Forum Topic

Staycations - what is the point?

Rip off accommodation prices for ‘summer’ beach holidays in the UK (especially Cornwall and Devon).  Ridiculously high prices for eating out and guaranteed bad service from untrained, sullen, temporary staff. Guaranteed sewage in the sea. Guaranteed traffic jams and lack of parking and, if you are lucky enough to find parking, you are forced to pay bloodsucking charges. And of course you are guaranteed to have rain, rain and more rain. Are staycations a thing of the past now that we aren’t restricted by Covid?  What is the point of planning a holiday in the UK anymore when you are guaranteed good weather, cheaper accommodation, cheap good food (served with a smile) by trained hospitality staff, clean sea water and no litter in Greece, Italy, France, Spain, Croatia etc etc ?

Steve Taylor ● 1145d43 Comments

Sorry for being pedantic but a staycation is when you stay at home during your holidays but don't work. Going somewhere else in the UK is not a staycation.You are right that this country is not great for beach holidays and many of the most popular resorts are overcrowded, expensive and sub-standard. If I wanted to sit on the sand in the sun I would go elsewhere.However, this is a very beautiful country and offers a huge range of opportunities for great holidays particularly of the activity variety for walking or cycling. If you are willing to accept basic comfort rather than luxury, to mainly self-cater and are able to go away during school term you can have a tremendous great value break with a low carbon footprint.

Mark Evans ● 1145d

Don’t agree with your definition of a Staycation meaning you stay locally in your own home. That would simply be ‘staying at home’.  A staycation in the UK means that you are having your holiday in the UK away from your normal home town. “ staycation/steɪˈkeɪʃn/INFORMALnouna holiday spent in one's home country rather than abroad, or one spent at home and involving day trips to local attractions.verbtake a holiday in one's home country rather than abroad, or at home with day trips to local attractions."we have been busy sourcing the best spots to staycation this summer"

Steve Taylor ● 1145d

Interesting. It is clearly a word with an evolving meaning as other dictionaries define it as staying at or near home rather than more broadly as in your own country. If your definition prevails then we will need a new word for mine.

Mark Evans ● 1145d

If you google this it states a holiday close to home not necessarily at home.

Janice Evans ● 1144d

I always think self catering is not a holiday.

Janice Evans ● 1144d

I used to enjoy self-catering holidays with friends in Crete, usually Chania. We'd rent an apartment and take turns with cooking, as well as eating in local restaurants. One of the pleasurable aspects of it was that you could buy and cook the local produce, which was invariably delicious and cheaper than in the UK.

Colin Jordan ● 1144d

As George V is supposed to have said, "Bugger Bognor". However there are many beautiful places in the UK with good food, good beer, friendly and attentive staff and clean beaches. A month or two back it was pouring with rain in Italy while the UK basked in a heatwave - and one rather less extreme than the Mediterranean has been suffering from in July. But then, you would expect Silly Steve to choose a holiday in the wrong place without checking the long-term weather forecast first, wouldn't you ? I expect he is going to Rhodes this year.

Richard Greenhough ● 1144d

I don't think he can have looked at the news - a lot of visitors to hotter climes have ended up with a lot more than they bargained for!

Philippa Bond ● 1144d

Of course I have checked the news and noted all the catastrophising of events in Rhodes and Corfu. And of course it was catastrophised by the ‘news media’ because that is the business they are in. We have just spent three weeks island hopping around Croatia and it was all perfect while friends have been in Corfu just laughing  at how the ‘news’ dramatised events there when only a small section of the island was affected by wildfires. The vast majority of people holidaying in the Med have had perfect weather at half the cost of those holidaying in Devon and Cornwall where 100% of them have endured rain, rain and more rain. And they will continue to do so. And for stupid people like Richard Greentrough, the weather forecasts aren’t available for weeks or months in advance when people are booking these expensive staycations. You also cannot see months in advance which UK beaches will be contaminated with human excrement although from ‘news reports’ the government seems to have made it clear that sewage dumping in our rivers and oceans will not improve until 2050!! Hence my question on staycations. After this years fiasco will any sensible people risk staycations in the UK (for summer) in the future?

Steve Taylor ● 1144d

Silly Steve doesn't seem to be aware of the Blue Flag system for beaches.And while he may have been "island hopping around Croatia" during the heatwave and no doubt upsetting the natives, I knew people who had a really poor time in a very wet Italy in June when those of us in the UK were basking in the sunshine.

Richard Greenhough ● 1144d

I have to agree with Steve,bearing in mind I have a now out of date passport,my wife goes abroad with her sister good luck with that nightmare at the airport etc not for me.Mind you if I was back in my twenties with a load of pals.... Agree with the costs in this country,it has lost all proportion  Going to Cornwall middle september,the cost will be nuts.Last week in Worthing went to the best fish and chip rest.I have ever been ,going there for 15 years Chipwicks.so cod and chips ,large cod and chips ,one mushy peas,8 pieces of scampi one bread and butter two large glasses of wine ,how much do you think.  Had hovered around £35 for years ,8 weeks ago £55  last week £65....I don't think they are profiteering I guess it is the crazy costs of running a business like that....Travel Lodge for example the days of booking weeks in advance for a great price are also long gone.

Pete Docherty ● 1144d

I believe that your fish and chips example is indicative of exploitation and profiteering at seaside locations. Considering it’s double the price of decent seafood meals in Greece, Spain etc. And the UK blue flag awards are just a joke these days because the sewage situation changes daily depending on rainfall and storm tank overflows. A beach can be ‘awarded’ blue flag status today and tomorrow a sewage treatment plant  can legally dump millions of litres of sewage into the sea if we have heavy rainfall. In the case of Thames Water it doesn’t even need to be ‘heavy’ rainfall before they dump in the rivers. Why risk the pollution and disease when it it cheaper to go to the crystal clear waters of the Adriatic? Spare a thought for all the staycationers  huddled in their tents on Croyde beach as the forecasters predict another two weeks of rain and maximum temps of 18 degr C.

Steve Taylor ● 1144d

"..the crystal clear waters of the Adriatic.."I don't recall the Venice Lagoon being crystal clear. There are plenty of beaches around the UK that are a long way from any sewage outflows. Perhaps next time you choose to go island-hopping you could try the Scilly Isles.

Richard Greenhough ● 1144d

Risking being called pedantic the islanders would point out to you they live in the Isles of Scilly.

Denis I. Fox ● 1143d

Being pedantic, he is known as Silly Steve not Scilly Steve, but it seemed appropriate.

Richard Greenhough ● 1143d

Hello Steve,respectfully I think I can prove that fish and chip shop on the coast is not profiteering or to be fair maybe they are all at it.Went with a work collegue to Skipjacks in Queensbury been there for decades.Takeaway and white linen type restaraunt very nice.So cod chips mushy peas x2  1 portion of scampi 1 bread roll for me and 2 glasses of wine £64.00  completely potty.Could never judtify going there again...and Queensbury is no Cornwall beachside Steve lol

Pete Docherty ● 1143d

Hi Pete. I take your point. I think it’s the takeaway Chippies in Devon and Cornwall exploiting the situation and profiteering.

Steve Taylor ● 1143d

It’s really getting worse and worse isn’t it?https://uk.news.yahoo.com/rife-sewage-uk-holidaymakers-issued-142417004.html

Steve Taylor ● 1143d

A completely blind ideological privatising madness in an increasingly global world with gentlemen's agreements but no gentlemen creating food for corporate vultures.  The seagulls now steal fish and chips from the hands of customers and bags of crisps from the shelves in the shops.

Philippa Bond ● 1142d

You always learn something on this forum. Today? £64 fish and chips! Amazing.

Nicholas Beard ● 1142d

https://www.mcsuk.org/ocean-emergency/sustainable-seafood/I wish it was easier to share what is an oversized portion of  battered fish and chips in a restaurant!https://www.sas.org.uk/water-quality/sewage-pollution-alertsAnd I wouldn't be so sure that the water is always cleaner on the other side of the ocean either!  It just may not be such a talked about and topical disgrace.

Philippa Bond ● 1141d

I wouldn’t trust the fish in Cornwall. It is surely contaminated with sewage? https://uk.news.yahoo.com/beachgoers-disgust-sewage-filmed-sea-cornwall-coast-145757613.html?

Steve Taylor ● 1141d

Yes, the Cornish fish may well end up in top restaurants but it doesn’t help much if it is contaminated due to the sewage dumps this week and last week, does it?  I was in Cape Town in February and there were sewage dumps in False Bay, which is also home to some of the finest fish and crustaceans in the world but people were warned not to eat it and local authorities actually closed some beaches and tidal pools to swimmers.

Steve Taylor ● 1141d

We thought fish had improved since Brexit, never see real cod for manyyears, often served up as cod but if you know what real cod is like youknow the difference.

Janice Evans ● 1141d

Why would Brexit improve the quality of the fish?

Cecile Parfitt ● 1141d

The cod is as good as it always has been at the Golden Chip - AKA Aggies in Hanwell. Regarding Brexit , it hasn't worked out for the Cornish fishermen who have found their trade with France and Spain disrupted by bureaucracy.Cornish fish had always been highly sought after.Getting back on point a friend goes down to Cornwall on a regular basis and he states that the beaches at Newquay an Perranporth are as good as ever.Not letting privatised utility companies of the hook , they should be brought back under public ownership at the earliest opportunity.

David Burke ● 1141d

Have recently spent time in Cornwall and was told that the fishermen currently go to the Bay of Biscay for their mackerel.  Interesting information in Falmouth museum about the decline of pilchards, once plentiful from there, which fled when motor vessels came into use.

Vivienne Cox ● 1141d

"Not letting privatised utility companies of the hook , they should be brought back under public ownership at the earliest opportunity."Do you really think they would be run any better by glorified civil servants ? OK, the money spent on dividends could be ploughed back into the business, but the real issue is poor management, and the history of nationalised businesses in this country does not suggest that public ownership is likely to provide good management.

Richard Greenhough ● 1140d

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/oct/01/environment-agency-sewage-dumped-england-rivers-leakhttps://www.theguardian.com/politics/2022/aug/22/liz-truss-environment-agency-cuts-sewage-water-pollutionhttps://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/dec/09/government-to-weaken-water-pollution-goals-river-healthThe Environment Bill went forwards and backwards to the Lords in the fight to get better standards and to avoid any further Governmental reduction in water standards.There are masses of articles about it.There are some fish such as cod which have been overfished -  the Marine Conservation people list which are OK to eat and which are being overfished etc.  This is why I find it upsetting to see so much wasted food.  It would be better to be offered smaller portions and have the option of more.

Philippa Bond ● 1140d

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/beachgoers-disgust-sewage-filmed-sea-cornwall-coast-145757613.html?

Steve Taylor ● 1140d

Not everyone can afford to island hop through Croatia. UK holidays are still cheaper than going abroad.  If you don't understand that then you're not living in the real world. 

Tania Bapuji ● 1138d

That’s the whole point. Do the maths!  With the rip off prices in the uk for accommodation, parking, eating out etc etc, it is much cheaper to holiday in Spain, Greece, Portugal, Turkey etc etc. Even camping in Devon or Cornwall entails getting a mortgage!  Friends of ours have just spent thousands to camp in Devon for a couple of weeks and besides swimming in the rain, cycling in the rain, hiking in the rain, they huddled in the tent in the rain and paid ridiculous prices to dine out just to have something to do to alleviate the boredom.

Steve Taylor ● 1138d

I'm inclined to think I'd rather be in a wet tent in Devon than fleeing wildfires in Rhodes. Last time I was there in 2019 I recall it cost about £10 for a night's camping and I didn't need a mortgage for a B'n'B in Salcombe either.

Richard Greenhough ● 1138d

Meanwhile, in Portugal - https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-66435160

Richard Greenhough ● 1138d

“ Last time I was there in 2019 I recall it cost about £10 for a night's camping”That’s the point I try to make, Richard. Since the pandemic, when staycations were the only option to get away for a while, prices have quadrupled. In 2029 we had a 3 bedroom Airbnb for a week near Braunton for £828. Price this year is £2050.  I don’t  dispute that you could camp somewhere for £10 a night in 2019 but I doubt it would have been anywhere near the sea and I doubt very much you will find anything in Devon or Cornwall for that price now in July or August.  Even wild camping with zero facilities costs double that  times that. The wildfire issues were radically overdramatised by the press. I know that for a fact because my daughter was on Corfu at exactly the time the press claimed the fires were engulfing the island and it was exaggerated nonsense. The fire affected a very, very small section of the island. Most people on holiday there were not even aware of the fires. I believe Rhodes had similar catastrophising issues. Media hype we are all used to by now.

Steve Taylor ● 1138d

We just spent a week in The Cotswolds and even though the weather wasn't great we had a fantastic time. We went as a family with Rosie our Golden Retriever, ate at some amazing restaurants, spent the day at Soho Farmhouse for my wife's birthday, lots of country pubs and there was a heated pool and a pool table waiting back at the cottage!Thoroughly recommended, close to home but as different to London as you can get. Loved it!

Chris Blackwell ● 1137d

Exactly how much did this all cost you, Chris?

Brian Coyle ● 1136d

We stayed at a friend's cottage so it was mate's rates. We are members of High Road House so Soho Farmhouse was free. Paid for food and drink for the week but this was cheaper than eating out in Chiswick. Brilliant week, although the weather was pretty crap and of course as soon as we got back the sun came out.

Chris Blackwell ● 1136d

Ah, but that’s not a fair comparison then. My wife has just spent a week in Bergerac staying with friends in their cottage so her costs were limited to the airfare (£120) plus contributions to food from the markets which was much cheaper than the UK so total costs for the week including travel about £250 max.  And the weather was great for lots of cycling, canoeing, swimming in the river etc.

Steve Taylor ● 1136d

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-66453138

Steve Taylor ● 1135d

Who wants to just bake and burn in the over hot sunshine abroad - it is so often too hot to do anything let alone converse coherently with family and friends.  It's much more fun having the chance of rain and it's lovely swimming in the rain.  Memories aren't necessarily made by lying on a sunlounger by the pool (if you can get one and it hasn't been chained up in a bid to avoid the sunlounger wars) doing nothing.  A good time to remember can be from having time to talk to each other and playing what are often hilarious board games.Eating out is often disappointing too especially if the meals are huge and mediocre and all you can do afterwards is feel ill and/or sleepy and need to lie down to sleep them off.

Philippa Bond ● 1134d

“ Who wants to just bake and burn in the over hot sunshine abroad - “Err. Tens of millions of people. That’s why so many beach resorts abroad are fully booked and why aircraft are overbooked.

Steve Taylor ● 1133d

“ it is so often too hot to do anything let alone converse coherently with family and friends.”What absolute rubbish!  ‘It’s too hot to converse with family and friends’ You heard it first in ChiswickW4 !!

Steve Taylor ● 1133d