‘Even with a monthly income of £8,800 we chose Wales over a foreign holiday’
We are a two-parent, two-children (and a dog!) family. Our boys are three and six years old.
My husband works full-time in public sector sales and I work part-time (20 hours per week) as a cognitive behavioural therapist for the NHS.
My husband’s monthly income (after tax) varies a lot due to bonuses but probably averages at £7,000 a month. My monthly income (after tax) is £1,800.
We both studied at Cardiff University. My husband did a business degree and I did a psychology degree, both graduating in 2009.
After university I worked as an administrator for social services, earning £15,000 per annum after tax. I then worked for Cardiff University as an assistant psychologist for three years earning £19,000 after tax. I decided to pursue a career in mental health and moved to Exeter to train to be a psychological wellbeing practitioner (NHS band 5) and after two years I completed training to be a cognitive behavioural therapist (NHS band 7). Shortly after qualifying I had my first baby and decided to return to work on a part-time basis.
After university, my husband worked in various sales roles. His starting salary was £15,000 and has progressed to a base salary of £90,000 with additional bonuses each month.
Since having our children we have not been on many holidays. This is in part due to Covid restrictions when our eldest was young and because he has a very severe dairy allergy and it can be hard enough eating out in the UK without a language barrier.
Another reason is that our second baby was quite challenging, so going on holiday away from home comforts seemed like a lot of hard work and stress and therefore not worth the money.
We live in Devon close to beaches and attractions, so we spend our free time and annual leave doing things close to the comfort of home instead.
Last year we went on our first family holiday and our priorities were ease, comfort and not too much travelling.
We opted for Center Parcs, Longleat, which ticked all those boxes. This year we wanted to try something different so decided to go Bluestone in Pembrokeshire, West Wales, with a stopover in Cardiff.
We ended the trip with a day at Folly Farm, an attraction with animals and rides near Bluestone.
Day 1
We left home in the morning and drove to Cardiff for the first stop on our holidays. We bought a picnic lunch from Sainsbury’s for all of us (£14) to save money and the kids played in a nearby park while we ate to burn off some energy after the journey. Afterwards, we went to Las Iguanas and had drinks (mum and dad) and ice creams (the boys), which came to £15. A nice place to sit and relax in the sun and also quite nostalgic as it was where we had our first date 13 years ago.
There was a fun fair nearby and the kids saw it – enough said! The rides were very expensive (£20) so didn’t stay long. We went to Techniquest as there’s a lot for the boys to do there (£37).
In the evening we ate at Bills (£112) which felt expensive for very average food. We previously had good food there and were a little disappointed. We stayed at the Premier Inn in a family room (including breakfast) for £100 which felt like great value for a night’s stay for a family of four in a city centre. We really enjoyed our stopover in Cardiff but felt it was expensive for the time we spent there.
Total
£298
Day 2
We travelled to Bluestone from Cardiff, a one hour and 50 minute journey. When booking, we decided to splash out on one of the premium lodges (£1,800) which was justified, in our minds, by having not been able to go abroad this year as planned, partly due to illnesses – I had to have my gallbladder removed earlier this year – and partly because of the cost of it. We were glad we did; the lodge was spacious, beautifully finished and had all the home comforts you could want plus some extra. It also came with a golf buggy for getting around the site which was a lot of fun.
We did a click-and-collect Tesco shop (£120) so that we could cook most of our own meals. One of my sons has quite severe allergies, so cooking at home is usually easier and less stressful. We paid to charge the car, which is electric (£24).
We could not check into our lodge until 3pm so had lunch in one of the cafes on site (£25) and then made ourselves at home at the lodge. We decided to eat out for our first night and felt it was great value for money (£50). The food was basic but tasty.
Total
£2,019
Day 3
On our first morning, we bought coffee and ice cream (£17) while the kids roamed around the park. In the afternoon the kids played in the indoor play area, whilst mum and dad had a G&T and a beer from the bar (£20). Rude not to while the kids were occupied. We spent £26 on the high ropes experience for the boys as we wanted to take the opportunity for them to try something new.
The eldest child was feeling brave and fancied a go at the indoor zip-line, so he and my husband did it together (£32). We wanted to encourage his adventurous side while he was showing an interest.
After a dinner cooked at home, we had some drinks bought in the Tesco shop, then went to bed.
Total
£95
Day 4
We didn’t spend anything in the day and made use of the free site activities, including the play parks and swimming pool. We had dinner at Wildlakes, an off-site restaurant that our friends recommended (£64). We wanted to have a special night out (and had heard the on-site restaurants were not that great). Really glad we went. It was only a five-minute drive from Bluestone and the restaurant was at an outdoor activity centre inside a tepee. We also got to watch some wakeboarding which was fun.
Total
£64
Day 5
Again, we made use of the “included-in-the-price” facilities on site, then returned to the zip line because our eldest loved it so much the first time that he wanted to do it again with mummy (£32).
I’ve always wanted to try paddle boarding so decided to treat myself to an hour of peace on the lake learning something new (£18).
Total
£50
Day 6
We planned to go here on our last day in Wales. It cost £91.80 which is fairly standard entry price for a family day out. We spent £40 on Folly Farm vintage fairground wristbands which left a bitter taste. We felt forced to buy these and disappointed that the vintage fairground wasn’t included in the entry fee to the farm. There were a lot of rides and each one was £2 per person and with the wristbands, you got unlimited passes on all the rides. It worked out as good value as we went on lots of rides but was an extra cost we hadn’t anticipated.
We decided to have our main meal at lunchtime at the farm (£36.55) so we could get a snacky service-station dinner on the way home.
For said dinner, we spent £32 at Waitrose so we could stop to stretch our legs and eat before continuing our journey home. We regretted not being more organised by making our own dinner, or opting for something different as the food was rubbish and very expensive for just a few sandwiches and crisps. We charged the car again (£16).
We had a great time at Bluestone. It was perfect for the kids at the age they are now, there were lots of activities that you did not have to pay extra for including multiple indoor play areas, the swimming pool with slides and the outdoor play area. We could have stayed in a much cheaper lodge and still enjoyed it but the St Govan lodge did make the trip feel more special.
Total
£216.35
Total holiday cost: £2,742.35
