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?

Where do you find these deals?!

UK stays are definitely cheaper for us than abroad. Family of 5
£180 haven caravan
£350 cottage
£500 center parcs long weekend term time utilising school inset day.
Even adding in food and fuel it's never more than around £600 for us. Where we can we use tesco vouchers to book cottages so even cheaper.

I'm all ears for ways to make an abroad trip cheaper. I know driving to France and doing their version of center parcs can be a cheaper option.

We are taking more that we previously did. Most kids are out of Uni and on their own. We have more disposable income.

We are definitely having more holidays. It is a combination of having just paid our mortgage off and the fact that WFH, I feel I need to get away more often. 1 or 2 abroad then 3 or 4 shorter UK breaks.

The first time I found out people did so many holidays was on Mumsnet. I don’t think normal people can afford it!

I am quite normal, on a wage above average but not a higher earner by any means.

I don’t own a house, don’t drive, don’t drink or smoke, buy a few clothes once a year, no beauty treatments and don’t spend more than £100 a month eating out. I live a very “cheap” lifestyle so after bills and food, I allocate my money to travel and holidays.

I probably won’t be able to do it in a few years when we’ll be at a different stage in life, so for now I enjoy it as much as I can.

I realise reading this thread that technically we have three holidays per year, which sounds like an awful lot! But we home educate and there are two off peak caravan holidays for £49 each, plus a week long camping trip. All UK. Not exactly living the dream…. But they include all of the kids’ in depth socialising, most of the year’s educational trips, they are a technology detox, and they add up to 15 days. Plus it usually pisses it down.

We are away on 10 breaks this year. Longest being 10 days, then a week and the rest are 4 nights to places in UK and Europe. We are retired though

Haven't been abroad in 6.5 years. And that was a weekend in Amsterdam on the Eurostar.

Travelling and holidays are important to me and my husband so yes we try to take several a year. We have young kids so depending on a year is two or three. We prioritise it over a bigger house or more expensive clothes but we are high earners so we don’t go without and still can do pensions etc.
bit for example I will prioritise holidays for a family over private schools so we are doing state school.

I also didn’t grow up rich and didn’t travel until I was in my twenties after I started working and earning well.

before I had kids I tried to travel all the time, multiple weekends abroad, never was in the UK over any bank holiday, and my only regret is that I didn’t have enough money to do even more long haul holidays like more Latin America or Asia (I did a bit but not enough) or Australia

We have less holidays now than when I was a kid but we travel the world whereas my Mother was a teacher and we would spend 6 weeks in France with family in the summer and then 2 weeks at Christmas, probably with a cottage holiday at Easter in the UK. We never flew whereas now 90% of the time we go abroad to different places.

Most people I know are not going on multiple holidays. Most people I know have cut out the holidays pretty much altogether, or scaled them back to the basics, due to the COL crisis.

I don't move in affluent circles.

Fewer holidays - I've a ds starting university in September

Yes as my name suggests! My DH works a very stressful job and travels alot with it. We see very little of him so yes when he takes annual leave we go away. This year so far we have been to Spain, Centerparcs, going to Spain again in 2 weeks, Portugal in July, Centerparcs again in August and Italy in September. I feel really lucky that we can (just about!) Afford it all but we work extremely hard and see very little of my DH on a weekly basis even if he is home. He goes abroad for weeks at a time which is hard so these holidays somewhat make up in quality time. I think in general people taking more holidays but I know some, such as a family member finance on credit cards 😱 to just to keep up the Joneses type thing. We dont put ourselves in debt nor would we.

Growing up we had a touring caravan and with my parents being teachers we’d go away got most of the summer (I’m one of 6 kids). I didn’t fly until I was 11.

Now I take 5 ish holidays a year plus a few uk city breaks (that I don’t count as a holiday really. This year I’ve been to USA and canaries, and have family holiday to Italy and a girls holiday to Balearics coming up in summer. Also have a cottage booked in this country that there’s a big family group going.

my family love travelling. My parents are going on their 3rd holiday this year at the weekend.

we prob spend 10-12k a year on holidays (not including spending money). I’m very good at researching and finding deals.

I love holidays and I am going more since 2020. The year and a half of not being able to go made me re-think and it has become more of a priority. We don't do summer resort holidays in the summer holidays any more though - they are just too expensive. This year have had a city break in Florence, a city break to Valencia booked and a week in Greece in October for less than a week away in the summer used to cost us. So we're not spending loads more than we used too, but trying to make the money spread further.

For how many people? We go on quite a few trips a year but nowhere near this cost!

We usually do one mini break abroad just me and DH one week holiday abroad with the kids in the summer and one UK break. This year we’re taking two abroad holidays with kids, and the other breaks too.

I think we spend about £5-6k a year on holidays which is our limit. We earn almost £200k a year so clearly our money is being sucked up elsewhere …

We do a few breaks a year, more so now I have left teaching and can take booked leave outside of peak season. We look for good prices and usually use Air bnb as we like to explore and eat out or cook local produce. Last year we did Munich long weekend, a week in a hired motorhome in The Lake District with our dogs, French alps in the summer, and a week in Northern France at Christmas again with the dogs.
This year we have been for a week in Marrakesh, a week in Wales with the dogs, French Alps at the end of the month, then 4 days in Croatia in August, Sicily in September then back to Northen France with the dogs at Christmas. Having trips to look forward to helps keep my spirits up and we make it affordable by being clever with dates.

No mortgage, all the DCs through Uni means we have a very comfortable disposable income. Which in turns allows us to go abroad four or five times a year plus a number of UK breaks. We tend to chose small boutique hotels as that works for us but recognise they come with a price tag to match. I do recognise that the ability to avoid peak season / school holidays also makes a big financial difference.

Growing up, we went to the beach for a week every year. In the last week of the holidays because it was cheaper. It was still something most we knew didn't get.

Now, at DD's school, which is in a lower socio economic area, kids are going abroad constantly or to the beach, etc.

I think priorities have changed, it's cheaper, and online booking is making it cheaper & more accessible.

Yes many (not all) people take far more holidays and short breaks. One week in Devon was all we and any of my friends could hope for as kids in the 70’s/early 80’s, by the time I reach my teens we managed a fortnight in a static caravan in France on a big site, nobody went on extra trips unless they had grandparents who lived away, the boy who went to Disney world (paid for by a charity because he lost his mum in horrific circumstances) was a real outliner, we were in awe. My own children got 1-2 short breaks, trips to grandparents by the sea and some years 2-3 weeks abroad, other years Scotland or Lake District

@StressedStudentPara

im going away a few times including for a month and it still doesn’t reach this amount. I’ve never spent close to that, not even our honeymoon with private tours (that costs around 4K all in)

Less than we used to.
I'm 35, in my early 20s I would go abroad several times a year but always to a hostel, cheap European flights or drive etc. Always self catering. I was a teacher and school holidays limited me massively!
We now have a 5yo and 3yo, nursery has cost around £50k in the last 4 years. Oh the holidays we could have had (joking obviously - a bit).
I've not been abroad for 9 years but we are about to go this year to an all inclusive in Menorca which is the first of that kind of holiday I've ever been on. It'll be several years before we can afford it again (and we earn a normal slightly above average wage, both working full time). I don't know how people do it.

We take more holidays now than we did 15 years ago. Back then we were less financially stable but still managed an abroad holiday (sometimes every other year), a week in Cornwall in May and a new years U.K. week over new year.
Now, finances have improved and we are stable and comfortable and have 2-3 abroad holidays per year (one of those being just dh and I) and the others with the dc, and then 2-3 uk breaks. Luckily I get a generous leave allowance and dh is self employed.
i also have city breaks abroad with friends at least once a year and dh does the same with his friends.
I love being on holiday.