What is the average cost of a UK family holiday in 2025?

Kirsten Henton

Kirsten Henton

The family holiday is the highlight of the year for millions of people across the UK. It's also one of the most expensive annual household purchases we make. With that in mind, here's a breakdown of what we cover on this page about the current cost of a family holiday in 2025.

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So, what is the "average" cost of a UK family holiday?

  • A typical one-week holiday abroad for a family of four in 2024–25 costs in the order of £3,000–£4,000 in total, encompassing flights, accommodation, food, and activities – and possibly more if taken in peak season or to an expensive destination. Many UK families budget about £4k for their main holiday. travelweekly.co.uk. nimblefins.co.uk.
  • A typical domestic short break (3-4 nights) might cost around £1,000 for the same family, while a full week in the UK could be £1,500–£2,500 depending on activities. On a per-person basis, the spend is roughly £250–£300 per trip at home vs. £800+ per trip abroad in current terms gov.wales ons.gov.uk
  • Annually, the average UK family that takes holidays will spend somewhere between £2,000 and £5,000 a year on travel. Lower-income or single-trip families may be at the bottom of that range (or less), whereas enthusiastic traveling families easily fall in the upper end (or beyond) with multiple trips. travelweekly.co.uk legalandgeneral.com

It's important to note these are averages – individual family circumstances vary widely. Yet, the data from 2024–2025 paints a clear picture: family holidays are a substantial expenditure, often the biggest discretionary spend of the year, and they are getting more expensive.

The "average" UK family navigates this by balancing domestic and international trips, carefully budgeting for flights and hotels, and seeking value wherever possible.

Whether it's a £2k camping trip in Wales or a £5k villa in the Canary Islands, the treasured time together is what families are ultimately investing in.

And by all accounts, Britain's families remain committed to their holidays, making the most of their income and time off to create memories despite the rising costs.

Sources: Recent surveys and reports by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), ABTA Holiday Habits 2024/25, Post Office Travel Money Family Holiday Report 2024, Legal & General's 2024 Family Holiday Survey, Travel Weekly (Mumsnet poll and easyJet study)

Annual holiday spending & travel habits of UK families

Even amid economic challenges, UK families allocate a significant budget for holidays each year. Several recent surveys paint a data-rich picture of annual holiday spending:

  • Overall annual budget - A 2024 survey by Legal & General found that families budgeted about £2,005 on average for 2024 holidays, up from roughly £1,944 spent in 2023. This suggests many families plan for one modest trip (or a couple of short trips) within a few thousand pounds total.
  • Higher-spending families - By contrast, a Mumsnet survey (of 500 parents in late 2024) revealed a higher intended spend among active holidaymakers. On average, those families planned to spend £6,800 on 2025 holidays, with about £4,025 dedicated to their main family holiday alone (travelweekly.co.uk). This indicates that a substantial segment of families (likely those taking bigger or multiple trips) budget in the mid-to-high four figures annually for travel.
  • Planned trips per year - Many families will take more than one holiday in 2025. Research by easyJet in early 2025 found people planning to take 3 holidays in 2025 on average, including a primary trip with a £3,000 budget (Travel Weekly). Similarly, ABTA's Holiday Habits 2024/25 report showed 84% of Britons took a holiday in the past year, with an average of 3.9 trips per person (globetrender.com). Notably, families with young children were among the most frequent travelers, averaging 6.5 trips/year in 2024 (globetrender.com) -many of those likely being short domestic breaks.

"In other words, the "average" family holiday spending can range widely".

A cautious or single-trip family might spend ~£2,000 total in a year (legalandgeneral.com), whereas an avid holidaymaking family might spend £5,000–£7,000 across multiple trips (travelweekly.co.uk).

Across the whole population, holiday spend tends to cluster in the low thousands per year.

For context, holidays consistently rank as a top discretionary expense for UK households – and one that many are reluctant to cut even during economic strain.

In a 2024 study, only 32% of people said they would reduce holiday spending to save money (fewer than those willing to cut back on eating out or gadgets) globetrender.com.

Families clearly continue to prioritize vacations as "essential rather than discretionary" globetrender.com for wellbeing and family time.

"QUOTE FROM CC"

Defining the "Average" UK family (2024–2025)

Before we go any further, it's important to outline what the average UK family looks like in 2025. In broad terms, an average family can be characterized by:

  • Household income - around £34,500 median disposable income per year (after taxes and benefits). This figure fell slightly in real terms due to recent inflation and tax changes.
  • Family size - typically two parents with one or two children. In fact, 45% of families with dependent kids have one child, 41% have two ons.gov.uk, and only 14% have three or more. The prototypical family unit is often considered "2 adults + 2 children," although one-child families are slightly more common.
  • Family structure - about 84% of families with children are headed by a married or cohabiting couple, while 16% are single-parent families ons.gov.uk. (Approximately 1 in 4 families with dependent children are single-parent households across the UK.)
  • Work and leave - Most working adults have 5.6 weeks of paid annual leave by law (28 days, including bank holidays) peoplehr.com. In practice, many get a bit more – the average UK employee took ~33.9 days off (including public holidays) in the past year peoplehr.com. This provides the time in which family holidays must fit, often divided into one main summer holiday and a couple of shorter breaks.

These baseline factors (income, family size, and available vacation time) set the stage for how families budget and plan their holidays.

A middle-income couple with kids and 34 days of leave collectively will budget differently than, say, DINKs or retirees.

With the current cost-of-living pressures, family budgets are tight – but as we'll see, holidays remain a high priority.

Average spend per holiday: domestic vs international

Another way to look at family holiday costs is on a per-trip basis. How much do families spend on an average holiday, and how does that differ for trips abroad versus holidays at home in the UK?

Official tourism statistics and surveys provide some insight:

International holidays

  • UK residents spent a mean of about £823 per overseas visit in 2022, which rose to roughly £839 in 2023 ons.gov.uk. (This is per person, including all trip expenses.)
  • That 2023 figure is 25% higher than in 2019 ons.gov.uk, reflecting inflation and pent-up "revenge travel" spending post-pandemic.
  • For a typical family of four, that implies around £3,300 total spend per foreign holiday in 2023 if all four persons are accounted.
  • Many package holidays and family trips will of course cluster around that average – some do it for less with savvy budgeting, while long-haul or luxury trips can cost significantly more.
  • One financial analysis site estimates **"the typical family holiday abroad" costs about £3,600 in total nimblefins.co.uk for a standard trip.
  • For a two-week family vacation, the cost can easily approach £4,000–£5,000 or more, depending on destination. (For example, one estimate put a 14-night family-of-four holiday at ~£4,792, excluding daily spending money evolutionmoney.co.uk.)

Domestic (UK) holidays

  • Domestic trips (staycations) are usually shorter and cheaper overall, but it's interesting to note they aren't cheap on a per-night basis. In 2019, Britons spent around £240 per person on an average UK overnight holiday (spanning ~3.3 nights) nimblefins.co.uk.
  • By 2023, the average spend per domestic trip was £266 per person for ~2.9 nights gov.wales.
  • For a family of four, that average trip would total roughly £1,000.
  • Many UK family getaways are long weekend breaks or single-week trips, with total costs often in the low-to-mid thousands.
  • A week at a popular British seaside resort, for instance, might run on the order of £1,500–£2,500 all-in for a family (still generally less than a comparable trip to say, Spain, mainly because there are no airfare costs).

To compare these figures side by side, consider how the typical domestic and overseas holidays stack up:

Table: Average Holiday Characteristics – UK Domestic vs Overseas

Metric (per trip) Domestic holiday (UK) Overseas holiday
Average duration 3 nights 9–10 nights
Average spend per person £266 £839
Implied spend for family of four £1,000 (short break) £3,300 (typical trip)
Spend per person per night £90 £81

Domestic spend/night is derived from £266 over ~2.9 nights gov.wales; actual costs vary by trip.

As the table suggests, an overseas holiday usually costs a family several times more in total than a domestic one – primarily because foreign trips are much longer on average and involve pricy airfare.

However, on a per-night basis, domestic holidays can be similarly expensive (often £80–£100 per person per night in expenses, comparable to an overseas trip) ons.gov.uk.

This is partly because UK accommodation, dining, and fuel costs have risen; a cottage rental, petrol, restaurant meals, and attraction tickets for a long weekend in the UK might cost almost as much per day as being abroad.

The key difference is families tend to take shorter trips at home and longer trips overseas nimblefins.co.uk, keeping the total spend lower for staycations.

Cost breakdown of an international family holiday

What are the major cost components of a family holiday abroad? We can break down the typical expenses for an overseas trip into a few categories:

Flights/Travel

Airfare is often the first big cost for an international trip. UK holidaymakers spent about £9.93 billion on international airfares in FY2023, which works out to roughly £225 per overseas trip on average (inflation brings it to ~£232 heading into 2025) nimblefins.co.uk .

For a family of four, that implies on the order of £900 in airfare for a single holiday. Of course, flight costs vary by destination and season – European short-haul flights might total a few hundred pounds for the family, whereas long-haul flights (to the US, Asia, etc.) can run well over £2,000 for four people.

Travel insurance is another related cost (typically £5–£20 per trip per person) nimblefins.co.uk, which families often factor in.

Accommodation

Accommodation is usually the largest on-the-ground expense.

Prices range widely: a budget hotel or apartment might be under £100/night, whereas a resort could be several hundred per night.

As a ballpark, many families allocate £100–£200 per night for accommodation abroad, depending on comfort level.

Over a week this can be ~£700–£1,400. (In package holidays, flights + accommodation are bundled; a package for a family of four to a mid-range Mediterranean resort can commonly fall in the £2,000–£3,500 range for one week, which includes these two major components.)

According to analysis of ONS data by NimbleFins, UK travellers in aggregate spend about £120 per person per night on accommodation, food, drink and entertainment when abroad nimblefins.co.uk.

If we isolate accommodation from that, it's roughly half of that bundle. So, a typical family might be looking at £600 per person for a 9-night stay in lodging costs (£2,400 for four), though cheaper options can bring that down.

Food & drink

Eating out on holiday is a joyous experience - but it can catch up with you.

In the Post Office's Family Holiday Report 2024, food and drink were identified as the biggest culprits in holiday overspending.

Over 90% of parents surveyed said they spent extra on meals and drinks, averaging about £378 on dining and bar tabs during their last trip postoffice.co.uk.

This was above what they expected to spend. For a one-week holiday abroad, a family of four might easily spend in the mid-hundreds on food: e.g. £50-£100 per day on restaurants, cafes, and groceries, which over 7–10 days is £500–£1,000. (Self-catering accommodation can reduce this cost, while all-inclusive packages fold much of it into the upfront price.)

Leisure & activities

The holiday fun – beyond food – also adds to the budget. This includes entertainment, excursions, and activities for the kids.

Nearly 88% of parents in the Post Office survey admitted giving in to kids' requests for treats and activities, spending an average £202 on "extras" for the children (like beach toys, ice creams, activity fees) on a trip postoffice.co.uk.

Additionally, families often pay for excursions (boat rides, guided tours), entry tickets (museums, theme parks, water parks), and souvenirs.

These leisure expenditures can range widely – from relatively little on a simple beach holiday, up to several hundred pounds if you're packing in theme park days or special tours.

Many surveys find that families underestimate these incidental costs, which then push the total spend beyond the initial budget.

Summary: Average cost per night & trip duration

  • Tying the above together, foreign holidays tend to last about 8–10 nights on average for UK travellers nimblefins.co.uk (with trips to Europe on the shorter side, and long-haul trips often two weeks or more).
  • The average cost per person per night abroad works out to roughly £80–£90 when all expenses are averaged ons.gov.uk. For example, one source calculates £1,312 per person for a 9-night trip including flights, which is £146 per day nimblefins.co.uk.
  • A family of four might thus spend £584 per day (in aggregate) on a typical overseas holiday, which over 9–10 days comes to the £5,000–£6,000 range.
  • In practice, many moderate-budget family holidays abroad (e.g. a week in Spain or Greece) come in around £3,000–£4,000 total nimblefins.co.uk, by limiting the duration or choosing cheaper destinations.
  • On the other hand, more elaborate or longer vacations (two weeks in Florida, a trip to Disney, etc.) can easily exceed £5k+ once all the flights, hotels, park passes and spending money are accounted for.

Key insight: International holidays incur a high fixed cost (flights) and encourage longer stays, which means more days of accommodation and spending. This is why the total bill for a foreign family holiday is on average several times higher than for a domestic break. Yet, families often save and splurge on that one big overseas trip because it's seen as a highlight of the year.

Cost breakdown of a domestic UK holiday

When UK families holiday within the country (whether a "staycation" near home or a trip to another part of Britain), the cost structure differs in some ways from going abroad:

Accommodation

According to national tourism stats, the average domestic overnight trip involves about £259–£266 in total spend over 3 nights gov.wales – a substantial portion of that is accommodation.

Many families mitigate costs by traveling off-peak (e.g. a UK trip in May or October rather than the August school holidays) or by using loyalty points/vouchers for hotels.

Average cost per night & trip duration

Domestic holidays tend to be short breaks – the average in Great Britain is 2.9–3.3 nights per trip nimblefins.co.uk gov.wales.

Many families take long weekend trips (e.g. Friday to Monday). Because of this shorter duration, the total spend is kept lower, often under £1,000 per trip as noted.

However, the spend per night can be quite high.

Using the earlier stat: £266 over 2.9 nights implies about £90 per person per night on average gov.wales.

For a family of four, that's roughly £360 per night combined – which might be, for example, £150 for lodging + £100 for food + £110 for activities/shopping, as a plausible breakdown.

That per-night cost is on par with overseas holidays (which averaged £81 per person per night in 2023) ons.gov.uk.

The bottom line is that a domestic holiday isn't necessarily cheap on a per day basis; it's just shorter.

A family that chooses a full 7-night holiday in the UK (instead of a short break) could well spend £2,000+ in total, approaching the cost of a budget flight-inclusive trip overseas.

So families weigh these trade-offs: duration, convenience, and cost.

Summary + key insights

  • A UK-based family getaway typically saves money on transportation and can allow more budget control (e.g. cooking your own meals).
  • The average spend for a domestic holiday is around £250–£300 per person per trip in recent years gov.wales, which for a family of four comes out near £1,000–£1,200 for an average-length break.
  • Any added length or extra activities will increase that. Comparatively, an average foreign holiday runs about £800+ per person ons.gov.uk, so £3k+ for the family, due to longer stays and flight costs.

Popularity of Domestic vs International Holidays

How do domestic and overseas holidays compare in popularity for UK families?

It turns out most families try to do both if they can, but foreign travel holds a special appeal.

Some relevant comparisons and trends include:

Share of families traveling abroad

In 2024, 68% of families with children planned to head abroad for a holiday postoffice.co.uk.

This aligns with ABTA data showing about 52% of the UK population took an overseas holiday in the 12 months to Aug 2023 rede-t.com.

So roughly half of all people (and an even larger share of families who holiday) go abroad at least once a year. The other half either vacation only in the UK or not at all.

Number of domestic vs foreign trips

In pre-pandemic times, Brits actually took slightly more domestic holidays (60.45 million in GB in 2019) than foreign holidays (58.67 million in 2019) nimblefins.co.uk.

Post-pandemic, staycations saw a boom in 2021–22.

By 2023, foreign travel had rebounded strongly (86.2 million outbound visits) ons.gov.uk, and domestic overnight trips were about 117 million across GB gov.wales.

Many individuals take multiple short UK trips plus perhaps one bigger overseas trip.

ABTA reports Brits took on average 1.7 holidays abroad and 2.2 UK holidays per person in the past year abta.com – showing the dual nature of travel habits.

Families often mirror this pattern: e.g. a week in the sun abroad during summer, and a couple of shorter breaks or visits to relatives around the UK at Easter or Christmas.

Cost considerations

Domestic holidays are generally seen as a more affordable alternative, especially during the current cost-of-living crisis.

Families concerned about budgets sometimes opt to holiday at home or take one main trip abroad instead of two.

Travel industry data in 2024 noted many families shifting plans to avoid peak prices – for example, traveling in shoulder seasons or choosing closer destinations travelweekly.co.uk.

Still, despite higher costs, sunshine and overseas experiences draw millions of families abroad. The value perception can be strong: for a not vastly higher total spend, you might get guaranteed warm weather and a change of scenery overseas, which the UK can't always promise.

Trip length and frequency

As noted, an overseas holiday tends to be the "main family holiday" – often a once-a-year big trip (one or two weeks).

Domestic trips are often supplementary short breaks.

EasyJet's research found people planning one main holiday and two additional trips on average travelweekly.co.uk

The main holiday might very well be abroad (with that £3-4k budget) and the additional ones domestic long weekends.

This pattern is common for middle-class working families. Lower-income families, on the other hand, might only afford a domestic trip (or none at all) – which is reflected in that £2k average budget from L&G legalandgeneral.com.

Wealthier families might do multiple overseas trips.

Destination preferences

For those going abroad, Europe dominates – Spain, France, Greece, Italy, and Portugal are consistently top choices nimblefins.co.uk, thanks to relative affordability and family-friendly resorts.

For those staying domestic, popular choices are coastal resorts (Cornwall, Devon, Blackpool, etc.), theme park resorts, and national park areas.

The appeal of domestic trips often includes convenience (no passports/airports), lower travel cost, and flexibility, whereas the appeal of overseas trips is climate, culture, and sometimes better value-for-money in resorts (for example, package holiday costs in Turkey or Bulgaria can be quite low postoffice.co.uk).

According to the Post Office, choosing a destination wisely can stretch a family's budget – e.g. a resort in Bulgaria or Turkey offers much cheaper daily costs than one in Western Europe postoffice.co.uk.

Such considerations factor into where families decide to go, balancing total cost vs experience.

In short, international holidays remain extremely popular – the majority of holidaymaking families take at least one foreign trip per year – even though they cost more and require more time off.

Domestic holidays are still common, especially for additional short breaks or for those years when finances or logistics don't allow going abroad.

Many families mix the two: perhaps a big trip abroad in summer and a UK getaway at Easter or half-term.

Key Insight: The data shows a strong commitment to taking holidays in general: Britons took record numbers of trips in 2023–24 globetrender.com, and families are a huge part of that trend, demonstrating that despite rising costs, the appetite for holidays is undiminished.

2024–2025 Trends: Rising Costs and Inflation Adjustments

It's worth noting how inflation has impacted holiday costs in 2024–25.

Prices for travel have climbed in the past few years, and families are having to budget more for the same vacations:

Travel inflation

Travel expenses have outpaced general inflation in some areas.

For example, the average overseas trip cost 25% more in 2023 than in 2019 ons.gov.uk.

Part of this is higher airfares (fuel costs, demand) and part is higher accommodation and dining costs.

Domestic hospitality prices have also risen (hotel and restaurant inflation in the UK was high in 2022–23).

So an "average holiday" simply costs more today than a few years ago. Many sources note families increasing their holiday budgets accordingly legalandgeneral.com travelweekly.co.uk.

Adjusting older data

When looking at pre-pandemic or pre-inflation figures, we should adjust them.

For instance, the £670 average spend per foreign trip in 2019 would be roughly £800–£830 in today's prices, which indeed matches the actual £839 observed in 2023 ons.gov.uk.

Similarly, the £739 per person 2019 figure (excluding flights) nimblefins.co.uk would be around £900 today if up 22%.

If an average family spent say £4,000 on holidays a few years ago, one could expect they might need £4,800+ to afford the same in 2025. This inflation-adjustment context is important for anyone comparing current costs to past surveys – the real cost increase may be a bit lower after inflation, but nominal spending has risen.

Cost-saving behaviors

Because of these rising costs, families are adapting. Surveys indicate more cost-conscious choices: booking further ahead to lock in prices, travelling slightly less or for shorter durations, choosing all-inclusives to control on-site spending, or vacationing during off-peak times travelweekly.co.uk.

The Mumsnet poll found 60% of parents cite budget constraints as the top challenge in holiday planning travelweekly.co.uk.

Families are also prioritizing value – looking at the exchange rates and local prices.

(The Post Office's Holiday Money report compares costs of "basket of items" abroad; in 2024, Sunny Beach in Bulgaria was the cheapest resort for common holiday items at just £110 for a set of 10 items, whereas Ibiza was twice as expensive postoffice.co.uk.) Such differences can influence destination choice for the cost-savvy family.

Conclusion

That wraps up our look at the current cost of UK family holidays in 2025. We hope you have found this information useful. Please feel free to reference this page and pull whatever stats you find useful. If you need to speak to a member of the team or wish to get a unique quote from one of our travel experts, please contact us here.

Kirsten Henton

Kirsten Henton

Kirsten Henton is Weather2Travel.com's editor. Kirsten writes, commissions and edits our travel features, liaising with our contributors and ensuring copy is spick-and-span. A member of the British Guild of Travel Writers, Kirsten also freelances writing articles on travel, history and the outdoors for titles such as Scotland Magazine and BBC Travel.



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