Multigenerational Travel

Now more than ever, families are taking multigenerational trips with activity-driven itineraries. Gone are the days of just renting a fantastic beach house for the week. Grandparents, parents and kids are all adventuring around the world together and sharing in life-changing fun.

My own experience with multigenerational travel happened last year on a trip to Sitka, Alaska. Three generations piled into an Alaskan lodge sharing stories and cooking delicious food. We were guests at the ever-so-incredible Talon Lodge where the owners and staff took care of every detail giving us time to bond and create lifetime memories. We will never forget going halibut fishing or fly fishing for salmon.

If you are thinking of going on a multi-generational vacation but not sure where to start, here are a few things to think about. This type of a vacation can feel overwhelming to the person tasked with planning it, especially when you’re toggling between keeping the kids from being bored and the grandparents relaxed.

Here are some tips to keep in mind:

Consider Mobility – Keep in mind that no matter how young at heart someone may be, try to be cognizant of everyone’s physical mobility. Call ahead to resorts to double check how many stairs there are to the pool or do a little research to understand how long passengers will be standing prior to boarding a ferry.

Keep a Flexible Schedule (as much as possible) – Having a flexible schedule allows everyone to feel as if they have more control over what they truly want to do. It’s therefore important to be together in a place that has many activities that can be chosen once on location, and aren’t necessarily locked in in advance.

Schedule Down Time – Everyone’s need for down time varies. To help make sure that there’s enough down time (and time away from one another), make sure to plan it!

Know Where the Restrooms Are – For the young and young at heart, having the comfort of knowing where the restrooms are will put most folks at ease. This was especially important to us in Alaska, considering we were on boats and outdoors each day.

Consider Travel Insurance – With more people going on the trip, there’s more risk of something coming up that would require a rebooking or cancellation, especially when the older generation is involved. Request a travel insurance quote from your travel advisor.

If you are still feeling overwhelmed, feel free to reach out to us and we would be happy to help you plan your trip. Multigenerational travel can reward you with some of your best memories and help you explore the world around you in different ways.

So – here’s to crafting memories with your family that will last for years to come! Cheers!

–Mary Parkhill, AlaskaTravelPros.com

About Mary Parkhill:  Mary is a Luxury Travel Consultant with Cerulean World Travel in Tampa, Florida, USA, and is fast-collecting an impressive array of life-changing experiences in her own travel portfolio that she loves to share with her clients.  She is also our resident expert on Alaska, as well as all things fishing!  You can contact Mary about your plans for Alaska, multigenerational travel, fishing and other travel ideas at mary@ceruleanworldtravel.com.