Planning the Perfect Family Vacation
Written by Christi Wells
For some, the thought of planning a family vacation is torture … all those small details that have to fit together. Flights, hotels, activities, safety, weather, and not to mention doing it all on a budget. Many people pay money to have a travel agent take care of these details, while others avoid the planning process and just fly by the seat of their pants as much as possible. But, what if the planning process was looked at a little differently?
Start out by having a simple discussion around the dinner table.
Planning a family vacation can be part of the adventure! When we plan our trips, we start as early as possible to give us enough time to gather a good deal of research and make decisions without being in a hurry. Start planning a year in advance, if possible. This will enable you to relax and enjoy yourself throughout the planning and while on your trip. Some spontaneity is exciting, but having an itinerary, basic schedule, and budget helps you to know how to save, what to expect, and how to pack. Of course, there may be those beach vacations when your goal is to do nothing, but those aside, it’s a good idea to have a plan in place.
When planning a family vacation, I encourage you to include everyone in the process. Give each person a part of the trip that they are responsible for researching and making the final decisions on. We’ll give more details on this in a bit. Start out by having a simple discussion around the dinner table. Here are a few categories that you can discuss together to figure out your next vacation destination.
How to Plan the Perfect Family Vacation
What is the purpose of your vacation? Relaxation or Adventure. Missions or Historical. Explore a new place. Back to the Beach. Does your purpose differ from the ideas that your children have of a fun-filled vacation? There are so many ways to make memories with your family and you want everyone to enjoy the trip and have these memories be cherished ones for their lifetime. Discuss the following topics with your family and spend a few weeks considering YOUR PURPOSE, before you decide on a destination.
What activities do you want to do? Again, this discussion comes before choosing a destination. Do you want to visit a national park, explore a historical location, have a specific adventure like swimming with dolphins, or just enjoy the beach with a good book? Consider for the following activities: Road tripping, Camping, Hiking, Biking, Canoeing, White water rafting, Snorkeling, Boating, Fishing, Missions trip, Conservation tourism, Amusement park, Golf, Shopping, Horse-back riding, Kayaking, Snow-skiing, Museums, Scuba-diving, Sight-seeing. The possibilities are endless. I just encourage you to choose a few options that could be paired together and give everyone in the family an opportunity to share their thoughts.
What time of year will you travel? Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall. When can you take time of work? Are you restricted to summer breaks or during the off-season for sports? We always took our “just us” adventures when the kids went to summer camp. The time of year you can travel and the weather that you prefer will dictate your destination options.
What is your weather preference. Warm & sunny, cool & breezy, or downright hot or cold? Weather will play a tremendous role in finding the perfect vacation spot for your family. For example, Arizona is a perfect destination for a Fall Break trip because the hot temperatures have declined, replaced by a nice breeze. Visiting Arizona in the middle of summer means unbearable heat. However, Yellowstone National Park needs to be visited in the summer if you want to avoid the colder weather that comes so early in Wyoming.
Consider the following Habitats. Grassland, Polar, Desert, Mountain, Forest, Freshwater, Ocean, or Rainforest. Explore each of these habitats with your kids to spark their interest. You can do this by visiting the National Geographic site here.
How expensive is that destination? After you have determined a general idea of the activities you’re interested in and places you’d like to possibly visit, it’s time to figure out which one is actually realistic and affordable. If you plan to drive, your planning will be much easier. If flights will be involved, this should be your next bit of planning.
Flights. The best way to find out the prices of flights to a particular destination is to use Google Flights. If you have some flexibility on your dates and location, you can enter “United States” in the “Where to” field and you will be able to see the cheapest flights available to major cities. You can then simply move the map to any part of the world to see if there are any cheap flights to amazing destinations. Another option is to use points to fly for free. We have flown free to Paris, Ireland, Florida, and California by saving up our frequent flyer points. Check out this article by the Points Guy for more information on flying with points. Another great option is to fly on a discount airline. Check flights offered through: Allegiant, Frontier, Hawaiian Airlines, JetBlue, Spirit Airlines, Sun Country, and Alaskan Airlines. Although the experience will not be as comfortable, the price savings is oftentimes worth it and many times, they offer the shortest non-stop flight available.
Accommodations. This can be one of the last things you consider as there are so many options available …. unless you have specific preferences that you don’t want to budge on. If that’s the case, then you should find your accommodations first. Airbnb – this is one of my favorite options for a stay in a fixed location. You can find an eclectic little bungalow on the beach for the price of a stuffy hotel. Just make sure to read the reviews and find a good host. Also, avoid this option in countries that have safety concerns. Timeshare Rentals – Timeshare resorts are wonderful options for large families that plan to stay in one location for the entire week. This is because the accommodations usually include a full kitchen, living room, and dining room and offer many resort amenities. We have access to timeshare points through Wyndham Vacations. I always head to that site to see if I can find a resort available in the destination I’m looking for. Ask around to see if you have any friends that have extra timeshare points that you can purchase for a good price. If not, check online or reach out to me (I have connections). Read the article above for more info.
Wells Family Trip Process
Our family is planning an upcoming road trip through New England and parts of Canada. Here’s how our planning progress is going. We chose this destination because it’s part of the country that we’ve never seen before and it has good weather during September, which is when we want to travel. We decided that we will drive to save money on flights/rental vehicle. This will give us more of our budget to spend on food and accommodations. I hear there’s amazing lobster and whale watching tours along the New England coast. Here’s our planning team:
Julianna (12 years old) – Planning our driving route and accommodations.
Grayson (10 years old) – In charge of researching animals we may encounter and choosing specific activities that allow us to get up-close with them.
Sydnee-Claire (8 years old) – Researching and helping me plan our daily excursions
Esther (5 years old) – Mommy’s helper for all of it!
Dad – Budget
Mom – I’m the master trip planner, so I’ll bring all details together and type up an itinerary that we’ll follow along the way. (I’ll share it here after the trip.) Update: we had the change our location to Colorado because of Covid restrictions.
We are currently spending a few hours one evening a week doing trip planning. We split up into teams to do research online for an hour, then come together to present our findings to the family. At the end of the meeting, the entire family makes decisions that will then be put into our itinerary. We’ll do this probably 10-20 times over the next few months leading up to the trip. We will prioritize, making sure to secure accommodations and other important reservations in a timely fashion. The planning is part of the journey.
Much Love, the Wells
The Journey of a Thousand Miles begins with a Single Step.
Lao Tzu
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