Traveling is good, but traveling with your friends and family is even better! It’s a great way to get closer and know them better. Everyone comes out more united after experiencing an adventure together. It is important to take certain precautions to avoid boring and conflict-inducing situations.
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So check out these 10 tips for planning your family trip.
1. Involve everyone
The trip starts at the planning itself. So get ideas from all those joining the trip. Ask for their likes and dislikes. Know their expectations. Ask these questions: Where would they like to go? Do they prefer a warm or cold place? What would they like to do? If there are disagreements, try to hear out everyone’s side and negotiate.
Read more: Things To Consider When Choosing Your Next Family Vacation Destination
2. Think of activities for all
Once you’ve gathered all of the interests of those joining, plan out the activities. In the list of activities, make sure that at least one of the activities would be enjoyed by all of those who will be joining the trip. But make sure to add some personal flair and flavor to the trip as well. It is important that each person has the “your” moment on the family trip.
3. Organize all Documents
You will be handling a lot of documents during the trip. And being organized will be your friend here. From passports to tickets, to passes, you will need to have easy access to these all the time.
Make sure also to check if there is a need for extra documentation, especially if you are with children 12 years and below. My tip: have a water-resistant clear folder to hold all of your documents. And prepare extra copies also.
Wellington’s: Guys, we were not allowed to check in on our Johannesburg flight because I didn’t have Parental Consent when I traveled with my kids alone (without my husband). So organizing documents is very important!
4. Do as much as possible in advance
The more you prepare before the trip, the more you can enjoy the during. Buy any ticket needed during the trip in advance. This can ensure you get the most convenient times and the best prices for your planned activities.
5. Depart rested
The trip starts way ahead of your departure date. It may be difficult, but it is worth packing two days before and having the detail of the trip checked and rechecked days ahead. This allows you some peace of mind before you leave the house.
Having a well-rested body and a calm disposition allows you to think clearly whenever there are last-minute changes or cancellations. So be sure to take a rest before the trip. You’ll have more energy to go through all the things you have planned out.
6. Research your destination
Lookup for more information about your destination. You can check online review websites about experiences of similar groups in the places you will be going to. You can call your hotel to ask for more information to make sure you are able to customize your experiences to your group. Your questions should be geared towards improving your trip such as ensuring safe spaces for children and elderly, easy access to food and transportation, and being away from noisy establishments.
Read more: Tips for Safe Travel with Young Children
7. Get Vaccinated
There are certain destinations that you will be required specific vaccines. Make sure that all those joining should get their vaccinations prior to the trip. With a particular focus on the children, you need to make sure that you are safe from any untoward health risks when going on a trip. It will be a total buzzkill if you expose yourself to health risks that are otherwise preventable.
Added tip: keep a record of vaccination cards of your family and make sure they are up-to-date with their vaccination requirements.
8. Prepare for Emergencies
We can never predict emergencies. So, it is best to come prepared. Make sure you carry at all times the essentials: some cleaning kit, extra clothes, extra cash, medicine, toiletries, and medicine. Check if anybody has special needs or special diets, so that you can check beforehand how to deal with them during the trip. Noting hospital locations, emergency phone numbers, and police contacts in your destination could make or break you during these tough times.
9. Delegate tasks
Taking care of everything is stressful and can make you forget things. So distribute responsibilities among the family. The son, for example, who likes maps can be responsible for taking navigations and directions. He can check how the city is in Google Street View and note the distances between road, hotel, and sights.
A more methodical and responsible person can take care of documents, passes, and tickets. The one with an interest in photography can be in charge of documenting the whole trip. Each member can use their own skills to maximize the total experience.
10. Enjoy!
Don’t forget to have fun. It is always good to stay on top of things, to always have things under control. That’s what the planning is about. But again, things can go awry easily. And that should be ok. Just go with the flow – if things do not go as planned, then treat it as a new adventure. Laugh it off, and just enjoy the trip. That’s the best way to go traveling with your family.
What are other tips when planning a family trip?
Bernard M. Miller is a professional blogger. He contributes different ideas to various blogs to improve his writing portfolio. He is working with The Leather Makers, a premium brand that provides Custom Leather Jackets at a reasonable price.
*Content edited for clarity | Originally posted on April 26, 2019 | Updated on June 7, 2019
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Thanks for sharing the best article.
All the tips are extremely thoughtful and helpful too!
These are such great tips and reminders for us Maria! Will def. take this into consideration when I start traveling with my family again!
Great tips Maria! We are just planning for our trip at the beginning of July, so I stumbled on this list at the best possible time!
I am really bad at packing ahead. Planning for emergencies is always good…better prepared than not!
Absolutely useful tips. Haven’t take a long trip in some time, so this is quite helpful.
These tips are really useful my Family have a out of town vacation next year so I will save this ideas for my our future trip 🙂
Delegating is crucial! I tend to try to make all plans and arrangements myself and then I’m exhausted before the vacation even begins. These are some important tips you’ve listed!
I should have read your post early this year and share it with my husband and sister in law. We are going to a family vacation for the first time this year. I am the one taking care of everything.
This is great, and the tips here can be used even with a party of two!
What wonderful tips for those families who are thinking to travel during the summer months.
Very great tips! I’ll keep these in mind when next I’m going on a family vacation!
Thank you for this very informative post. I will follow it and discuss it with my wife. 🙂
this is great. we are currently in the beginning stages of planning a trip with a group of friends for the first time.
Preparing ahead is my biggest challenge. I always end up with too many things to handle last minute.
Get vaccinated is the most important thing and most people tend to forget or ignore it.
This is a fab list and everyone should have it. I will definitely be using it before my next trip away.
thanks for all these useful tips shared, learnt them all, an informative useful sharing. cheers, siennylovesdrawing
This is a good check list, especially for families with children. We are away this summer, like most people, and it’s good to think of the things above before we travel.
Very useful! I will keep i mind thank you 🙂
I love this list. Thank you. I have 2 kids so when we go somewhere all of these help.
Great tips. We always check online if we need any vaccines etc. Always stock up on medicines to take with us too.