How do you help your children enjoy your family vacations?
By ZoeJoy
@ZoeJoy (1392)
United States
January 24, 2013 10:57am CST
My parents could not afford to go on expensive family vacations, so we went camping. Sometimes we traveled to different places, other times, we went camping at our nearby camping grounds. They were always fun and enjoyable camping trips. My siblings and I have very fond memories of our family camping trips. We learned a lot about cooking outdoors and how to deal with the weather. We learned a lot about nature as many campgrounds have Rangers who come and give talks to the campers. Our local campground had a nature center that had a lot of children's activities. So, we really enjoyed it.
My parents insisted that we leave the campsite cleaner than we found it. So, we would always make sure we picked up after us, and even picked up other people's trash. My parents gave us some very important values. It wasn't so much what they said but we learned from their examples of how they treated others and nature.
We were taught to be respectful of others, and to not shout when camping. To pick up our litter. To enjoy life even if we don't have a lot of money. And to appreciate nature.
When you go on family vacations, what do you hope that your children will benefit from your family vacations? What life lessons do you hope to pass on to your children?
2 people like this
8 responses
@jenny1015 (13366)
• Philippines
25 Jan 13
I bring the kids to the different places that I know that they'd love to be. Also, I let them meet our relatives whom they ave never known before and allow them to spend time with their cousins and play with them.
I would always tell my kids that wherever they go, they should show love and respect towards others.
1 person likes this
@ZoeJoy (1392)
• United States
25 Jan 13
We can share with our children how to be loving, kind and respectful by our words and our actions.
There are so many great places to take kids on vacation. It is great to meet with relatives that you don't see very often. My kids enjoyed their time with their cousins as well.
@olivia2013lovelife (65)
• China
25 Jan 13
The education for children to learn about the world and build the right values by themselves is quite important for parents. Your camping vacation seems quite good for children and i think they will like it very much. For me, i think being volunteer to help the orphans and the elder people is also a good way. For vacations, i will choose travelling with them so that they will broaden their sight.
@jaiho2009 (39141)
• Philippines
24 Jan 13
It bring us close relationships.
This is one thing that we want our kids to feel- feel close to each other.
I have 3 younger siblings with me (I am the oldest)
We all have our own family and kids.
Every year we tried to spent sometime together in our parents house- a month long summer vacation wherein kids get time to mingle and spend more time together.
That is our way of making them close to each other without spending a lot of money.
@ZoeJoy (1392)
• United States
25 Jan 13
I used to love to go to my Grandparents house for a family vacation. They had a big covered veranda and it was just the perfect place for children to play - even when it rained. They lived near the beach, and we would walk to the beach and go swimming and then, hike back up the hill back to our Grandparent's house.
Sometimes, it is great to just spend time with family instead of traveling anywhere.
@dorannmwin (36392)
• United States
24 Jan 13
You know, our family doesn't have the financial ability to travel as much as we would like to. However, I do think that even small vacations are very important because they give the children the opportunity to see and experience things that they might not be able to experience otherwise.
When we do take trips, we do try to make sure and visit museums and zoos so that the children are able to learn through those. However, I really do think that the most important lesson that the children learn with vacations is the importance of family's spending time together.
1 person likes this
@ZoeJoy (1392)
• United States
25 Jan 13
Yes, family vacations do not have to cost a lot of money. Some of our family reunion picnics were at a park that was very close to where my Grandparents lived. We just had a great time. The park had a swimming pool with a wading pool, so grandkids of all ages could enjoy this pool. It had a playground and picnic tables under the shade of trees. It was just perfect for all ages of our family. And yet, it didn't cost us much. The picnic area and playground was free and the pool's all day pass didn't cost very much. But we have fond memories of our family picnic reunions.
Time spend together as a family makes wonderful times and memories.
@LovingMyBabies (85288)
• Valdosta, Georgia
24 Jan 13
We took our kid's on their vacation first to a children's museum where they learned a TON about science, nature and how things worked. It was awesome. They had such a good time and they learned so much there. That was the learning part of the trip. Then for the fun part we took them to the Great Wolf Lodge where they have tons of things for kids to do! They had an arcade, an indoor water park, a scavenger hunt, a bowling alley, craft time and bedtime stories each night before bed for the kids! They had such a good time and they learned SO much during their very first vacation ever. =) It was a great experience for all of us that trip.
1 person likes this
@ZoeJoy (1392)
• United States
25 Jan 13
I think that science museums are wonderful. When my kids were younger, there was a small science museum in our town. It had enough activities for them to keep them coming back. My kids never grew tired of going to the science museum.
Glad to hear you and your children had such a great learning and fun vacation.
@jirojoyman (458)
• Indonesia
25 Jan 13
to raise child awareness tto love a nature and not to break the nature.
@salonga (27775)
• Philippines
25 Jan 13
Very good! It's nice to hear that your parents have taught you good values. Parents should teach the children because if not who will teach them? Discipline starts at home and I'm glad to hear that your parents did not neglect this.
Family vacation is always the most awaited. Children would be so happy to hear that the family is going out of town to spend 2 days or more in the beach. The beach is the place where we always want to spend vacation. The whole family, (I mean every is present)can do it just once or twice a year so whenever we do, we make sure we choose a high-end beach resort so that we could fully enjoy privacy and first class services and amenities.
@doroffee (4222)
• Hungary
24 Jan 13
I don't have a child yet. I know for sure that I wanna have vacations when if I teach something to my kids, it's gonna be in a playful way. It's no fun for a 8-year old to go to museums all day. Camping is a pretty great idea, that way they would feel so adventurous like their fave youth novel or film or cartoon characters in the wilderness, and they would learn how to "survive" in situations like that. Putting up a tent, opening a can...
