Vacation V Staycation Costs

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If driving thru France to Spain like to get to Spain quick if only because Spain is much warmer than France during April , but normally take 3-4 weeks to return, but some sites in France during June can be quite expensive, which all adds to the cost, not that we care too much, have to say my insurance costs, total, that is travel and breakdown are much more expensive that some are quoting on here, but i do normally use Red Pennant, and of course for a UK holiday you do not have this type of expense.

Just out of interest have been reading some reviews re Pentewan Sands as it is somewhere we have never been,  and seems to be the topic of conversation on here as a price comparison, well not somewhere we will be visiting anytime soon but when we used to take the Gkids we would probably have given it a consideration, I might have had to stay in the caravan for the duration

"Whatever type of holiday, cruise, package, UK tour or Continental one is chosen, they all beat staying at home doing the gardening, DIY and all the other tedious jobs of 'real life'."

Hi CY, well at last I think we have a comment we can all agree on............but I wont hold my breath!

I think we can also agree that Covid has resulted in many changes with one minor thing, in the scheme of things, being our trips away.

We would usually go abroad in May/June so that's out and a stay here is booked however, thinking what we might do in July/August I did a quote for France-site and ferry via the club-and was surprised it was comparable.

Main reason I was surprised is I have never compared before, we go where we want to so if that's Italy, where if frequently has been, why would I be looking at UK prices?

It also chimed with me as friends we will meet up with for 4 weeks rallying this year, have never gone abroad and one thing they have mentioned is their perception of the cost.

If some think the comparison I made is in some way irrelevant that's up to them, but in my opinion, so is comparing a CL in Norfolk with French municipals but we all do what we want to do and I am sure none of us are too concerned with what others do so long as it does not affect us.

So, when able we will again venture abroad, and we agree with BF that the holiday starts as soon as you get on board the ferry, we will drive fairly long distances, as that's how we get to where we want to be, and will continue to enjoy our camping trips here, our long haul holidays with or MH buddies, romantic trips on our own and maybe a cruise or two.

Hope you all enjoy your holidays whatever and wherever they may be and we all do so safely.

 Looking back at last year's UK trip in comparison to our usual six weeks in the south of France. For us  France has a massive tick for the journey, clear motorways with proper places to pull in for a rest. There is nothing appealing or restful about a layby with traffic zooming past so close by that the caravan sways and you can hardly have a conversation. 

The club sites in the UK where excellent of course but we never feel as relaxed. Too many constraints on how one pitches, not enough privacy. In France we build a home from home on our pitch.

We missed everything that makes France different from home, in Cornwall one still shops in Tesco!

We had a lovely time on both our UK trips however and were reminded how beautiful the coastline is and how much we love walking it.

But, we will be off to France as soon as we feel its comfortable to do so! 

I prefer Little Winnick to Pentewan, bus stop outside the entrance and a nice 10/15  minute off road walk to the pub and beach. 10 days in August costs £350. Think it is currently fully booked if you want EHU.

peedee

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"This is in my view a perfectly valid topic for discussion in the Overseas section so why has it been hijacked by those including yourself with no interest or intentions to tour overseas with a caravan or mototohome?"

Yes indeed, it is a perfectly valid topic for discussion and it is therefore surely valid for me or any others to add information to the discussion.

David, I think this frequently implied view of yours that intention and interest are in some ways synonymous is mistaken if you don't mind me saying so. Having sold our last van 18 months ago, I've obviously got no intention of touring that way either in the UK or Europe. But having done so for the past 40 odd years  (including much of Northern Europe in our tenting days) I haven't suddenly lost interest in the hobby. When folk mention CLs or private sites in the UK or sites in Europe, I frequently look them up because I am still interested in seeing what they're like. It would be very strange if one suddenly lost any sort of interest in a pursuit which has given so much pleasure over the years don't you agree?

In September 2019 when we took the MH to France it was fairly cold in the north, so progressed to the south with just one overnight stop. Although given better weather we would have taken longer, I didn’t find it at all onerous . It was one of the reasons we bought the MH, that and the ease of moving on and ability to use Aires. I must admit with the caravan I never found continental holidays as relaxing as those in the UK.  Not the case with the MH. All we need is the chance to try it again.🤞😀

Excellent👍🏻-for you. I get there quick & explore/enjoy on foot, I know where I’m going, I know what I’m interested in, I know my agenda. I’m not one for the whole aimless gig😊

Agree 100% with that.  I guess that time is a crucial factor in planning/not planning time away. We've never been able to, or had the inclination to spend weeks on end away from home. So when we go, we tend to have specific plans for specific areas. So if we book a cottage for a week we will have 6 days planned out in advance (walks, visits even places to eat etc).  If we book a package abroad we will have specific plans for any days when visits are not organised. The exception to this is really only now that we spend time down in Cornwall in our static van, but we don't really think of visits there as "vacations" as such any more.

I do sometimes envy the "wanderlust" way of doing things, but at the end of the day it's not for us. 

Unfortunately I don’t think any of us will be getting there as quickly as before.☹️ Additional paperwork / checks at airports and ferry terminals. Including of course the fridge inspection.

Lots of reports of advanced bookings for June and even the prospect of using larger aircraft due to the numbers. Much is made of the covid guarantee. However, I bet they don’t cover you if your flight / holiday is going ahead but we still require quarantine on return. I wonder how many have considered that.