Parents spend, on average, up to £925 per child on a fortnight holiday, meaning a family holiday can stretch most people’s finances, according to a survey by NatWest. Assuming the current rate of inflation (2.5%), parents can therefore expect to spend a total of £19,301 on taking their child on family holidays abroad, and, as most families have more than one child they are more likely to have to spend £38,602 or more.

The cost of taking children abroad on holiday varies wildly, depending on where the family live. Parents in central Scotland can expect to pay £1,625 per child to holiday abroad for a fortnight, almost double the £825 it would cost a family in the Midlands. In a fortnight the same Scottish families spend a staggering £500 on their children’s food, (£200 more than anywhere else in the UK) with parents from the Midlands spending the least (£100).

Parents could easily cut the cost of their family holidays by choosing destinations where their pound will go further. Over the past two years, changes in exchange rates means that Mauritius, Jamaica and the US now give British holiday makers 13%, 10% and 3% more spending money respectively.

Robin Cockburn, Head of NatWest Travel Money comments: “Our research shows that where you come from and where you go to can make a huge difference in the cost of taking your children abroad. But with 68% of parents admitting to giving in to their kids requests to treats more easily when on holiday, it seems they aren’t really helping themselves in keeping down the costs of their trip abroad.”