dfw's in my situation would you buy a passport...

jessicamb

Definitely get the passport - you will be going abroad at some point in the next ten years at least (I'm sure) and the price is very unlikely to reduce - even if you don't go abroad now (but if you do I'm sure it will be fab)

Mrs_Sparkle

jobbingmusician wrote:

Try lastminute.com for last minute holidays, or teletext.co.uk! (Or look at Martin's helpful list). If you don't book until just before you travel, they can't demand payment before you book! These sites are bound to have SOMETHING, even if you book the day before you go.... and you can have fun looking in advance. There are likely to be loads of holidays for less than £100 each unless you hit the Easter holidays, and even then you should be able to find something for around £200 each on the Mediterranean somewhere...

I agree with this- you'll definitely find something if you're flexible about where you go. Enjoy it

kathfisch

I think that the price of a passport is going to go up quite a bit when the new ones come in... with biometric data etc... in a few months time... so if you want to go abroad in the next 10 years, its probably cheapest to get it now.

ManAtHome

Best time to look is between 4 and 2 weeks before you travel. And you can get good deals from the big companies - I don't think first time abroad is a good time to try the independent route...

As Kath/Jessica said, it's there for 10 years, and is likely to go up rather than down.

kathfisch

ManAtHome wrote:

Best time to look is between 4 and 2 weeks before you travel. And you can get good deals from the big companies - I don't think first time abroad is a good time to try the independent route...

Even from the big companies its usually cheaper to look online than go into the shop. You can check out all the options and see where savings can be made. It is also perfectly possible to haggle them down even more... the closer it gets the more they just want to fill the spaces. Martin did a tv show on it... there must be an article.

kathfisch

Haggle Down Your Holiday Costs

Bewhoyouwanttobe

We agonised about going on holiday abroad this year and thought we were not going to be able to afford it, but hunting around the internet we found a holiday for 2 ads and 2 chd for £850 half board, this is actually cheaper than our 2 week camping holiday in England last year, we did go in August last year, but it just goes to prove you can find a great deal if you really look. We could have found cheaper, but we had set our heart on going to one particular place. Get your passport and see what you feel like doing closer the time, but if you haven't already you need to let your Mum know how you are feeling.

gallygirl

My 2 favourites are www.lowcostholidays.com and, surprisingly, www.thomascook.com.

So, if I'm giving you websites to look at, my advice is obviously....

GO!!!!!

(but if mum 'wants to take you out of the country' shouldn't she be paying )

flowerofscotland

We can't go abroad because of DH's many medical conditions so I didn't renew my passport. It was the right decision financially but it has been quite inconvenient as I have been asked to produce a passport on a number of occasions (mainly work related though not all). Doesn't help that I don't have a photo driving license (yes I am that old!).

This isn't a reason to get a passport but the experience of travelling is - if you can afford it, go for it while you can. DH and I often say how glad we are that we saw quite a lot of the world while we could - the memories are priceless.

rog2

Get the passport now PaP - It is very difficult to get one at short notice - I needed to be available at a moment's notice, and have always renewed my passport in person at the Newport Passport Office. However, the last time, I turned up with the form and ALL necessary documents, only to be TOLD by an insistent receptionist, that they no longer issue passports on request I was TOLD that this was on the notes of the form, that I had collected from my local Post Office, the day before. I didn't lose my temper, simply asked the woman to point out where, on the form that I had, this was written. She looked at it, then told me it was the Post Office's fault as they 'had been told' to specify this and, in any case, I should have 'ordered my passport well in advance of booking a holiday'. She seemed somewhat put out when I explained that I needed my passport (to which I have every right) for my work - not for a 'holiday'.
It took me over an hour before I could get to see someone in authority and my passport was duly issued the next morning.
Sorry for the rant PaP - just wouldn't like to see you have similar hassle, so best get the passport, now, just in case.:beer: