Holidays are just not worth the money

[Phonicshaskilledmeoff]

Holidays are just not worth it.

The kids are desparate to go on holiday. I struggle to see the value though. For the 5 of us an abroad holiday is about £3k minimum. I struggle to get over the cost whilst I’m there - £500 a day and I sit wondering whether it was worth it.

The kids are excellent travellers and beautifully behaved when on holiday so it’s nothing to do with them. I just think it’s insanely expensive for what you actually get.

I enjoy it whilst I’m there - how do I stop being a cheap killjoy?!

Children need to be reminded that they can't always get what they want. It's a good lesson. It's about compromise.

Just remember your health may not be great one day, I have mid stage Parkinson’s, at 64 can’t work.
For years never afforded much having worked in retail and care, just cat and I.
Went to brother’s in Spain for about 5 days including travel l loved the heat ( Parkinson’s means my temp is variable now.
Missed a few years as family parties in France and Italy, expensive plane tickets, we share ‘hotel’ costs shared accommodation.
Not much , I enjoy the whole change tho

I find holidays extremely worth it. It’s one of my top priorities spending wise.

If your kids really want to go, I would say prioritise it, because you get to spend real quality time with them. “Making memories” is an awful expression but it’s underlying meaning is important - your kids will remember quality time spend doing something new and interesting with their parents forever.

Youre not wrong! Even 3 kids in clubs is easily £90 a day! Plus food for the week, and weekend trips out. You could easily spend close to a grand in a week almost by accident! I’m going to deduct £1k from the cost in my head to feel better about it going forward - great shout!

I think maybe it’s the cost of living overall making me feel like this. I feel a skinflint at the weekend over family days out too. It shouldn’t cost £75 to go to a farm!

£500 a day is a lot! We go AI then hire a car to explore for a few days. Then the costs are set in stone

It’s not uncommon for us to spend over £10,000 on our holidays, I do sometimes think of the other things we could do with that money, but when I look back to my childhood some of the first things that prop up are our holidays.

As an adult reflecting on our family so far it’s the holidays I often jump to first, of course they don’t need to be expensive, but we’ve had some incredible experiences, I reflect on what my children have been able to experience and am very grateful and proud.

The children are grateful for them, they look forward to them, and it gives me a pretty good tool to motivate them when we’re discussing future aspirations, the lifestyle they want and the work they need to put in to achieve it.

You’re right in abundance of course.

I think we will go - I think I need some strategies to reframe my thinking on costs (in all aspects of my life not just holidays).

Love a holiday but we don’t have kids and go to adults only places outside of school holidays so maybe that’s why.

But they should get some things, and a bit of a say in how the family spends its time.

If holidays mean a lot to them, listen to them.

Stay in your budget of course but listen to their priorities to an extent and factor that in.

a 3k holiday over 7 days. Not spending money

Holidays are important to us. They make many precious memories for old age. We have some wonderful experiences to look back on.

The accommodation is usually only around 50% of the cost. The airline and tour operator take the rest.

The accommodation is not actually that much of a rip off compared to what you get and their operations costs.

Alot of holiday makers look at the photos of the hotel and think wow that’s expensive for £2-3k but a lot of that cost is spent getting there and back!

A good tip is if you can afford it, get it booked at least a year in advance every year and pay it off slowly.

I beg to differ having just spent nearly £3k (just for me) for a week with my adult daughter. The memories are priceless.

Yeah, same for us. We did want kids but it didn’t happen, I nevertheless find holidaying just the two of us quite wonderful, a real luxury.

I agree, and believe me they understand. They are very well grounded. They do want a holiday though and I think that’s ok.

For context we are reasonably well off. But I am focused on value for money. So it’s not a case of can’t afford.

when they say holiday though - they do definitely mean abroad in the sunshine. We live in a lovely house - we may as well do day trips from here with extra cash in our pockets than get a cottage for a week.

"pity" Wow. Tone deaf, especially in this cost of living crisis. @igotitbadforyou

OP how about you book the flights one month, then the accommodation the next month (a cheapish Airbnb for you all perhaps) then when you're there get around by public transport, breakfast and a snacky meal at the airbnb and eat out once a day somewhere that's not tourist prices.

We’ve done this too - love it. But prices have massively gone up. Close to the 3k mark in school holidays for the parks I’d be interested in when you factor in travel and the spends whilst there

Well I'm torn. If it makes them happy and they feel they've had a "proper" summer, then yes. It can bring you together as a family. But when my kids were small I thought holidays were more knackering and stressful than going to work and managing the normal day to day. Plus I'd already been to every single place on earth I would want to go to before I had them and already thought it was mostly a waste of time given you can watch David Attenborough showing you gorillas from the comfort of your home.

I have lovely memories of holidays in the UK as a child. I spent a week with my family in Devon, staying in a cottage that had a bookcase in the bathroom!!! We had never seen this before!!! There were a lot of Agatha Christie books on the shelves so my sister and I both read our first one!!!

This.

I work purely to pay for holidays

i can afford it outright. I just struggle to shake the ‘this is £500 a day!’ Thoughts whilst I’m actually there.

I think value for money is hard wired into me!

Ill probably just book it and have a nice time but silently think about the cost ever minute 🙃

God if all holidays were like that then it wouldn't be a huge global economy boost with so many relying in tourists to provide income jobs etc to places 🤷‍♀️
there are many types of holidays that's are not what you described