Why travel?

Aug 5, 2009

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There are so many arguments out there as to why families shouldn’t travel:

There is too much gear to lug around.
Kids get tired and cranky.
There aren’t enough kid-friendly places.

And, the argument I hear the most often:

My younger ones won’t remember it anyway.

Travel with your kids can be worthwhile and filled with lots of wonderful adventures for both parents and children alike… It just takes the proper perspective to make it that way. This is where MomsTravelTales.com comes in:

I love to travel with my family and I want others to enjoy it, as well… not just endure it, but really have a blast and want to do it.

We have taken our kids near and far, from overnight excursions in our own hometown, to trips within North America, Central America and Europe. (Without the kids I can add a few more destinations to the mix.)

We’ve traveled by plane, train, boat and automobile and we’ve endured delayed and cancelled flights, diesel gas confusion, sick kids (and mom) and carrying lots of heavy carseats.

We’ve also slept in castles, watched our kids take part in crazy street performances, enjoyed the most stunning mountaintop views, and truly experienced different cultures, making new life-long friends. (We even hosted one of our children’s Club Med counselors in our home for several weeks. It was her first taste of America!)

Since I’m often asked by friends and friends of friends, and since, like I said, I enjoy family travel, I’d like to share what I’ve learned in making family travel more rewarding.

I also want to hear from you, too. I want to know where you’ve been and what you have learned. And I want to know what you think about what I share. My experiences just hold my perspective: I want to know yours, too.

And for those of you who don’t travel… why not? How can I convince you take the plunge for fun?

And about those reasons listed above:

Yes, there is a lot of gear, but you really don’t need everything. (I can give you a few tips.)

Adults get tired and cranky, too—just take your family’s rhythm into account when planning trips and be sure to plan downtime… Is the experience about packing in all the top sights or is it about enjoying time together as a family?

Almost any place can be made kid-friendly with a little finesse. (I’ll show you how!)

And no, your tiniest children may not remember their travel experiences… but you will. And they just might enjoy the moment. Isn’t that part of why you play with them anyway?

Hope to see you back here at MomsTravelTales.com often… and I hope to see you on the road and in the air, as well.

Comments

6 responses to “Why travel?”

Food Budget, Travel with Friends, and Kids Eat Free « SixSuitcaseTravel

September 11, 2009

[…] Why travel? ~Mom’s Travel Tales […]

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melissa from girlymama

September 9, 2009

we answered so many questions when we took our kids (ages 4 & 3) to INDIA on ’07. people thought we were nuts. but our kids had a blast and are begging to go back! and we can’t wait to take them more places!
terrific post!

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Twitted by AmysFinerThings

September 3, 2009

[…] This post was Twitted by AmysFinerThings […]

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Stephanie

September 2, 2009

I love your “mission” behind your blog. We tend to shy away from huge traveling adventures in this season of our life (we have a 5-month-old and an almost-3-year-old), but perhaps you will convince me otherwise. Travel really is so educational, fun, and worthwhile.

I’d love to hear your thoughts about traveling with infants and toddlers. For example, I’d like to hear your take on:
1. Best “Way” to travel with babies/infants: plane, car, or RV?
2. How to distract/entertain babies and toddlers on planes or in cars
3. How to best transport car seats, strollers, and other baby gear
4. The best places in the USA to travel with young ones
5. The best places abroad to travel with young ones

P.S. I agree with Amy. Money is a bit of a deterrent too. ;)

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Sherri

September 2, 2009

Although we tend to travel like Mom’s Travel Tales (kids and all), we have also done 4 different camping trips. The first trip was more expensive because we had to buy the tent and some other supplies, but then we used them all again on the other camping trips. Food, firewood (and a few duraflame logs) were about all we’d have to buy on subsequent trips. We have a few great campgrounds in state parks near us here in Houston. If we lived somewhere (almost anywhere) else, weather would allow us to camp more often. We are camping snobs – we won’t sweat at night. We even have battery powered fans (which we later used after the hurricane). A good suggestion – we keep all our supplies in very large plastic bins. Then when it’s time to camp, it’s all together. One last note – we buy a large tarp that’s barely larger than the tent to put under it. Then the bottom of our tent isn’t nearly as dirty and cleanup/packup is much quicker. Tarp goes in a large trash bag to wash at home or toss out.
I’m happy to share other camping tips, should anyone wish.

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Amy @ Finer Things

September 2, 2009

For those of us who don’t travel, why not?

One word: Money. Sounds like maybe your travel budget is equal to my husband’s total salary. :)

Maybe someday! For now we stick to day trips and some overnighters with family. The kids love it and don’t know what they’re missing out on.

Thanks for the comment. You raise a good point.
Yes, We do have a pretty generous travel budget. But just like you said, overnighters and family trips can still be fantastic ways to travel. And travel to me doesn’t always have to mean heading out across the globe… Some of our best adventures have been overnights near our home.
I hope to address that in coming posts. Reading your comment, it sounds like that might be a welcome topic.
–Mom

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