Eager to travel with your teens? Planning and exploring together can be illuminating and exhilarating. Here are five ideas to consider:
1. Plan together.
Teens are developing adults, and most want to be included in choosing a destination or planning activities. When possible, offer your teen a portion of the trip to research or manage on his or her own. Talk through your budget parameters as part of the learning curve. Then, considering your economic and other guardrails, review a long list of hotels, resorts, adventure companies and cruise lines that offer special spaces, social programs, sports activities and Wi-Fi packages designed to keep teens happy and engaged. Encourage your teen to think outside the box and consider a trip that might push the boundaries of his or her comfort zone a bit. Most of us are more invested when we’ve had a hand in the planning.
People are also reading…
For more: www.beaches.com; www.royalcaribbean.com; www.oars.com
2. Tech matters
No doubt, it’s difficult to engage in conversation or share an experience when the earbuds are firmly in place. However, rather than banning tech all together, compromise by putting the phones to work for the greater good. Create a combined music play list, challenge the group to find the best coffee shop or to photograph what they find most interesting to share with the clan at days’ end. Meanwhile, let your teen know how much you and other family members, especially grandparents, value time together. Discuss defining tech-free zones such as dining tables, beach chairs or tour lectures. Agree, for example, that plane, train, airports and defined personal time are green-lit for pursuing individual, parent-approved interests.
3. Early birds and night owls
While you and other family members or fellow travelers might want to be first on the trail, in line at the theme park, at the museum or for the city tour, remember that if your teen is a fan of sleeping in and staying up late at home, the habit is not likely to disappear while on holiday. Be realistic. Talk it through and proceed accordingly. Home rentals, national park cabins or suite hotels provide separate sleep spaces that accommodate both early risers and night owls.
For more: www.airbnb.com; www.vrbo.com
4. Yours, mine and our turn
At different life stages, you and your teens are likely to have varied interests. Talk through the options for transportation, dining, activities and lodging. Consider taking turns choosing restaurants or culinary styles. Encourage conversation. Might it be possible for family members to occasionally split up to pursue separate activities? While working out the kinks is part of the growth process, tours and adventure itineraries designed to appeal to adults and teens may provide built-in solutions.
For more: www.intrepidtravel.com; www.tauckbridges.com
5. Expanded horizons
Use travel as an opportunity to introduce your young travel companions to new experiences. Even if you have to nudge a little. From sushi and sashimi and smelly cheeses to a long hike or paddle to off-the-beaten path museums and theater performances, there is a first time for everything. You may spark a lifetime interest or provide fodder for future career conversations. By encouraging teens to move away from the familiar while in a safe environment, they’ll have more confidence when the time comes to go it alone. And that time will come before you know it.
_____
_____
