Splitting Holiday Cost

JobiWanKenobi

Hi all,
I am hurting my brain trying to work out how to split a holiday cottage cost for Christmas, can someone help? The total cost is £650 for a total of 5 nights, me and my son are going for 5 nights, my friend, her husband and two children are going for 3 nights. How do I divide the cost? We will be doing food etc separately - so this is not included.

Oakdene

I'd argue as there are double the amount of guests in the other party & that you are staying for 2 more nights, you should just halve it...

richardw

How are you allocating the bathrooms and bedrooms to each?

Oakdene

The other way to look at it is £130 per night, then divide each night by number of occupants. But as you & your son will be there alone for two nights that doesnt seem fair.

lika_86

Is there a minimum stay?
If not then:
650/5 = 130

Days 1-3 =
£21.5 per person per night

Days 4 and 5 = £130 per night (total) paid for by you for you and your son.

So total cost:
You - £389
Them - £252
= total £641 (not quite at £650 due to rounding, but perhaps add another £4.50 each)

davetrousers

650 / (5+3) = 81.25

5 x 81.25 = 406.25
3 x 81.25 = 243.75

Purely based on nights stayed

Lokolo

There are 19 person days.

2 people staying 5 nights. 3 people staying 3 nights.

£650 / 19 = £34.21. This is the per person per night rate.

Your family pay £342.11, theirs pays £307.89.

Twopints

I worked on the same basis as Lokolo, but with 22 person days (there are 4 people in the second group):

£650 / 22 = £29.55

Your family - 10 @ 29.55 = £295.50
Other Family - 12 @ 29.55 = £354.50 (rounded to come back to £650)

davetrousers

Lol, some valid methods, you and your friends will have to discuss which method!

How many bedrooms are there and how many people staying in them?
Should kids carry the same weighting as an adult (or half)?

lol the numbers are the easy bit to work out!

PasturesNew

While there are many ways to look at who pays how much, it should, in part, also take into account whose idea it was, who chose the place in the first instance... who is compromising.

So, what's the whole deal going on?

e.g. if they'd planned to be elsewhere but you persuaded them to come in with you then "go light" on how you split it for their costs as they compromised.

If you always holiday together, in that area, then nobody's "compromising", but what if they only wanted to go away for 3 nights and you decided that you'd stay for 5 because you could.

WAYT

But why would the other family pay for the two days they aren't staying?

Those two days are out of the equation. What remains is how to divide up the three relevant days.

£390 for six people over the three days makes it £130 for your share and £260 for theirs.
You need to add your responsibility for the two extra days. So, £390 for you and £260 for them.

That is the most fair and equitable solution in the case of all having equal use of the facilities.