How to become less obsessed with booking holidays?

[freshlinensheets]

I am definitely on the spectrum, and think this is one behaviour I can partly blame to that.

I go through phases of getting obsessed with booking a holiday. Even if I don’t really need one as I went on one 3 months ago, I always have to have the next one or two holidays planned. I get obsessed with finding the cheapest route possible. Finding the best value hotels. Going to the best beaches or finding the best guide.

When I’m in one of these phases, it’s all I can think about. I’ll sneak off to the loo at work to check if the flight prices have changed. It becomes an issue.

If I can’t get my own way and book a trip, I go into a foul mood. Even if it’s justified that I don’t need to go to Spain after visiting Portugal 6 months ago. I become upset if Dh refuses to look at the millionth hotel I’ve found (and quite rightly).

How do I snap out of these phases? Is it just me?

I'm the same! We have 5 booked between now and half term. In the summer it's only cheap UK breaks in our own caravan, but in Feb it's all inc in Lanzarote and Turkey in October. I spend ages, sometimes weeks looking for the best deals on hotels and flights, Skyscanner, Google flights, kayak etc. TBH half the time I don't really care where we go as long as I'm getting the best deal possible and it meets our requirements (weather good, nice hotel, things to occupy the kids).

I would also add, that as long as it isn't getting you into debt, then see it as your own little indulgence.

Agree with pp, as long as you can afford it don't worry! It's your hobby, enjoy it. I'm the same and for me the planning is half the fun!

I am exactly the same so I can’t help you. I think it’s nice to have something in the near future to look forward to and help you get through your tough days at work etc. as long as you aren’t suffering financially because of this I think it’s a great way to live! Life isn’t just for going through the motions waking up, going to work and repeating. We work to make money so why shouldn’t some of that be spent seeing the world, relaxing and having fun!

No help from me either! I would call it almost a hobby. I spend a lot of time planning and researching holidays.

Wow, I hate researching holidays! It is so overwhelming and stressful - so many choices, and the constant fear that the weather might not be nice, when the whole point of holidays is to escape awful British weather. I become obsessionally desolate at the possibility of flying across the world at vast expense only to find yet more grey drizzle.

All of you who enjoy this should go into business finding holidays for people like me who can’t cope with thinking about it!

I'm also autistic, and love doing this too. It's a very satisfying dopamine- inducing activity. In fact, I'm known amongst my friends as the local authority on Interrail (you really should get into Interrailing, it's satisfyingly complex!), and they all come to me for advice, which enables me to bang on about it 😆.
Having said that, this looks as if it's impinging on your day to day life. Perhaps get another, parallel interest, one that's easier to gratify? I'm into very specific types of animals at the moment- have you ever heard of the Pyrenean Desman?? It's quite a sociable obsession, too- there are very few people, not even neurotypicals, who can resist a good Pallas' cat video I find 😊.

I also enjoy my holiday more knowing that I got a good deal. We have previously stayed in all inclusive hotels used by the likes of TUI etc. By booking direct with the hotel and using low cost airlines, we have saved hundreds off some holidays. Granted you don't get the luggage allowance but we have learnt to manage with carry on only. Less washing when we get home and we can wash items in the sink while we're away if we get low. Also I don't like getting the package holiday coaches to the hotel as they can take forever constantly stopping to drop people off before you.

This is basically a thread for all the people who answer the questions in the "Holidays" topic, isn't it? 😆

I have only started looking at Mumsnet recently and immediately came to this section. So yes pp, probably! I am not diagnosed autistic but as a 50 year old female, this is not unusual. I have many traits and my 12 year old son has ASD so probably inherited it from me.

😂 pleased it isn’t just us! We had a holiday in October 23 and January 24, we had been home two full days, DH said about time we booked another one!

Def not like that with holidays (actually like a previous poster find it so stressful looking at holidays and it’s too big an expense to justify with small children at the moment) but similar with home improvements and doing up the house. It’s never ending, always something to book but also addictive too, despite the constant saving and spending cycle until it’s done!

I've worked in travel for 20 years, I make sure I've got at least the next 3 trips booked, and I absolutely love everything about planning them. I like planning what I'll pack, the timings for each day, what we'll all wear, where we'll stay, what we'll see. I watch travel shows, read travel books, blogs etc. I consider it the real deal, true love!

The downside is my 5 year old gave me a bit of a grilling on why I haven't taken them to Italy yet so maybe I'm creating a bit of an expectation!

One is enough for me as I book one and then the airline keep changing the flights, that keeps me busy!

I'm the same (neuro-typical though) and have made travel my career so I get to research destinations and hotels all day long and get paid for it, plus get discounts and various perks when I travel myself. Win-win.

@Roselilly36
I've booked a holiday whilst on holiday before 🤣

So to answer your actual question, no advice, except perhaps a change of career.

This is really geeky of me, but I actually like to ROUGHLY, not getting out a calculator or anything, work out how much we would have spent at home in a similar week. So if you are going all inc you would have spent £100 on food for the week, Sunday breakfast at Wether spoons, a takeaway, £20 on electric, couple of bottles of wine, etc etc. and then deduct that from the price of the holiday 🤣

I know lots of people like this (not me, I don’t have the money or time sadly).

Would you get the same buzz by planning and booking for someone else? It sounds like you have a skill!

I'm the same OP, absolutely obsessed. We have between 5 and 7 holidays a year. However I just book easyjet flights as early as possible and narrow down airbnb's to my favourites before I run them past anyone. I love the researching though.

Also want to say that I can't even look at booking any holidays for the forseeable future 😪 (due to a number of unfortunate circumstances which I won't bore you with) so just feel fortunate that you are able to and enjoy it! Life is for living ❤️

I think planning and booking for other people is different as you get blamed if they don't like it. Or you feel guilty.

I love booking holidays, it's nothing to do with autism, I'm not autistic, I just love planning holidays. I should be a complex trip planner for people!

Thankfully I'm currently planning 3 trips ... fun or what, want to help me op?

It's like that in our house too.

We went to Tenerife over Christmas and New Year, we're going to Cape Verde at Easter and Turkey in August.

We've also booked Egypt for Easter 2025.

Last night we started looking for summer 2025. DP is 50 in the August so we're looking for somewhere a bit luxurious.

It is a mini obsession but my DP is just as bad as me.