First family holiday, where to start

TimSynths

Don't need to change money, just have an account with Starling or Chase and use you debit card exactly the same as you would here in the UK including ATM's.

I haven't taken cash abroad for about 7 years now.

The cheapest ways to get travel money - MSE (moneysavingexpert.com)

Enjoy your holiday!

thegreenone

I always take small denominations of Euros for tips as some restaurants don't pass on card-taken money to staff.

J_B

thegreenone said:

8.  Have the family write down any gadgets they will want to take with them and buy converter plugs and spare charging cables.

Unless you are going to Cyprus where they use the UK 3 pin plug system!

ragz_2

Work out your budget. Decide whether you want a villa/self catering or a resort or hotel. We've only ever done self catering with younger children, but we've booked a city break for next year with teens and staying in a hotel for the first time. It's costing more per night, but breakfast is included and I won't have to stress about tidying a whole villa and cooking! 

Decide what you want to get out of the holiday. Beach and sunshine. History/culture. Exploring. Outdoorsy activities. Food...

If you don't want to hire a car and drive abroad, you'll want either a city, resort or somewhere with really good and easy to use public transport. 

If you're not bothered about eating out and trying local foods, all inclusive would take away the issue of finding places to eat and budgeting for that. I've never tried AI, but I see the appeal! 

I haven't ever used a travel agent, so can't advise on that. I enjoy the process of finding holiday accommodation, reading reviews, comparing prices and researching the local area and planning an itinerary. My husband would hate doing all that, so it's a good thing I do enjoy it! 

alidai

Can’t believe so many people are recommending a travel agent yet also not exchanging money.

the world has moved on, get a fee free card as people have said, revolut etc, and book yourself online - there is absolutely no need or benefit to a travel agent for a simple Spain holiday.  

NoodleDoodleMan

DIY holidays are fine - until something goes wrong.

 

eskbanker

NoodleDoodleMan said:

DIY holidays are fine - until something goes wrong.

Depends what you mean by DIY - booking a package directly online rather than using a travel agent offers legal protection and (if using mainstream players rather than shady OTAs) assistance in the event of problems, but making separate unlinked travel arrangements would perhaps be inadvisable for a newbie....

IvanOpinion

NoodleDoodleMan said:

DIY holidays are fine - until something goes wrong.

 

A friend of ours is currently in Portugal, her flight home on Monday got cancelled. She made a quick call to her TA asking them to sort her out and then went and sat by the pool. She said many other people were on with airlines, insurance, hotels etc. all sounding incredibly stressed out.

TAs are not a necessity if you know what you are doing and can handle the stress when something goes wrong, but a good TA is a godsend in such circumstances.

I can also see alidai's point, holidays have become much easier to book online, but in many instances the price difference between DIY and TA is marginal. I just prefer to email my TA and she does everything for me. A couple of days before the flight she delivers me a pack with everything in it or done online as required.

Brie

Pack a small bag with all the normal meds you have in your home.  Aspirin, gaviscon, imodium, plus a few bandages and sunburn and insect bite remedy.  Pack in your carry on to ensure you don't lose it. 

The OH always moans about the stuff like this I bring and then is always using things out of it. 

If anyone is on regular medication I also bring at least one packet of each - in case of delays or when the OH forgets to take something and mentions it when we're off on an excursion.

The OH also always complained that I would pack water for long drives and muesli bars and apple juice for excursions.  But without them he would have had some major diabetic meltdowns.  Also handy if you get stuck somewhere and find the restaurants are closed due to it being a saint's day or public holiday of some sort.

NoodleDoodleMan

Using a direct website like TUI or Jet2 to buy a package "off the shelf" is not my definition of DIY.

That process would be cobbling together separate accommodation, flights and transfers from different sources.

In my experience a reputable travel agent will price match TUI/Jet2 packages.

Whenever I've tried to compare High Street packages v DIY there has been little in the way of savings.

As IO above says - when things go wrong, especially when you are abroad, you have an immediate "go to" contact to get assistance.