Apologies if this is long.
Holidays in our family are nearly always camping and we've spent a lot of time in Devon for example. We've also seen quite a bit of Scotland. However, because DH is a police officer and never, ever gets any time off in summer, it's usually me taking the children away while he carries on working and him joining us on rest days. He also uses a lot of his leave to take his army cadets away (we live in a socially deprived area and are very short of adult volunteers for anything and as he points out to me, if he didn't take them away, the detriment would be to already disadvantaged children). DH is a police officer of the best part of two decades and I teach part time so we can and do take the children to the things they enjoy like theatre, museums, galleries, local events, festivals etc and they have hobbies. They certainly don't miss out but we've never had big family holidays.
This year, my parents invited us to a long weekend at Center Parcs a few weeks ago and due to how DH's rest days fell, we booked 3 nights in an Airbnb in Northumberland over Easter. Those were our holidays this year. Sadly, DH had a nasty accident on day one of CP and ended up in quite unwell in hospital. He needed surgery once he'd recovered from the initial injuries, sod's law saw the surgery scheduled on day 2 of us going to Northumberland. So the DC went to grandparents for a few days and I took DH to a specialist hospital miles away for surgery. The Easter holidays were a wash out and we didn't even manage a day out as a family as DH's recovery and ongoing concussion meant he wasn't well at all.
DH's work have - for the first time in his entire career - found a way to give him time off in summer in recognition of things being a bit crap right now. He is on light duties for another 4 weeks and needs more x-rays to make sure he's put back together/holding together properly. He has his normal 4 rest days and 6 whole days after that. 10 days off together in summer! That never happens. We talked about it and thought maybe we could go abroad for a week. DD is mid GCSEs, DS is doing SATs and it seems like a landmark summer. It's been a tough year in myriad ways. I got a bit excited/carried away and ordered passports. We talked about it with the children, they both said Amsterdam was somewhere they wanted to see. Me too.
I've tried my hardest to make it work. I've tried looking at package deals, booking things separately, ferries rather than flights, trains rather than ferries. I can't find any way of affording it. I knew summer holiday breaks are expensive but I'm flabbergasted.
I'm trying to make it work in my head. I considered camping via Eurocamp or similar but we've camped. We always camp. We're campers. The children want to do something else and if I'm honest, me too. I take them away myself every summer and I usually don't mind the whole putting up tents in the rain, beans over a stove, making it fun stuff. I've done it for years. But part of me does wonder what it's like not to sweep the groundsheet each morning and to have to walk to the toilet block in wellies at 6am. And I do love all that stuff. When talking to DD's friends about their trips to Costa Rica or Spain or Disney or whatever, I've never felt a single pang of envy. But right now, I'm feeling so miserable.
DD is doing French GCSE and her answer to the oral q about holidays is a very honest "we camp and my Mum works really hard, it's always an adventure and I used to love it but it's become repetitive and I'd like to see the world when I'm older". I know it's an effort to use lots of tenses(!), but there is probably some truth in there. Definitely some truth in there. I know it.
So do we stay in the UK? I thought about staying somewhere really nice but tbh, we tend to only use accommodation as a base so what about some amazing days out. I asked DD this morning and she said "what about Ireland?" Probably a good suggestion actually. Or Wales maybe but I'm aware I want to go there because of the mining museum and I'm trying to make it special for the children. Trouble is, one likes art, history and galleries and the other likes anything naff, ride-based or celluloid.
Can anybody suggest anything? Location? Anywhere considered. Ways to cut costs? What works for you? Should I scrimp on accommodation and spend on days out?
I don't like hotels really as eating out is always so expensive and we like to cook/watch a film in an evening. Self catering preferred.
Is there a brilliant holiday for two 40 somethings, a 16yo girl and 11yo boy that we can actually afford? Has anybody ever put a holiday on a credit card?
If it's all just pie in the sky, I'll forget about it entirely but I'm ill in bed with Covid and feeling glum and wishing I could book just a week away with my family who've had a challenging year in so many ways.
Budget? I don't know. We usually book a £25 per night camping pitch. Everything in Amsterdam was coming in at 3k for just flights and accommodation. Under 2k, we could probably borrow from savings and cut right back to afford it but I don't think that buys a week abroad does it?
I feel a bit of a failure that at this point in my life, I can't afford a week's holiday for us but at the same time, feel like an ungrateful wazzock because holidays are a luxury and we could afford to camp for a week somewhere quite easily but we are wanting to do more and that feels ridiculous and silly and the sadness is pathetic isn't it? It's probably the Covid talking.