Your Opinions Please (about holiday)

climbgirl

I'm sorry, but I think this is sheer madness and quite possibly the reason you got yourself into debt in the first place!

You say you won't pay the savings off your loan because you want a safety net to buy food but are prepared to spend it on a £7000 holiday instead of your debt.....that doesn't make a lot of sense to me, it's quite ludicrous.

£7000 is nearly half of your loan. The loan is manageable now but what happens if one of you loses your job tomorrow? Or gets ill and can't work for six months? Suddenly that loan isn't so manageable after all and £7000 seems like a hell of a lot money....

And it's not a "once-in-a-lifetime" trip, I hate the way people throw that phrase around on these boards like it's some kind of justification. San Francisco isn't going anywhere, it'll still be there when you're debt free. And frankly, I think your kids would benefit more from being shown the example of sound financial planning than being taken on a holiday that lasts for a couple of days.....

If you want a holiday, go somewhere a lot nearer that will cost a fraction of the price. Saying "we're not beach people" isn't any justification for flying halfway round the world. There's plenty of mountains and outdoors activities holidays to be found in Europe, even in the UK.

Ultimately it's your choice but it's financial madness.

timbo82

If I were you I would have the holiday. Life is too short - as you said this may be the last family holiday that you get before your daughter leaves the nest. In my opinion you don't need to justify this to anyone as you are clearly making an informed decision about your life.

climbgirl

dinkylou wrote:

Whilst, yes, you have debt like most of us on here, its about finding a balance and it seems that you have been working on your debt for a long time.

Completely agree, it's about balance - spending almost half of your loan amount on a holiday isn't balance, it's madness! If you want a break and a holiday, compromise and go somewhere a bit cheaper and closer to home.

You may have been working on your debt for a long time, but you'll be working on it for a hell of a lot longer if you use this money for a holiday instead of debt repayments.

themaccas

Sorry I disagree, it is a once-in-a-lifetime trip. The OP's kids are getting older and shortly they won't want to holiday with their parents. Holidaying with family is what mkaes once-in-a-lifetime trips and if you're going to do it I too would do it in style if it meant no more borrowing to get there. I do think it comes to a stage where you feel comfortable and are 'proudly dealing with your debt'. Moneysaving and working flat out to become debtfree might be fine when you don't have kids but there needs to be a balance. The OP is overpaying her debt considerably and that won't change just because they go on holiday, in fact I have become more determined to pay off our debts since we booked our trip because I want to have more of them!

climbgirl

themaccas wrote:

Sorry I disagree, it is a once-in-a-lifetime trip. The OP's kids are getting older and shortly they won't want to holiday with their parents. Holidaying with family is what mkaes once-in-a-lifetime trips and if you're going to do it I too would do it in style if it meant no more borrowing to get there. I do think it comes to a stage where you feel comfortable and are 'proudly dealing with your debt'. Moneysaving and working flat out to become debtfree might be fine when you don't have kids but there needs to be a balance. The OP is overpaying her debt considerably and that won't change just because they go on holiday, in fact I have become more determined to pay off our debts since we booked our trip because I want to have more of them!

Fine, I take this on board but the key word here is balance. Why can't the holiday be a cheaper one closer to home? I'm sorry, but spending what amounts to almost half your debt on a holiday is sheer madness, whatever stage of the life the kids are at.

I take the points about the kids being older, etc and that's fine, take them away - but not on a £7000 trip halfway round the world. Somewhere closer to home, there's beautiful parts of the world in Europe to be seen.

But the "not taking out debt" point isn't quite right. You are effectively increasing your debt by doing this - you're doubling the amount of time it'll take to pay it off if you've got almost half the loan in cash but you're using it for a holiday instead of debt repayments. It's all very well to be "proudly dealing with your debts" but it's a hell of a lot better to be "proudly debt free"

I'm not saying live on the breadline and deprive the children. But there are much cheaper holidays to be had with similar experiences a lot closer to home. Surely the point is to spend quality time with the kids on a holiday, not necessarily where that holiday is. There are wonderful places in Europe that will offer them the type of holiday they want for a fraction of the cost. And the rest of the planned £7000 spend can whack a big chuck of their loan and bring forward the day when they're debt free.

That's balance.

i_am_really_rich!!

specsappeal wrote:

Hello everyone - hope you are all well!
I was wondering if you fine people could give me your opinions please. Basically, as you can see from my signature i have outstanding mortgage of approx £55,00- this is an offset mortgage and i have £12,000 in my offset savings account. I also have the unsecured loan which has approx 6 and a half years left.(i know people will say i should use the savings to get rid of the debt but i cant do this as many years ago i was so skint that i would go for days without eating and so this is my safety net that i cannot let go of). Anyway the debt i have IS manageable and i do overpay on both the mortgage and loan each month. My husband and i have never been abroad and neither have our children (ages 16, 13, 11) which is not a hardship but something we would like to do. My daugher will be leaving home to join the Royal Navy in the summer of 2008 and i doubt she will ever move back home once she has done this . My DH and I would like to take the kids on a once in a lifetime holiday. This includes 3 nights in San fransisco, 4 nights in Yosemite National Park and 3 nights in Las Vegas. Total for holiday £5,500 (out of savings, which leaves approx £6,500 to offset mortgage) and approx £1500 spending money (which we can save during the year).
Do you think this is ok to do?? I suppose i just want opinions on whether it is a justifiable expense. I know many people will say that because we have debt we should not even think of spending that much on a holiday but we do manage the debt ok. I also would love my daughter to have this experience with us while she still lives with us and i feel it would be my last chance to spend quality time with her. What do you all think - all opinions will be taken on board. Thanks all

Just go on the the holiday, have the time of your life, you only live once and you are not wasting the money or frittering it away are you?? GO AND ENJOY!!! :beer:

nickyhutch

Calm down, climbgirl. The OP isn't asking you to pay for the holiday. I think you're being a litlle over the top in your criticism. It's hardly "madness", really, is it? Yes, she asked for opinions, but there are ways of putting your thoughts across.

SSB

You are dealing with your debts and working very hard indeed. You have thought about it very carefully, I can appreciate you wanting to do something amazing with your family.

Just go for it, it will motivate you to work even harder and e-bay like mad;) .

Have a great holiday

climbgirl

nickyhutch wrote:

Calm down, climbgirl. The OP isn't asking you to pay for the holiday. I think you're being a litlle over the top in your criticism. It's hardly "madness", really, is it? Yes, she asked for opinions, but there are ways of putting your thoughts across.

Sorry, sorry just my opinions! I'll try and keep the phrasing to more thoughtful tones, but someone needs to point out a more sensible option here!

And I'm sorry but financially, it is madness. This is a financial, debt free website. And having a £18,000 loan with £12,000 in cash and wanting to spend £7000 on a holiday makes no financial sense whatsoever. To me, this is indeed financial madness.

I take the points about the age of the children, no holidays etc. But there are cheaper options which they'll love just as much if they've never been abroad. There's a whole world of amazing places in Europe to explore for a fraction of the cost.

Ok, enough, I've said my piece. It's the OP's decision after all.

Alikay

This will probably be the last chance to all go away together as a family, so I'd say go for it!!
You've chosen somewhere amazing and thought really hard about it, so book and enjoy it. Just make absolutely sure you're getting the best deal on your trip (I'm sure Travelman and Sloppychops over on the travel board will be pleased to help!). I expect the kids will be happy to cut down on treats and birthday/xmas presents to enable it to go ahead too.