Man Cancels His Girlfriend's Kids' Christmas Trip To Disney World After She Insisted He Include Her Ex & His Family Too
He was outraged that he would be asked to provide a vacation for his girlfriend's ex and his family.
Hananeko_Studio | Shutterstock Christmas is a time for families to bond and make memories together. However, not all families look the same, and when parents are no longer together but kids and other partners are involved, the holidays can get seriously messy. For the outsider, like a parent's new boyfriend or girlfriend, being accepted can mean everything.
One man thought his girlfriend and her kids were accepting him until she asked if her ex could tag along on a trip he was paying for.
A woman wanted her boyfriend to include her ex and his family in their Disney World trip.
In a since-deleted Reddit post, a man explained the tough situation he found himself in after both his girlfriend and her ex expected him to pay for the ex’s family’s vacation.
“Ashley and I have been together for three years,” he explained. “Her kids are nine and 12. I get along with them and they are good kids. I’m not their dad, but they are polite and respectful.”
“I had a good year and wanted to do something nice for the kids,” he said. “Ashley and I talked about it and we were going to take the kids to Disney World over Christmas.”
Normally, this would be a joyous, exciting occasion — and it was until his girlfriend's ex got involved.
“The problem is that her ex wants to pitch in and come as well with his wife and their kid,” he stated. “I don’t really wanna go on a holiday with this guy and his family.”
“I talked to Ashley and I said I would prefer if it was just us since this is our first big family holiday,” he said. “She said that her ex really wanted to be there for the kids’ first trip to Disney.”
Although it didn’t really make much sense for the ex and his family to come on the trip, the man eventually agreed.
“We argued and I gave in,” he said. “Then the plan was told to me. He really couldn’t afford to stay where we were going to stay, so he and Ashley decided that I should change our reservation and stay somewhere cheaper.”
While this threw a wrench in his plans, he was willing to go along with it.
“We chose a Good Neighbor hotel at Disney Springs,” he explained. “It’s nice and still allows for early entrance and has character events and such.”
At that point, he learned how little his girlfriend's ex planned to contribute to the Disney trip.
“It turns out that what was supposed to happen was I cancel our reservations at the Grand Floridian, and use the money to pay for an extra suite at the other hotel,” he said. “Their idea of him pitching in was paying for flights for his wife and kid. I said [expletive] no.”
Li Teves | Pexels
Ashley tried to convince him he was making the wrong choice.
“Ashely said that the kids really want their dad there,” he continued. “I said that he was welcome to take them. She said I was being cheap since I could afford to do this. I can, but that’s not the point.”
He explained that, after their argument, he decided the trip was off and canceled the flights and hotel. Ashley and her ex were both angry.
This man was willing to spend a considerable amount of money on his girlfriend’s family, but she ruined it.
According to U.S. News and World Report, “The estimated cost of a baseline Disney World vacation for a family of four is $6,865 in 2024.”
Amanda Brady | Pexels
Trips with more bells and whistles can be more expensive, and there’s no telling how much this man paid since he wanted to make the vacation so nice.
In case spending close to $7,000 on a vacation for his girlfriend’s children wasn’t enough, he was also expected to downgrade his vacation to cover the costs for her ex and his family.
The fact that someone would even suggest such a thing is inconsiderate and, given his generosity, downright rude.
Mary-Faith Martinez is a writer with a bachelor’s degree in English and Journalism who covers news, psychology, lifestyle, and human interest topics.