How Do You Pay for Family Vacations? (And: Where Do You Go?)
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Over at Corporette today, readers are talking about paying for vacations, and we’re putting a spin on it for CorporetteMoms: How have your strategies for paying for vacations changed since you become a parent — as well as the vacations themselves? What are your best tips on how to pay for family vacations?
Regarding vacations with your kid(s) vs. solo trips or pre-kid vacations with your partner, how are they different, financially and otherwise? As a parent, do you take more trips or fewer trips than you used to? More/fewer sightseeing trips or more/fewer trips to see family? Do you do a couple of big vacations a year or more frequent smaller ones? How about destinations — how have those decisions changed for you since having kids?
{related: what kind of family vacation is right for you?}
Also, have you taken any vacations that you would have never considered before kids? Waterparks? All-in-one resorts? Cruises? Disneyland/Disney World/Universal Studios? Are you waiting until your kid(s) reach a certain age to do a certain kind of trip? And regarding types of lodging — hotels, B&Bs, Airbnb, and so on — how have those decisions changed?
How about vacation funds in general? If you’re spending LESS on travel now, where are you directing the extra funds — and does the money go toward everyday/immediate costs, or toward something like a 529? If you’re spending MORE on travel now, what’s the main reason for those increased costs?
{related: 3 baby gear rental companies for family travel}
On the sentimental side, Kat just shared a sobering fact with me: 75% of the time we spend with our kids will be spent by age 12 (source: 1000 Hours Outside). When trying to find the original source, I came across another stat in which the 75% is replaced by 75-95% and 12 years old is replaced by 18 years old, but no matter the correct numbers, it makes you think. With that in mind, are there certain vacations/destinations that you’re determined to share with your kids before they reach their teenage years or college age?
