AIBU to spend £15k-£20k yearly on holidays with £150k income?

[hangak]

If your combined take home is around £150k a year, is it unreasonable to spend around £15k-£20k on holidays for a year.

This would be a few UK and EU city breaks, plus 2-3 long haul trips.

I regularly spend less than £100 on return flights to our villa in Spain.

Hope that makes you feel better?

Of course it’s not unreasonable for you to do that, but if you’re asking if most people on that income spend up to £20k every year on holidays, then no, it’s not the norm. Especially not 2-3 long haul trips.

Why stop at £20k?

Depends what your priorities are. We have a slightly higher combined income but DH has had periods of unemployment after redundancy so we keep a large nest egg for eventualities. We ski most years, but on a £4k budget (drive at Easter, self-catering, cook most meals at home or take sandwiches), then have a two week campervan holiday in Europe (roughly £4-5k). This month we will pay off our mortgage 10 years early, so may take our first long haul family holiday in the next couple of years. But perhaps if we had jobs for life we would have prioritised differently.

Is it within your budget?
Do you have to go into debt?

Assuming its yes to the first and no to the second why not. I can’t imagine that you’ll find many who disagree.

I guess maybe you could consider the environmental impact and if there’s anyway you could still enjoy holidays in a more sustainable way.

Do make sure you aren’t then the person who then complains that they are broke all the time or can’t afford other things. That’s just annoying.

My sister and niece each spend around £10k a year travelling but they have no savings and are renting.

Niece is living on planet cuckoo land because she thinks she will be able to buy a home, privately educate her DD and jet set, no savings.

My sister will retire in around 10 years time. I
am telling her to save the money instead of spending it on holidays. She doesn’t get it.

But if you have security for your future why not spend it on doing the things you enjoy.

DH and I used to spend similar on holidays. now DH not able to for health reasons, but we can spend it on many of life’s other pleasures. Enjoy it while you can.

Your money, do as you please!
We prioritise our ISAs, pensions and also the kids ISA’s and pensions, but then I hate airports and don’t particularly enjoy holidays so we are all different.

£15-20k for 2-3 long haul holidays and several shorter European breaks sounds very reasonable. How many are travelling? Are you restricted to school holidays? We are a family of four and don’t think I could do that many holidays a year for £15k!

Life is for living so I hope you continue to enjoy your travels!

Lucky you is all I can say - you work hard for it - and if you can afford it - life is too short. I wish I could - sadly that would never be.

We spend that much on the family holiday (4 people, inc 2 children over 13 during the last 5 years). If it is something you and your partner enjoy and value, if it makes you happy and doesn’t require sacrifice anywhere else, then it’s fine.

I just wouldn’t tell anyone else, though, because people have different values and priorities and are often quick to judge. If someone was nosy enough to look up how much our holiday likely cost, independently, then I’d care even less about their judgement or opinion.

I am similar. I get good bonuses and spend half on holidays. I love travel and have probably 2 'big' holidays per year (south America, Indonesia, America, etc), one week in Europe and lots of weekends away and city breaks at a couple of £k a time. I live for my holidays and it's money well spent to me. If you can afford it then do it and enjoy it

Assuming you’re a couple earning £75k each, your take home will be in the region of 100-110k depending on student loans, pensions etc.

20k per year is definitely a meaty chunk of that. But it actually doesn’t sound like you’re doing luxury trips at all if that 20k represents 3 long haul trips and 2 minibreaks a year. I’m assuming there’s just 2 of you and there aren’t any kids involved, in which case it’s even more bare budget.

so, go for it? I’m impressed you have enough annual leave for all this travel every year though

To be honest, with just two people, that doesn’t seem like much money to do what you are suggesting you want to do. Are you ok with budget accommodation? You might have to cut your cloth a little …

Nobody can tell you your holiday spending is unreasonable or reasonable - it doesn't affect anyone else apart from you.

Spend what you like! Why do you need to ask strangers? I do get the whole MN discussion threads and they can be useful, but these type of threads are always baffling.

If you can afford to recoup the holiday money, it really doesn’t matter. We had a few years on those amounts but now we need to scale back as we need the money elsewhere

Our household income is 200k and we spend less than 2k on holidays annually because we’re mortgaged up to our bloody ears, we’re renovating the money pit we’re mortgaged on, my husband (rightly so!) spends 13k on child support for the eldest and the youngest is still in nursery. We drive beaters. And I am a total moron who gave up my own senior career in tech to train as a teacher so I’m not even earning right now. If you don’t have such a silly life set up then you should enjoy those holidays.

If you’d told me we’d have this much money and NOT be spending 20k a year on holidays I’d have laughed but it is what it is.

So I think you’re honestly completely reasonable and I am jealous! I toast your ability to make much better choices than me 🤣

You spend your money on what you want to spend it on.

Some spend on cars, others holidays, others new kitchens.

It's called discretionary spending because of that.

There was a thread on here a while back called "how much does your holiday cost".

Some people might argue it gives some perspective to the concept of the supposed taxed out middle classes though.

My income is much less than that but we spend a similar amount

I'm surprised that you can manage 4 or 5 city breaks and 3 long haul holidays for £20k, to be honest with you. Maybe my view is skewed as travelling solo since my husband died doesn't seem to cost just half the price it was before! But for a 3 night city break including flights, accomodation and meals, taxis and parking I work on the basis of £1,500, and for two weeks longhaul I assume no less than £7,500. So that'd be a minimum of £30k. I would see spending less than 20% of post tax income on something you enjoy as inconseqential, as long as you are happy :)

No, I don’t think it’s unreasonable. We spend about £12k+ a year on slightly lower income. I live for my holidays and they make me happy!!

It seems like insane money to me but I think it’s fine if you’ve got the spare cash.

What are your savings / pension like? My concern would be that you’re holidaying at the expense of a rainy day fund.

What is your take-home pay after tax and pensions, and how much have you got in pensions and savings? Also how much is left on the mortgage. That will give you a better idea.

Personally I think that’s a lot, unless the 150K is your net income after tax and pensions, or you are in your 50s with house mostly paid off and good levels of pension and ISA savings.

what even is this post but a brag???

Ten per cent is a very reasonable and modest portion of your income to spend on holidays, if you can afford it.