Parents spend an average of £400 per child on action-packed days out during the summer holidays, but many regret the expense as children find equal joy in free, everyday wonders.
A poll of 1,000 mums and dads of children aged four to eight found that 68% feel pressured to take their kids to see amazing sights during the six-week school break. Eight in ten parents expect to sacrifice treats for themselves, including eating out, new clothes or accessories, and short breaks or weekend trips.
Expensive Trips Often Unappreciated
Three-quarters of parents have regretted splashing out on pricey sightseeing tours or museum days because their children were not interested. This has resulted in an average spend of £232 on trips that children were indifferent about.
69% of parents said that if their child stopped pointing out everyday wonders, they would question if they were having eyesight issues. For 20%, this would be reason enough to book an eye test.
Children Find Wonder in Mundane Sights
Three-quarters of parents said their kids have experienced as much wonder on a free walk in the woods as on an expensive trip. A third of parents confirmed no correlation between spending and enjoyment. Children are most interested in nature (35%), animals (32%), or water (25%).
Specsavers, which commissioned the research, teamed up with TV adventurer Aneeshwar Kunchala, aged 11, to encourage families to go ‘Tightseeing’ – taking kids to see free mundane sights they find magical. They curated a crowdsourced map on Tightseeing.com featuring top free sights like a “Quite Tall Pointy Rock” in Bristol, “A Very Mossy Wall” in Yorkshire, and “Five Big Ole Logs” in North London.
Aneeshwar Kunchala said: "Nature, it’s my favourite mundane sight. If it's a tree that looks like a stick man or a stump that looks like a drum set – as I like to call it, a stump-set – or anything in between, children can find wonder in everyday things."
Everyday Wonders Parents Noticed
Parents cited everyday wonders their children enjoy, such as the Greenwich foot tunnel, a local post box treated as an adventure spot, and places to collect leaves and sticks. Others mentioned hardware stores, garden centres, water fountains, automated car washes, or tiny streams.
Data from the Royal College of Ophthalmologists 2021 report states around one in five children under 10 have a sight condition that could affect their vision.
Jill Campbell, optometrist at Specsavers, said: "We know parents are feeling financially stretched so we want to remind them that children’s eye tests and glasses are free. You’ll be doing the best thing for their vision and eye health by helping them better spot everyday wonders around them, while also saving hundreds of pounds on often expensive sightseeing days out. It's not always easy to spot vision problems in children - a lack of interest in the everyday things they usually find fascinating can be a good clue. That’s why we recommend an eye test for children every two years, even if nothing seems wrong."
