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Family holidays
Redemption
Community Connector Posts: 6,439 Master Poster
Sorry, Ive repeated this topic a few times, its just an issue thats been plaing on my mind recently. I don’t think there’s an age limit for going on holiday with family, so I’d like to go on a cruise with them if they’re interested. However, they’ve said in the past that they prefer hotel holidays, and I find those boring. For me, hotel holidays are just going to a hotel, playing football, going to the gym, and getting food—it’s been the same routine for years. Cruises feel different and more enjoyable.
I’m 24, so I can stay home on my own if they want to go on a hotel holiday. I’ve always been open to holidays with them, but I’d rather do a cruise than another hotel trip. In the past, I’ve felt pressured into activities I didn’t enjoy on holiday, like gym and football, and I’ve gotten grief for not joining. That made me feel overwhelmed and reliant on them for plans, which I want to change.
I’d also love to travel with a future romantic partner. Regarding family holidays, I don’t want to go if it’s something I don’t enjoy. For example, there was a trip booked that I didn’t want to go on, and I felt pressured. We eventually canceled it, which saved about £1,000 money I had been earning from a small job delivering leaflets.
I know I haven’t always been assertive about what I want, and I admit that. This time, I intend to be clear: I won’t stop my family from going on a hotel holiday, but I won’t join either. I feel this is reasonable, and I’m open to feedback if anyone thinks I’m being unreasonable.
Comments
Hey @Redemption, thanks for sharing this. I think it's a common issue that people face - on the one hand, spending time with your family on holiday can be nice because you get away from home, get to relax and have fun, and spend quality time together, so saying you don't want to come can come across like you're rejecting that.
On the other hand, holidays are expensive and people have different tastes for the types of trips (hiking/camping; beach hotel; city breaks etc), so it's a lot of money to spend on a type of trip that you don't like anyways.
Ultimately it comes down to what you value, and people have differing opinions - some think that you should put the family over the individual, and others argue that you're an adult who can decide for themselves, and there's no point going if you feel forced to, especially given the cost.
As a third option, are there any other activities that you can do around the hotel that your family wants to go to? Day trips, a city to explore nearby, touristy things? If the hotel holiday feels routine, it might be worth looking into what else is around to break that feeling of routine. What do you think about that?