I'm curious - Vacations

[nesser1981]

Are you typically taking a vacation every year? And if you are, how far out are you planning those?

We always do a staycation every summer, my in-laws have a place in Northern MI the family goes to, we've been doing this since 2015, but we really make it a priority to take some kind of family trip every year.

Even when the kids were smaller and we couldn't afford as much, maybe we just did a night or two away, but it's something I feel like we have to have to look forward to every year for our family.

We're leaving on Friday for this year's trip and we just decided on next year's, so as soon as we get home from this one, we'll start saving and planning.

If I'm being honest, we have the next several years planned. LOL! There is not enough time off or money to do them all! And now, having adult kids, it makes it even hard to it work for their work schedules and ours. Which I will do as long as we can swing it & they want to join us.

I did not do any real traveling growing up, I think Florida & Georgia were the extent of my travels until I enlisted in the Air Force, so I really love going and exploring new places now.

 

[Brendazzle]

I grew up with day trips to Orlando. Teachers get in free at Sea World and they had a "pay for a day, come for the whole year" promo a lot so my mom would end up with annual passes for my brother and I for cheap. Mom would get us in the car before the sun rose, we'd change into our day clothes when we stopped for breakfast and a bathroom break at a rest stop, and then we stayed until fireworks. We'd go to Pizzeria Uno's afterwards and our favorite waiter had it timed that he knew how long it took and our appetizer would hit the table 5 minutes after we did. Then mom would drive home and hope we fell asleep in the car.

It's a lot harder to take my son places but she loves to take us to Sea Life Orlando (and Uno's ) as a day trip.

We don't really get to do vacations with my son (between his medical needs and money) but we're planning to go to Tampa for my mom's birthday in June. I should probably pick a date and reserve our hotel room; so far all my planning has been buying scrapbook kits and getting an adaptive stroller for him (which does not fit in either vehicle so my next step may be a new car ). We're like 3 months out and I know what we're doing; I just need to finalize plans.

 

[JillW]

We didn't travel much when I was growing up because we farmed. When our son was young, we traveled quite a bit, going to Florida several times, California, the Dakotas, out east etc.

There were a few years that we traveled a lot, Hawaii, Alaska and 3 cruises (over the course of 6 years). We decided to remodel the kitchen and bathroom, so our funds went to that rather than travel.

Once retired, our plan was to travel A LOT. We did so for the 1st three years, but last year something changed in my husband's overall outlook about travel. We had a less than great experience on an NCL cruise - and on top of it, he ended up getting a bad case of the flu while on board. Now, he has zero desire to travel. (And actually, right now during these very uncertain times, I'm okay staying home), but if I'm being honest, I'm sort of heartbroken over that. I love to travel and really enjoy the entire planning process!

We (hopefully) have many retirement years ahead of us and I'm hoping he changes his mind at some point!

 

[LeeAndra]

When I was growing up, our primary family vacation was driving to FL every other year to spend Christmas with my grandparents. While we were there, we would visit a theme park: DW, Sea World, Busch Gardens, etc. My dad worked 60+ hours a week which included nights and weekends so we weren't able to vacation otherwise. When my kids were little, we took a trip with my parents one summer and went to visit my former ILs a couple summers. These were trips paid for by them so they dictated where we went and what we did.

Since my ex and I split up in 2021, we have taken a small family vacation every year except 2025. I love to (obsessively) plan so as soon as I get a whiff of a trip, I'm planning it. We've been waiting to hear what my stepkids' summer schedule is which is why this summer's vacation has not been planned yet. That's happening this weekend & will be all planned in a few days. It will be a long weekend in MI (hey, neighbor @nesser1981) so nothing too difficult to get figured out.

 

[AmieN1]

We used to do a summer road trip- we've done some EPIC ones! We did a huge loop through Banff, Calgary & Glacier National Park- probably our favorite ever. We've done Disneyland a few times. Once my kids started playing club sports though- our "family" vacations sometimes ended up in Denver for a softball tournament, or Vancouver BC for hockey. We've tried to incorporate a few family things when we are travelling for sports, but often times we have to divide & conquer.

We do take a Christmas trip every other year. Last year we went to Saint Lucia for Christmas & it was SOOO nice. We've done Hawaii, & Mexico a few times. It's cold & not nice usually here at Christmas, so we're finding sun & warmth. We go with my inlaws (hubby is an only child) so thankfully they usually pick up most of the tab. Last Christmas, we paid for all the excursions and rental cars just to feel like we chipped in. We also go pretty light on Christmas presents for the kids & each other, since excursions, new swimsuits, etc IS the gift, as well as quality time spent together (try telling that to the teenagers!) lol

I am the planny plannerson in life- so not a stretch at all that I am the family's Travel Agent as well. I try to get input for everyone on what they want (or dont want) to do, as well as budget & go from there. Doing trip research & planning is probably my favorite part!

Growing up we did a few vacations, but most were to go visit family & almost always road trips. We rarely flew on airplanes. I think it was mostly due to $ reasons.

 

[Cheryl Ashcraft]

As a child before my parents divorced, I remember going to Disney and Sea World with some close friends. My dad had a cargo van and we communicated with our friends in their cargo van. That was fun. Unfortunately, I get awful motion sickness, and I ended up losing my cookies in the van. I also remember going to Georgia to visit my aunt and cousins (my mother's sister) before their divorce.

After my parents divorced, my sister and I went to the 1984 World's Fair in Louisiana with my dad, my step-mom and her family. They also had a time share condo on Pensacola Beach, so we went there several summers. I celebrated my 13th birthday there with friends. We also went to the Gulfarium in Fort Walton, Florida. We went to a water park called Shipwreck Island in Panama City. I went a couple of times to Mississippi to visit my step-mom's family.

My mom took my sister and I many places after the divorce. Most of them were to family reunions or to visit with family. She took us to Six Flags Over Georgia. We went to New Orleans for a day trip and I had my first beignets at Cafe Du Monde and got my first peek at Bourbon Street. We took an Amtrak train the year I turned 15. We got on in South Carolina after visiting with family there. We went to Dover, Delaware and stayed with family while my mom was attending a workshop. We took the train into Montreal, Canada and then coming back we stopped in Washington DC on the Fourth of July. We went to Disney a few time when Mama had conferences (she was a teacher). We went to the Naval Air Station multiple times to explore the forts there and the Naval Aviation Museum. We often went to a local river to swim.

As far as us traveling with our children, we did some traveling, but a lot of the things I would normally enjoy were messed up because of my back pain increasing over the years. We've visited family in various states. We took a couple of trips to Disney. We've been to Fort Pickens at Pensacola Beach multiple times for day trips. We went to Branson after a family reunion and that was fun with a water park there and a Titanic exhibit that Olivia and I enjoyed.

Now that the kiddos are grown, traveling is different. I'm hoping we can go to a family reunion this summer and then we'll go over to Branson. If Olivia and Daniel don't go, then it will just be me and Jay.

 

[aussiegirl]

I grew up traveling all over! I tell people I have probably been to all 50 states, but I don't remember (there is a HUGE age gap between me and my older siblings, so I was little for most of these trips). My dad would take 2 weeks off every summer and we would just travel. Many times renting an RV and going on Road trips.

My husband grew up not traveling as much. Mostly small trips or to visit family. That all changed when he met me! I LOVE travel! We try to do at least 1 trip a year. There have been years we have gone on 2 or 3 trips, but that is seldom. We plan out trips far in advance (helps with budget, saving, and getting good deals). I keep a list for possible trips for the next few years. This years travel plans have changed since we are paying for a wedding. But usually we stick to the plan.

Our next few trips are: East Coast (Maine, MA, Vermont, NH). NW Coast (oregon and WA). I want to do an Alaskan cruise and a cruise to Prince Edward Island. My goal is all 50 States since we have been married! We are currently at 27 (with a couple girls having 28 or 29).

We did away with big Birthday parties when the girls turned 16, and instead they were each allowed to chose a dream vacation (within reason). We have done the same thing with College Graduation. They are allowed to chose a vacation destination.

 

[Sherly]

I grew up with most school holidays spent on going back to my parents' hometown (my birth town), though occasionally, we will have car trips from Bali (where we lived) to some surrounding little islands with little towns, but that is mostly because my dad had to meet clients there.
I moved out from home to study in Australia when I was 15. From then on, holidays mean going home. Short holidays are spent with the houseparents' family as I stayed in homestay. It went on the same until I was in UK for university. I did not really travel in UK, sadly, because of the limited budget and the fact that I couldn't do part time to earn cash there...
I did some day trips with friends, though, by getting the cheapest train tickets, mostly to Manchester, Leeds (I lived in Liverpool, so those were nearby cities) and, once to Birmingham on my friend's car.
I started to have more exciting trips after I met Lan and we got married. We saved up for a bit, but before we left UK, we got to go to York, Edinburgh and Paris. I was soooo happy.

The first few years I moved to Beijing, the only travel I did was going home to see my parents, because I had Michael and was having hard times adapting to life here... It was only after Michael got into kindy that I started to settle. We have a few 'several days' holidays, which are at different times from the rest of the world, so we try to use those days well for vacations.
Typically, we will have one major vacation in a year, most likely either in Chinese New Year holiday or summer. This is the time we usually travel abroad. Then for small/short holidays, we take the kids out locally on a car trip to nearby towns.
We have been to Singapore, Tokyo, Osaka, Hong Kong, Jeju (South Korea), and if I could I'd like us to travel to more places for the kids to learn different cultures and see the world. If only we have the money...

 

[lovely1m]

Growing up, when my parents were still married, we would go to Minneapolis every year to see a baseball game and go to an amusement park while staying with relatives. After they divorced, my mom took us on 3 big road trips where we stayed with family in different places.

I started bringing my son on trips when he was about 4, and I started to be able to afford more. We have done some really epic big trips. For his high school graduation, we did his dream trip of touring all around the UK. I have done some traveling on my own, too, and now that my step-dad has passed, I am traveling with my mom, too. I have started going to see friends on my own, too. We also love short weekend roadtrips. I plan far out in advance. It's my favorite. In January we did a big extended family trip to Florida and then on a cruise. My upcoming trips are to Mississippi and Las Vegas for a wedding. I also have multiple weekend trips to Minneapolis for concerts and plays. My son applied for an internship in DC this summer. If he gets it, I will go visit him. If not, we might hit up Boston.