Why we’re choosing to holiday in the UK instead of going abroad
For as long as I can remember I’ve always enjoyed holidaying abroad. Growing up my sister and I were very lucky in that we got to go on holiday abroad every year.
I’m not talking 5 star hotels and professional chefs, just your standard week in Spain self-catering family holiday. We certainly weren’t rich, but our parents worked hard so that we could enjoy a holiday abroad.
I have lots of fond memories of summers spent lazing on the beach, relaxing by the swimming pool and eating outdoors on the hotel terrace.
In the first few years when I met my husband we enjoyed plenty of mini breaks abroad. Our first was to Rome. It was, and still is, my favourite city break destination. In fact my husband and I have been to Rome twice. It’s such a beautiful city and there are so many historic places to visit. It really is a city that you can never get bored in! Even as you walk from one tourist attraction to another, there’s so much to see along the way.
In addition to Rome, we’ve been to Prague, Marrakech, Barcelona and Valencia.
When our twins were born, we thought nothing of taking them on a plane when they were just 11 months old. We flew with my mother-in-law and three step-children to an all inclusive hotel for a week in Spain.
It was a really lovely family holiday. We’ve since been to Majorca and Minorca a few more times and more recently we went to Disneyland Paris.
Last year, however was very different for us. For lots of different reasons we decided to that we wouldn’t go abroad. Instead we decided that our main family holiday would be camping.
In between the holidays abroad as a child, we also went camping. I remember one camping holiday with my mum and sister, my sister rolled my sleeping bag off a cliff! I loved camping and the freedom it gave me to be outdoors, to run and explore. It’s something I was very keen for my own children to experience, and I was even more adamant to go camping when I learnt that my husband had never been camping!
So last year, that’s exactly what we did! We went on our first family holiday camping trip and it was amazing!
We had so much fun on our staycation that we actually did a few little trips last year including a family festival on the Isle of Wight and a farm stay in a Yurt in Somerset.
This year we’re super keen to go camping again and have our sights set on Cornwall or Devon. There are so many Cornish family campsites to choose from. Of course, we understand that camping isn’t for everyone so you could opt for independent cottages instead.
Either way, a staycation is definitely the way to go for us. I think we actually had more fun on a staycation and grew closer as a family than we ever have whilst on a family abroad. Camping gave us the chance to do so many new things together. We went kayaking, on zip wires, swam in a lake, cooked outdoors and just made so many memories that will last forever. Our holidays abroad were fun too, but staycations are cheaper, closer to home so less travel time and of course better for the environment.
Will you opt for a staycation this year instead of a holiday abroad? Let us know in the comments below!
