You don't need to be an 'investor' to invest in Singletrack: 6 days left: 95% of target - Find out more
Safe to say Dave is at the other end of the holiday spectrum to me, that sounds like Hell on Earth. But you know, other people buy £25k+ cars, and they probably don't benefit the rest of the family that much. Their money, etc.
That does seem quite a lot!
We don't go for big fancy holidays, certainly not since being a family and before that it was limited to ski holidays and the like that ate into the cash. Family holidays have still been a decent whack but only a handful of £k - continual bike tour type holidays.
Having said that we're (2 of us) off to a family reunion in a couple of months to hook up with my South Pacific cousins. Not willy waving but cost will not be cheap. We nearly didn't commit because my mum was poorly - that's no longer an issue so kind of free to do what we want.
No matter where you go or how much you spend its time away with your family, ****ing enjoy it for what it is.
First, who cares? Its his money he can do what he wants with it.
well OP had just described how Dave was happy to spunk £25'000 draggin the family round plastic fantastic roller-coaster land but kicked off at £200 on a tent for everyone else....
Personally, £25000 would be about enough to make me go to Florida for 3 weeks.
£25000 would also pay for our 6-week trip to NZ, our 3 months in Nepal and have enough left over for the camper van, but each to their own eh.
W00dster Subscriber
We spend a lot on holidays, but tend to do a lot. This year it’s Costa Rica, staying in a nice resort but we will also be going exploring the jungle and volcanoes. Amazing wildlife that we see as potentially once in a lifetime.
Sounds ace, who did you book it through? Any more details?
Spent a month backpacking round Peru, hiked Inca trail, flew over nazca lines, stayed on lake titicata, swam in volcanic pools, stayed in some dirt cheap & a couple of luxurious places, drank a lot of coca leaf tea ... was our honeymoon 10 years ago now,
We did it all for about £6000 for both of us.
With kids now , we just did 2 weeks at eurocamp in France everyday on the beach pretty much, kids never get bored of bodyboarding & sandcastles!, about 2k all in.
I know everyone's different and with kids we couldn't do the same as our honeymoon but 25k for 3 weeks in Disneyland !!!! Fk that !
I'm just waiting for the thread when Gemma comes home early from work one day and unexpectedly finds Dave prancing about the house wearing nothing but huge yellow shoes, tiny red shorts, pair of white gloves and a pair of false ears and has to try and explain why George from next door is dressed as a sailor, but only from the waist up.
#awkward
Wondering myself on this I've added up everything I've ever personally spent on holidays (I do a spreadsheet before each one) and I've got to £12500 that's 29 weeks of holidays (including a fair bit of traveling last year) 15 of which are 2 people and also includes 7 weeks of skiing.
I'd say I'm a fairly economic traveler
Sounds ace, who did you book it through? Any more details?
I realise it wasn't my comment, but we just booked Costa Rica independently - did a few nights near the Arenal volcano (in the Lodge within the park grounds), a few in Monteverde cloud forest, a week by the beach in a posh all inclusive (easily the worst part of the holiday) book ended by a night near San Jose (which is a bit of a dump) in nice hotels. It was stunning. You couldn't fly direct when we went, so you had to change in Madrid, BA now fly direct which makes it even more accessible. Want to go back when mini-njee20 is big enough to appreciate it. Won't spend £25k though.
well OP had just described how Dave was happy to spunk £25’000 draggin the family round plastic fantastic roller-coaster land but kicked off at £200 on a tent for everyone else….
We have the OP saying that only 'Dave' is overly fussed about theme parks, not that they're all loathed to go and are being taken to Florida against their will. If he's genuinely spent £25k they don't have (by virtue of their not then being able to afford a £200 tent) then I concede he's a bell end. If he's said "My bonus is paying for this epic holiday, and it's what I want to do, but we can go camping next year", and she's said "well it's a lot of money, but I'm sure it'll be nice", then less so.
They should have spent the cash on something a bit more ethical, really.
https://www.africanskyhunting.co.za/packages/21dayplainsgame.html
and has to try and explain why George from next door is dressed as a sailor, but only from the waist up.
Does it have anything to do with frozen sausages?
We were looking at a local travel agents deal for 7 nights in Gran Canaria next summer for 2 adults + 3 kids, all inclusive in some resort with a water park and beach but not much else. Would have been £2500
We decided that we could do 14 nights camping in Cornwall for a lot less and the children would probably enjoy it a lot more rather than being stuck in the same resort for a week.
Will probably wait a few years until they can all appreaciate it a bit more before doing the sunny resort holidays. Much more fun when they're all confident swimmers and can make the most of a water park and such things.
Also, the same travel agent had a 2 week all inclusive to Florida theme parks for £2.5k per person - so would be £12.5k for us. That seemed ridiculous to me, never mind £25k!
EDIT: to actually answer the original question - we spent about £1K for 5 nights in Disneyland Paris a couple of years ago. Was Feb half term so a lot cheaper and quieter than in summer.
An aside....
he’s 54, Gemma is 33 & Caitlyn is 14.
Is Caitlyn Dave's daughter from a previous marriage or your stepdaughter's from a previous relationship? Otherwise......interesting!
Does it have anything to do with frozen sausages?
Always a risk when you're Donald Ducking it
Managed 3 weeks in Australia a few years ago for £1,700, 3 weeks in Italy for £500 (most of which was diesel getting there)
However, I've just spent £2k on six days in Brazil, well four whole days and two half days. Really struggling to justify it to myself, never mind anyone else, but **** me what an experience!
.
If you were mortgage-free and fairly well off then £25k on holiday, maybe, but nothing would pursuade me to stay at a theme park, an afternoon at Alton Towers is OK on a weekday but that's it.
Always a risk when you’re Donald Ducking it
Donald Ducking it, Cumberland style. Nice.
We did a horseback safari for our honeymoon, which was bloody expensive - but a pretty incredible experience. Can't remember what it cost but it was on the 'cheaper' end of such holidays. Worth every penny and I'd do more holidays like it if I had the money!
Each to their own to be honest, I have been to Florida and done the theme parks, malls, beaches and space centre and would go again, wouldn't spend £25k though!
about £4 on a 3 week camping holiday. No running water, no showers, it was bloody freezing, we had to shit in a hole in the ground and the local wildlife wanted to kill us and eat us.
It was amazing.
£25K on 3 weeks in Florida theme parks is neither my bag nor my budget.
What people are spending is subjective. When I say 4k for hol, that's what the credit card says, and that's everything on it. Insurance, car parking, food, spending cash, fuel, tolls, travel and accommodation, tickets, etc. Ie not just the brochure price of full inclusive.
However, you could take off your home living costs to be precise, I don't.
If they have the cash and that's how they want to spend it fair play. I'd like to see my money go further though.
I went to Euro Disney 20 year ago with my future wife. It was struggling and they were trying to get people in. The deal was for 4 people, 1 car on Euro tunnel, 4 nights at Sequoia lodge, 2 day pass. It was only the 2 of us going but at £30pp I paid for 4, total £120! Plus petrol+food of course. This was Feb school holiday too as my wife was a teacher. Happy days!
If they have the cash and that’s how they want to spend it fair play. I’d like to see my money go further though.
Would agree with that, some people will happily save for years for a big trip. OTOH, if you've just got up to your tits in debt to fund it then you're an idiot
So from three pages what I’m getting is basically Dave’s a bit of a cockwomble. That about sum things up?
So from three pages what I’m getting is basically Dave’s a bit of a cockwomble. That about sum things up?
Jurys out. If they can afford it and everyone's looking forward to the trip then no. But...................
The most we have spent was around £12k (about £6k of that was all the flights) when we went to Australia last year for a month to visit family. We had to remortgage to afford it but it was a necessary evil as my wife was desperate to get to see her brother (who emigrated out there a few years ago) and his young family as they have three children the same age range as our two and she wanted to make sure they keep in touch as much as possible. It was a painful amount of money to spend but on balance it was worth it - we visited friends in Dubai on the way down, flew a bit internally to see different parts of Oz, saw some of the Commonwealth Games then came back via Hong Kong. So yes it was expensive but our two (then nine year old) girls got a pretty much once in a lifetime experience.
You could stand in a queue on Everest for that.
£12500 that’s 29 weeks of holidays (including a fair bit of traveling last year) 15 of which are 2 people and also includes 7 weeks of skiing
Those 22 non-skiing weeks must've been 'cost-efficient', or were they post-new year, Ceefax holidays, allocation on arrival for which I had my best bargain ever (£440, two weeks, flights, transfers, half-board in Breckenridge. Kerching).
Errr - folk on here spend £5k on a bike
£25k for a holiday for 3 seems good value
Their money their choice, not for me but neither is a £5k bike
🙂
Difficult to avoid sounding like a twunt/humblebragger, but we've happily spent twice that - for an eight month trip travelling the US, Canada and Australia by hire-car and hotel/motel. The amount of money doesn't seem like a waste, if you have it and that's what you want to spend it on, but for just three weeks, and essentially one location, it's nuts. It wouldn't surprise me if even Dave was regretting it after a couple of weeks when the sameness sets in...
The amount of money doesn’t seem like a waste, if you have it and that’s what you want to spend it on, but for just three weeks, and essentially one location, it’s nuts.
Ehh?
and that’s what you want to spend it on
then
but for just three weeks, and essentially one location, it’s nuts
Make your mind up!
About £50 an hour for the OP trip
Have a look at how much you can spend on a two night trip to lapland at Xmas.
Think it worked out about twice as much per hour.
It was worth every penny for the look on the dustbin lids' faces when they meet the "big guy". The dog sledging was fantastic, minus 30 degrees was an experience and the northern lights are always good. And TBF it was a 40th bday present for both of us and we don't do posh watches
Its all about....
Having fun
My mate is a HUUGE Disney fan - to the point that every holiday was Disneyland Paris, Disneyworld etc... An opportunity came up for a rolling contract with Disney, working 40 weeks a year on a Disney cruise ship - he snapped their hand off; and now spends his holidays in Disneyland Paris, Disneyworld; but on a cheap staff rate... Bonkers!
My first trip to Canada in 2009, when flights were twice the price they are now.
Flights + car hire for 2 weeks + hotels probably came to about £4K for 2 of us, plus spending money. Thought it would be my only ever trip over there so I thought it was worth it. Been twice more since & still haven’t sent that much
Depends.
I spent £4500 to go to St Lucia to see my sister in law get married. At the time I had a 7wk old baby and spent the entire holiday looking like a zombie. I would happily have set fire to £4500 instead
Last year I went to Dubai with my family. I hated every second of it. I think that one cost me £4000
Over the last 15yrs I haven’t really enjoyed my holidays and will easily have spent over £25k for the privaledge.
Now, this year I have my campervan, I have my family and dogs. I have them travelling to Devon to a lovely campsite and a few other places and all in we reckon £1000. This includes about £100 per day activity money. I really can’t wait.
If they enjoy this one holiday to Disney they have been much more sensible with their money than I can claim to be
Stevet1 - its TUI.
We are staying at the Dreams Las Mareas Resort, we are in the Preferred Club Junior Suite (I think, its definately in the Preferred Club, I need to do three hours work each day, we book the Preferred Club as it has its own lounge, nice and comfy to work from while family are still sleeping). Kids were too young for the Swim Up, but have had that in Mexico previously.
https://www.dreamsresorts.com/en_us/resorts/costa-rica/las-mareas/accommodations.html
And a link to the activities, we've booked two, approx £520 for each excursion...(Mrs W has a better link to these, PM if interested)
https://www.dreamsresorts.com/en_us/resorts/costa-rica/las-mareas/tours-and-excursions.html
TUI
Tourism Under the Influence?
Rosey, we’ve also booked a trip to Lapland over Xmas, staying in Roku in Finland (I think). My 10 year daughter still believes in you know who. Going for 6 nights. Think it’s about £8k including activities, so snowmobile trip, husky sleigh ride, trip to Santa’s village and of course fat bike excursion for me.
My parents spent a huge sum on taking the entire family to the Seychelles for a fortnight. 6 adults 2 kids full board. I don't know how much but somewhere between a posh car and a small house in total
Once in a lifetime trip tho and they had the money to spend.
Most I have ever spent? this summer in Mallorca - in total somewhere around 5 grand I think
black stocking weekends
Tell me more.
Just checked and this is the winter holiday, 7 nights it is, possibly a bit less than £8k but Mrs W is being shy on the total cost saying she can't remember but thinks its less than £8k, which could be her hiding the amount....
https://www.activitiesabroad.com/holidays/ruka-pick-and-mix#/accommodation
I will be talking to Mrs W tonight about buying a campervan instead of paying for expensive holidays. Will be a hard sell but I'd love one. She loves her luxury beach holidays, the compromise currently is that we book beach holidays where there is also activities for us all to go and do. We both also do our own holidays as well, she's an athletics coach and does warm weather training in the spring and I go on cycling holidays, just back from Girona, so I could use that as at least she still gets an overseas break.
Ehh?
and that’s what you want to spend it on
then
but for just three weeks, and essentially one location, it’s nuts
Make your mind up!
As in, I have no conceptual objection to anyone spending £25k on *a* holiday but that sounds to me like terrible value for that money.
Loving the usual single track mindset/jealousy that because someone likes something they don't he's instantly a bellend. What's wrong with some of you people? My first thought was he must be a massive Star Wars fan and spunking the money on a once in a lifetime holiday for the opening of Galaxys edge but I think he'll be back before it opens on the 29th. I'm fortunate that I love any holidays whether camping, biking,skiing,diving,walking, all inclusive or just lying on a beach doing sod all but reading a book. Went to Florida earlier this year not knowing what to expect but friends rave about it and wont go anywhere else, it wasn't cheap but loved it and will definitely go back.The quality of how well they do things over there needs to be experienced but only if you like that sort of thing 😉 if you stayed on site in top hotels with upgraded flights can easily see how you'd do 25k but it's only same when you go skiing,Caribbean, Maldives etc and I guess comes down to the level of stupendous luxury you like and what you can afford. I could have blown 5k on spend while there, same as I could spend 5k+ on a bike but chose not to.
I think this thread is more about the fact you don’t like Dave 😂
Wrong. (not that it actually matters) I was interested to see what kind of money others spend on jollies.
Transpires that not many spend what Dave does.
Do the rest of the family want to go (or even like Disney) or is it all about Dave? If they’re all looking forward to it that’s great. If not I stand by my original statement.
I don’t remotely care what others do with their cash. Just seems a bit harsh if he’s spending the family’s money on his dream trip and dragging everyone else along with him.
I think the most I’ve spent on a holiday is about a grand. Would like to take the kids somewhere really nice, but owning them is bloody expensive 😀
I like the cut of Dave’s jib.
He follows his Disney-fetish related dreams and the consequences be damned.
Disney for life!
Wrong. (not that it actually matters) I was interested to see what kind of money others spend on jollies.
Transpires that not many spend what Dave does.
Couldn’t you have just asked, without involving Dave?
Anything else you want to know what we spend on?
You could buy a car for that.
Or even better, a van.
And as they have a mtg you could argue that the interest on the 25k is another cost. Go on a 5k holiday, throw 20k at mtg, save another 10k not paying interest.
Hang on, he's borrowing this isn't he. Or thinks he's clever by moving money around on low or zero interest credit cards
If it's saved money he wants to spunk on a roller coaster ride, he could retire 5 years earlier. Gross it up tax rebates plus avc or matched payments on company scheme.
His choice, never something I would do.
Pcp car as well?
He may be earning alit but if you're spending more than you are more screwed than a low earner, as chances are you'll be overspending by a bigger percentage
My sister bought an apartment in florida for less than that, alot less.
Off Topic now - sorry! An appartment in Flordia for less than £25k? Thats good guying, buying during the housing collapse?
I guess though he could make all those super sensible life choice and get to his retirement age and not want to go and spend the time in Florida.
For me there is a balance, I want to live while I'm young and the kids are young enough to want to come on holiday with us but also save enough to have a comfortable retirement. If he has managed to pay for the holiday while being sensible with his other cash flow, then its their money and if his immediate family are OK with it, then so be it.
I have a mortgage, but we over pay. We don't have expensive cars (bangernomics), and the wife is extremely good at managing money. In fact she deals with it all - I just get my weekly pocket money and leave her to it. If she says we can afford an expensive holiday, thats good enough for me. Dave and his wife could also be the same.
£5k for 3 days in Ibiza was my worst😭
Today’s boat charter around the Tobago Cays was in the order of $4000 . Was bloody excellent though. If you have the money ,why not enjoy it?
i was a little less dubious at scrolling down that picture zippykona 😀
I feel like Alan Whicker.
25k seems alot to me and alot more than I would spend on a short break, I'd probably use that kind of money for world trip With the kids but if it that's what they like etc then cool 👍
We are currently on an 8 week trip around France, trip will probably (still away) come in around £7k-7.5k including 3days at Disneyland Paris and all spends etc for remaining time. That's for a family of five
I feel like Alan Whicker.
Dead?
Holidays are getting more expensive across the board, especially if you travel during the school holidays.
Speaking to colleagues and friends booking "normal" package holidays to the likes of egypt, turkey and you can easily be looking at 5k for a couple of weeks.
As others have said 25K seems like quite a lot of money but as I can attest unless you keep a close eye on costs that sort of holiday can get very expensive very quickly.
We (2 adults and 2 kids aged 8 and 10) had 2 weeks in Florida last year...
- We got a reasonably priced villa,
- Flew direct but not ridiculously expensive flights, economy obvs.
- Booked a normal car not some enormo SUV (though we did get lucky in Alamo and ended up with a MASSIVE Pickup) ,
- 14 day normal Disney tickets, no other parks....
- Swamp tour to see gators on fanboat,
- Kennedy Space Centre (got free tickets for this),
- Ate out cheaply a bit, ate in a bit.
....It was still 7k by the time we were done and that's being pretty cost focused. Start doing extra parks, eating out a lot, etc and before you know it it could easily be another couple of grand. America is no longer a cheap place to visit when you're there.
Would we do it again? Yeah. We're booked to go back in Feb, this time to do Universal as the kids love Harry Potter, are the "right age" and we all love theme parks. Next time: 10 days, trying to keep the cost below 4.5k.
Most we've spent (and I'm not sure this counts) was travelling the globe for a year. HK, Aus, NZ (4 months), Singapore and then spent the Euro spring/Summer in the van travelling around the point bits of Europe. No idea how much we spent but it was probably 25-30k. But that was our wedding and honeymoon rolled into one.
The wife and I have always said that travel/holidays have been our one luxury as we both barely drink, have reasonably priced cars and a reasonable but not massive house.
14 day normal Disney tickets, no other parks….
Is there enough to do at Disney for 14 days? Or is it just cheap to buy a block like that?
Is there enough to do at Disney for 14 days? Or is it just cheap to buy a block like that?
It's the same price to buy a 14 day ticket as it is to buy a 7 day ticket.
However, even if it was a bit more money (which it is if you buy tickets out there) with kids same age as mine, I'd say so. You have 4 parks and you need 2 days per park really. It could be argued with Hollywood Studios that isn't/wasn't the case. However now with Galaxy's edge opening imminently, it's definitely a 2 day park.
So that's 8 days. The 14 day pass on the link above also includes the water parks, which are ace. We went to one once and the other one twice. So you're now up to 11 days. Throw in a couple a couple of pool days and maybe a trip to Kennedy Space Centre (well worth the drive) and that's your 2 weeks!
The 2 days per park thing is especially true in the heat of the summer as you'll not be there from opening to close. Mine started to wilt about 2pm most days so you head back to the villa for the rest of the afternoon for some pool time and a relaxing beer. Some people head back for evening fireworks but we were a bit of a drive from the parks so we didn't do this.
1600 quid for park tickets for 4 people is A LOT OF MONEY but I wouldn't say it's bad value at under 30 quid person per day.
You can/need to book fastpasses on most of the big rides via the My Disney Experience App before you go (rolling 30 days out if staying off site or 90 days before the first day of your entire stay if staying on site), so you do need a bit of a plan. I ended up booking a day of fast passes half way round the Monkey Trail at Cannock as you can book them at 7am Orlando time and you want to be on the App at 7am sharp to get what you want.
There is a STW-a-like for Disney holidays which is a mine of information but a bit scary to the uninitiated it's at www.thedibb.co.uk
At what point will the environmental cost of dragging your family across the Atlantic for a holibob start to play a significant element in ‘normal’ people’s decision making process? It’s patently unsustainable and I think we are getting to the level of environmental consciousness that we all know it even if we don’t want to admit it. Very little point in carefully using our bags for life if we then jump on a plane and do a few million times more damage.
convert - as much as party pooper it makes you sound, you are right. I wonder what the Co2 foot print a holiday causes.
Ours ran to £10k, but it was 2 weeks in Disney, staying on-site, with all meals covered, with fast pass tickets. This was about 7 years ago. Spends were probably about £1k. 4 of us.
The plan was Disney only.
about the same as 3 years of dog ownership...
CO2 emissions from a Boeing 737-400 of 115 g per passenger km
fly from here to florida, 6960km, 6960 x 4 x 115 = 3200kg of CO2
and, owning a dog puts you anywhere between 100kg and 1 ton of CO2 per year for a 25kg dog.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffmcmahon/2017/08/02/whats-your-dogs-carbon-pawprint/
note, for 4 in a car, the equivalent number is 55g (less than a full bus, BTW fact fans)
drive from (say) Brum to South of France, 1200km, 4 people, 1200 x 4 x 55 = 264kg of CO2
so a euro holiday with you driving is around 10% as bad as swanning off to the southern states
I don't fly long haul specifically for that reason - and try to limit to one flight every 2 years. Flying is one of if not the worst thing I do for pleasure eco wise
You can/need to book fastpasses on most of the big rides via the My Disney Experience App before you go (rolling 30 days out if staying off site or 90 days before the first day of your entire stay if staying on site), so you do need a bit of a plan.
x 1000000000000000. And bias the approach to early starts when you get there and getting later in the day towards fireworks as you get through week 1. Also https://www.undercovertourist.com/ for park plans, queue calendars and tips on fastpass planning.