5 Tips for Planning the Perfect Family Vacation

Vacationing with the whole family can be stressful. Hours and weeks of planning goes into every family vacation, and you want it to be perfect, right? Whether you’re camping like Charter Chiquita Mom Natalie or relaxing by the beach like we did during our last family vacation (remember, the one where we shockingly caught a dinner of Blue Crabs), planning the perfect family vacation for you and your family is vital to having a stress-free vacation.

Every family is different, so there are several things to keep in mind when picking a family vacation location and planning activities. Here are 5 tips for planning the perfect family vacation!

1. Consider the ages of your children. If you have toddlers, maybe Disney World isn’t in the cards for your family this year. If you have teens, they might be old enough to enjoy a trip to the Grand Canyon or a week visiting the many attractions in Washington, D.C. Have a variety of ages in your family? Don’t worry! So do we. That’s why I always try to find a location that has something to offer each age group in our family.

This past family vacation we spent in Cape Charles, VA. It has beaches and state parks, along with great local eateries and a small town feel, something each of us was looking for in our family getaway.

2. Consider the time of year. This might seem common sense, but you would be amazed at how many families schedule a trip to a hot weather locale in the middle of July or August. Take into consideration the time of year your schedule allows for you to take time off as a family. Is winter best? Consider a skiing vacation up north, or any place in the south is always nice and mild during the winter months. Just don’t plan a vacation to Florida during hurricane season!

3. Consider everyone’s ideas. Ask your children. Ask your husband. See what places the people in your family would pick as their dream vacation spot. No, you may not be able to afford that cruise to the Caribbean, but you could plan a ocean themed vacation on a lower scale that would probably please everyone just as much. Asking everyone what their dream vacation might entail will give you ideas as to what each person in your family wants from their vacation.

When we were planning our last vacation, Kylie mentioned that she wanted to go somewhere where we could take a hike. So when we were picking the location of our vacation rental house, we made sure we were somewhere with easy access to several outdoor areas where we could walk and hike. She was in hog heaven! If you’re family is outdoorsy like mine, a simple location that allows your children to explore the outdoors may be all the entertainment and activity they need for an entire vacation! And, it’s inexpensive!

4. Consider your budget. No one really likes to talk about money, but it affects everything we do especially our vacation plans. Whether you are able to plan a week at a popular theme park or you are saving money by spending your vacation at a family campground close to your home, you can find a location that has what you want and need but doesn’t break the bank. Consider a stay-cation! Fellow Charter Chiquita Mom, Katie, has some great stay-cation tips. We are actually planning a stay-cation for our family for next month, and I plan on picking her brain for some ideas. There are usually many activities and locations locally you never have time to do in your day-to-day life that would be perfect outings to fill your stay-cation days with!

5. Consider your time-frame. Not every family vacation has to be a week long. Although this year we were able to take an entire week (and actually a little more than a week) for vacation, this is usually not the case with our schedules. We’ve been known to take a few mini-vacations throughout the year, long weekends where we get away to a nearby location to have some family time. We live in a great location for this, and have spent long weekends in D.C., Williamsburg, and Luray. Even if you only have three days to squeeze in your family vacation, you can still have a fabulous time! Just make sure you don’t try to squeeze in too much. Too much scheduling can kill even the best vacation quick. Be sure to leave plenty of time for relaxing and just hanging out together.

Do you have any family vacation planning tips to share?