Organizing a family road trip can be challenging at the best of times. However, when you have more than just your own brood to contend with, things can get really stressful. With so many needs, wants, and voices in the mix, it can easily become overwhelming. However, a little prior planning and taking a leadership role can help you make a truly memorable multi-family vacation.
Be Active With Your Planning
The more people tend to be involved in planning a thing, the more reluctant people tend to be to initially propose their ideas, but that doesn’t mean they’re not willing to share them. Open the door with a planning session, either in person or virtually. Get clear on everyone’s expectations, preferred dates, and budgets. Work out people’s priorities, whether they want something adventurous or relaxing, domestic or international, and so on. You may need to be willing to take the lead in these discussions, but don’t be surprised when people pipe up later. Keep the tone flexible and collaborative.
Accommodating Your Crowd
When you have a smaller party, finding the right accommodation can be a lot easier. Your options are a little more limited. If you want to keep everyone together, you should look for larger homes or resorts with private bedrooms and shared common spaces. A big part of the joy of vacationing together can be meeting up in the kitchen or outdoor lounge at the beginning of a new day. There are accommodation search engines that can make it a lot easier to find the places that suit your specific needs. Consider properties with multiple bathrooms, kid-friendly amenities, and zones for quiet time.
Get Everyone on the Road
When it comes to transport, you have two options. The first is to let every family handle their own, which can lead to some chaos due to miscommunication and different arrival points and times. It’s typically better to look for bus rental services that keep everyone together, simplify airport pickups, and minimize parking hassles. Plus, if you’re all on the same bus together, heading for the same destination, that’s the real beginning of your joint vacation. Just make sure you have entertainment and snacks to keep the kids (and adults) happy.
Be Loose With Your Itinerary
You should select a destination based on all of the different priorities you talked about during your planning session. However, when it comes to the itinerary, flexibility is your best friend. Build a loose itinerary that outlines general plans, like group dinners or sightseeing trips, but leave plenty of time for families to plan their own fun or explore their own interests. You don’t have to do everything together, and over-scheduling can lead to burnout and arguments. Using shared calendar apps to suggest things to see and do together can keep the tone of itineraries light rather than obligatory.
More than one family on a vacation together does not have to spell disaster. With the tips above, you can make sure that you have at least the very basics planned out for your multi-family vacation, while allowing some wiggle room to accommodate different needs.
