The cost of entertaining children this Christmas: £40 per day
- Wednesday, December 9, 2009, 14:24
- 1 comment
A new study from internet bank, Egg reveals that more than three quarters (77%) of UK parents spend more money than they can afford to on keeping the children entertained at Christmas.
The average family is set to spend almost £40 a day on entertaining their children this Christmas, with the total financial burden of keeping the kids happy during the two week festive break totalling £540.
On top of the cost of Christmas presents, parents will fork out on activities like going to see the latest Christmas movie and buying in the latest DVDs and best-selling books for the family.
Egg’s research reveals the top five activities to keep the children content during the Christmas break are:
- Take the kids out for lunch (60%)
- Go to the cinema (52%)
- Buy DVDs (42%)
- Buy books/comics (41%)
- Dish out extra pocket money (24%)
The additional cost of keeping boredom away from their children this festive season means more than three in four (77 per cent) parents admit they will spend more money than they can afford to on their kids, in what is an already expensive time of year.
One in 11 (9 per cent) believe spending the money shows their children how much they love them, and one in 25 (4 per cent) admit they simply follow the lead from other parents.
Vanessa Wood, spokesperson for Egg said:
“Christmas is the most expensive time of the year for a lot of families but being smart about how you spend money can really help spread the cost of Christmas.”
“The Egg Money World MasterCard for example, offers rewards including discounts on family days out and cinema tickets plus high street and internet retailers.”
“Egg Money customers can also help spread the cost of Christmas with a market leading 1% cash-back rate on purchases worldwide, and a range of insurance benefits such as missed event cover and a price promise.”
Egg Money World Mastercard typical variable APR will be 17.8%, which is derived from the standard variable annual rate for purchases of 16.9% and the £1 monthly fee. The balance transfer rate of 8.9% pa is fixed for the life of any balance transfer made before 1 February 2010. Further conditions will apply. Insurance provided by International SOS Insurance Services.
If want to secure a credit card with the most favourable terms possible this Christmas, TotallyMoney.com can help. Head over to http://www.totallymoney.com/credit-cards/ where you can compare the best offers from top UK lenders to find the card that works best for you. When you’ve found the one you want, just click Apply to start the application process.
About the Author
Personal finance writer for a host of publishers around the world, Mike is an avid follower of all things personal finance. He reveals what the latest personal finance headlines really mean for you and debunks common personal finance myths.
One Comment on “The cost of entertaining children this Christmas: £40 per day”
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If anyone is overspending by flushing £40 a day on frivolous days out when they could have stayed home with the family and entertained the kids for much less, then they deserve whatever difficulties they get themselves into.
There’s a cheap solution for each one of these:
* Take the kids out for lunch: Take the kids out to a free museum, or park, and take a packed lunch.
* Go to the cinema: Get a DVD from a local library.
* Buy DVDs: See above.
* Buy books/comics: See above.
* Dish out extra pocket money: Teach kids that life is tough, and doing without is something they have to get used to.