Do you think people are taking more holidays these days? Are you?

[holidayQs26]

I remember when I was younger and reflecting on what I wanted to afford it was for one nice holiday (abroad) a year. This is what felt like the aspirational ideal growing up, not that we could afford it mind!

When budgeting since having a family of my own I have always saved for one holiday a year but it feels like more and more people I know are going on multiple holidays a year now. Some people I work with have some kind of break or holiday every period of annual leave they take.

Admittedly it’s probably just the fact I grew up poorer but now work in a firmly middle class field. But I do find myself feeling sad if a school holiday is coming up and we haven’t got a break planned! Even finding myself feel somewhat awkward when people ask!

Have you noticed this?

yes weird isn’t it. As a kid we had 2 weeks in a caravan over summer, and sometimes we went in the car to stay with my dad’s family in Hull for a week or so at Easter or half terms. We also had a lot of sleepovers at grandparents who lived in a caravan near the beach.
My parents never really went anywhere alone or without us but this year I’ve got two trips with girlfriends booked, DH has got one with his mates and we have two weekends together
Nowadays my kids have 2 weeks abroad in the summer, camping at May half term, Center Parcs at Easter, often a caravan holiday with my parents, plus extras - this year we are also taking them to Denmark for another week at the end of summer, last October we had two weeks in Florida etc. I am not sure if it’s because I have got more money than my parents or that everyone is just doing more and spending more more more.
I do love it though and of all the overconsumption it’s the thing I’d get rid of last.

Yes we go on a few holidays a year and so do most people I know. Certainly more often than my family did when I was a child. We're a bit higher up the income scale, but not that much.

On average real incomes are higher than they were 40 years ago (despite what some people seem to think!) and travel is one of the areas in which people are spending that extra income. Eating out is another example. Plus flights are much cheaper than they were then.

We spend most of my holiday allowance abroad. Staying in the uk is not cheaper unless you just stay at home and go to the nearest playground.

Flying is relatively cheap, airport connectivity is better than ever (unless you're very rural etc) and UK holidays (esp if you have children) are just as expensive - so I think the cultural shift to going abroad multiple times a year makes sense.

We go on one big, 6 week longhaul holiday every few years and then nothing except the odd cheap Europe city break for a weekend in between. I remember someone acting as though our last big holiday was really indulgent/expensive and seeming surprised about it, and then I reminded them I hadn't been anywhere outside of the UK for four years before that. So I think different things suit different people, too!

I do more holidays but i am single and childless.

It might be their ages. Lots of people I know are just retiring and having lots of holidays while they are still fit enough.

I think they are, especially young people compared to when I was young. I don't go on more than one, but my son seems to go on about 5 a year, of varying lengths, and young people I work with seem to go on a couple abroad.

I just want to know more about the £12k hols. Mine this summer will be £3k all in and that’s the most I have ever spent. That’s for 3 but usually I do 2k for 5 and go once a year. We don’t have time for more as sports and other things get I the way but I would balk at spending more really.

@Toobero we do the US a lot and that often comes in over £10,000 for the 4 of us. Largely due to theme parks though (Florida/California). Japan seems to be growing in popularity and I’m sure that’ll be over £10k.

We only go abroad once every few years, and that's to the UK to stay with family. The rest of the time we might stay a few days in a cottage at a holiday camp but otherwise no holidays, haven't been able to afford it. I'm in the running for a promotion right now, if I get it maybe we can afford to holiday every year, but my focus after this year's holiday is to save up so I can go travelling Europe with DD when she finishes high school.

Can I ask what's the 2k for 5 holiday?

Where are you going, my holiday to Greece 4star cost nowhere near that amount.

Yes, but we do UK breaks, so can afford 3 or 4 a year, and don't need to go in school holidays. Lake District, Wales, Devon, Scotland, it varies, love being away and exploring.

Me too! Our big holidays have come to about 2.5k recently (2 weeks, Europe) and that's felt like a lot! We budget 5k a year for a big 2 week holiday, a 1 week uk holiday and some camping.

As a kid all I remember is 1 or 2 weeks in the UK in summer. Otherwise just at home or grandparents.

In my social circle yes. Growing up we went on one holiday a year, Pontins until I was around 8 and then somewhere in the med. Now we try to do something most holidays. We don't spend much on cars, clothing or eating out in UK though, holidays are definitely our priority

Totally agree with this re. cost of UK breaks vs abroad. We did a weekend in centre parcs in December and Fri-Mon that was £1700, we could quite literally have gone abroad for 3 nights for the same or cheaper.

I go abroad several times a year and have no children, so that frees up a lot of money. I also actively prioritise travel over things many people spend regularly on: no gym, nails, botox, filler, brows, hairdresser, cleaner, car payment, or regular takeaways. I don't buy many clothes, don't have sky or streaming services. Don't buy lunch or regular coffees. Use an old phone on a £2 a month plan. It's just where I choose to put my money.

I had a poor upbringing and never went abroad until I was 18, paying for it myself from a part-time job. So it's always felt like something worth working towards. I earn well now and make the most of it.

I also think travel is genuinely better value than people realise. A week in Europe eating at good cafés, visiting museums and galleries, feels far better value to me than spending the equivalent on pub dinners and cinema trips at home.

Yes we take a lot of holidays, often £150 each for the flights and then about £70 a night on airbnb's. I would want to be away for 6 months at least if I was spending 12 grand.

I rarely have a big holiday abroad. I do have 2 or 3 short breaks per year in the UK. I look for good deals too, usually go Feb or October half term rather than summer holidays which are more expensive.

I’m travelling more and more the older I get, as there are so many places I want to explore and I don’t know how many years I have left where I will be able to do it. I am sixty now.

Five holidays abroad booked this year. I think it was the same last year. I live in a tiny house, drive a twelve year old car, and buy clothes from Vinted. That allows me to spend most of my disposable income on holidays.

I know people who must spend more than i earn on holidays. They are always going somewhere. And it's not Butlins either - cruises, safaris, city breaks, theatre weekends etc. I can't afford foreign travel so we camp or get cheap stays in caravans or apartments in the UK for a few days. It's amazing what you find if you shop around and then plan things to do around the availability of accommodation.

Could that be part of it? You are spending a lot on one holiday. Clearly it is something you want and that’s ok. People book and travel in different ways. I travel in a way where it extends my budget and I get multiple trips per year from it, including a long haul one this year. It’s also dependent on family size, we have two of us although kids aren’t usually much more after paying full price for the first 2 people

People definitely take more holidays now. Growing up, we had one holiday a year, either camping, occasionally a cottage or staying with relatives who handily lived at the seaside, always in the UK. Sometimes we had other short breaks, but always the same type of thing as our holiday.

As an adult, I first went on holiday aged 26, although I had been on short breaks. Now, we have a main holiday in the summer - either abroad or UK - and 2 or 3 short breaks too.

I think there are more places to go now. Travel as a leisure activity is more of a thing. No one ever used to go on city breaks - half of Europe was inaccessible behind the Iron Curtain. I remember being amazed the first time I heard someone say they were going to Prague. Flights were not cheap either. People also seem to go on cruises a lot now too whereas they were for well-off people.

I don't know if things will carry on this way. The environmental impact must be huge and wars & unrest may curtail things.

Yes , most people i know (from different financial bracket) go on multiple holidays every year. Probably 80% of people i know. The rest appear to be families who prioritise other spends rather than unable to afford holidays.
I know people on UC who go on multiple holidays a year too, It´s just become a bit of a thing to do.

I agree with pp who said staying in the UK is a very expensive alternative though, unless you literally don’t do anything you can end up spending a similar amount to what a week abroad would’ve cost.

My trip to Lapland cost less than Centerparcs 😱