Far Flung Fallouts
Money, food and the weather are some of the biggest reasons behind family fallouts while away, new research has revealed.
The study, conducted by cruise agent Bolsover Cruise Club, surveyed 1000 UK adults and examined the most common reasons behind holiday spats, as well as the optimum length of time we could spend away with our loved ones before bickering was likely to set in.
The results showed that despite their many positives, holidaying with our friends and family can be a rather stressful affair, especially when it comes to the day-to-day.
In fact, the study found that more than two thirds of Brits admit to falling out with friends or family when on holiday, and that we’re likely to have heated words with our loved ones around four times a week on average while on our jollies.
Top 5 reasons for Fall Outs on Holiday:
- What to do and see
- Where/What to eat
- The weather/heat
- Money/splitting bills
- People not controlling their children
Outside of the top five, other reasons given behind common disagreements between friends and family were things such as travel and directions (22.8%), who gets which room/bed (20.2%) and being generally over tired (18.9%).
Men were found to be the more frugal of the sexes, as more than a third shared that they were likely to cause tensions with their friends and family over money/splitting bills, compared to just 14.6% of women.
That said, nearly half of the women (41%) surveyed admitted that they regularly get hot headed towards their travel companions over food choices while on holiday.
Bolsover Cruise Club also quizzed participants on how long they believed they’d be able to holiday with various family members and friends and used this to find the optimum amount of time Brits should consider booking time away with their loved ones.
Results uncovered that our partner was likely to be the best choice for a longer break, closely followed by brother(s) and friends.
Unfortunately for grandma and grandad, dad, sister(s) and nieces, nephews and godchildren, they were all ranked pretty low on the scale in terms of tolerable days.
Maximum Holiday Time Before a Fallout*
Partner: 10 days 6 minutes
Mum: 6 Days, 16 hours and 48 minutes
Dad: 2 Days, 13 hours and 33 minutes
Brother: 7 Days, 7 hours and 12 minutes
Sister: 2 days, 21 hours and 36 minutes
Grandparents: 2 days, 12 hours
Children (yours): 8 days, 12 hours
Children (your nieces, nephews, godchildren etc): 1 days, 12 hours
Aunties and Uncles: 3 days, 12 hours
Cousins: 5 days, 7 hours and 18 minutes
Friends: 7 days
Michael Wilson, Managing Director at Bolsover Cruise Club, commented on the findings:
“While there are naturally family feuds and bickering amongst friends, it is great to hear that the majority of Brits are still happy to head away on their annual holidays with their loved ones.
“One key thing to keep in mind is that it’s perfectly okay not to all want to do the same thing while away, whether that’s food, activities or general lounging around the pool, which is why we believe a cruise can provide a great option when wanting to please more than one or two holiday makers.”