Adventure Travel With Kids

For travel addicts born with itchy feet, it’s reassuring to know that your life of adventure travel doesn’t have to end when you have kids. If anything, being a parent can add a whole new human dimension to understanding new cultures and exploring new places. But the wonders (and challenges) of travel will also strengthen the bonds within your family, leaving you with memories all of you can cherish for a lifetime.

Of course, when traveling with kids, you may not be able to do the same things you did before as a free-and-easy youth (Full Moon Parties on Thai beaches or cage diving with sharks may be out of the question!) but you’ll learn to travel in a different way, and being abroad allows for exciting activities for kids that they wouldn’t be able to join in on, if you’d stayed at home. So next time the topic of your holiday comes up, avoid the all-in package at a hotel resort – and think about the thrills of independent adventure travel with your kids.
Here’s just a few ways in which kids can deepen your adventure travel experience:

Interact with locals on deeper, more genuine level

When you bring along kids and an open attitude, your interaction with locals completely changes. Locals will generally be nicer to you and may trust you more. Your kids may find themselves the object of loving attention, receiving hugs, smiles, gifts, and maybe even photo requests! Children don’t need to speak the same language to play with each other, so you could find your kids playing along with local kids for an afternoon – and everyone will find themselves emotionally richer for it.

Try a family-oriented adventure travel package

Some tour operators get that travelling with kids isn’t just about lazing by the pool all the time. These companies provide travel experiences that are just as much about learning and absorbing new sights, cultures, and customs, so your children can come out with a wider view of the world.

Understand local values toward family

Many cultures outside of the UK place a stronger emphasis on family and a more inclusive approach to children. When you travel independently with children, you’ll see this in a different way. Kids aren’t put on leashes or deposited in a childcare facility all day. Witnessing how other cultures do it reminds us that as we grow up, we don’t need to always separate parenting from exploring.

Kids can be mesmerised by new cultures

Take your children to a local festival, and they’ll be fascinated by the display of dancing, colors, music, and celebration. They may even feel the spirituality in a procession of Buddhist monks in the early dawn or in the quiet of a Shinto temple. A handmade doll bought from craftsman is a much more meaningful than a mass-produced souvenir from a gift shop. Whether it’s trying new cuisine, watching a puppet show, or visiting a museum, kids can learn so much if you allow them to explore the local culture of your travel destination.

Travel can inspire your kids’ imaginations

Just as adults are inspired by travel, children can continue exploring the wider world after the holiday has ended. Have your kids keep a travel diary to record their thoughts and impressions, and this will be a priceless keepsake years later. A trip to Egypt can inspire a fascination with the pyramids, a safari can lead to a child’s interest in wildlife conservation. Travel to exciting places, balance this with exciting activities for kids, and your children will never stop learning. And neither will you.

Inspired? Those are just a few thoughts, but there’s lots of other information out there for independent travel with kids. Maybe you want to go skiing, so Google where to go skiing and you’ll probably find something for you, and your family. What are you waiting for? Start exploring!