Resourcefulness: The budgeter's friend

foxgloves

@themadvix - We have stayed in many NT cottages & still sometimes book one for a special occasion, but the rentals really have increased significantly, especially in certain areas. We noticed this trend from the pandemic onwards so I wonder if more well-off people holidaying at home in the UK meant that there was huge demand leading to a bit of greed. We usually book in November so as to get cheaper rates but even then, some of the properties we've stayed in in the past are now way beyond what we're prepared to pay.
F

Cheery_Daff

Yep, as long-time UK holiday cottage users, we've been quite shocked at the price increases too. We used to regularly go away in a cottage for a weekend but it's become rather more of a commitment now, and some places are just obscene. I can't get over shepherds huts either- many are over £100 a night, and you have to go outside for a wee! 😱😂 We used to do cottages because they were cheap, but these days it's often cheaper to stay in a hotel 🙄

Glad you're feeling a bit better now foxgloves.

daisy_1571

When we were letting our place out I never charged what others were.  I wouldn't have been able to sleep at night!  Especially for more-than-one-night-ers.  Its no more expensive washing bedding and towels after 1 night or 3, ok a couple more showers during a longer stay, a bit more wear and tear on furnishings etc, more electricity esp if someone cooks, but like you say a cottage used to be a cheap option, not now.  Glad we just let it to friends and family, a lot less hassle even though a lot less money over the year

Dxx

Makingabobor2

Agree about cottages, way too expensive in some areas. We had a few caravan holidays in the last few years. It was like going back to my childhood, really good fun actually. And they have CH these days..  lol

pennywisepoundstupid

Glad you are feeling brighter Foxgloves, I had what i believe was covid last month and it really wiped me out.

I agree UK holiday prices have gone up massively, we had a 4 night stay in Scotland last month in a nice but not amazing cottage and yet we have just come back form a 4 night stay in Italy staying in a lovely hotel with breakfast included, walking distance to sights and train station, this cost £80 more for the 2 of us (flights and hotel) than the holiday cottage, I also noticed that even in the touristy spots restaurant/ cafe prices were often much cheaper than here at home. It is almost getting too expensive to holiday in the UK which is sad.

foxgloves

@pennywisepoundstupid - It may well have been covid that you had because these new variants really do seem to be doing the rounds. If I read another pandemic/vaccine denier numpty on social media pronouncing that it is barely even a cold, I shall will a proper dose of it in their general direction!

Thanks everyone for your comments. Yes, I can only agree that the tariffs for holiday cottages have shot up. A while back I wrote a list of all the NT cottages we've stayed in (going back to when we first got together, so over a long period) & was surprised at some of the pricing. A place we used to enjoy staying in up in North Yorkshire & used to think was expensive now seems more affordable, while a few of the ones in Cornwall are now just beyond what we would pay unless for a really special occasion. I wonder if some of it is down to dynamic pricing....as in 'we can obtain these rents so we'll do it' which probably did escalate during & just after the pandemic. For example, the NT cottage in which we stayed for my 60th was fab, really lovely quality, lots of room & pretty gardens front & back. This had always been a cottage we considered out of our price range, but when we looked at the rental of a little apartment (also NT) about a mile away, which we'd stayed in 3 times previously, the rent had increased so much that it was more expensive than the big plush cottage for the same week. I can only assume that the only logic to this is that's it's a big money-making part of their venture & they price according to what they suspect they can get. Another thing we've noticed is cottage rental prices for December. OK, Christmas week & New Year have always been desirable 'get away from it all' holiday weeks, so the tariffs do shoot up then, but Mr F has a December birthday & when we perused a few places he might like to book for his 60th (a few years yet, the young thing!), it was very obvious that the whole of December is now priced at Christmas week tariffs. We were surprised, as couldn't exactly imagine hoards of people sitting around thinking "Oh I know, let's have a week away a fortnight before Christmas". Maybe it's more popular than I think, given the pricing.

Thankfully, when I unexpectedly received some money from our elderly relative's will last year, I made sure to squirrel enough away in the Holiday Pot to ensure that Mr F, when the time comes, can also choose a lovely cottage in which to celebrate his 60th birthday, as I did for mine.
F

themadvix

Makingabobor2 said:

Agree about cottages, way too expensive in some areas. We had a few caravan holidays in the last few years. It was like going back to my childhood, really good fun actually. And they have CH these days..  lol

I nearly said in my first comment we can get a 5-night stay in a (potentially brand-new caravan - if it's at the beginning of the season) for 10% of a 3-night stay in the NT place I was looking at! I know it's not the same - but if you want a change of scene, a chance to see somewhere different and aren't desperate for a log fire, it's not much different! 😂

foxgloves said:

Thankfully, when I unexpectedly received some money from our elderly relative's will last year, I made sure to squirrel enough away in the Holiday Pot to ensure that Mr F, when the time comes, can also choose a lovely cottage in which to celebrate his 60th birthday, as I did for mine.
F

You are always so organised Foxgloves!

foxgloves

And onto today's budget-friendly efforts:
*Some of the tomatoes & a pepper I prepped yesterday plus 3 containers from the freezer will contribute to tonight's tamale pie. I think I'll stir-fry the last of the courgettes to go with it. Our harvest was certainly bountiful this year. We are still eating up a little fresh stuff & lots of it in the freezer (some in batch cooks) or bottled in the pantry.
*Planted 6 containers of Spring bulbs. Opened a compost bin so as to help the last couple of bags go further. Good crumbly stuff. Two different types of daffodil & tulips (Princess Irene - my favourite - & Queen of the night). Mr F had done such a good job of maximising the amount of daffodil bulbs he got in his box at the garden centre that I had sufficient for 3 large pots as well as overplanting the 3 tulip containers for some earlier colour.
*Put the dehumidifier on to assist the heated airer. Some stuff has dried but it was so overloaded because of yesterday's unexpected rain that it is going to need a bit longer. I considered pegging out today but the air felt very damp so I didn't bother.
*Mr F pinged me to say that Ash is booked in at the vet for his dental. We know he needs one, but noticed this week he is chewing slightly oddly, so decided to get the appointment made. I have been putting a little extra in the Meow Pot as I knew this booking was imminent.
*Did a survey.
*Decluttered 3 magazines to my friend's pile. 
*Had to spend time sorting out an online banking error I made last week when I had covid-head & wasn't firing on all cylinders. I made a bank transfer to my credit card account, but it isn't showing. I decided to drill down into what exactly I'd done & found the error very quickly. Instead of making the transfer from our current account, I made it from our savings account (which is tied to our standard current account but is separate with its own sort code & account no). It is showing clearly online that I made the payment (not huge, under £50 for anyone who likes detail!) & the payment reference shows that it went to my credit card provider. Phoned Co-op Bank (very helpful) & the customer advisor said that because I erroneously paid from my savings account, that money can't go into my individual credit card account, so it has instead gone to the card provider's general account. She said that the payment should have been bounced back to me but it hasn't. Having now got all the details, I phoned my credit card provider & explained the problem (then explained it a further 3 times) & yes, the payment will be bounced back to my account but it takes 5 working days & as that is still only Mon-Fri, it could be this Friday before the money lands back in my account. What a faff it's been & such a silly error. I am a very competent at online banking & have never made this silly error before. I did have my savings account open on my laptop as had been checking something, but didn't notice I hadn't swapped back to the current account tab before I made the payment. Grrrr. Only myself to blame.....though in my defence I was seeking normal levels of proficiency from a collection of rather coviddy brain cells! Anyway, I have been instructed to call my card provider again if the payment has not been bounced back to me by close of business on Friday & I will defo be checking every day between now & then. 
*Still to do - choose some meals from October's master meal plan so I can write Week 3's grocery shopping list. Mr F is all for getting the groceries in tomorrow morning before we go out later in the day, while I wait in for a parcel, so it's worth doing to knock another job on the head.
Right, Soot has stomped upstairs to tell me it is his lunchtime, which it is, to be fair, so I shall wish you all a pleasantly productive day, sign off & deal with this furry boy who anyone would think is about to expire from lack of calories. Hopefully a bit of knitting later as I still haven't finished my sock & really need to be casting on the 2nd pair of present socks for Mr F (2 classic 'Project Surbiton' pairs made entirely from stash &/or donated sock yarn which will have cost a resounding big now't!)
Love F x

foxgloves

@themadvix - Lol, I think I have a lot of penance to do for my general money behaviour during the Spendy Decades.
F x

PennysIntoPounds

I absolutely love that you've squirreled away money from the inheritance so as to be able to have a cottage trip for Mr F's 60th too 😊

Definitely no blame on you for the banking error, these things happen even when we're firing on all cylinders and you were firing from a groggy snotty miserable cylinder! As long as it's getting sorted all is good