Hi Rob,
Welcome to Ice in Space
I was going to say pretty much what David has before me.
Edit: ... and John, now...
For what you have described, almost certainly a Dobsonian style telescope is going to deliver maximum bang for minimum bucks.
The question is size.
I too thought an 8 inch (diameter) scope would be the minimum you should aim for if you want to see detail on (some) planets.
But the bigger you can afford, the more you will be able to see (in theory at least).
However, an 8" scope (or bigger) is going to present problems in moving it about due to size and weight factors.
A collapsible DOB (like Skywatcher Flex tube) is much easier to handle, up to a certain size, for one person.
I agree that the moon and planets are easy targets and generally present interesting targets. But these require (very) high magnification to see the most detail.
And that (most) galaxies are very faint and fuzzy and require imagination to appreciate.
But there are other targets (nebulae and star clusters) that are deep space objects, but are not too difficult to find, and present interesting targets to view. These do not require high magnification at all. But the light gathering abilities of a larger scope does make the view better.
Anyway, ask many questions, try to look through many scopes, and this will help you achieve your objective with the least pain.
Clear skies