From Rrules

=Tips For Family Travel=

2	I enjoy my family vacations

Contents 1 Plan Ahead 2 Ask for Family Input 3 Give Teens Alone Time 4 Adventure Vacations 5 Beaches and Cruises 6 Music and Arts 7 Cultural and Historical Vacations 8 Animals

[edit] Plan Ahead

Believe it or not, a family vacation with teens can be enjoyable for the entire family. It just needs a bit of planning.

1	Planning is key to a good vacation

* Plan, but be flexible - So what can you do to ensure that you have the best holiday? For starters, plan ahead to ensure that you and your family get the best pick of flight seats, hotels and room categories. On the other hand, being flexible is critical to a vacation with a teenager. The trip will be much more fun if you allow it to be planned based on the ground realities, on the spot needs of your loved ones rather than what you think it should be.

* Choose a place that offers something for everyone - Remember, there is no best resort or best holiday. It is what you make of it. Nobody needs to sacrifice anything if the place you choose has a little something to all age groups. At the same time, if you are turning down options, explain why you are saying “no” to the family, especially the teenagers. Invite suggestions for alternatives, explaining the family needs and constraints.

* Don’t overpack - Most importantly, don’t take everything along. You need to underpack for the trip if you don’t want to spend your vacation looking inside the luggage more than the place you’ve been visiting. You and your family members don’t want to be saddled with a bag, looking around for help all the time.

* Make your teens responsible for planning the holiday and executing some of the tasks during the holiday - Last but not the least, make one of the teenagers responsible for co-ordination among all the family members so that they know that they are recognized as being responsible and are trusted with important affairs. The teens may take turns doing this. For example, if you are visiting three different cities on a trip to Ireland, have your one family member be in charge of researching on the Internet, or at bookstores, a restaurant for one of the cities. This will make them feel included and you never know they might be able to find a place that you never though of!

1	As a teen, I would like to be included in planning the vacation

* Learn about how to make your next trip better - Don’t forget - this is not the last trip that you are taking together. Regular family vacations are great stress busters--if you don’t try to control every aspect of the trip. They are wonderful opportunities to bond and you can learn more about your children than through the usual hectic schedule at home. Each trip gives you something to learn so that the next one is even better. And the family feels closer when they are back home.

[edit] Ask for Family Input

The key to a fun vacation is to involve your children in the planning process. Choose the vacation spot, activities and hotels by taking input from all family members. A place that offers a variety of activities, both for teenagers and adults would be the ideal vacation spot. And involving your teens in the decision making process not only helps the family bond, but also helps the teens enjoy themselves, knowing that their views were important to you.

The first step, then, is to choose what the family would like to do together. Does your teenager love sports, art or wilderness? Try to include at least a day or two on the trip that is focused around their interests.

Tip: Club Med has many locations all over the globe and offers teen nights and activities, as well as activities for each age group so everyone is covered.

[edit] Give Teens Alone Time

A big issue that stops teenagers from having fun on family vacations is that they need alone time and privacy. So, it is important to build in time where a teen can do activities by themselves and if possible, give the teen his/her own room and doesn’t have to share space with the otherwise omnipresent parents. Several resorts offer teen activities, where the parents can get some time off as well. You also need your alone time! Therefore, look for places that offer not only daytime activities, but also something to keep everyone occupied in the evenings as well.

=Ideas for Family Vacations=

1	I enjoy backpacking and camping

[edit] Adventure Vacations

Backpacking and camping is one of the most popular family vacation ideas. This holiday can help your family learn about nature and teach your teen some life skills. Eco Tours for families are also available, especially in Costa Rica. Many ‘camping’ tours actually offer different types of ‘lighter’ camping experiences for the less experienced families. Treasure hunt family adventures, beach and activity programs, and you can even pick tours that donate part of their profits to preserving the environment.

Camping, as well as adventure sports offer an entire range of fun-filled vacation time. You could choose from rafting to mountaineering to trekking to mountain biking. These activities are known to help build self esteem and could prove to be more than just a holiday.

Wisconsin Dells has one of the largest indoor water resorts with a myriad of activities. Apart from skiing in Switzerland, Canada could be an interesting option as well with its Whistler-Blackcomb mountains or whale watching at Vancouver Island.

[edit] Beaches and Cruises

Family beaches or cruises offer wonderful family holiday experiences. Travel during autumn and you will not only avoid the summer crowds but also make the most of off-peak prices. Virginia's Assateague Island has several resorts and its natural beauty is incomparable. On the other hand, Amelia Island, Florida, offers both nature and adventure. Or travel to Mexico instead and discover Cancun and the Riviera Maya. And we can’t leave out Hawaii as the all-time favorite beach destination and its exotic Maui beach.

Cruises through the Caribbean, in Bermuda or Southern Europe could also prove to be great vacation experiences. There are river cruises available as well. Cruises offer various activities on board, while giving the family a whole new experience.

Tip: If you have younger children as well, the Disney Cruise has different clubs for toddlers, 5-8 year olds, 8-12 year olds and then teenagers so everyone is happy, and parents can have some time to themselves.

[edit] Music and Arts

If you and your family like music and arts more, look for music and movie festivals in some new destinations and buy tickets for the whole family. One family I knew had a teen daughter and mother who loved fashion, and a teen son and father who liked camping. They bought two tickets to Budapest fashion week (much cheaper than New York or Paris) and the girls went to shows and the boys were able to hike around the Budapest area, then they joined up for dinners and some drives in the area.

Tip: The Montreal Jazz Festival and the Quebec City winter carnival are places that attract a young crowd and could prove to be ideal family destinations while traveling with teens.

[edit] Cultural and Historical Vacations

If you want to give your kids a cultural and historical experience, you could even try and get a rail pass for a relatively inexpensive tour of Europe. The variety of cultures and landscapes such a trip offers is breathtaking for any age group. Try out new kinds of food together, learn a language, and in other words BOND.

[edit] Animals

If your teenager loves animals you can follow animal trails and take an African Safari. There are multiple nature reserves, national parks and animal-related vacation spots in the US as well.

Tip: I am cautious to suggest taking an RV trip because of the close proximity, but if your teenager likes nature and you want to show them parts of a country an RV or camper is a good option. If you are going to take an RV, be sure to book a few nights in a hotel where a teen can have his his/her own room.