We had a lot of fun traveling last year with ages 7-12.

DH also took, now, 8-10 on a family trip that me + teen couldn’t make.

Overall this trips were fun. ADHD 9yo was difficult one day on last year’s trip.

(I have 3 kids, but I put the ranges for the times the trips happened.)

Depends on the kid but we have always traveled with ours (only 1) starting at 4. And it was easy. But, when little, we reimagined what the trip would be like and always worked in kid-friendly activities (finding playgrounds, doing something with animals, getting ice cream, etc.). And yes, we had napping issues sometimes but we would let DC nap in a stroller or we'd use that time as a break. The older DC got, the more we could do that would be a "normal" adult vacation.

DC is now a great traveler at 18 and has been to many places in the US, a cruise, and probably 10 countries overseas.

I'd say after 3 it became easy, but we traveled since ours was 5 weeks old. The kid is now 9, and it's almost like traveling with another adult - super easy and fun. It helps that I also can also only last about 30 minutes in any museum, and prefer non-structured activities.

About age 18 when they go one way and you go the other. Then, everyone has fun!

Anonymous wrote:It depends on the kid whether they ever become good travelers. I’m on a trip right now with DCs 17, 14, and 11. And the 17 y/o is miserable b/c their bed is not as comfortable as the one at home, it’s too hot (a/c is not everywhere like it is in the DC area), and they miss their GF. 14 and 11 are having fun and are delightful travel companions. All have been this way since age 5.

Totally hear you - family vacations were great for us once youngest of two was 3 but as they get to be teens it can be tough. Youngest is now 17 and we are on a trip and she’s just not that into it - some nice family time but she’s not super into sightseeing and would rather be at home with friends. Oldest kid loves to travel and see everything.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Never. And we travel internationally with our kids twice yearly. It’s never going to be as magical or romantic as traveling with just your husband. My kids are good eaters, walk long distances well and fall asleep easily. But they don’t appreciate art museums, hate historic homes and aren’t interested in anything medieval. And after long days they aren’t interested in staying up past 9 so we miss a lot of the nightlife we used to enjoy.

I love my kids btw!! Our best trips have been anything nature, like national parks, or amusement parks like Disney or universal. Universal with express passes has been our best trips yet. But none of those trips compare to vacations that dh and I used to have.

It’s not a vacation with kids, it’s a trip.

barf. I really hate this sentiment. I absolutely view any trips we take with or without kids as a vacation. It a break from daily life and a way to connect in a new environment.

My kids are teens, 13 and 16 and are wonderful to travel with. Youngest was tough to travel with until he was 2 because he did not sleep well, but once we got past that he has been great.

I think that maybe some of it it comes down to kids personalities, parent personalities and what everyone enjoys doing. My kids are great travelers and enjoy most of the same things we enjoy. If you all enjoy vastly different things and have different ideas of vacation then yes, it will be tough but if you all enjoy the same things it can be amazing. If DH and I were to travel without our kids we would do the same trips we do with our kids- physically active vacation with lots of outdoor activities. None of us are really into museums and all prefer national parks over big cities. We all love our yearly ski trip out west and the time we spend together on the slopes and relaxing back at the rental.

I agree with you it seems like it does have a bit to do with whether there is a match up within the family which is partially luck. Our kids are still young (4 and 7) but we taught them to bike and ski young because we enjoy those things and now traveling involves those things are we’re all happy. Or going on hikes etc with some little kid specific things sprinkled in (or ice cream after the hike which we all enjoy!) We’ve tried to build our daily and vacation lives so we’re all having fun together. Plenty of kid moments sprinkled in when they get tired, or are begging for xyz thing, but I still enjoy it. But I have no interest in late night clubs or things we used to do pre-kids honestly like the pp mentioned so I think that’s just different preferences. And once every couple years my husband and I do a trip to be able to do long dinners etc.

I do feel like my friends that enjoy it the least are the ones that pine the most for the pre-kid days. If it really brings you a lot of joy to go out late dancing then yeah, that’s hard to replicate and a bummer. Luckily the things that bring us joy are things we can do with our kids - biking, hiking, skiing, etc etc so I’m repeating myself but maybe that is just a very helpful factor.

People who pine for pre-kids days are probably not happy in any environment whether on vacation/"A trip" or at home because once you become a parent much of that is gone. Your time is very rarely 100% your own and you can no longer do what you want 100% of the time. just doesn't and can't really happen.

but I am with you I have zero desire to be going out hitting the clubs on vacation and gladly go for family dinners at 6pm and fall into bed exhausted from a day of skiing at 9pm. I also agree that family personalities matter. We are fortunate that our kids are pretty easy going and enjoy what we enjoy.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I only took my kids to the beach a three hour drive away until they were both in ES. No need to torture yourself with flights and airports and crying, tired children.

But what about you? Do you just not get to do anything fun for years?

Not traveling. I’m a single parent and felt lucky to afford the beach trip. We had to skip it one or two years because I didn’t have the money.

That's super sad

The majority of people in America cannot afford to go on vacation. If it weren’t for credit cards, I couldn’t either. I love the memories from our beach trips. When we had to skip years, it made me appreciate them even more. We didn’t go last year but we are going in two weeks. Can’t wait!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Never. And we travel internationally with our kids twice yearly. It’s never going to be as magical or romantic as traveling with just your husband. My kids are good eaters, walk long distances well and fall asleep easily. But they don’t appreciate art museums, hate historic homes and aren’t interested in anything medieval. And after long days they aren’t interested in staying up past 9 so we miss a lot of the nightlife we used to enjoy.

I love my kids btw!! Our best trips have been anything nature, like national parks, or amusement parks like Disney or universal. Universal with express passes has been our best trips yet. But none of those trips compare to vacations that dh and I used to have.

It’s not a vacation with kids, it’s a trip.

barf. I really hate this sentiment. I absolutely view any trips we take with or without kids as a vacation. It a break from daily life and a way to connect in a new environment.

My kids are teens, 13 and 16 and are wonderful to travel with. Youngest was tough to travel with until he was 2 because he did not sleep well, but once we got past that he has been great.

I think that maybe some of it it comes down to kids personalities, parent personalities and what everyone enjoys doing. My kids are great travelers and enjoy most of the same things we enjoy. If you all enjoy vastly different things and have different ideas of vacation then yes, it will be tough but if you all enjoy the same things it can be amazing. If DH and I were to travel without our kids we would do the same trips we do with our kids- physically active vacation with lots of outdoor activities. None of us are really into museums and all prefer national parks over big cities. We all love our yearly ski trip out west and the time we spend together on the slopes and relaxing back at the rental.

I agree with you it seems like it does have a bit to do with whether there is a match up within the family which is partially luck. Our kids are still young (4 and 7) but we taught them to bike and ski young because we enjoy those things and now traveling involves those things are we’re all happy. Or going on hikes etc with some little kid specific things sprinkled in (or ice cream after the hike which we all enjoy!) We’ve tried to build our daily and vacation lives so we’re all having fun together. Plenty of kid moments sprinkled in when they get tired, or are begging for xyz thing, but I still enjoy it. But I have no interest in late night clubs or things we used to do pre-kids honestly like the pp mentioned so I think that’s just different preferences. And once every couple years my husband and I do a trip to be able to do long dinners etc.

I do feel like my friends that enjoy it the least are the ones that pine the most for the pre-kid days. If it really brings you a lot of joy to go out late dancing then yeah, that’s hard to replicate and a bummer. Luckily the things that bring us joy are things we can do with our kids - biking, hiking, skiing, etc etc so I’m repeating myself but maybe that is just a very helpful factor.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If your kids are on a rigid schedule and you cater to their every whim, then they will always drive the plans…

Your kids are still young, but once they are in preschool, you should be able to travel more easily. Once they are reliably toilet trained, game on.

You will be best served if you are able to equip them to be good travelers: flexible, curious, and happy to be on vacation with the family.

I agree generally it does get easier as they get older, and yes "equipping them to be flexible, curious", etc is great. But frankly you sound like someone who just got easy kids. One of ours is very much like that. One is very much not even though we tried to equip him to be "flexible, curious", etc. One of my siblings was the same way when we were kids. 2 of us always happy for trips, excited to explore, etc. The other one not so much, and now not as a 40+ adult. Some people just aren't like that, or are on the spectrum, etc The idea that it's solely up to you as a parent is something parents of easy kids tell themselves.

DP. Yes, it’s very kid depended. Kid 1 could spend long hours in museums even as a toddler/preschooler and be fine. Kid 2 did not want to cooperate in such settings when she was young. Wanted to run around in museums, didn’t want to stay seated on flights, etc. But we muscled through and kept traveling anyway and it was very worthwhile and got better with age. So kids are different, but parental attitude makes a huge difference, too.