Buying a house: realistic or are we overextending ourselves?

I am strongly connected to the travel industry and therefore know the amounts that are nowadays already naturally paid for various trips.
However, I myself would never do it that way. Even in Norway, which is known to be expensive, I manage to have a cheap and nice vacation. It depends on what one understands by vacation and especially how one defines "travel." The originally intended traveling is still not really expensive today.
In my environment, annual vacation expenses of around 8-10,000 are not uncommon; for that, I had an air conditioner installed in the house. I am actually surprised that it has almost become a reflexive obligation nowadays to really take one or more expensive hotel trips every year and at the same time also own a house, go skiing, of course, and have wellness treatments once...
But I also know people who have never lived that way and don’t even like it, and I experience them as satisfied people; so it can be different. For example, we never order food and are almost as rarely in restaurants; we like it at home or also at friends’ with good quality for food, drink, seating, and also listening.

Why “must” one go on vacation, honestly asked?

We belong to that group too, ski vacations, wellness a couple of times all inclusive, last year we spent about 15k on vacations and long-distance trips weren’t even included...
Vacations are extremely important to us, memories last forever, and I gladly spend money on that.

last year spent about 15k on vacations and long-distance trips weren't even included...

Crazy that long-distance trips weren't even included. It's especially there that you find memories you can't make in Europe.

Memories last forever, I'm happy to spend money on that

Are they always different memories every year? Skiing down the mountain, a few massages and jacuzzi baths in a beautiful setting, and good food in the evening, AI at the buffet, which hardly changes?

That includes us too, ski vacations, wellness a few times all inclusive, last year spent about 15k on vacations and that didn't even include long-distance trips... Vacations are extremely important to us, memories last forever, I gladly spend money on that

Then you also do it right for yourself. Nevertheless, it does not mean that with these considerable additional costs you necessarily have more valuable memories compared to another type of vacationer. I have actually traveled a lot and far and was away for a long time, but in retrospect, my beautiful and valuable memories never had anything to do with the price of the trip or the distance of the destination. I found one of my favorite places in Patagonia, but there, where the YT videos don’t go, it is a special place with humble people. Most recently, I was again in the Czech Republic in my father’s birthplace and there we met a person and a situation in a private, musty wine cellar that made us all feel so comfortable that we will go back as soon as possible and repeatedly. What is nicer? The second costs more like pocket money and is downright brilliant, the first in Patagonia I also do far below the known prices because I simply can’t find it in the catalog. I even lived there for a while and practically had no money left. So it means that for beautiful memories you don’t have to spend (a lot of) money or that this money would be a guarantee for them. Fortunately, this cannot be bought with money, not even made more likely. It is—as always—in the eye of the beholder what he perceives as a great experience. For my comparison, I know (by now) that I no longer spend so much money on what is often offered as travel. I accompany group trips that sometimes cost 4-7,000.-/pp base price and I wouldn’t want to do any of them myself the same way. But I might be strange in that I (no longer) like places with many people, that’s why the great pictures in the catalog don’t appeal to me either. When it comes to happiness, everyone is different…

It really depends a lot on one's own idea of a holiday. A wellness hotel and amusement park would be a nightmare for me, hiking and simple furnishings in the holiday apartment would be out of the question for my sister-in-law.

With statements like that I always wonder whether the "wellness hotel" is really the nightmare or whether one simply cannot or does not want to afford it and therefore does not feel like they belong. I have actually only done that once so far (before the children) and what is wrong with wellness and excellent food? Of course, I would do it more often if it didn’t cost anything. Better than no wellness and bad food and better to outsource cooking on holiday than to spend the precious holiday time in an apron yourself. The question is rather, is the expensive surcharge worth it to me? No. Maybe once again in retirement. I would rather invest my money in my own four walls (for which you are actually attacked here if you have a nice, durable kitchen or a high-quality, durable bathroom because 'too expensive'). But I grant it to everyone who already sees it differently today. It was nice. What has stayed in my memory, however, is especially the snowy winter landscape of the Alps, since we still didn’t hang around in the hotel all day.

Without children, I would probably also waste my money on all kinds of holidays. You would a) have enough and b) wouldn’t know what better to do with it. For me, a holiday is always just a nice little thing. First, the living situation has to be right and I pay many times over for food than the values given here. A pack of blueberries in the supermarket around the corner already costs 5 euros... I have to live and eat 365 days a year, I only have a measly 30 days of holiday (and not only abroad). For me it is clear that I do not save on everyday life in order to afford the holiday.

And what else do you want to do on holiday with toddlers/babies? An hour’s drive is almost too much and the screaming begins. The Black Forest or Bavaria are fine for that. Visiting family at home is also beautifully located. More than a nice flower field, a playground and a small stream for throwing stones simply isn’t needed. You also don’t feel comfortable in the hotel anymore, but not because a hotel isn’t great, but because with small children you can’t enjoy it anyway. In this respect, the 2000 euros a year are currently not so far off. With teenagers, of course, it will look different eventually.

What else would you want to take a big vacation with toddlers/babies? Even an hour’s car ride is almost too much and the screaming starts.

In fact, you can really have a trip far away without any problems with toddlers and babies. For example, we were in Mexico with our twins when they were 1.5 years old.
One advantage of vacationing abroad (farther away) is that child-friendliness is completely different than in the stiff and often very child-unfriendly home country.

You simply don't need more than a nice flower field, a playground, and a small creek to throw stones in.

That’s exactly how it is!!! The beach on the North Sea is just as good as on the Seychelles (even though, at the temperatures here, no one wants to swim in the North Sea – lol).