Kelby Carr's Blog
Posted by Kelby Carr
A few years ago, my husband and I started vetoing the whole madness that is the I-must-travel-for-the-holidays-because-everyone-expects-me-to nonsense. Travel is stressful. The holidays are stressful. Kids and parents should actually enjoy the holiday season.
Instead, we invite the grandparents to visit us. That does mean added stress of hosting people in our home, but it also means that the kids get to open gifts, decorate a Christmas tree, have dinner and do all those fun holiday things in the place that is most familiar to them.
It's also a matter of one child having a birthday close to Christmas, which means we would have the stress of throwing a birthday party, immediately followed by packing for a trip. I don't think so.
I know what you're thinking. My parents would never go for that! They expect us to pack up the car and make the annual exodus with about a kajillion other parents dragging grumpy kids along. It's a tradition, after all. But you can just say no! Start a new tradition.
Get some tips on the Holiday Travel Dilemma: Deciding Whether to Stay Home or Travel. If you simply must go, though, you can make things go easier with my tips on Holiday Travel with Kids.
Posted by Kelby Carr
Here are a few family travel deals for Labor Day Weekend:
- Travelocity features One Final Summer Travel Fling, with package travel deals for a last-minute Labor Day getaway for as little as $199. The destination choices are pretty diverse, from Philadelphia and Las Vegas to Vancouver and Cancun.
- Expedia is offering several last-minute deals good over Labor Day Weekend, such as Chicago to Cancun with air and four nights' hotel from $1,018 per person or Los Angeles to Maui with air and four nights from $1,116. Better yet, they offer dirt-cheap last-minute Orlando deals with rooms from $55 per night and vacations from $201. The site also features several last-minute Labor Day Weekend deals.
- Hotels.com has a lengthy list of hotels offering last-minute deals that include Labor Day Weekend stays.
- Travelzoo.com has released an extensive list of Labor Day 2007 Deals, including round-trip flights from $123, a $39 stay near Downtown Disney and a Chicago Waterpark Package for $100 off the normal pricetag for $139.
Posted by Kelby Carr
There is a great deal now for families visiting Colonial Williamsburg. Stay three nights starting on a Sunday, Monday or Tuesday between July 22 and August 28, and the family gets free admission to Colonial Williamsburg Historic Area and Museums during the stay.
If you can't go during those dates, you can still get free admission any days of the week and anytime in 2007 by booking a four-night stay instead.
The admission pass includes:
- Length-of-stay admission to Colonial Williamsburg’s Historic Area and the Museums of Colonial Williamsburg while residing at the Williamsburg Inn and Providence Hall Guest Houses, Williamsburg Lodge, Colonial Houses–Historic Lodging, Williamsburg Woodlands Hotel & Suites, or Governor’s Inn.
- 50 percent discount on evening Colonial Performances tickets
- Admission to regular daytime programs and Colonial Explorer Activities
- The Revolutionary City, a Colonial Williamsburg adventure
- Museums of Colonial Williamsburg and Bassett Hall
- Viewing of the movie short Williamsburg: The Story of a Patriot
- Free parking at the Visitor Center and use of Colonial Williamsburg shuttle buses.
Find out more: Colonial Williamsburg Families Free with Three
Posted by Kelby Carr
You don't have to do something too ambitious like take a month off, rent an RV for the family and drive cross-country (but hey, you can!). There is surely a highway not too far from your house. Grab a map and find a destination nearby that you've never visited. Shoot, let the kids pick the place. Take a weekend, and go.
You can make the trip more pleasant by using some tips to avoid tantrums on the road. It doesn't even have to cost a lot, especially if you follow some of these ideas for saving gas on road trips. With just a little bit of road trip planning and some creative road trip packing, you can be out the door and on your way to discover the world.
You can even avoid some of the annoying requests like, "Are we there yet?" if you trip out your ride with a GPS unit. If you have a minivan, you can find lots of cool minivan accessories for family road trips. You can also avoid the fast-food jungle by packing some healthy kid travel snacks or stopping over at one of the healthier chain family restaurants. And keep things sane in the car by packing a family travel tote.
Still finding excuses to stay home? Well, don't forget you can actually use travel to teach your kids. There is little doubt that both parents and children benefit from travel.
Posted by Kelby Carr
You don't have to hit the typical spring break destinations (which are probably overrun with families also seeking out some spring break fun anyway). You don't need to pop for pricy plane tickets for everyone. Get in the car, look at a regional map and hit the road.
Get some ideas for cheap spring break vacations close to home: Spring Break Family Vacation Ideas or Spring Break 2007 Deals.
Posted by Kelby Carr
Here are some tips for overcoming new-baby-agoraphobia:
- Baby steps - Don't go from homebody and homebaby to world traveler. Just vow to hit the grocery store, a museum (yes, babies CAN do museums!) or a decent restaurant once a week. Then work your way up to daytrips an hour away, and in no time you'll be planning a week's vacation abroad.
- Realize that babies are so portable - When that little one gets mobile, gets preferences, gets a mouth and gets an attitude, it won't be nearly as easy to drag them around the globe. While babies present challenges, it's no more than you encounter in the woobie-like security of home.
- Embrace unpredictability! - Yes, babies are unpredictable. Shoot, isn't that what's so great about travel? Ramp it up a notch by traveling with a baby, and you'll surely have tears, laughs and amazing memories to cherish forever. Besides, test your parenting skills trying to figure out a way to change a poop diaper when you (a) have run out of wipes, (b) you're in a strange place and (c) there's no changing table anywhere to be seen. Now that's extreme parenting!
They say travel is life intensified. Raising a baby is even more intense. Well, travel with babies and you will truly discover the meaning of adventure travel. But wouldn't you rather show your child pictures of him or her at the Eiffel Tower or the Great Wall of China than boring old photos sitting in a bouncy seat in your living room?
Want some inspiration? See Family Travel Resolutions for 2007 or Top 10 Reasons to Travel with Kids.
Posted by Kelby Carr
Here are some resources for planning your summer family vacation: