Last year we were lucky enough to win a holiday with Mark Warner and had a fabulous time away in May at their Sea Garden resort in Turkey where the kids got to learn to sail and windsurf and us adults got to try Scuba diving for the first time.
It was our first beach holiday abroad since our honeymoon 10 years ago and it really showed us what we were missing. Much as I love the UK and seeing all the sights we have in our beautiful country, the excitement of travelling to somewhere hot and sunny and feeling that wall of heat as you leave the plane cannot be beaten. Even rain in another country is acceptable and we quite happily leapt into the swimming pool during a downpour.
Being a larger than average family, holidaying abroad can be more expensive. Not only do we have the flights to pay for, but accommodation gets pricey when you add in the fact we need at least two bedrooms. I have been researching holidays and it looks like the most inexpensive way to travel with the family to hire a villa.
I have priced up a holiday to Majorca for the 6 of us and we are still looking at prices of around £2000 if we use budget airlines and are flexible about the dates we travel, so now it is just a case of saving hard as we don’t believe in using credit cards.
Getting into a savings habit can be a challenge at first and I like to save little and often, rather than in large chunks as we don’t have that sort of money coming in. As hubby works for a large retailer he takes advantage of their Save as You Earn scheme and saves money from his wages before tax, but sadly as I am self-employed that cannot happen for me.
It is wise to sit down and work out your finances before you start saving to see where your money goes. Bills and Mortgage payments are things that must never be missed, but you would be surprised how much money gets wasted:
- A morning coffee from the local coffee shop
- Lunch out
- A children’s magazine
- Sweets
- That must have top in the local supermarket
All these things seems insignificant, but they soon add up and its money that can be saved towards that next big purchase.
I have made a good start but am only a quarter of the way there so another holiday abroad may not be on the cards for another couple of years but I it is something to look forward to in the future and the next time the kids beg me for a magazine I shall ask them if they would prefer a week in the sun instead – I guarantee their answer would be yes every time!!
Disclaimer: Written in conjunction with TSB. All thoughts and opinions are my own.