Tell Asda about how your holidays have changed now you have children - £300 voucher to be won!NOW CLOSED

[JustineBMumsnet]

Holidays can be a great way to recharge your batteries. However, holidaying with children in tow may be a far cry from the relaxing breaks you were used to before they came along.

Asda would like to hear about your holidays have changed since having children.

Are journeys that were once the exciting beginning of your trip now a time where you have to juggle loads of luggage and the dreaded “are we there yet” chorus from your DC? Maybe you’ve swapped your previous adventurous treks with more relaxing destinations or now consider the holidays you used to enjoy overrated? Perhaps your priorities when choosing a destination or accommodation have completely changed to encompass your children’s needs and entertainment?

Tell Asda about the ways your holidays have changed since you’ve had children by posting on the thread below. All who post will be entered into a prize draw where one MNer will win a £300 Asda voucher.

Thanks and good luck with the prize draw!

MNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs apply

[barbsbarbs]

holidays require lots of planning and preparation. basically it has to be asimple holiday destination, where there is a babysitting service and where everything is child friendly. going on holiday is hard work with children and we need some space during the holiday , so sometimes my mum will come with us

[mave]

It's exhausting but still absolutely brilliant,loads of fun and happy times! Wouldn't change it for the world!

[starlight36]

The obvious change is having to take holidays in school holidays and being stuck with paying the premium costs.

We have chosen just to go on UK holidays and prefer to self-cater as it just allows us all more space and we can eat when the children are hungry rather than when hotels serve food.

Beach time is never completely relaxing as you have to entertain /supervise the whole time. I love seeing the joy on their faces as they go to the beach for the first time / happily carrying their fishing nets and buckets and spades.

[mrsBeverleygoldberg]

We used to have holidays to please ourselves. Caribbean beach holidays, walking round beautiful cities admiring architecture, over16 spas, art galleries, sitting in pubs...
Now we go all inclusive, so they can drink as much fizzy pop as they like, see the food, as picking from a menu is impossible, all day in the pool on an inflatable, English language kids tv, visits to the zoo...
If we dare to go somewhere for us, so awkward, random wandering aimlessly, which leads to unseeingly walking in the dog poop you made them look at five seconds ago to avoid treading in, running in local people's path, who are just trying to get on with their life.
The joy of the family room. Children arguing because they are sharing a sofa bed, not being quiet, stop talking to them means talking and giggling, me and dh drinking wine we brought back to the room out of plastic cups...
But I can't compare to the joy we feel when they are happy. We holiday now to make them happy. I had an abusive childhood, so it is more important than pretty much anything that they are valued and loved. Time has passed so quickly that in a blink of an eye it will be back to me and dh doing holidays we love, rather than giving our dcs the holidays they love. We will miss them. We will drink cold wine in a glass at the bar.

[asuwere]

I wasn't too fussed about holidays before children, now I feel its important and I try to make sure we go away at least once a year - even just a long weekend in a caravan 90mins away gets them super excited and gives us all a nice change of scenery :)

[Tkw2014]

We used to go abroad twice a year but now I am too nervous to take my 2 on an aeroplane. Our holidays are now all UK based, and tend to be caravan/holiday park type trips. We love it though!

[sarah861421]

I am from the era when I was given a bottle of coke and a packet of crisps while my dad sat in the pub for 2 hours on holiday. Its so much easier now

[renas]

So much more fun, seeing them enjoying themselves, what lovely memories.

[moosexxx]

The major difference is the amount of luggage that we now need to take on holidays with us. As we tend to holiday in this country, lots of consideration is given to how we will entertain the children if there's a rainy day, or a rainy week.
So we try and find places with lots to do (in both fair weather and foul) and ensure that there is a lot of space in the place we are staying. This is too avoid anyone going stir crazy!

[Sid98]

My holidays are still the same

[Elizasmum02]

Not much has changed in the way in which i plan, which is no planning a s i love surprise holidays! what has changed is what i do on holidays! no more visiting places of interest as my daughter gets bored she prefers to stay on the beach! the journey is ok apart from the 5 mins question of are we there yet!

[sbruin1122]

We used to fly long haul quite a bit but now we tend to fill a car and get a ferry to Brittany! :P

[RACHELSMITH45]

They used to be relaxing... now they are only relaxing once the kids are in bed..but we wouldn't change it. We still like cruises..just short cheaper ones but feel lucky that we can still do the holidays we enjoy, just in a different way now.

[user1488827562]

Before children we took advantage of bargain last minute getaways outside of the school holidays, either somewhere hot and sunny or a city break. When our children came along our holidays changed to cottage holidays in the UK - Cornwall was a real favourite. Now our children are teenagers we are rediscovering city breaks and are heading to Berlin as a family this summer.

[sharond101]

Its not about the luxury anymore but the activities. It;s not if they serve beautiful food but if they serve chicken nuggets. It's not if they have West End style evening entertainment but if they have a mini disco. It's not if they have a spa it's if they have a kid's club. It's not if they have an infinity pool it's if they have a splash pool. It's not if they have a king size bed it's if they have bunk beds. It's not if they have pubs nearby it's if they have no pubs nearby. It's no longer short of £1k it's now short of £5k :-((

[juju3]

We avoided most of the hassle by holidaying at Centreparcs - about a 45 minute drive away. Money saved paid for extra expense of centreparcs but the lack of hassle was priceless

[hiddenmichelle]

the type of accommodation - hotels are out and villas/apartments are in - space with a family of four is important to us, especially if my husband and I want to stay up later and enjoy a bit of time together. And self catering the is way to go with fussy kids!!!

[KavvLar]

Holidays used to be all about rest and relaxation. Now they are more challenging! We tend to go self catering as DC are always hungry, often get an Asda online shop delivered on arrival so we have everything to hand.

[sophiefx]

We used to go on a holiday together and literally for a week laze by the pool or beach and sunbathe, with a lot of cocktails and alcohol. As we now have a child, we seem to make sure one of us is always fully aware (not drunk) and have to think of activities and walks to do during the day to keep my daughter entertained. I seem to enjoy holidays with children more!! :-)

[footdust]

No more jetting off to wherever or whenever we fancy. School holidays only, now.

No more hotel holidays. Self-catering or camping now.

No more taking our time getting there, or let's do it all in one push getting there. Now it's planned toilet stops, and unplanned ones.

No more drinking from early evening, hitting a nightclub till dawn and then nursing a hangover the next day

But we still manage to have fun

[ThemisA]

We tend to rent a cottage so that it is a home from home and I avoid long journeys. Simple pleasures - board games, walks, the beach, outings, snacks out etc just treasured moments together

[vickyors]

We used to be able to go away at a moment's notice.. now we plan. And we avoid driving anywhere in the day (one and four year old)..

We go to places that have kids clubs (and love Thomson!). But we go to family friendly places..

We used to surf.. now we go to places with generally, a calm sea.

But we cannot wait to go surfing WITH the kids again.

We also both used to ski instruct.. and we ski every year in our old resort.. our four year old is already adept at skiing.. we've been to France, and Norway, and she loves it! So we still do get to do stuff we love as a family- sports!

[pfcpompeysarah]

Lordy where do I start?? I used to love the journey to the airport, knowing that I would soon be on my way, now we spend it on a train worrying that my son won't be sick any minute as he is very travel sick, and so cars are out of the question and trains only a little better. I no longer get to lounge on a sunbed on the beach with a book, and am constantly on the alert as to where he is or am dragged to the ice cream parlour, the pool, back to the room to get something he has forgot or wants for about 5 seconds. Then when the day is over and its 'my time' to relax we eat food and then he wants to 'go back to the room now' as he is tired and woe betide if I don't .... as a single parent holidays are not easy but they are worth all those happy fun moments that crop up, like watching you son snorkelling and marvelling at the fish in Egypt, such an amazing time in life.

[MimsyBorogroves]

Er, what holiday? Childcare uses up every penny we have, so we've never had a holiday together (nor have DH and I, as we got together when DS1 was 2 years old). Thought there'd be a reprieve once they were both in school, but redundancies and lower paid jobs have meant we're just as badly off as ever.

[AngelwingsPetlamb]

Holidays are planned well in advance now and have to be taken in the school holidays. No more last minute getaways. Most of the holidays are in the UK with less abroad due to the hassle of getting to the airport etc. Less time for relaxing as kids need constant interactions like sports, swimming and games. Also, far less opportunity for going out in the evenings as children are tired after a busy day.