PLANNING TOOLS

Most of us have a dream vacation on our bucket list. Maybe it’s a European art tour hitting all cities and landmarks, an adventure-sports trip to Australia, or a summer-long road trip to some national parks.  Cost is likely the biggest barrier to turning you family’s dream into a plan. …

Download & Print this packing list of items you need specifically for Fall camping with your kids. Plus read our tips for how to stay warm, dry and well-fed.

Costa Rica is a popular destination for families because it’s budget-friendly, relatively safe, not a long flight and has lots of light and moderate adventure opportunities to suit kids of every age. For this Costa Rica packing list I’m drawing on my experience traveling to Costa Rica with *Costa Rica …

Updated June 2020 We’ve taken some pretty long road trips as family travelers. Six hours to Montreal, seven to Pittsburgh and more than nine to the Outer Banks, just to name a few. We are those crazy parents who try to avoid handing our child an electronic screen the second …

In our house we choose the Caribbean when we want an easy vacation. Beach, umbrella drinks, some sightseeing options in case we want a break from our lounge chairs and beach reading. Whether we choose a resort or rent a beach house even a simple vacation takes some planning. To …

Updated May 2020 A beach-house vacation is perennially one of the most popular types of vacations for families. It’s easy to see why: The beach provides free entertainment for the kids. A kitchen gives families the flexibility to cook as much as they want to. If you get a rainy …

Update June 2020 Moms pack for the kids, for the plane or car, and ready the house. Somewhere amid all that, we hope to have time to throw a few things into a suitcase for ourselves. Then we cross their fingers that we haven’t forgotten anything important. So it helps …

Updated February 2020 Planning a Cruise?CruiseDirect allows you to compare prices, ships and itineraris across major cruiseship lines.Read More: 12 Questions to ask before booking a cruise.• 10 tips for your first Disney cruise• 5 Hacks for a Royal Caribbean cruise  Packing for a Caribbean Cruise Here is a list …

Updated August 2020 Who couldn’t use apps that help you to plan and save for vacations and spend wisely while you’re off traveling. When you start traveling with kids your travel costs grow pretty quickly. Additional airplane tickets, larger hotel rooms and bigger restaurants tabs add up. If you don’t …

The Trouble With Kids and Taxis Yes, we know. You don’t need a rental car and either there isn’t public transit or you can’t deal with public transit with the kids and luggage in tow. You just need to get your family from the airport to your hotel and back …

I think about road-trip safety and health far more than I used to. Now that we have a child (and our airfare costs have increased by 50%) travel by road trip far more We drive in snowy winter weather to ski resorts with their rutted, frozen-mud parking lots. We creep along …

Staycations at home need as much planning as away vacations, or in fact, maybe even a little more. You’re in your comfort zone, in familiar surroundings, so you need to work harder to remember you’re on your family vacation. it’s easy to catch up on work, get caught up in …

A family reunion can mean a lot of things. For some it might be three generations of siblings, their parents and their kids all in one place once a year. For others it might be once-a-decade meeting of their uncles, cousins and more. According to a HomeAway survey, smaller family …

Family vacation planning starts way before we head to the airport or get in the car. It can be exciting and build anticipation. Managing all the deadlines and getting to things as soon as you should can be stressful. So here a check list to keep you organized. It remembers …

Updated June 2020 Download and print the packing list you need for your next family vacation…or download and print them all! Start with the basic packing list for every trip. Then add on the outdoor, beach, winter and baby-toddler lists as needed. Plus check out the carry-on lists for kids …

We finished out our summer with a 2-week home swap vacation in Paris with our 6yo. We covered a lot of ground and did much more than we hoped we would. And while lots of guides will tell you what to do in Paris with kids. I thought it would be …