Week+ holidays.. We don't get it.

PuzzledDave

Thanks to all that had something constructive to add, you have confirmed what we had thought.

Gloomendoom

PuzzledDave wrote: »

Thanks to all that had something constructive to add, you have confirmed what we had thought.

What was that?

Brighton_belle

PuzzledDave wrote: »

Thanks to all that had something constructive to add, you have confirmed what we had thought.

A bit cryptic - what is it you had thought?

sooty&sweep

Hi
The week + holidays we've done have been when we've gone camping in France. We drive & generally have a stopover on the way there & on the way back.
When we get there a mixture of sightseeing, walking, shopping and pool etc on the campsite. We find that on the campsite our children always make friends so they're happy & on a larger campsite there is alot for them to do.
However over the last few years we have had quite a few short breaks in this country to go & visit different places.
We're not lie on the beach / by the pool type people but is nice to have some time to relax somewhere warm and where the children can play.
Jen

mgdavid

duchy wrote: »

..........
Why do people even CARE what someone else does on holiday ? Do what you enjoy and stop worrying about what the Joneses are doing with their leisure time - it has no impact on your holiday !!

I care; knowing what the Jones's are likely to be doing helps me avoid them

Emmylou_2

DH goes scuba diving as much as physically possible.

I turn into a cross between a lizard and a rotisserie chicken, by which I mean I lie near a pool keeping myself well basted (both with suncream and drinks), rotating roughly every half hour, listening to music, having lazy swims/floats/whatevers to cool down and reading more than I thought possible (record was 32 novel-sized books in a two week holiday).

TBeckett100

PuzzledDave wrote: »

This may be better posted in the holidays board -- but it's not an overseas question.

So background: My family consists of OH & me both in mid-30's and two young children - very standard nuclear family, no special requirements. Until relatively recently we have always put our money towards longer term saving which meant that holidays have been very few and far between in our 14 year relationship and always in the UK. However, we are now in the fortunate position of the a recently improved income and finishing up the mortgage in our probable forever home -- time to save through the year and in the summer go see the world !!

But... but... we just don't get it. Exactly what do you do all that time on holiday ? When we have been away for a bit - we both find we are 'done' with where ever we are after 3 days usually and start to look forward to getting home. We took the kids to Butlins Skegness this year which apart from the weather being not great was a fun time (my god - the pool they have is just AMAZING !). We stayed mon-fri which was definitely a day too long - the kids were tired and so were we on the last full day. If we stayed a week we would have been seriously bored and fed up.

So please explain to me for those that go away for a week or more - what on earth do you do ? The beach is good for one day, sightseeing - perhaps another day, but what about the other 5 days ? On our honeymoon in York we did tourist things for two days, then bored of tourism, we spent the other 3 spent in a park reading endless books cuddled up to each other enjoying truly beautiful sunshine but both knew we could have been at home doing the same for a fraction of the price. Just before we met, I went to Las Vegas for a week and San Francisco for following week with friends, but in both places I was done with the city after again 3 days.

The OH thinks we should go out on many day trips spread throughout the spring/summer/autumn rather than one big holiday somewhere, but there must be something to going away for a week in some far off place since that is what everyone else seems to aim for, but we just don't get it... can you help us understand, what do you do over a whole week+ ?

If I went to Butlins I would want to go home after three days.

I've had some great holidays over the last two years. I get bored easily and prefer to have a rental car to explore but when we went to the Maldives where there are no cars, it was fab not having anything to do. We went a month later to Toronto which was the opposite, but we chose to do things we have never done ie Niagra falls, the ballet etc. it was great.

In the summer we took a road trip across the west coast USA. This you may enjoy. Fly into Vegas and fly out of LAX and hit Grand Canyon, San francisco and the Pacific coast highway. Having somewhere new to go each day was simply wonderful. Days were as busy or relaxed as you like. We did so much. Then for NYE we flew to New York for a spot of shopping, a little more restrictive in terms of being in one City but with so much to explore, our legs are still recovering

Point is, if you feel you may get bored, plan a road trip. The freedom, the differing sights are fantastic and good for bonding on long drives. You won't get bored.

We are planning to go back in the Summer and hit Texas and New Mexico. Thankfully my 6 year old loves travelling!

duchy

Jagraf wrote: »

Just saw your post, agreed. Best thing we ever tried, now I'm hooked. I love visiting all the European cities without having to stay or pay extortionate prices for food and accommodation. Rome, Barcelona, Lisbon, Florence, Seville, Palma, Monte Carlo. Wish I'd done in years ago x

When I was a travel agent I used to warn people booking their first cruise that it would be addictive .......... and when they came back to book the next one they'd tell me I was right

Jagraf

duchy wrote: »

When I was a travel agent I used to warn people booking their first cruise that it would be addictive .......... and when they came back to book the next one they'd tell me I was right

I can't believe my luck! We've more or less covered the whole med now so this year will fly to Europe and take a cruise from there, hopefully gong further afield when we can afford it. DD has been going since 10 (now 15) and she always finds a lovely group of friends. Never got too hot too as you can always get cool.

We don't like crowds and this put me off but when we tried it it was the opposite. The sunsets and sunrises, sealife, ohhhh. Must get on and book the next one

You are absolutely right it is addictive.

minerva_windsong

Person_one wrote: »

I know, I couldn't quite believe that! There's so much to do and see and experience, not just in the city but in the wider Northern California region, I think you'd have to actively want to be bored to feel that way.

I wonder if this is part of it - that the OP is going to a specific place and not exploring outside of it, and therefore didn't actually go to Northern California but just stayed in San Francisco. If that's the case then I can sort of see why that might mean they felt a bit 'now what?'. But there's no law saying you have to stay in the place you flew/drove to - get out there and explore!


I think what this thread has shown is that everyone's idea of a good holiday is different. I'm firmly in the camp of liking 'things to do' - I can do a day on a beach with a book but then I get restless and want to go off and explore somewhere. As this thread shows, some people would hate that. So I think the short answer is: don't feel obliged to go away for a week at a time if you'd prefer to do short breaks, and go somewhere that has things you want to do.