different (and more difficult)place. There will still be cleaning to do, breakfast to sort even if we do go out for lunch and dinner, there's more planning and organising. I think I'd just rather not go.

AIBU and a misery?

And before people say it, yes, DH will do some of the organising and cleaning but still, it's just like being at home!

I'd also be happy with a city break, sightseeing etc. doesn't need to be an all inclusive place!

This

don’t do
it

The vast expense; the cooking; cleaning; meal planning; shopping; cleaning

I did a week's caravan holiday with my two boys, then aged 7 and 10, to Polzeath, for them to surf.

I took paper plates and bowls.

Breakfast they sorted themselves out - toast/cereal/croissants.

Lunch was a beach picnic - sandwiches, or baguette with cheese and ham, or a pasty...

We had takeaway fish and chips twice, eaten on the beach.

Takeaway pizza on the beach.

Pasta one night with jar sauce and ready grated cheese.

Ready meal in the microwave one night.

Disposable bbq with burgers, sausages or chicken burgers two nights.

Minimal washing up - mostly just cutlery.
Everyone fed and happy.
Job done.

Hotels in the uk can be quite similar prices to cottages. If you are forced to do cortages then ensure you have something luxurious like a hot tub to ensure a hot more enjoyments than

Cottage as part of a hotel complex is the way to go ime. You get the space and the facilities though there is a bit more tidying, making breakfasts admittedly. Worth it for the space though and cheaper than taking a number of hotel rooms.

We couldn't afford to go abroad when I was a kid. We did static caravans, always lovely ones, and we loved them, however as uou get older you do realise that that was NOT a holiday for our DM, she still had the jobs to do although we and DF did help more than normal.

We do cottages because we have a dog and our teen doesn't like to do much so its very relaxing!

The thought of an AI hotel filled with people fills me with horror.

Give me a lovely villa or cottage any time!

Nope not a holiday. Existing in a different place probably with worse WiFi 🤣

You're not planning it properly. When we go on a self-catering holiday, it is expressly on the basis that there will be minimal cooking. So we go out to restaurants, get takeaways, have snack meals (cheese, pate, bread, fruit etc), or have things that need minimal cooking like pasties, pies, soup, pizzas. We always go for a cottage with a washing up machine.

Unless there is some major spillage or similar, the only cleaning that gets done is when we leave, when basically we'll take the rubbish out, wipe surfaces and vacuum the floors, and maybe strip the beds if asked.

That suits me fine. I like the fact that, in a cottage, we're not tied to hotel mealtimes, we have somewhere separate of our own to sit and chill, and we don't have to worry about vacating the room before the maid comes. If it's a place with a pool, we can sling something really casual on and don't have to worry about getting back to the room through a crowded lobby.

Looking forward to our next cottage holiday soon.

This. X a million

If you are the default parent who does all the chores then I’d say to your partner, “oh great! I do like my home comforts and if you’re offering to do the domestic drudge to give me a break, I’m all for that!” And mean every word of it. Watch them reverse the hell out and book and all inc package.

More generally, holiday cottages in the UK are very poor value for money. You will get a nicer standard of accommodation in almost every other driveable EU country (unless you go somewhere super popular with British families given the whitsun week). I’d go with a half board package somewhere like the alps where it is off-season.

A cottage may not feel like a holiday to you - but it does to many others so YABU to say it is not a holiday - but YANBU to say it is not the type of holiday you want.
I prefer the freedom of self catering rather than clockwatching for meal times……. Each to their own it seems….

YABU to say it's not a holiday.
YANBU to say it's not enjoyable for YOU.

Could be worse DH was reluctant to stay in a cottage for holidays as our children were so "badly behaved, destructive and messy" so we went camping. So even worse shit in a different location.

Even without the cooking food issues etc a cottage holiday in this country leaves you exposed to poor weather and finding things to do every day which suits everybody. Even if you manage this it can work out very expensive.
I understand the big difference between a cottage holiday here and a holiday in the sun where food and activities for kids are provided.
If you have anxieties about potential fuel shortages op I would book a package holiday. If they cancel your flight because of fuel shortages they will reimburse the whole cost of the holiday so no worries about losing your money

I'm completely of your way of thinking. If people love staying in a holiday cottage and it is their idea of a great holiday then that's great. We are all different and have different tastes and priorities which are all equally valid.
However, for me personally, a holiday is meant to be relaxing and feel like a treat. It's lovely to have someone else cook delicious food for you and clean your room, etc., that feels like luxury to me and is one of the things I enjoy most about a holiday. Having a couple of weeks away from the daily drudge and properly 'getting away from it'. If I had to cook and clean like I was at home it wouldn't feel very relaxing and I would probably wonder why I had bothered leaving home in the first place.
Perhaps even more controversially, my holiday from hell would be camping. I am not much of a lover of the great outdoors to begin with and the lack of beds and private bathrooms make it a complete non-starter. I would never consider going on a holiday if I knew I would be considerably less comfortable than if I stayed at home. However, we have lots of friends who adore camping so it really is a matter of taste.

If it's not your thing, it's not your thing.

Personally I've morphed into a saddo (my previous opinion, obvs not now) that is quite happy return to the same holiday cottage every year given the opportunity, but I don't have small children tbf.

I get nice stuff in for breakfast and lots of picky bits for the evenings then eat my main meal out at lunch time which minimises the catering efforts.

Is it really that much like hard work to chuck crockery into the dishwasher, strip the beds and take the bins out on your last day?

Hmm…the worst holiday we’ve ever had was an all-inclusive in Kos via Tui in 2021.

Overweight, drunk UK guests floating in the pool with cocktails from 10am and horrid repurposed food in the evenings. I’d take a UK cottage break in a minute over that.

OP I used to think exactly the same as you. I love hotels, someone making my bed, breakfast buffet etc. Because of my strong dislike of self catering, we mostly went to hotels when the dc were small (now young adults). The downsides -

-We’ve got 3 dc and finding a hotel to accommodate all 3 in one room was tricky. And even then they argued, which I get in a small space when they have their own rooms at home. So then we got 2 rooms between the 3 of them (slightly better but ££ and still some tension between the 2 who were sharing).

-Trying to get teens down to breakfast before it closed. Knocking on doors and waiting in corridors was not the best start to the day. Many times dh and I said we’d wait till x time then go but it was hard to stick to when one of them kept insisting ‘I’m nearly ready’.

-Trying to find 5 sunbeds all together.

Two years ago we experimented with a self catering cottage in Cornwall. Dh found a beautiful place with a private pool. Within an hour of arriving I was a convert. Dc had their own rooms, we loved having a living room with sofas and a big TV, our own pool was bliss and I actually didn’t lift a finger in terms of housework. We had bread and coffee for first thing, dc could take their time in the morning then we went out for brunch, and ate dinner out every night. I did sort of miss not having that freshly made bed every night but the pros outweigh the cons.

Now dh and I go away just the 2 of us and it’s hotels all the way but for families a cottage is great.

Hard concur. I’ve always maintained that a UK self-catering break is not a holiday. I’d rather be at home.
All-inclusive abroad is my personal preference.

I prefer staying in a holiday cottage to hotels, but that’s my personal preference. More peace and quiet and no other irritating guests.

However, if you prefer hotels there are lots of them in the UK. Don’t settle for something you don’t want op!

Unless the food changes in all inclusive it would be the same food with the same standards for 7 or 14 days wouldn't people get bored of it? and what about the queing?

of course it changes, the ones I've been to all had different 'theme' every night for the buffet and there will also be a number of A la Carte restaurants to choose from. Depends of course on the hotel, but haven't had any canteen-style queueing.
However, AI is definitely something I wouldn't do on the budget - the 3star ones are probably quite different.

Go AI, go in a cottage, go camping. Whatever you do it’s the DC that make it hard work. Just book a package that will return your money if it cancels.