So me and the wife were planning a vacation with a large group of friends to Costa Rica in May. Then the inevitable happened, and people started backing out, getting flaky, disagreeing with things, etc. You know, the usual things that happen when you try to plan something with a large group of people. Me and the wife were kinda flaky to begin with, because it just wasn't the best time, but we both really wanted to go to Costa Rica, so we were trying to make it work. However once the other people started all disagreeing on what to do, where to stay, etc, we backed out. We don't want to go to Costa Rica and spend thousands unless we get to do Costa Rica how we would like to do it. So my wife is tells her boss that we are not going just in normal conversation. Well last night her boss calls her and offers to pay for the vacation...the wife tells her that we, in no way, could accept that, but then she tells her to think of it as a bonus. The truth is, we are both kinda relieved that we are not going to CR now, and would rather go someplace in Florida this summer, then go all out for vacation next year. But should we feel obligated to go to CR because her boss is giving us the money to go to CR? We tried to turn it down but she insisted.
1st world problems All kidding aside, I say go for it. It's a great opportunity for sure. If nothing else, It's a paid for scouting trip for the trip you want tot go on.
My thoughts are to tell the boss the whole story and I am betting you and your Hunny will be going on an all expenses paid trip to CR by yourselves...just pick a different date. Don't refuse her boss's kindness. It could be insulting and she obviously deserves it.
Take the offer. Bosses don't offer things like that on a whim. Even if you go at the same time as the group, you don't necessarily have to follow their itinerary. Branch off once there.
Absolutely has to take it. As someone who gives bonuses to employees, I can tell you that I look forward to doing it every time and if someone were to refuse - I'm pretty sure it would ruin the fun for me, it may even be a little embarrassing at the same time. Also I may not want to get refused again so it may determine the amount (if any) of future offerings. Trust me, it gives the boss great joy to be able to do this for her, don't ruin it for her.
Yeah I don't think the boss will let us refuse. The question is should we feel obligated to still go to CR, even though both of us kinda don't want to go anymore...or at least not with the group.
Will her boss only pay if you are going to Costa Rica? If you go will you choose not to go to Florida this year? If that's the case then I say go for it. My thing is, I wouldn't want to waste the vacation days to go on a vacation that I didn't want to go on, especially if I had already planned another vacation that I still planned on going on - which means even more vacation days used. It would be hard to pass on a paid vacation.
Going by ourselves isn't really an option. That would just piss off my wife's best friend, who is kinda leading the group to CR. You know how women are.
I'd say, take the "bonus" and go on the Vacation to CR. you don't have to go with the group if that isn't what you really want to do. Stay where you want but you could meet with your friends in the group for a day.... & oh ya, take your fishing tackle.
In the first place, the idea of planning a trip like that with a group of people is nuts, unless you're all part of a Cub Scout troop. A multitude of disagreements is inevitable. Unless you now, no longer want to go to Costa Rica, you should just take the bonus offer and go by yourselves, unless you would prefer to be with your friends, arguing about where to stay, where to eat, what to see, what to do, etc. Some people enjoy that, I guess. I didn't see your last post. So ignore what I said. Just do whatever your wife wants to do. I cannot comprehend a man willing to go on a vacation trip in a group led by his wife's best friend. It may be time to turn in your man card.
Damn.... There has to be an alternative place to go ...but that kinda has the same problem as your wife's friend will know....pickle, for sure...
They asked us if we wanted to go. We had been wanting to go to CR for awhile, so I figured "why not, lets see if it could work". It didn't work, so we backed out.
Sounds like a winner. Wife has never been out of Michigan except for a brief trip to Japan when she was 11 to get her eyelids done. We're planning a trip to Japan and Korea when the girls are older but still young enough to enjoy a trip with their parents. No way would we go as a group. Even a group of good friends are going to have very different ideas on what might be fun on any given day. My mother-in-law believes that the family came from Akita prefecture, so my wife wants to visit there. Of course it won't be anywhere near what it was like in the 1800s.
You have to go to CR. Why? Because we have 6 couples just starting to put together a trip there for next spring and I really need an accurate scouting report. Seriously, I would be tempted to take the free trip, even if it is not planned exactly as you would prefer. You would still enjoy getting away and you might find that its much better than you hoped. At the very least, you would be able to plan and scout for a return trip to your exact wants. Nice to have that decision to make. Tell your wife congrats for obviously being a terrific employee. Nice to see an employer give her credit for a job well done. Take it.
Can you go to Costa Rica and then ditch the group? Like book a tour right off the bat and never catch back up with them. I've only gone on 'trips' with a group when it was hunting related. (hogs mostly) With the exception of one guy who almost got buried in the desert, they were good times. My mom travels all over the world with a bunch of her Japanese friends. Like your typical group of Japanese travelers only they live in the USA. They all get along really well. They've been doing it for years and I think the only trip that flaked out was one to Jordan. With the political climate and the fact that they'd have to ride horses, they decided against it and went to Dubai instead. I think they get along really well because they're mostly retired and they don't have white people hang ups. Face it, you white people can be really weird when you travel. :D
