When people think of family vacations, they often think about the usual tourist trap or resort, or a road trip, but it can be so much more than that. You’ll create memories for a lifetime if you can keep everyone active, and you can keep kids of all ages engaged by ensuring there is plenty of adventure on your trip. Yet this can be a challenge when you’re traveling with your children. Here are a few tips for finding family friendly adventure on your next family vacation.
Plan Well in Advance
The first thing you’ll have to consider is the time of the year you’re intending to travel. If you have school aged children, you are often limited to traveling when your children are out of school. And so are all the other families traveling with school aged children. This means you can’t book a trip for Spring Break a few weeks in advance. If you’re going to plan a trip around school breaks, you will need to book months in advance, and the sooner, the better. This gives you the ability to lock in the cheapest tickets and accommodations, and you can choose from the lowest peak rates.
Get Your Papers in Order
Are you going to leave the country? Ensure that everyone in your family has a valid passport. In most cases, your passport must have at least one year left on it from your anticipated departure date. This protects you from potential problems, since most countries have a cutoff of six months.
Plan Around the Children’s Needs
Don’t forget that you’re going on vacation with children, not experienced adults. So, make sure that you go over the procedures if anyone needs to go on a potty break during an activity for instance. Plan for extra rest breaks at locations safe for children, whether you’re hiking or canoeing. Plan now how you’ll handle diapers and dirty clothes.
Your kids will be reluctant to drink chemically treated water or unfamiliar beverages. Take drink crystals in the flavors your kids like. The flavoring will make the boiled water or foreign tap water palatable. And it takes up less weight than trying to carry cartons of their favorite beverages. Pack familiar snacks, too, and give kids a chance to eat them when they’re accustomed to snack breaks.
Don’t forget to plan for entertainment, and expect to take regular breaks. Bring several packs of cards so that your kids aren’t dependent on devices for entertainment. Bring story books and activity books to enjoy on the plane or car ride.
Plan Kid Friendly Activities at Each Stop
Plan activities your kids will enjoy and can participate in. For example, you could sign up for a vacation at a lake resort. These are great for all types of activities, like fishing or watersports.
Paddle boarding, for instance, is something that you could do while keeping an eye on your children. You can find stand up paddle boards the whole family can use and can support you and a child. The best ones have everything you need in one package and can be deflated so you can stow it in a backpack and take it with you on your next trip, whether it is to a cabin on the lake or a seashore excursion.
Ensure that the activities you have planned include all of your children. This may mean taking the kids horseback riding over hiking, because your youngest shouldn’t be carried ten miles. Take the easy hike up the mountain when you have young children. Stop at rest stops or hotels with playgrounds so that your children can run around and play.
Choose the right activities and arrange everything your family needs so that you can enjoy your family’s next adventure. You’ll create memories for a lifetime when everything goes right.
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