Away for Pesach? | Imamother

cassandra

Thu, Dec 04 2008, 6:14 pm

SECRET wrote:

usually go to hotel for pesach with inlaws but luxurious as the resort is, its getting quite stressful to juggle the babys naps and younger kids routines with the hotels mealtimes schedules etc so this year I think id rather stay home and make pesach for the first time...am I crazy???????

No I did that last year (partially) at the urging of some imamothers and it was a great experience. We're sorry we have to go away this year. (to my ils)

cindy324

Thu, Dec 04 2008, 6:51 pm

Quote:

The price might seem a little expensive, but if you add up everything you buy for food or household things during Pessah, it doesn't seem too pricey

Don't know how much Pesach in a hotel costs in Europe, but here in the US, an entire Pesach in a decent hotel for a family of 4 or 5 is around $5000, NOT including Chol Hamoed trips.

The entire expense of Pesach at home does not come close to that amount. Of course if you're making pesach for the very first time and have to buy new pots and pans and cutlery, it'll cost a couple hundred more, but in general if you have all that already, Pesach food and paper goods , which is my main expense doesn't cost me more than $600-$800 TOPS!

Yes the kids and us need new clothing usually, but we'd have to buy that anyway, even if we were going to a hotel, and we'd spend eve more on clothing then, as we'd feel the pressure to have enough clothing while we're away.

bandcm

Thu, Dec 04 2008, 6:55 pm

cindy324 wrote:

Quote:

The price might seem a little expensive, but if you add up everything you buy for food or household things during Pessah, it doesn't seem too pricey

It all depends.
My parents spend almost $1,000 just on matzos.

Raisin

Thu, Dec 04 2008, 6:59 pm

bandcm wrote:

cindy324 wrote:

Quote:

The price might seem a little expensive, but if you add up everything you buy for food or household things during Pessah, it doesn't seem too pricey

It all depends.
My parents spend almost $1,000 just on matzos.

I think a) your parents have a larger family
b) they are buying hand made shmura matza, even more expensive because its imported.
c) people who don't eat gebrokts and are also very makpid about not buying ready made cakes etc eat a lot more matza.
d) I bet your parents wouldn't trust a hotels kashrus anyway.

bandcm

Thu, Dec 04 2008, 7:02 pm

Raisin wrote:

bandcm wrote:

cindy324 wrote:

Quote:

The price might seem a little expensive, but if you add up everything you buy for food or household things during Pessah, it doesn't seem too pricey

It all depends.
My parents spend almost $1,000 just on matzos.

Four out of four!

mummiedearest

Thu, Dec 04 2008, 7:50 pm

I've made pesach since we were married. I don't have the opportunity to go to a hotel, but I don't want to. I love having a seder at home. the first year we were married we went to parents for the sedarim (home the rest of the time), but the second year we made seder and invited them. it was so nice to have our own seder. I honestly always felt bad for people who are married a number of years and always go away for pesach. it must be so stressful. I hate going away for shabbos at this point with two little kids. I don't know how some of you do it.

hannah95

Thu, Dec 04 2008, 11:01 pm

Quote:

Interesting.
I may seem superficial, but how is the food? I grew up with no kitnios and I'm still recovering!

Also, who is the rabbi?
I'll pass the info to dh, because it sounds like a crowd he could like (his kollel is affiliated with pavée).

Food is great. Really.
Usually, the day starts with breakfast for women and kids, while the men are are davening, followed by a dairy kiddush served by the pool or in the garden of the hotel. Coffee, tea and juice is available all day long, and they serve cakes and fruits for tea time.
Lunch and dinner is very good, lot of great meat, fish starters, great cakes for desert, or choice of fruits. Since we go away for Pessah, I even tend to gain a little weight, when I use to lose some:) For sedarim, they use matsa chmoura and they let you bring your own if you have a special minhag. They take care of the Pessah platter also but you can bring you own also if you want. We usually have a family seder in the main dining room, and have a lot of fun watching the other families do their own thing.

As for Rabbis, they are of course orthodox rabbis, and sepharadim. It might be a problem for you ? I can't remember if your husband is ashk or seph. Last year we had Rav Abdelhak who you might have heard of, he's in the 19th arrondissement. Usually the rebbetzin also gives talks to women and organizes daily tehilim reading.

As for the cost, you can always get a better deal than what they say on the add, don't be afraid to ask. The full Pessah, for a couple is around 1200 euros (this doesn't include flights, but we always travel on cheap airlines, and flew to spain for 30 euros last year). I find this a good dealn since I can spend close to 800 euros on food and matzot and wine, and since I haven't been married for long, we are still in the process of having a good pessah cooking equipment, so I'm always buying new things and rushing to toivel lol

I guess I could spend it home, maybe I'm lazy. I could also go to my family or my step family, but they also often make the choice to spend it away with us Smile

Also, my husband is very happy with the standard of kashrout of the caterer we follow, and he is used to eating rice on Pessah and doesn't even complain when we go away Smile

I'll let you know when the deal for this Pessah comes, and will give you the details.

H.

Ruchel

Fri, Dec 05 2008, 8:28 am

Quote:

Since we go away for Pessah, I even tend to gain a little weight, when I use to lose some:)

Good to know. Wink

I used to lose like 5 kilos because I HATE Pessach cakes, everything nice tasting seems to have kitnios, corn syrup, etc... I was so jealous of all the gorgeous orange matzos (you see what I'm talking about? I can't remember the name).

Quote:

For sedarim, they use matsa chmoura

Good for us (at the seder, not after as I really don't like it).

Quote:

As for Rabbis, they are of course orthodox rabbis, and sepharadim. It might be a problem for you ? I can't remember if your husband is ashk or seph.

Ashk too, but I don't think it's a problem as anyway we don't have an Ashk shul to attend. Maybe when we move to Créteil we will go to the Ashk oratory at the community center (although I don't know if they are regular or like for Kippour).

Quote:

Last year we had Rav Abdelhak who you might have heard of, he's in the 19th arrondissement.

His name is familiar.

Quote:

As for the cost, you can always get a better deal than what they say on the add, don't be afraid to ask. The full Pessah, for a couple is around 1200 euros (this doesn't include flights, but we always travel on cheap airlines, and flew to spain for 30 euros last year).

oh then it may be interesting!

Quote:

my husband is very happy with the standard of kashrout of the caterer we follow, and he is used to eating rice on Pessah and doesn't even complain when we go away

Good to know too, as dh's rite is an exception (one out of two Ashk rites, that I know of) in the fact that they have kitnios & rice. (No I didn't marry him for that Wink

Quote:

I'll let you know when the deal for this Pessah comes, and will give you the details.

Thanks. I'm still very undecided, but it sounds really better than anything I heard of before (Pessach in a [gentile] hotel, etc).

octopus

Fri, Dec 05 2008, 9:27 am

The one time I went to a hotel, I thought the seder was awful. There was no leader. They came out with the food right away.Everybody just read the hagaddah. shock

No divrei torah, no singing. It was nothing like what I grew up with. As a child, my father did run some sederim some years (as opposed to a private family only seder)and there was always great divrei torah (short and sweet) where he also explained the text and great singing. I was just horrified at the sederim at the hotels. What kind of pesach is that?????