Category: Tips

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Product Reviews Tips

Finding travel podcasts: am I a tech knucklehead?

Internet Cat (lolcat courtesy tonyalmeida)It’s sort of embarrassing how the Podcasts have invaded our home like This Week in Travel and Rolf Potts Deviate.

Sainted Husband got a Shuffle when an in-law upgraded, we got our teen daughter a Nano for her birthday, then I pouted so much that I got one for Mother’s Day.

Although I use mine extensively to keep from losing my mind during today’s abysmal air travel experience, I have yet to download travel-related podcasts like audio tours.

Since I’m heading back to Chicago for my favorite blogging conference,  I decided to experiment, and check out a download or two on my iPod.

I’m new at this, so I went super-basic….I Googled “Chicago travel podcast.”

Promising returns included The Amateur Traveler Chicago podcast, featuring Mark Peacock from Travel Commons to talk about the city. However, when I did my thing at “click here to download,” my laptop booted up the QuickTime player (which I thought was only for movies.)

The audio played just fine from the box on my laptop screen, but how to put the blasted thing onto my own iPod had me flummoxed (and I like to think I’m not a total tech idiot.) Right click, fiddle, poke….nothing.

So, I went on a hunt on the Amateur Traveler site for a tab labeled something like, “What To Do If You’re All Messed Up And Can’t Download Stuff Without Getting a Giant Blue Q.”

When I tried “Subscribe in iTunes,” my iTunes software booted up and I landed on the Amateur Traveler Podcast page in the iTunes Store, where I could download to my heart’s content.

Well, alrighty then.

The same thing happened when I tried to download the Indie Travel Podcast’s Planning a Road Trip episode; I got The Blue Q.  When I punched the site’s widget labeled “Free Video and Podcast in iTunes,” I landed in the Indie Travel Podcast iTunes store, no problem.

Now, you’d think I’d take a hint and stay in the iTunes store and use their Search box to locate travel podcasts. I tried that, but I don’t have confidence that I can actually find relevant material there, because when I searched for “Chicago travel podcast” directly in iTunes search, nothing came up from Amateur Traveler.

[Insert one of my salty Navy expletives here.]

So, readers, where do YOU go for quality travel-related podcasts and audio tours (and what’s with the danged Blue Q?)

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Blog Tips Video Posts

Don’t buy that HD video camera till you read this

Aaaarrrrgh! (courtesy hnnhlh14 on Flickr CC)I just finished a post over on my Sheila’s Guide to the Good Stuff blog, about why tourism organizations might want to hold off using one of those neat pocket video cameras that shoot in HD (high definition) unless they have access to some rather sophisticated editing software and a pretty powerful computer.

Here is a quick summary of my own painful recent painful videographer learning experience as outlined in “Look before you leap into HD video:”

If you’re thinking of shooting HD to take family travel video, be aware of the following issues:

  1. The file extension is different and may not be recognized by your video editing software.  My PC’s installed version of Windows Movie Maker can’t “see” the new .MP4 files from the FlipHD Mino, and the latest version of Movie Maker (that can work with MP4) won’t work with my Windows XP. Technology awesomeness!
  2. Technology crises always happen at 9 pm on a Saturday night when you’re alone – at least, they do with me.  When I saw I had a mess, I put a call out to my video-savvy Twitter followers, who quickly gave me software suggestions.  Hurray for helpful networks.  No, I can’t “call the IT people” because that’s me.  Freelancer awesomeness!
  3. Adobe Premiere Elements was recommended by several (thanks, Dwight Silverman at the Houston Chronicle‘s TechBlog) but I found it crash-prone (corroborated in several user forums.) I never could even launch the 30 day free trial and finally had to uninstall it.  The real problem became clearer when….
  4. ….I then bought (for about $100 at Best Buy) and installed Pinnacle Studio Ultimate HD (thanks for the tip, Omar Gallaga – he’s the Austin American-Statesman Digital Savant.)  Pinnacle didn’t crash and nicely corrected several problems in a few of my video files – harsh sunlight, funky audio – but playbacks kept stuttering and everything just seemed “gummy.” Turns out that when I actually read the Pinnacle system requirements (d’oh!) my laptop has insufficient RAM and the processor is too slow.
  5. To handle the two videos (plus lots of B-roll) that I’ve shot in HD, I’ve now installed the Pinnacle software on my family desktop PC, which has a more powerful processor (but the same amount of RAM as the laptop, so cross your fingers for me.)  I’m copying all the HD files on my laptop onto a 500G-capacity Seagate external hard drive, then dumping them from the Seagate onto the desktop so I can try to make everything work properly on a better platform. You can’t transfer such big files by email or sticking them on a thumb drive (without losing your mind) so I went with the big digital shovel.  Tech logistics awesomeness!

Bottom line? If you want to roll with HD, it’s not enough to shoot it. That part is deceptively easy.

You need a high-powered, fairly recent computer with capable software to edit those HD files unless you’re always going to be content to upload directly online (i.e., can shoot without error and never want to change it much.)

I’m dropping back to my lower-resolution Flip Ultra for now, so before you drop any serious coin on video toys, research what you’ll need to edit your footage.

Do as I say, not as I already screwed up….

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Product Reviews Tips

Why your family should consider travel insurance: a cautionary tale

Plane taking off (courtesy Simon Grubb at Flickr CC)When does it make sense to buy family travel insurance?

Vacation packages and cruises are often expensive, nonrefundable deals. If some crisis occurs, or you or someone in your family gets sick, you will often find it difficult or impossible to get your money back.  A travel insurance policy can give you peace of mind before the expense of big-ticket vacations. Trip cancellation and interruption insurance can cover you in case of the unexpected.

I normally don’t mess with it because I’m an independent operator, not a package traveler, and it’s not usually worth buying it for a $300 Southwest Airlines plane ticket or a hotel room for a few nights. Right now, however, I am bemoaning the fact that I did not buy third party travel insurance (meaning it is sold by a company totally separate from whichever business you are paying for their tour package.)

My teen daughter was scheduled for a language-immersion high school school trip to France this summer. The tour company, Voyageur Tours, suddenly went bankrupt last week.It’s been a respected company since 1992, so this was a complete surprise.

The full story, featuring me as “the travel writer who was unfortunately bitten by lack of travel insurance,” is on the Austin-area NBC affiliate KXAN News Web site:  Parents mad after bankrupt student tour.

I did not follow my own advice with my daughter’s trip; I’ve written that although many tour companies and cruise lines offer insurance,  I recommend buying it from a separate, reputable company. It’s the “eggs in one basket” theory; if a tour company or cruise line or airline suddenly goes out of business, I don’t want to be insured through them and not only lose my vacation, but also my compensation for the lost vacation.

Continue reading “Why your family should consider travel insurance: a cautionary tale”
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Tips

How to take your first road trip with a newborn baby

Teensy newborn in a car seat (courtesy chimothy27 at Flickr CC)I’m thrilled to report that Sean Keener, the CEO of BootsnAll (the travel network that hosts this blog) and his wife just welcomed their new son Kai into the world.

Here’s his announcement tweet about it, which of course made me bawl.

They’ll probably be thinking about taking at least a short trip soon, because boots are made for….well, you know….

When my daughter was born, I could not WAIT to get out of the house after a couple of weeks. Part of the urge was to prove to myself that motherhood wasn’t going to mean the end of travel until the kid was older, and part of the urge was to do something besides baby care plus trying to figure out how to shower and sleep occasionally.

I also wanted to see if I could nurse a baby while traveling (answer = oh yes.)

When our new baby was three weeks old, we drove from the Washington DC metro area to New York.  My Mom was rather aghast that we would venture out so soon (not done in her day) but I itched to pack my suitcase.

Here is what I learned about road trips with newborns:

  • You will be terrified because the baby is so tiny and you feel so clueless. Within reason, proceed anyway.
  • New York was a pretty far drive for us with a wee one in the back seat who has to face backwards, as infants do until a year or so.  There was a lot of crying and yelling until I sat in back with her and soothed her to sleep. We made it to NYC and back, but a shorter trip would have been better.
  • You are going to fill up the car with a ton of crap that you don’t need, if it’s your first baby.  Then you’ll worry about having all that in the car and whether it will be stolen, so you’ll schlep it into the hotel room. Then you’ll have to schlep it back out to the car.  You’ll learn.
  • You do need a few of those removable window screens/sunshades for your car windows.  Babies seem to yell a lot about direct sun.
  • You will overdress the kid, if it’s your first baby.
  • A newborn can sleep in a drawer, as long as it is well-padded. Don’t bring a giant portable crib contraption when they’re that tiny.  We used a Moses basket with a little mattress till our daughter outgrew it.
  • There are stores where you are going. Really.  You do not have to bring everything!
  • Lots of large, gallon-sized Ziplock bags can corral any number of stinky messes, like that cute onesie that baby immediately poops upon.
  • Do not buy a pink, googly-looking doofus diaper bag that Dad is embarrassed to tote around.
  • Have a nice big mat for changing diapers. Some changing surfaces are pretty, um, questionable in terms of hygiene.
  • A newborn child is not walking, crawling or even turning over yet, and therefore does not need shoes, or even socks if it is warm. Duh.
  • Moms need to wear tops that are easily accessible for nursing. My one-stop shop was always Motherwear.com. They can be pricey because they’re built with special features, but there’s a sales page and believe me, they wear like iron through every sort of barf, milk, spills….I’ll spare you any further liquids details.
  • Get a sling and carry that baby. You’re going to want the freedom of walking around (interacting with adults! Yay!) while the baby hangs out/sleeps in the sling. You do not want to wrestle up and down stairs and around sidewalk foot traffic with a stroller.
  • Don’t plan to do anything but walk around, maybe have one semi-nice meal if the baby’s quiet and take a luxurious shower at the hotel.  You’ll spend the rest of the time changing diapers, nursing, changing diapers again, walking, sitting, nursing and probably changing another diaper. BUT,  you’ll get to do it with different scenery than your home, which is nice.
  • Always check to see if the men’s bathroom has a Diaper Deck or other diaper changing table before Dad marches in there with baby. If it doesn’t, complain to the restaurant/shop manager. Dads have duties, too.

We still talk about the epic trip to New York to this day, although that daughter of mine will head to college this fall.  We learned that we could still travel, the baby was fairly adaptable, and if we scaled way back on expectations, we could have a really nice time and get a break from routine.

Did I miss any newborn road trip travel tips? Let us know in the comments!

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Product Reviews Tips USA

Tired of flying or driving with the kids? Consider MegaBus

(This is a guest post by Sherry Ott, from her recent trip via MegaBus. I’ve been curious about these newer budget bus services, so I asked for her reactions. Thanks, Sherry!)

All aboard the MegaBus for budget travel (courtesy MegaBus)Travel on the US East Coast has changed.  “Taking the bus” is no longer looked down upon; in fact, it is quickly becoming the transportation choice up and down the coast and in the Northeast (and expanding to the Midwest.)

I’ve ridden buses all over the world, but I recently took MegaBus from New York City to Boston to give this American version of budget bus travel a try.

Ticketing

Megabus is hip to technology, so the best and easiest way to purchase your tickets is online at www.megabus.com. It’s a pretty standard web ticketing process, however I did manage to screw my ticket up (all my own fault) and booked 1:30AM instead of 1:30PM and realized this the day before I was to leave.

My screw up in ticketing allowed me to test out the purchase ticket in person option too – so for review purposes it worked out!

You can purchase tickets at a little booth across from the loading area in New York City.  The people there weren’t the friendliest, but they were quick.  Unfortunately when I went to rectify my ticket situation in person (as the call center person suggested I do), I found out that there were no more tickets left to sell for my bus and I would have to wait Standby.  This wasn’t exactly in alignment with what the customer service agent said, so the whole situation had my travel stress level quite high.

Boarding

The boarding process reminded me of kindergarten.

Everyone had to stand in line, in the hot sun, while ONE guy tried to go around and check everyone’s tickets.  There were no signs for the lines, which resulted in a very inefficient process of people arriving and interrupting the ONE guy checking tickets to find out where to go. The seats were not assigned on the bus (note from Sheila: this could get interesting with kids) so once you got on, you chose your seat.  One guy also loaded luggage – so the whole process seemed a bit slow, and hence our bus took off about 20 minutes late.

Luggage

I found out once I arrived at the loading area that MegaBus has a strict ONE bag policy.  Unfortunately I had two – plus a carry-on with laptop.  They clearly have the luggage policy labeled on their website, but I apparently missed it.  They don’t technically check luggage or provide receipts, but instead you place your ONE piece of luggage in the storage area of the bus.  I got around the policy by asking a woman next to me in line who didn’t need to check a bag to claim mine – whew.  It appeared the luggage policy was very loosely applied without a lot of predictability.

Cost

Even though the prices are like travel in less developed countries, the style isn’t.  In Vietnam, a four hour backpack bus trip to Mui Ne cost me about $10USD – and so did this trip to Boston!

The prices are great – especially if you book in advance.  The ticketing online provides you a confirmation number which you simply show to the guy checking you in.  Many people simply held up their phones and showed him the number; no need to print out a receipt.

For families this is an excellent option as a family of four stood with me in the Standby line and bought all of their tickets for $100; much cheaper than four airline tickets!

The Ride

This is where MegaBus as compared to airline travel shines…each seat has a power outlet, and free wireless internet access is available to all.  The signal was great and I had no problem using that signal for four hours.

Each seat was reclinable, and fairly comfortable.  However, one downside about the seating was that unless you have a small notebook computer, the laptop space is really  cramped since there isn’t much room to put the laptop on your lap without hitting the back of the seat in front of you.  This setup made it really hard to type; practically impossible.  Plus – at times, the ride was rather bouncy, so if you are prone to motion sickness – working on your laptop might not be the best thing to do.  The setup was great for watching movies – but a bit of a pain to type of this review.

Tips To Make the Experience Better

My best advice is to bring a  jacket, even in the summer.  The bus became very cold after two hours.  The temperature didn’t seem to regulate.  Even the big guy next to me got cold!

Also – make sure you bring some snacks.  On my 4 ½ hour trip to Boston, we didn’t stop once – so be prepared.

Overall Impression

I’d use MegaBus again, but I would also recommend to book in advance; Standby was a bit of a pain.

It definitely was more simple and cheaper than my other options to get to Boston; air or train.  Plus, I found it to be just as comfortable AND I was able to have an internet connection!  Bravo MegaBus!

To learn more about MegaBus in the US, go to their website at https://us.megabus.com and see their routes all over the US which provide some great alternatives to short air travel!  You can also follow them on twitter at @megabus or on the MegaBus Facebook page.

Sherry Ott is a refugee from corporate IT who is now a long term traveler, blogger and photographer. She’s a co-founder of Briefcase to Backpack, a website offering career break travel inspiration and advice. She also runs an around the world travel blog, writing about her travel and expat adventures at Ottsworld.

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Book Reviews Tips

Cheapest travel destinations? Here’s your guidebook

worlds-cheapest-destinations_3rd_180pxWhen my Perceptive Travel blog editor Tim Leffel sent me a review copy of his guidebook The World’s Cheapest Destinations: 21 Countries Where Your Money Is Worth A Fortune, I was a bit skeptical.

It’s not geared specifically to family travel, and even though Tim’s an experienced Dad as well as a terrific travel writer, I worried that this particular book would get too “backpacker-y” for my blog’s readers.

Not to worry – although there are several countries listed where only the most intrepid parents would take the kids, I found a lot of good ideas here for my own travel planning.  There are super-helpful price ranges for each country, to help you plan typical expenditures for lodging, meals, transportation and seeing attractions.

At the end of each section, Tim describes what you can get in each country for the equivalent of one US dollar or less;  “3 rats on a stick in Laos” – yay! Humorous local color notwithstanding, he gives plenty of examples of less, um, exotic purchases.

His quick evaluations of each country’s best beer or local liquor are an “adults only” bonus.

Consider this book as a value-focused destination Idea Finder; it gives you a broad overview of what to expect at various budget levels, then you can plunge in and buy a country-specific guidebook (if you’re thinking south of the US, Tim has also written the excellent Traveler’s Tool Kit for Mexico and Central America.)

Some of the book’s best tips for parenting travelers:

***  Go long. Better to make a journey and stay in one place or region for two or three weeks than rage all over trying to pack in too many sights. With young kids, this goes double. Get off the plane or out of the car, slow down and stay awhile; you’ll learn and enjoy a place a lot more.

***  Take advantage of budget airlines within regions.  If you are going to country-hop, they’ve shrunk distances across Europe and Asia. For more airline ticket info, there’s BootsnAll’s own Cheap Air Tickets site.

***  Money quote from Tim: “If you demand pampering at every stage, you will pay pampering prices.”  Cheapest Destinations does NOT think that staying in Ye Olde Fleabag Hotel is such a fun idea; Tim insists that countries he lists as desirable have basic tourism infrastructure and support, and he’s also quite blunt about where you’ll find a “soak the tourists” mentality.

***  The book is very sensitive to the dietary needs of vegetarians; I like that and don’t see it too often. Tip if you’re vegetarian:  go to India.

***  Places that I personally want to take my family after reading this book? Jordan, Turkey and Guatemala. Tim is a fan of Spanish immersion classes in Guatemala, which he’s done with his wife and kids. It sounds terrific.

***  More places that intrigue me:  Honduras and Peru. Of course, the recent Shashi Bellamkonda guest post about Machu Picchu here on Family Travel already had me fired up.

***  Europe a must-do for you? Consider Hungary, Portugal and rural Spain (for more on kids in Spain, see Jeanne at SoulTravelers3.)

***  Bargain skiing – Transylvanian Alps in Romania, in the Czech Republic and in Turkey.

This is an excellent reference book if you have a globe in one hand, a budget in the other and kids in front of you saying, “When can we go someplace really cool?”

Normally after a book review I do a giveaway, but sorry, I’m keeping this one because Tim autographed it just for me.  He wrote, “To Sheila – step away from the laptop!”

Think the guy knows me pretty well?

You can buy World’s Cheapest Destinations here (where the purchase price goes to Tim and the publisher, without middlemen) and there’s an ebook version there as well. See this page for more purchase options.

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Tips USA

8 tips on taking the kids to Las Vegas

Sin City Suckers at Mandalay Bay convenience store (photo by Sheila Scarborough)My first (short) visit to Las Vegas was to help run the Tourism track at BlogWorld and New Media Expo, but I tried to scope out a few family travel angles in Sin City while I was there.

Here are my thoughts about this surprising place:

1)  Even though the campaign to market Vegas as “family-friendly” was mostly a bust, it’s still not a horrible destination with kids, as long as you avoid the racier casino floor action.

I was constantly amazed by how many parents seemed to think it was OK to walk their children through smoky areas (with gyrating dancers around the blackjack tables) at 10:30 at night.

Where the hell do they think they ARE….Poughkeepsie?

2)  The climate is incredibly dry. Be obnoxious about making everyone drink extra water and pace themselves, or the whole clan will have raging dehydration headaches every day.  Bathe in lotion, while you’re at it.

3)  The city’s reputation as a cheap place to visit is only true up to a point. The struggling economy has resulted in some amazing hotel deals in Las Vegas, but they’ll get you elsewhere in the wallet.  Food at those famous gourmet Vegas restaurants will cost a pretty penny. ATM fees are some of the highest I’ve seen ($4.99 – are you kidding?) Cocktails are not cheap unless you game the system and work those Happy Hour deals. It cost me money to check in online and print my boarding pass for my outbound flight; whoa. There are free things for families to do, but as always, plan ahead.

4)  Public transportation is poor. Either prepare to walk a lot, or catch a lot of taxis. The monorail seems like it would be helpful, but it has a weird schedule of stops and doesn’t run the length of Strip. It’s OK sometimes, but not something I could depend on to run to the places I wanted to go (nor was it always easy to find the stops via the confusing signs in meandering casinos.)

Update 13 Dec 2010: a new Las Vegas express bus service just opened connecting the airport with more of the city. If you aren’t laden down with luggage, this could work.

5)  If you are a social media fan, this is your town. Most of the major hotel properties/resorts are very active on Facebook, Twitter and location-based services like Foursquare (often with check-in deals available to participants.)

6)  Across the board, at every resort and restaurant, the staff that I met were really nice and friendly. The tough economy has hurt them badly, plus the real estate crash in this part of Nevada is godawful. They want your business.  It’s not glitzy at all a few blocks away from the Strip; it’s tough. Tip generously when you can – I did to the casino bartender who generously pointed out which drinks would NOT cost me anything at a conference social event, before I dropped $14 on my favorite bourbon and Coke.

7)  I’d say, go hang out at the swimming pools – except in the midday sun, of course. There are a bunch of family-friendly pools in Las Vegas, and my travel blogging friend Mary Jo says her top pick is the pool complex at Mandalay Bay resort.

8 )  For a half-day trip, do try to make it out to the Hoover Dam. That is one impressive place.

Fellow traveler Gary Arndt had the best description of the town’s bizarre otherworldliness: he’d heard that “Vegas fakery is like a Beatles tribute band. You know they aren’t the Beatles, but you appreciate the attempt.”

This was a short trip and I was tied up with the BlogWorld conference, so didn’t get out much….what did I miss for kids?

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Tips

Camping with the kids

Many couples who consider having kids are concerned that their traveling days are over as soon as their bundle of joy arrives in this world. Yes, your hosteling and parting all nights vacations will be over – unless you ask the grandparents to baby sit while you escape over a weekend – but traveling can be absolutely amazing with kids.

Among the benefits of traveling with kids is getting more value for money. Remember those family tickets for various attractions? Turned out that in Budapest, it was cheaper to get one than buy individual adult tickets even though we weren’t traveling with kids.

Also, camping is a great experience which kids should be accustomed to. But make sure to search among the best campgrounds for families . Make sure the campground has basic facilities and it’s also close to pools or other attractions. Being close to hiking trails is definitely a plus.

While you should take it easy when you hike with kids, there are many hikes that anyone can do , regardless in which continent you travel. Just plan for more stops along the way, bring lots of water and healthy snacks. Make sure the kids (and you!) wear sunscreen and clothes suitable for the weather and terrain.

It can be challenging to plan the first vacation in nature with the kids, but you’ll get used to it in no time. Plus, kids adapt easily and you shouldn’t be surprised if they actually enjoy it and want to do it again.

Photo credit

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Tips

Making Museums Fun For Kids

For a lot of kids, a trip to the museum is as appealing as a trip to the dentist. Wandering aimlessly from weird-looking art to even weirder-looking art as you are constantly “shushed” by adults is no fun. But museum visits don’t have to be somber and boring; in fact many museums cater to kids with special exhibits and programs that make learning more fun.

When planning museum trips for kids, first think about what your kids like. If you have a child who actually is really interested in art or history, by all means, enjoy a visit to one of the best modern art museums or museum that showcases the local history. But if you’re child isn’t quite captivated by artistic expression or the French Revolution, don’t expect them to enjoy a few hours spent in the museum.

Instead take them to a museum that better fits their interests. As a child who loved horses, I’m sure I would have been enraptured with Lisbon’s Coach Museum, a collection of ornate carriages and coaches. Kids who love dinosaurs would flip for Chicago’s Field Museum, where a full T-Rex skeleton is on display.

And don’t forget some of the lesser-known and slightly odder museums around the world. There are several unusual food museums
that would fascinate children, as well as museums centered on space exploration (always a favorite with kids) and natural science. Any museum that offers hands-on exhibits and interactive experiences can be good for kids.

Many more adult-oriented museums also have special exhibits for kids that help make the information more accessible and entertaining. No matter which museum you choose, there are ways to make the experience a bit more interesting for kids of any ages.

First off, try to schedule your visit when there are less people there. Come early in the morning or later, before the museum closes, and limit the amount of time based on your kid’s attention span and interests. Some kids might be happy to scamper around a museum all day while others would get bored after an hour. If you want to see several sections of a large museum, consider breaking your visit up into two days. If the kids bet bored or hungry before the parents want to go home, consider having one parent take them to the food court while the other gets their art fix, and then switching off.

Visiting a museum with your kids doesn’t have to be a whiny “are we done yet?”-filled experience. If you pick museums that offer something for kids and plan your visit with your child’s personality in mind, a visit to a museum can be a rewarding and entertaining educational experience for the whole family.

Photo by Txgeek

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Tips

Tips and Tricks for Family Travel

Traveling with kids – especially for the first time or on an extended trip – can be a nerve-wracking experience. Will the youngest have a total meltdown in unfamiliar surroundings? Will jetlag throw everyone off their sleep schedule? Or will what should have been a relaxing vacation turn into a week-long whine fest? While you never really know how your family will react until you try, there are things you can do to prepare your kids for travel.

Depending on the age of your children, you can help prepare them for the disruption to their routine and the unfamiliar sites and sounds they’re about to encounter. If you can, start small, with outings and overnights to nearby cities before embarking on a long trip to Europe. Choose resorts that offer family-friendly travel services , like kids clubs, nannies, or babysitting services. This way not only do the kids feel like they’re being catered to (and can play with kids their own ages in kids clubs) but mom and dad can have some time to do the things they want to do as well.

Once you’re ready to tackle a bigger adventure, you don’t have to spend thousands to see the world with kids. In fact, traveling with kids on a budget can force you to be more creative and put you closer to an authentic experience, ensuring that your kids get more from the trip than if you stayed in a luxury hotel. Hosteling with kids is surprisingly easy (and affordable) thanks to hostels that offer private rooms with 2, 3, 4 or more beds.

Before setting out on your trip with kids, it’s always wise to look into travel insurance, which can help with everything from weather-related cancellations to emergency evacuations should someone get sick or injured. Family insurance for a trip doesn’t cost much, and it can help protect both your investment and the people you love.

Photo by Hawaii