Woman called 'selfish' by boyfriend after booking him a surprise holiday

A woman was labelled selfish by her partner after booking them a Valentine's Day trip to Paris. Photo / 123rf

A woman was called selfish by her boyfriend after booking them a trip to Paris but received a mixed response from people online.

To celebrate Valentine's Day, the woman purchased flights for her and her partner to visit Paris, somewhere she had "always wanted to go".

However, her boyfriend didn't react as she expected and was angry she did not discuss it with him first.

Writing on parenting website Mumsnet, the woman asked others if she was to blame for the bad response.

"I surprised him this morning with a city break for Valentine's Day to Paris," she wrote.

"I've always wanted to go and thought it would be a lovely weekend away.

"He's angry at me for not discussing it and said it's because I'm 'selfish' and have 'only child syndrome'.

"I honestly didn't do it to be bossy or overbearing. I just wanted to do something nice.

"I've paid for flights/transfers/hotel so it's not like I'm asking for anything from him."

She then asked fellow readers if she should have asked her boyfriend about the trip instead of surprising him.

People quickly took sides. Some defended the woman's decision to try and do something nice and others sided with the boyfriend about her selfish intentions.

Those who supported the woman claimed her partner was ungrateful and she should travel with someone else instead.

Some stuck up for her and said she should take someone else instead of her boyfriend.

"Well, he doesn't need to go then, does he? Take a friend instead," wrote one person.

"He sounds a bloody misery. I'd be thrilled if someone did this for me," another added.

One person claimed she shouldn't just take the trip with someone else but leave the boyfriend entirely.

"Dump him. He's not a good fit for you," they wrote.

"Move on to someone who appreciates spontaneity and joie de vivre.

"He sounds dreadfully dull."

Not everyone agreed with her decision. Some said the trip did sound selfish as it was something the woman wanted to do but organised under the guise of being a gift for her partner.

"A fairly new boyfriend did this to me once, although the destination wasn't Paris, it was somewhere else I had no interest in going," one person wrote.

"I know it was supposed to be a nice surprise, but I didn't like being told when and where I was going to be going, that I was going to have to book time off work and especially that I was then supposed to act happy about it," they added.

"I think booking surprise trips is really only something you should do when you know that person inside out and are booking somewhere you're sure they have wanted to go for a long time.

"Honestly, a Valentine's weekend in Paris sounds more like a treat for you than a gift for him."