To remember a time when we didn’t book everything

[labamba007]

Did you prefer it when we didn’t have to book everything in advance? I feel like since Covid everything has to be booked - restaurants, cafes, softplay, museums, bowling, any sports, swimming etc. I just remember turning up to stuff and it being fine. Now you can’t go anywhere without booking and nothing is spontaneous. Maybe it’s because there’s more people so you need to book to guarantee but I do miss it!

When I bought my motorhome, I imagined waking up on a Friday morning, tossing back the duvet, seeing glorious sunshine and just going off for a weekend spontaneously, living life in the moment.

It's not like that at all. Not because I can't be spontaneous, but because campsites book up really far in advance. One campsite you have to book 12 months in advance for the weekend of the Christmas market!! It's ridiculous.

I mean, some campsites would have availability, but not the popular ones that are in main hiking places or next to the beach.

You don't have to book swimming slots at my gym. You do have to book classes in advance though, else you won't get in.

I do also object to having to book Christmas things now. I am still in summer holiday mode, and don't want to be thinking about Christmas now. But again, things like some of the mainstream Christmas events book up really early, like Chatsworth or Blenheim.

I don't mind planning holidays a year in advance though. Once I have finished traveling for the year in October, it's nice to know what holidays I will be having the next year. I have to plan annual leave anyway.

Oh, that's another thing actually, having to book ferries to the islands a long way in advance, especially for motorhome owners. That's also really frustrating for locals, who might need ferries to go to hospital appointments, which of course they won't know about far in advance. I think they do arrange flights for people if needed though.

Trip to Amsterdam was ruined by needing to book access to Museums. Yes I can book 3-4 a day but until I get to a venue how do I know if I want to spend a whole day there or leave quickly and move to another? Flexibility and enjoyment were ruined.

You rang the box office repeatedly getting the Engaged signal, and eventually struck lucky, then sent a cheque with a stamped addressed envelope and received your tickets by return. Happy days.

Yeah I think there's an important distinction here: I totally get that when people have families, kids and stressful jobs planning is really important and you can't wing things.

But there is a type of person who is all about planning for planning's sake and not only enjoys making spreadsheets and diarising everything that moves but gets really stressed out if others aren't also exactly like this. "Will you be wanting to eat early evening when we travel on holiday in May (asked the previous September?" etc etc. I don't effing know, its seven months away.

This second category I find really hard to deal with: sometimes it's ND so you have to cut them a bit of slack but a lot of them are massive control freaks who have to be bossing other people the whole time. I work in an industry full of people like this so I can see them coming a mile off.

I love that we now have to book for the dump. No long queues and struggling to find a parking spot near the containers. Locally you can usually book on the day (or at least the next day) once you have your rubbish organised to go! Choice of different sites as well within a few miles radius. checked for today and slots available from 11.30 am.

Just have to remember they all close on Wednesday!

I hate having to book in advance as my energy levels are so variable, especially at the moment with pregnancy and a toddler waking me up. I have friends with chronic pain who feel the same- they need the spontaneity or they end up pushing themselves on days when they don't have the energy, and end up paying for it after.

I remember a couple of summers ago, I'd see a flyer for a May day fete thing, went along with a friend, only to find out that I'd misread things and you needed to book in advance. Yes it was my fault, but who makes a fete something to be booked like that?

I hate having to book everything and think it causes more anxiety. It's stressful if you have a pre-booked time and get stuck in traffic or there's train delays. Then you might wake up feeling unwell and either force yourself to go or possibly lose money.

The only thing I don't mind booking is a restaurant, but I suppose we generally always did that anyway.

Yes I remember you just used to go swimming, just queue for a little while and if it was full you would just moan and go off somewhere else.
We used to queue for hours to get into Brockwell park lido and that used to be packed when I was a kid. Don't know if it has changed. It was really exciting once you were in.

I absolutely hate booking things and avoid it as much as possible. It makes me really on edge, much prefer just arriving whenever I’m ready rather than having to specify (obviously things like the theatre, with set start times, are different).

I don’t even do online supermarket shopping because of the stress of having to wait for the delivery!

I prefer to queue, or just accept that I might not get into the restaurant of my choice - though sometimes I compromise and book on the same day, which gives me less time to worry about it.

I hate booking specific trains too, and all the machines/apps make you choose one now, so you have to be careful to buy a ticket that will actually let you travel on any train.

This is also what puts me off booking a lot of these Christmas things, you are often really ill in December. How can I possibly know months ahead whether or not the kids will be ill or if there are going to be floods on a particular date in December. I'd rather be able to judge it on the weekend even if I have to book on the Friday.

I love Christmas but always think how daft it is that December, prime month for illness, darkness and rain, is our cultures main month of the year for going out and socialising.

I've given up going swimming, you have to book via an app. In the olden days if I fancied a swim i would just go early morning or after work because that was when the adult sessions were on. If I changed my mind then i just didn't go. Now it's sign in, pick your 45 min slot which means you have to there dead on time, no strolling up between the hours the session is running. Can't be doing with the hassle.

That's how it was for me when I lived in Pimlico, and if my husband and i wanted to play badminton, our options for a court were 8am on a Saturday or 9pm on a Tuesday 😭

> We used to do a lot of fly drive holidays in the US and never pre booked hotels

You've had to supply at least a first night's accommodation address to enter the US as a non-US citizen since before the '80s

It's weird (and unhelpful) that people are so divided by this. Some people love forward planning and melt down if they can't do it. Others hate it and go out of their way to avoid it. I'm naturally in the latter camp: I get really flustered by this, but long experience has taught me that the "planners" get really upset if you don't do it so I have trained myself to do it as much as I can. And then feel really resentful that I'm having to book stuff just to assuage other people's neurosis....

Don’t know where you live but we’ve always had to book restaurant tables, concert tickets etc.

I don’t get the we all have to book everything. I mean I remember my parents booking tables since the 70s! But equally we cycle a lot and often just turn up to pubs etc for lunch. I work part time in a cafe and loads of people just take a chance. I went to our local cinema on a whim last week, didn’t book. We don’t need to book the tip where I live. Maybe for gigs, but surely you have always had to book for that in some way, either queuing for 24 hours in the rain or waiting on the phone!!!

I'm just glad to see that we've (mostly) gone back to calling it "booking", instead of "pre booking" 😆

Just checked our local swimming pools - specifically say no booking required. Local leisure pool open from 9 am to 8 pm and just turn up. No time limits as well. Lane swimming has more limited availability but again no booking ahead!

Where is that happening? It's certainly not something I need to do unless it's a special exhibition for example. Nor in. Cafes round here and only in the most popular restaurants at weekends ( to guarantee a swat else you take a chance)

Having to still pre book the tip post Covid drives me mad and you can only book one slot per day 😡

The thing is, ignoring the current cost of living correction going on, experiences, holidays, days out etc have become on average much more accessible over time, not only financially but also in terms of actually getting there.

Not only can more people access them but we now go more frequently. Rather than one holiday a year we might have three. Rather than one highlight trip to the zoo over the summer holidays, there are days out most weekends. People queue up Snowdon. People pay extortionate amounts for tickets to sold out events from unscrupulous resellers because they've got FOMO.

This means that many places have had to put in place booking measures to control the sheer numbers.

It seems illogical, but if we want to go back to the heady days of just being able to get up and go, we all need to be doing that quite a bit less than we currently are.

Not a fan of booking at all.
Worst thing is if arrive somewhere, not at all full first ask about booking then turn to the computer and say no.. But if looked over shoulder would notice lots space. Then pieces on radio about how hard it is for business to operate.
Find food places run well will always manage not to turn you away. Places that are always going to be busy usually don't do bookings

It’s much better for the businesses if everyone books, they can plan staffing to the right level and order a reasonably accurate level of stock for the day, cutting waste and cost.
Given how brutally hospitality has been hit by successive UK governments I don’t blame those businesses one bit for it.
Booking the tip is annoying though and has stopped by us to see if it impacts the horrendous level of fly tipping we’ve seen.

yes much preferred it. DH is very spontaneous, when we first got together he would look in the fridge, magically cobble up a picnic,dogs,kids off we would go. First H,it was like a Military operation. We wanted a particular boat ride, recently. We didn't want to book in case it was raining or rough sea. It was expensive and we would have subsequently lost the money.

We have stopped going swimming by the time we have got into the pool its time to get out they are only allowing one/one and a half hour spots its not enough time the kids feel rushed we only used to spend two hours in the pool anyway but that didn't include getting into the pool so its just not long enough