How do you actually plan a holiday..

[Citygirlypop]

How do you actually book a holiday? And get enthusiastic Rather than terrified? I mean how do you find a place, a hotel, research the area? I find it incredibly daunting. It’s also not helped as DH is always too busy to think about it. Says I’m to sort it Then never likes the idea of wherever I’ve chosen.
help!
last year I REALLY put my foot down and got to visit a relative abroad and go away for a weekend - a milestone birthday. Now DS has asked if we can do something at half term. I could visit friend abroad but I know DH doesn’t get on with friend. So we will have the usual petulance. It doesn’t help that DH earns and I have a small small part time job.
DH has just announced he wants to go to Europe in the summer. How on earth do I begin to book that? I have a 15 yr old very nerdy son.
budgets are tight of course. I found the Venice lido a while back , but no. Can’t remember why now.
everyone else seems to love planning and are good at it. 😳

It really depends whether you are confident enought to book flights / travel / accommodation separately or prefer a package.
I have young DC and much prefer to book a package, so once I know what our budget is, I usually look online at the various travel companies to get an idea of prices and where is within budget.
I Narrow down a few destinations and hotels according to what we like and what's important to us. Then I start to look at reviews and decide from there.
I have spent many many hours doing the above !!
You say your DH wants to go to Europe - what Country / region ? What type of holiday? What are your interests? There's your starting points.

If the budget is tight I would avoid Venice, it's possible to watch the finances but even then it's pricy. Plus the public transport is £££££

i spend many hours on YouTube and tripadvisor planning holidays, I absolutely love travelling

I love planning so I'm happy to spend ages working things out. Sometimes I start by looking at reasonably-timed and priced flights and then explore what's there ( I love a trip to the library for a pile of guides) and get a feel for accommodation prices with air BnB and booking. Also, if driving, check on car hire early on as some places can blow the budget.

If you are feeling stuck, you could always post your budget here and see what other people did with a similar age DC?

With a lot of stress, indecision and difficulty tbh!

Decide if you want beach or city, hotel, villa or all inclusive or self catering apartments? What time of year( think how hot continental Europe is in summer) and will you enjoy exploring in heat or want to lie by a pool. Once you know those things you can start looking. Try Expedia .

Do a package. A company like TUI have loads of options outside of the stereotypical 'Brits by a pool in Spain' vibe.

Decide on a couple of locations you're interested in and filter by location. Pick which airports are suitable. Put your dates in. Put your budget in. Look through the options.

You don't need to plan it all out if you don't like planning.

You do it by having lots of casual chats at dinner with Dh and nerdy son. Say: DH, you mentioned you fancied going to Europe this summer - did you have an area in mind? Then ask the whole family - what do people fancy - a city and some culture? hiking? water sport?

If they want different things (include your own preferences) try a split destination. E.g. Slovenia - Ljubljana for castle, museums, markets etc then Lake Bled for water sport, swimming, more castles and Bohinj for hiking.

Once you have checked passports are in date, chosen a place and some activities, then look up hotels in your price range on Trip Advisor or look for airbnbs. Then check out the hotels on Booking.com and Secret Escapes. Check flights/ferries etc before you book as some days flights might be much cheaper or at a more convenient time. Hold a hotel, book a flight, confirm the hotel. Get insurance from one of the comparison websites. Then book anything you fancy doing so you have a rough itinerary planned. I like to book a good restaurant for a couple of meals (never first day in case of flight delays and jet lag) maybe a show or concert or excursions.

Then I do an itinerary of what we are doing when and mail it to family. I LOVE planning holidays.

Bog standard beach holiday - I use a package operator (jet2, Tui, etc). Narrow down to locations I want to travel to, board options, budget, and save several in the app that I like the look of.

I'll then look at reviews, surrounding areas, etc. They are by far the easiest to book, flights, transfers, and extras can be all sorted on one go. Some of them now also do city breaks and villa holidays as well.

City breaks, DIY Holidays. I'll pick a few locations and go on Sky Scanner for flights. Then I'll find an airbnb or hotel on booking.com in my desired location, using their map features.

If I had to do multiple locations, I'd book the flights, ferries, car hire etc first and then book the accommodation to fit.

I suppose the first question you need to ask is what you all want from the holiday. Beach, pool, city break, sightseeing, hiking, and then narrow down to a few locations.

Eurocamp is also good if you are on a budget and are OK with the ferry and driving abroad, and they have tons of locations.

Another who loves planning and booking holidays. BUT- the destination is decided by everyone first. Once we agree on the place (not just the country but the region- eg beach holiday/city break) I love going online and researching all accommodation/flight options (or train/ferry) along with a list of things to do/places to see then present a shortlist. Then we pick which seems most appealing.
I realise that sounds very anal! But it works for us. Guess who is marching through the airport with a plastic travel wallet and all the apps on her phone. DH is the bewildered looking guy with the wheely case not quite sure where he is going. I also Trip advisor all the local restaurants in advance so have a list of those too 😂

Travel agent for twenty years here love planning holidays. If you don't then hand it over to a travel agent or a travel counsellor.

I sometimes find how far ahead some trips seem to need planning a bit annoying.

Since before our DC was born, we’ve visited a Holiday Property Bond place every spring. The MIL is the bondholder but is 90 now and no longer has this Spring holiday with us. DH has 3 siblings, only one other one is interested in this kind of holiday. I’ve been the booker and organiser of the holidays for a few years now. The Spring holiday is booked 2 years in advance. Booking opens early in the morning 2 years in advance of the selected dates. I once sat on hols in Cornwall and booked a Summer hol for the SIL 😂 . Sometimes getting to the venues takes planning. We tend to stick to Lake District. We don’t drive and I’m familiar with the trains and buses local situation. I book an internet shop and - post 2020 - some restaurants. Plus any taxis. Do I enjoy the planning? Not really, but I prefer being the person who chooses the apartment.

As a family we have never really gone in for package deals. Our honeymoon was one, as it was a present so it seemed the best way to organise it. We went on a city break. On our arrival day there were 2 couples with the same your operator arriving on the same flight. The other couple were on a ‘go as you please’ option but got on the coach. When we left to come home the tour guide announced ‘Oh, you’re the honeymoon couple we left at the airport’ 😂

Sone UK and abroad destinations seem to need booking well ahead. I’ve been in the habit of booking our UK summer hols well in advance. Usually about a year ahead or more. I think it’s mad but I don’t want to miss out on a room or apartment of choice. Post 2020, I book nearly every meal out for the summer break as far ahead as I can.

First I'm thinking your son is needy, not nerdy? Please explain.

Secondly, you must know what you and DH enjoy in a vacation. Sitting around a pool? Going to museums? Get a bit of a focus and start from there. Your DH sounds a bit selfish, to be honest; expecting you to plan it all then complain he doesn't like our choice. Make a list of priorities.

I know my DH loves a beach vacation. When we did a few weeks in France we did a bit of Brittany and Normandy for history (and family), then Paris for a few days, then south by train to Bandol to relax on the beach for 4 days before heading home. We had a marvelous time and we both got what we enjoyed from a holiday.

Try to narrow down a location and go from there.

I absolutely hate it. I’ve only got it right once. Currently trying to plan one and DH is being extremely unhelpful. Too many variables and trip advisor reviews put me off everything

It takes time and effort to plan a holiday. I suspect that's why travel agents are so popular.

My tips:

1. first determine the length of your holiday and your budget
2. choose a destination
3. google itineraries for those places and pick and match what you want to see, then you'll slowly be able to build up a loose itinerary of your own
4. look for suitable hotel and transport
5. fill up your itinerary and have some backup options for bad weather, etc

Generally I do that then and then get DH to take care of the lunch/dinner reservations.

So when I was in my 20's I'd just book a flight to Thailand for instance and just work it out once I got there

We knew to head to Kho san road for a few nights to get our bearings then book coaches to wherever or trains later on to wherever or even an internal flight.

You could always always find accommodation as people come and go on a daily basis

As for places in Europe we'd just book through a travel agent now online and get a flight and hotel after a bit of online research

With DC it's all been package holidays like Mark Warner when they were little outside summer holidays so Late June or Tui during the summer holidays because they do often free kids places

It's trickier now they are older but can be more adventurous so for the first time I'm a bit stumped actually myself

Like someone else said, with a lot of time, energy and stress (I always end up losing sleep or work time when I go down the research rabbit hole! But maybe then the holiday seems more worth it 🤷
I used to live it in the days of just getting a Lonely Planet from the library so I think
choice and information overwhelm has made it stressful AND meeting everyone’s needs. My partner can’t handle the planning and wouldn’t bother going away if wasn’t for me, but he loves it once there. My kids are neurodivergent and have varying needs which is also a struggle. However I always persist as we always have a great experience!

Some great tips previously given. I always start with some kind of lead - I keep a
list in of places that I hear about/friends have been and look good. I check flights and go by what is affordable. I often tie holidays in with visiting friends/family eg. Start with Munich with family then drive to Slovenia through Austria. I find a beach/lake plus city works well for us.
Use booking.com for accommodation, checking reviews also on tripadvisor.

Mumsnet is great for ideas of course, have had great help with itineraries, also tripadvisor forums.

I’m someone who loves planning holidays as much as going on them. But there’s no point me telling you what I do because you don’t enjoy that process. Definitely get a professional involved! Either a travel agent on the high street, or look at online holiday companies like InnTravel, Intrepid etc. I think you’ll feel much more confident with their guidance and support. Enjoy your holiday! Don’t fall into the trap of making it a chore.

I’d start by looking at Skyscanner, put some dates in and it will bring up flights to all countries in price order that will help you know what sort of places will be in your budget.

My teens preferred city breaks, museums, shops, historical sites etc, if they are doing history GCSE is there somewhere that would fit in with that they might find interesting?

Mine still vote Krakow in Poland as their favourite holiday.

Just use a travel agent. I do, I tell her where and when I want to go, give her my budget and then see what she comes up with and take it from there.

I usually start with a place I think I might want to go to, when and how long for, then look at accommodation and what travel is feasible and the cost. Look at online reviews on different sites. Look at the risks - what if my flight is cancelled, what are the cancellation policies on the booking/hotel/villa, what if the company goes bust etc and what does my insurance cover. Looking at whether it is worth/possible get a package or doing things separately. What is it like to eat in the hotel or the nearby area? Do I need a car? What will I be doing there? What's the weather going to be like? Is it an active or relaxing holiday? If it's a short city break, how close is the hotel to the centre? Are there any activities I need to pre-book?

I would start with a few alternative destinations in mind . For me, whereabouts I would travel is very weather-dependent - so if I was looking at the main summer months I would be looking at UK or north Europe only . Then I have other destinations in mind for cooler seasons . City breaks only when the weather is cooler . DH and I will chat about destination and unless we both fancy it then it's a non-starter .

Then I would check out the price of flights to a couple of the destinations I fancied (I only fly from my local airport) , then vrbo, booking.com and AirB&B for accommodation . But I always know what I have in mind for the accommodation . I like how nowadays you can see inside each apartment /villa and exactly where they are situated compared to the local town / services / activities .

When it comes to booking we always book the flight first .

TBH @Citygirlypop I think that while your family situation is that your husband asks you to do the organising and then moans he doesn't like it - any of us telling you how we book our holidays isn't going to help you . You've mentioned about him being the earner and you working part time - does he value the other things that you are bringing to the partnership and it's not just about earning power ?

Think about where I'd like to go, obviously, but also the time of year (some places won't work at certain times), amount of time off work, can I fly to my preferred destination from a local airport (or can I get a boat/train). How much do I want to spend? What are any potential pitfalls (e.g. I won't/ be going to Paris during the Olympics as too busy and costly).
Once I'm sure about the location(s) and whether I can get there, I'll book flights. Then look for and book a hotel, taking into account online recommendations, but not slavishly.... e.g. TripAdvisor has some value, but there's also a lot of nonsense on there. Somewhere like the Times and Telegraph travel websites generally have good info.
For any destination that seems more complex, I might consider a package, but only with certain companies that I have used before and feel are reliable.
At some point, I'll consult my husband, but we have very similar tastes so he usually just endorses my choices 😂
So far, my gut feeling usually gets us to the right places!

Hello! This is soooooo helpful, thank you! I’ve put all your tips into an action planning list.
Now to ease myself in. 2 years in advance!😮 I find it really hard to ‘see’ time and think ahead. Any tips for that?!
twoofmine and kingsx1 exactly what I used to do. ( can you not take kids to Thailand?it was always my dream to backpack with them when they were little ish) Sigh,Good old lonely planet- everyone stayed in the same hostels! It did seem easier then.
shinyapple I hear you, thank you for your concern. He can be very stubborn, doesn’t really ever want to go anywhere. I think he prioritizes work too much, but he is the main earner so..also good to hear other people on here have problems with partners re planning hols. Thank goodness! I always imagine everyone else is sussed and living their best instagram life. 😁