Traveling With Teens: Top Five Tips for a Peaceful Family Vacation
Posted on | December 15, 2009 | 9 Comments
Understanding teens can be difficult, especially when you are planning a vacation. Your teen will likely want to stay home rather than vacation with the family, and even if you are lucky enough to have a mature teen who enjoys spending time with you, he or she will still likely be moody, easily embarrassed, and uncooperative at times. Do not worry – you are not doing anything wrong as a parent! Vacationing with your teen might be difficult, but in the end, the effort is worth the lasting memories you will make together. That said, you do not want to spend the whole time fighting. Here are five tips for planning and enjoying a peaceful family vacation together:
Tip #1: Cater to your teen’s interests – One of the hardest parts of planning a vacation if you have children of all ages is finding activities that everyone can enjoy. On one hand, you have to make sure that your younger children are not bored and throwing temper tantrums. On the other hand, if you want to avoid arguments, it is important to cater to your teen’s interests. Luckily, there are often a number of activities on any vacation that allow children and adults alike to have fun. More specifically, though, do not just find teen-friendly activities. Look for places you can go that specifically will interest your teen. For example, if your son likes music, stop by a vintage record shop or a store with music memorabilia. If your daughter likes water sports, arrange for some jet skiing or sailing. Even if your teen pretends to look apathetic, when you arrange for interesting activities, he or she will have fun.
Tip #2: Respect your teen’s space and give him or her some alone time – On a vacation, it can be a challenge to coexist in such close proximity to everyone else in your family. Teens especially need space, and on vacation, they usually do not get much privacy. Consider the ways in which you can give your teen a little time alone without ruining the vacation for everyone else. One idea is to allow your teen to stay in an adjoining hotel room (with the door open) or his/her own tent if you are camping. You can also consider inviting one of your teen’s friends on the vacation with your family. That way, they can do some activities on their own, but still make use of the buddy system for safety’s sake.
Tip #3: Get your teen involved with the planning – Although some teens will not be interested in the least, many young adults will be much more willing to cooperate if they get to make some of the vacationing decisions. You might be surprised at the activities your teen really wants to do versus what you would have planned. Maybe your teen really wants to go to the zoo, or maybe your teen would rather spend some time at an amusement park. Be ready to be surprised! Of course, you may not be able to allow your teen complete vacation planning freedom, but it is a good way to get him or her on board. As a bonus, this helps teens learn about budgeting and travel preparations.
Tip #4: Give your teen choices – Beyond planning, try to give you teen choices on a daily basis while you are on vacation. Saying, “what do you want to do,” can be dangerous, as your teen may want to do activities that younger children in your family cannot enjoy (or even worse, their answer may be “nothing!”). So, instead, come up with two choices and let your teen decide between them (ex. “would you rather go shopping or spend time on the beach?”). Teens like to know that their opinion is valued – and they are more likely to enjoy themselves when they have had a hand in the decision-making.
Tip #5: Choose your battles – Lastly, choose your battles. Remember, you are on vacation. Instead of fighting about everything, try to relax a little and only argue about the things that are really important, like the skimpy bathing suit your daughter wants to wear, rather than the things that are insignificant, like the fact that he or she brought a cell phone to text friends while on vacation. If there is a major problem, sometimes it is best to suggest that you both calm down and deal with the situation when the vacation is over. There is no sense in ruining a fun day for the entire family because of a dispute between you and your teen.
In general, you may not be able to stop every disagreement from happening, but you can lessen the blows a bit by following the above five tips. No matter where you live or where you are traveling on vacation, some teens will always be challenging, but that does not mean that you should skip a potentially fun and relaxing family vacation.
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9 Responses to “Traveling With Teens: Top Five Tips for a Peaceful Family Vacation”
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December 15th, 2009 @ 10:38 am
The only all inclusive trips I have taken have been cruises which I liked because I just unpacked once, settled in, then could choose if/when I wanted to go on shore excursions, or explore all the wonderful activities offered aboard the ship.
As the other answerer said – drinks, massages, beauty salon, etc. on board were NOT included, but there was a lot that was. It all depends on what you like to do & what your tastes are.
Best thing would be for you & your wife to do what he did – type in all inclusive vacations in your browser search line & review what comes up, then keep adding a keyword until you narrow it down to just those that fit the activities, locations, etc. that both of you like.
Good luck!!
December 15th, 2009 @ 11:00 am
My brother & I took a vacation, or more like a trip. Here is our story:
The wildwood flower grew wild on the farm
And we never knowed what it was called
Some said it was a flower and some said it was weed
I didn't gave it much thought…
One day I was out there talking to my brother
Reached down for a weed to chew on
Things got fuzzy and things got blurry
And then everything was gone
I Didn't know what happened
But I knew it beat the hell out of sniffin' burlap
I come to and my brother was there
And he said, 'What's wrong with your eyes?'
I said, 'I don't know, I was chewing on a weed'
He said, 'Let me give it a try'
We spent the rest of that day and most of that night
Trying to find my brother, Bill
Caught up with him 'bout six o'clock the next mornin'
Naked, swinging on the windmill
He said he flew up there
I had to fly up and get him down
He was about half crazy
The very next day we picked a bunch of them weeds
And put 'em in the sun to dry
Then we mashed 'em up and we cleaned 'em all
And put 'em in the corncob pipe
Smokin' them wildwood flowers got to be a habit
We didn't see no harm
We thought it was kind of handy
Have you ever take a trip and never leave the farm
A big ol' puff on the wildwood weed
Next thing you know
We's just wandering behind the little animals
All good things gotta come to an end
And it's the same with the wildwood weed
One day this feller from Washington come by
And he spied us and he turned white as a sheet
And he dug and he burned
And he burned and he dug
And he killed all our cute little weeds
Then he drove away
We just smiled and waved
Sittin' there on that sack of seeds
Y'all come back now, ya hear
December 16th, 2009 @ 7:58 am
This website might help , check it out –
http://www.usairwaysforum.com/
December 16th, 2009 @ 2:33 pm
at grand teton national park go hiking up to lake solitude, its 15 miles round trip but 100% worth it. In yellowstone I would recommend spending time just driving around looking at the wildlife, maybe hike to the top of Mount Washburn (only like 6 miles) oh and go to Bubba's Barbeque in jackson hole!!!!!
December 16th, 2009 @ 9:02 pm
book supplier direct to avoid cancel or non refundable fares.
dig up association member cards, like AAA or AARP, you can get 10-15% off the weekly rate, (weekly rates are 5x the daily)
check with the company you work for, they may have a coporate agreement in place that may be available- many of these agreements waive airport fees and taxes, add'l driver and underage driver fees- real expensive fees here.
Also return the car to same location to avoid drop off charges and lastly, reserve a Compact car, most people are looking for smaller cars now with the most fuel efficiency. So reserve a smaller car and most likly they will upgrade you for free at counter.. if you wanbt a larger car, reserve in advance as paying for an upgrade at counter is usually much higher. oh, yeah, bring a copy of insurance card with you as well..
December 17th, 2009 @ 3:34 pm
you seem underweight. If you are going on vacation, the best advice i can give you is to HAVE FUN and eat the best and tastiest foods while you are at it. With an active lifestyle, your not going to add or lose too much weight.
December 17th, 2009 @ 4:03 pm
It must be a slow day in the J.J. household today. But to answer another of your fabulously funny questions, I will give it my best shot. Go out in the garage, climb up into the attic and get out all the seldom used camping equipment. Then, after you have removed all the camping stuff, take into the living room and set up the tent with your sleeping bags, etc. You may have to go outside to find enough rocks to build your fire pit, but place it near the tent so you will not get cold during the night. Go to your local convenience store and pick up enough wood to last through the night. Then return home, turn your air conditioner down to 60 degrees. When your husband comes home, you can have a nice roaring fire going, with a cup of hot chocolate and only wearing a smile. It will be the best at home vacation ever. Good luck with that.
December 18th, 2009 @ 6:18 am
December 18th, 2009 @ 1:28 pm
You need to get a Japan Rail Pass which gives you unlimited travel for the time you opt to purchase for………1 week, or 2 or 3 weeks .If you are just going to be on Honshu Island you can actually get a pass that is a bit cheaper just for that island.You could also look at the JAL flight passes but you miss the scenery if you fly.You must buy this Pass in YOUR country…………..you cannot buy them in Japan and you will save yourself a huge amount of money.
Look around Tokyo ………and do take a day trip to Kamakura…….go to the Tsukiji Fish Market on the way.
If you plan to go to Kyoto which is gorgeous you can mostly walk if you choose accommodation in a good location. There are maps with walking routes you get at the station.You won't get top see it all just do one section – we opted for the area near Murayama Park.There are so many shrines, temples gardens etc near here.
Catch the bus to Fuji go ko – Fuji Five Lakes…it is only an hour and a half and just beautiful …….at the base of Mt Fuji. Then take the bus to Gotemba which is a beautiful trip round the base of Mt Fuji through old traditional villages with thatched cottages etc.Change to a bus for Mishima – just catch the bus behind they call it Station 2 to Station 3.but was quite literally just the bus behind the one we got off. This bus takes you right to the Shinkansen which you can catch through to Kyoto.
If you go to Osaka, you should try and go further on to Himeji and see the castle …………probably the best in Japan and the Shrine and then on to Osaka. You could go on a little further to Okayama which has one of japan's best gardens but from Okayama you can take an ordinary train to Kurashiki – only 30 minutes ……..which is a really beautiful Edo period town.
You can look at these places at http://www.fascinating-travel-destinations.com/japanese-holidays.html