Family holidays are all about making memories together, but they don’t always go swimmingly. Planning a trip that meets the needs of different interests and ages can be tough, but we’re here to help.
Here’s our expert tips on putting together a family holiday you’ll remember for all the right reasons:
1. It’s all in the planning
We all love the idea of spontaneous getaways, but it’s not always so easy when you’re holidaying with a young family. Planning is really important, to make sure that the trip will work for everyone.
A good tip is to actively involve your children in the planning. What would their dream holiday look like? Ask them what they’d like to do and see, and take their wishes on board. It’ll help everyone start getting excited about the holiday, and prevent older children from feeling like they’ve been ‘dragged along’ on a trip.
2. Go bespoke
A bespoke holiday lets you tailor your itinerary to your exact wants and needs. Crucially, this means you can slot in activities that will suit everyone. It also ensures that all the finer details are personalised for your family. So for example, it ensures your accommodation is baby-friendly or the resort has lots of things for teens to do.
A bespoke family trip also lets you be a little more adventurous and imaginative. You can go on safari, travel between multiple cities or head out into the wild, knowing that all the planning has been meticulously taken care of. You don’t have to play it so safe, just because you’re travelling with children.
3. Let everyone have a turn
All have dramatically different interests? If your partner is a nature lover, your teen loves theme parks and your youngest is obsessed with building sandcastles – it can be tough to plan a trip that ticks everyone’s boxes.
Planning a bespoke itinerary is the best solution. But you can also divide up the trip so that everyone gets their own day or afternoon. This feels fair, and helps family members to dip a toe into everyone else’s interests. It can be a lovely way to spend time as a family, and also understand each other a little better.
4. Build in some room for flexibility
While it’s great to have a fully fleshed-out itinerary, flexibility is also your friend on a family holiday. When travelling with children, you may need to abandon or change plans at short notice. Sickness, jet lag or just plain old temper tantrums can all get in the way, but that’s just part of family life. If you can adjust your plans as you go, you can navigate these unexpected hurdles more smoothly.
Bespoke family trip ideas
Ready to start planning? To fire your imagination, here are just a few of our most thrilling bespoke family trip ideas:
- See the ‘Big 5’ on safari in South Africa and Mauritius
- Go snorkelling, sunbathing and island hopping in the Seychelles
- Explore Canada’s cities and national parks on a self-drive Canadian odyssey
- Meet elephants and river dolphins on a wild tour of Cambodia.
Plan your family adventure with Blank Canvas and you’ll get your own personalised travel itinerary, put together by a travel expert. Get in touch for a chat about your ideas.