Holidays are meant to be 'you time' - where you can do things on your terms. And there are so many different travels websites and agencies available now that you can often plan your holiday down to the last detail.
From this, you'd think that it'd be almost impossible to regret buying a holiday, but this isn't strictly true. At Debt Advisory Centre, we recently did some research into the phenomenon of 'buyer's remorse'. We found that 82% of British people have experienced buyer's remorse at some point - and 6% of them regretted buying a holiday.
Holidays were one of the least-regretted purchases in our research (which is good to hear) but that 6% still equates to around two and a half million regretted holidays.
Why do people regret buying holidays?
Despite all the planning you can put into a holiday nowadays, things can still go wrong - or things can be different to what you expect. That might be why 27% of people who regretted buying their holiday did so because it was 'poor quality'. Perhaps the resort or hotel wasn't quite up to scratch - or perhaps things went wrong a little bit too often.
Similarly, 15% just 'didn't like it' - perhaps they expected something different and found the reality did not suit their tastes. 14% 'didn't really need' the holiday - maybe they were the lucky people that manage to go on several each year.
The biggest reason for regretting buying a holiday - for over a third (38%) of 'regretters' - was that they couldn't really afford it.
Avoid regretting your holiday because of the cost
The cost of holidays can quickly get out of control. Even if you find bargains on your flights (with sites like Skyscanner) and your accommodation (for example, by comparing hotels, couchsurfing or staying in hostels) you can find yourself spending too much when you get there.
For example, 'things I bought on holiday' was the third-most-regretted purchase in our entire research - with 27% of people with buyer's remorse regretting buying things while abroad. This could apply to tacky souvenirs - but could also refer to the cost of food and drink while you're away.
One of the best ways to get around this is to set a holiday budget, and stick to it. One way to make sure you do stick to your holiday budget is to only take that amount in cash - or a set amount onto a prepaid travel card. Work out how much you have to spend each day to help you avoid running out of money early.
(Photo by derekskey – Flickr)
Holidays were one of the least-regretted purchases in our research (which is good to hear) but that 6% still equates to around two and a half million regretted holidays.
Why do people regret buying holidays?
Despite all the planning you can put into a holiday nowadays, things can still go wrong - or things can be different to what you expect. That might be why 27% of people who regretted buying their holiday did so because it was 'poor quality'. Perhaps the resort or hotel wasn't quite up to scratch - or perhaps things went wrong a little bit too often.
Similarly, 15% just 'didn't like it' - perhaps they expected something different and found the reality did not suit their tastes. 14% 'didn't really need' the holiday - maybe they were the lucky people that manage to go on several each year.
The biggest reason for regretting buying a holiday - for over a third (38%) of 'regretters' - was that they couldn't really afford it.
Avoid regretting your holiday because of the cost
The cost of holidays can quickly get out of control. Even if you find bargains on your flights (with sites like Skyscanner) and your accommodation (for example, by comparing hotels, couchsurfing or staying in hostels) you can find yourself spending too much when you get there.
For example, 'things I bought on holiday' was the third-most-regretted purchase in our entire research - with 27% of people with buyer's remorse regretting buying things while abroad. This could apply to tacky souvenirs - but could also refer to the cost of food and drink while you're away.
One of the best ways to get around this is to set a holiday budget, and stick to it. One way to make sure you do stick to your holiday budget is to only take that amount in cash - or a set amount onto a prepaid travel card. Work out how much you have to spend each day to help you avoid running out of money early.
(Photo by derekskey – Flickr)
(This post was written by Helen Gradwell from Debt Advisory Centre)
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