Traveling With Other Families ~ Tips to make it easier

Tips For Traveling With Other Families

Traveling is obviously one of my favorite things to do but one of my favorite ways to travel is traveling with other families.  I have always believed the more the merrier. Additional people bring different ideas and perspectives to the table that we would never have considered before.  Prices can be split with the group for food, accommodation and activities which gives everyone the opportunity to do more. Since Cat doesn’t have siblings, traveling with other families also gives her a chance to be with other kids. Groups of kids can entertain themselves with a ball of string, a paperclip and a piece of paper which would never be the case with just one child. It also gives us adults the chance to have their own time to relax and catch up without having to entertain the kids as well.

We have tried traveling with other families on several occasions and we have found that parenting amongst families is vastly different. It is always easier if a few ground rules are established before you even leave for the trip. By doing this, a lot of frustrations and heartache can be prevented, leaving room for a fun vacation for everyone.

Vacation Goals: 

Everyone has an idea of what their perfect vacation will be. Usually there are specific things that people want to accomplish as well. When you are traveling with other families you will want to discuss the itinerary ahead of time to make sure that everyone is happy with how their time away is spent. If one family wants a mellow day by the beach while the other family envisioned scheduled city tours or hiking mountains, chances are there will be some hard feelings for one family.

Traveling with the Cash Family in Yellowstone

Food:

Food is such an important element to vacations. Some families like to cook all of their meals while others prefer to eat out. Some prefer chain restaurants where others prefer family run restaurants.  Other important questions to ask are:

• Are there foods and drinks your kids can’t have. (Red food dye, fully sugared soda)
• Do they have food allergies?
• Are there any food dislikes we should be aware of?
• Is there a time and a place for some foods ie no sugar until after 5pm?
• Will each family eat their own food or should we coordinate meals?
• Do you have set meal times or can meals be flexible based on a days activities.

Shopping for snacks

Screen time:

I worry about the amount of time Caitlyn spends in front of the television set and her tablet. I prefer that that screen time is kept to a minimum when we are on vacation, especially when she has other friends that she can be playing with. A few questions to discuss are:

• Are the kids allowed to use their electronics ~  tablets, iPods, phones whenever they want?
• Is there designated times that the kids can use their electronics?
• What kind of things do you allow them to use them for?
• Do you allow them to watch PG-13 or R rated movies?

Listening to Ipods

Discipline and Freedom:

I am somewhat of strict parent. Some of our friends are very relaxed in what they allow their kids to do. Questions to ask:

• Do we feel comfortable reprimanding or disciplining each other’s kids or should we leave that to the parents?
• What kind of perimeters are we comfortable handling without involving the other parent?
• Are we holding all of the kids responsible to keep each other out of trouble?
• Do you allow your child to go off without parental supervision?
• Are you comfortable for them to leave parents sight as long as they are together?
• Are they allowed to stay at the home base alone without parental supervision?

Budget:

When I go on vacation, I do my best to experience all there is to experience in that location so I don’t have to go back. I went to the Albuquerque Balloon Festival with my sister and didn’t actually go up in a hot air balloon and now regret the fact and feel like I need to go again and do it.  This conversation would also coincide with the vacation goals but it is definitely important. Questions to ask are:

• What types of things do you want to spend money on. Certain activities can be costly and it is important to discuss if those will be done as a group or individually by family.
• Will kids be bringing spending money or have a budget to spend while they are away?

Shopping for souvineers

Bedtime:

Caitlyn needs a full 8 hours of sleep but can function on less if she needs to. We know some kids that need a full 10 hours each night and if they don’t get it, the next day is miserable. It helps with planning activities when this is taken into consideration. Questions to ask:

• Do you have a set bedtime we need to be aware of when planning the evening’s activities?
• Do we want to get all of the kids to bed at the same time?

Someone didn’t want to wake up.

Adult Time

One last conversation to be had would be about adult time.

• Will there be times that two adults can look after the kids while others have adult time?
• Should adult time be scheduled?
• How much time will adults be away for?

Once a few guidelines have been set and everyone agrees to stick with them, traveling with other families can be a lot of fun. Let me know what I have missed in the comments section!