Budget advice please!

[RebeccaKristy]

Our boy 1 had similar issues and he benefited from the holidays but interacting with other children wasn't as big a benefit as we had hoped.

Oh that is a shame. Still his horizons will be broadened. Wanted the 3 weeks as want to enjoy some of the holiday without everything being too crowded. The rules are a joke. Last year we took a week in January to do centre parks (179 pounds!!), £1000 cheaper than in the holidays, One head teacher authorised it the other didn't. Both said they wouldn't give out fines though. But maybe they will for a longer period.

 

[MattR]

We get three weeks from the last week in July to mid August and have done for several years - we only come back when we do because of our work. Could you stay until the end of August? Boys 1 and 2 love travelling but also love coming home. The prices that you quote on page 1 are for the big expensive places. We have had 3 weeks in France for the last two years and really enjoy it. We took 3 weeks to get to and from Croatia a few years ago but it was a lot of driving. For a first European trip, I would consider sticking to France or, if you really want more variety of languages, go around the Alps. I would suggest that staying several days in one place would be better for your son as he would be able to make more friends on a longer basis than just playing for the night or 1 day before moving on.

 

[RebeccaKristy]

for a first European trip, I would consider sticking to France

I think it might be our only time. We live in Cornwall so if you don't work the holidays then you don't work. Only taking this summer off because my husband is just finishing a degree, so before he gets a job, and whilst the kids are in non pivotal years at school and I am just about to start my own business. Want to get the most out of this tiny gap. Although I do want to stay in one place for a week here and there.

 

[DavidG58]

I do think you should get your children back in time to start the new term with the others, if one already has integration issues, the extra absence can not help and 9 weeks instead of 10 is not really a hardship

As a recently retired Chair of Governors, I know this absence will have to be discussed by the staff and governors at your kids school, it is inevitable that there will be some negative outcome

 

[retiringjoyce]

As schools plan the curriculum well in advance you should be able to teach them what they have missed. as an ex headteacher I have had many, many families take children back to their home country, then miss the plane back so have to re book a flight 2 weeks later.
Such a pity if a lefthand threaded spindle should get lost and you have wait for replacement. wink, wink.
I wouldn't ask permission for all 3 weeks as you won't get it and it will cause problems for you.

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[lorger]

Hi there up until last summer we always went in school holidays as our daughter is still at school and Lorraine worked at school until last year, we have never booked a site in France during the high season and have only been knocked back once on the outskirts of Paris but drove 10 mile to another even turned up at Lake Annecy and got first site we tried. We did however book a week in Lake Garda as we were told it would be very busy and although it was busy they still had folk turning up on the off chance, two years ago we did Slovina and again never booked a site turned up at Lake Bled and pitch no problem even though their website said full.

We don't use tolls that often and think you could keep to your budget no problem as we always took Sophie's friend so 4 of us managed it and we eat out just be sensible eat out at lunch instead of nighttime usually cheaper, use Aires if possible some are stunning some just basic.
Your kids will love the trip Sophie always did and take them to places of history that are free or cheap.

 

[deleted-member02]

Being honest, I'm not sure how much travelling benefits the kids - you will be spending MANY hours driving, mine absolutely hate it, even with tablets/wifi/lots of movies/bribes of ice cream and so on...

I'm guessing that your return journey is approaching 100hrs driving. Difficult to comprehend until you've done it...
Are you planning to sail from Plymouth or go via /Folkestone/Dover ?
Just to get you thinking and give some perspective, Cornwall to Folkestone is at least six hours. If you get a ferry from Plymouth, you still have to make up the mileage on the French side..
Either way it's one helluva journey to Croatia and back.

It is doable though , we do similar mileage in six weeks but we do have a few days where it's literally driving 7am - 7pm (500mile day is our absolute limit)

My 10yr old is closely following our holiday plans, we're six months away from it, but he's already dreading the travelling aspect (we've been motorhoming all his life, so he knows the drill)

Regarding friends, we've always found it difficult. Motorhomers are transient in nature.
If we stay on an aire, kids don't even bother trying to make friends anymore - they know it's merely a temporary stop.
Even if we stay somewhere for a week, chances are it will be caravanners staying, and they mostly go out for the day, returning late on an evening... or the new best friend is leaving two days after we arrive...

My kids miss their local friends and keep in touch via Skype... on returning to school they have often missed out on the other kids 'boring' summer and are in fact, slightly 'removed' from there class mates.

I hope this doesn't sound like a negative post, the kids do benefit greatly and do learn a lot, but social interaction would certainly be very low on the list of benefits...

 

[sedge]

Oh those left=hand threaded spindles are an absolute pain aren't they Joyce? Mind you the lead-time on the right-handed ones isn't that much better is it really? And when you discover - and well of course you are gobsmacked! - that Fiat actually have them manufactured in Timbuctu instead of Italy, it just increases the delivery time on them. Always.

The main holidays in France are always 15th July (Bastille Day) until 15th August (Fete de St Jean) so campsites are usually top whack between those dates - so this year that will be from Sat 11th July until Sat 15th/Sun 16th August or possibly even the following weekend as the Fete falls on a Saturday. So if it's a popular resort, they will also be jam packed during those times.

However inland and in non-beautiful people places, there will still be beautiful people there but they might well not be wearing the latest designer must have LOL. Frankly - I can do without them too! They are all such huge countries, with fewer people per square mile - you will find all sorts of treasures as you explore. And you can get almost everywhere on non-toll roads, even a some of the motorways have stretches (sometimes huge stretches - thinking the A75 here) are non-toll. You won't have a problem avoiding toll roads, honestly.

Enjoy !

 

[Minxy]

My comments, for what they are worth is that 10 weeks is way too long and your travel pans too ambitious! Your kids will soon get fed up of the travelling, even if you stop in one place for a while, and all of you living in a MH for that length of time without your own room to escape to will be very trying.

As regards keeping the kids away longer so they miss the first few weeks of school - please DO NOT do this ... I had this myself due to problems with which school I was being sent to so started at my eventual one 2 weeks late and you NEVER get that back and it does make a heck of a difference, especially when bullying is a problem already as it gives them even more ammo to throw at you and the teachers can be just as bad! You also have to think of your kids friends at home who they'll miss and this will isolate them even more when they get back to school. I think the financial 'hit' will be quite large too even if you could convince the schools to allow you to do what you want ... which I seriously doubt they will due to the above problems which their absence could cause.

Another thing to consider is your other half's job hunting - how will he go about it if he's abroad for that length of time?

I can appreciate your wanting to just go for it and try to get the most 'value' time-wise out of your trip but you are, IMV, going over the top on this and need to really sit down and think through the 'emotional' issues as well as the financial etc ones.

 

[Judge Mental]

Thank you will check that out. I know August will be a nightmare, but apparently kids have to go to school. I reckon this would be far more educational!

Not if you plan it won't! My wife works in education so we always go peak times and have great holidays in the height of summer. But it is the most expensive time and requires early booking!

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[mjltigger]

It sounds like you want to do this as a once in a lifetime experience and I applaud you for it. How awesome for your kids.

I agree with some posts that have some negative views. We leave our kids behind when we go off touring. We do a week in Cornwall in August with a large tent for the kids and fly for a week in October in Spain in an all inclusive resort. The rest of the year it is just us. I worry they are missing out but really couldn't handle the fighting and complaining that would be our constant companion on a longer tour.

 

[MattR]

Sorry - I hadn't read the details clearly enough - I would strongly advise against returning after the start of term - there is a lot that goes on in class in September and your children will have greater difficulties settling into the start of the year and integrating into social groups if they arrive after the rest of their classmates have started.

I like the idea of 10 weeks but our kids are always keener to get home than we are.

 

[Mags52]

Couple of points that might help. Going away for a long trip can seem more attractive in the planning than the event. The first time we went for 6 weeks I'd had enough by the time we got home... and that was just two adults. You could miss the space in your house, your bed and your home comforts more than you know. I was convinced before that that I wanted to go for a full year - now I know better. If you add in two kids you will probably feel the lack of space even more.
Secondly on a more positive note we save money by making full use of the freezer box in our fridge. We buy ice creams and lollies in the supermarket instead of buying them from ice cream shops and service stations. You can get 6 for the price of one in a service station. We live simply and eat out rarely. France would be my best advice for a first long trip. The country is huge and very varied and you have a good chance of finding free aires as long as you're not by the coast.
One year, when we were in a hurry to get down to Spain we decided to use the toll roads. We then spent too much time down south and were in a hurry again to get back to the port. Tolls again. It cost us nearly E500 - go steady and enjoy the little town and countryside.

 

[Sheddy]

Have a look at our spreadsheet in the resources section, it may help with some of the details you need
http://www.motorhomefun.co.uk/forum/resources/france-italy-trip-cost-spreadsheet-2014.87/
Cheers

 

[RebeccaKristy]

places of history that are free or cheap

Have you any examples of these in Italy? I have been googling everything, but the galleries etc seem to be expensive over there. My husband is a history buff and I am a fine art graduate so we want to see as much as possible.

I do think you should get your children back in time to start the new term with the others

I will try. It will be 9.5 weeks if school starts on the first day, but they sometimes have inset days at the beginning of winter term. Whilst I think it would be best for the eldest to be back then, it is the chaos of newness that sets him off, it isn't a new school, or new friends so if needs be he would be fine (but will try not to)

Are you planning to sail from Plymouth or go via /Folkestone/Dover ?

I am not sure. Considering Poole, unlikely plymouth as it is really expensive. Very cheap euro tunnel offers on.

Regarding friends, we've always found it difficult. Motorhomers are transient in nature.
If we stay on an aire, kids don't even bother trying to make friends anymore - they know it's merely a temporary stop

I wasn't really expecting friendships, but like when you go to soft play or something, they just randomly start playing with other kids.

Another thing to consider is your other half's job hunting - how will he go about it if he's abroad for that length of time?

Not sure, who knows what goes on in their heads. Hoping with his education degree he might be lucky enough to get a September start. Otherwise we'll struggle through whilst he gets something when we are back.

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[Minxy]

Another thing to consider is your other half's job hunting - how will he go about it if he's abroad for that length of time?

Not sure, who knows what goes on in their heads. Hoping with his education degree he might be lucky enough to get a September start. Otherwise we'll struggle through whilst he gets something when we are back.

They won't just give him a job on the basis of his degree, he'll have to have at least 1 if not 2 or more interviews - I think you'll find that by the time you get back the jobs will all be taken so don't bank on him getting anything any time soon - it might be an idea for him to see if he can line something up before you go away.