Do you need loads of dosh to holiday in say USA or NZ

[nutcracker]

Or places like that

Was just wondering, as I would love to take my kids to places like that, but can't see how we would ever afford it.

Is it really that expensive ???

[toddlerbob]

Can of coke from a vending machine at wildlife park $1.20 (40p)
Entry to wildlife park $28 for a family
Pie from bakery $2.50 (under a pound)
Sandwich from bakery $3 (pound)
Night in a motel in a two bedroom unit with kitchen and separate living room across the road from hot pools at Hanmer Springs $110.
Renting a car from $29 per day for a 1990s model japanese car.
Swimming $5 for an adult and $2 for a child with wave pool and free float rings.
Fish $1.80 and chips $1.30.
Bus fare $2

All prices are based on Christchurch.

The big expense is getting here, my parents got flights in winter for 470 pounds on Singapore from manchester but that was an exceptional deal. I think the other thing that makes it seem expensive is that you need to come to NZ for at least 3 weeks as it's so bloomin far away.

[sibble]

Can only speak for NZ where we live - once you have paid for the flights - not cheap - NZ is good value for travellers from teh UK on the whole. You get approx $3NZ to the £1 and roughly things cost $/£ so in theroy you have trebled your money before you get off the plane. Alot of people hire camper vans - initial outlay not cheap but you have no accomodation costs, camp sites are far from 'carry on camping' with swish bathrooms, plug in electricity etc and allow you to cater for yourselves and see as much of the country as you can.
Also alot of things are free, e.g. all swimming pools, most museums donations only etc. and there are heaps of parks and open spaces for the kids to run.
Obviously really touristy things are dear - if you want to swim with dolphins etc but on the whole your pound goes a long way. Oh and avoid school holidays here (esp all of Jan), it's like August in europe, busy and expensive.

[august24]

I think now with the exchange rate, you could afford a great holiday in the USA. I am going home(I am from Boston) and I will actually save money by not spending most of our summer holiday in London! Food is really cheap in the USA, especially on the East Coast, you can find a place that provides breakfast, and then buy stuff for lunch at a grocery store. You can find cheap flights on both BA and Virgin if you book far enough in advance(sign up for their e-mails)

As I said I am from Boston, and we holiday in Cape Cod, you can find houses to rent for a week from $800, and do most of the cooking yourself. The beaches are nice and there are all sorts of fun kid things to do. I have to run and finish the children's dinner, but if you have any other questions let me know!!

[nutcracker]

Hmmm, thanks guys, will do a bit of research and see how i get on.

I wouldn't mind us only going on holiday every 2/3 yrs if it meant we could afford to go to mazing places like that.

I have only ever been to France and that was a school trip. I would like to visit more places and show them to my kids.

[fisil]

I'm the opposite - can't speak for the US, cos not been there, but NZ I can do ... There is loads of very cheap accomodation around - backpackers hostels (which would therefore have rooms that could hold the whole family) and most of them have free internet access too, so we could all come with! Food is not amazingly cheap, but you are looking at cheaper than eating out here. In fact most things are cheaper than here.

There is public transport, but you'd be best off hiring a car, and the country is just so amazing that you would want to do a lot of driving around to different places.

A holiday in NZ is a holiday of a lifetime. I went as a child (we were not allowed to leave lights on in rooms etc. in order to save up money to be able to go for a year in advance) and loved it so much that I wanted DP to see it all so we went two summers ago. He loved it so much that he wants us to go back when our children (including those not yet conceived) are old enough to appreciate it. It is such an amazing place that it is worth a lot of financial sacrifice to go!

[tallulah]

Don't know about NZ because I've never been there, but we always travel on a budget. We shop around for the cheapest deals & work out what we want to do when we get there. We've been to Orlando twice (once without kids!) & couldn't afford to do Disney AND Universal, so just did Universal. People say to us "I wouldn't go to Orlando & not do Disney" but we cut our cloth accordingly! We stay in the more budget motels rather than on site which also cuts your costs down.

Food in the States tends to be cheaper than here & if your kids are little (as I think they are?) they eat free when you buy an adult meal in a lot of places. Ours were all too old to benefit from the offers (when they were tiny it was way off budget).

You just need to do a lot of research & a lot of legwork & you can keep the costs right down.