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You are here: Home / Archives for Travel & Planning

Beyond The Suitcase: Preparing For A Road Trip

July 19, 2017 By Guest Blogger

Editors Note: Blogger Sara Stringer sent us this post, and given that we’re always up for a road trip, we thought it was a worthwhile read!  Leave your summer travel plans in the comments below!

Photo by Matthew Henry on Unsplash.

There’s no more enjoyable adventure for many people than a nice, long road trip. The idea of packing your bags and getting away from the routine is appealing, and it invariably creates memories that will provide laughs and tears for years to come.

Getting prepared for the trip is exciting in and of itself. Choosing your lodging, planning your route, and packing necessities for your travels builds a lot of excitement and anticipation. By the time you actually hit the road, you can be almost giddy.

The only thing that could upset the apple cart at this point would be to run into some kind of expensive or inconvenient problem. While some of those things can’t be avoided, others can be prevented very easily before you leave town.

Financial Preparations

The most common financial consideration most people have for a trip is the money for the trip itself. But there are a lot of other things that can come into play financially, and some of them should be handled before you leave town.

Insurance is a common one. It can be easy to forget your payment in the hustle and bustle of getting ready for a trip, and some companies make it very tough to pay quickly. That’s the advantage of websites like acceptanceinsurance.com, which will not only accept your payment online but can also jumpstart your coverage quickly if you’ve traded vehicles just ahead of the trip.

Credit cards are another. Think about opening a new one that’s a better deal. Then call the company and tell them you’ll be traveling so that they don’t block transactions. Also make sure they have your cell number in case there’s some other problem.

Home Preparations

The neighbor kid is mowing and your pooch is safely ensconced at the boarding kennel. Ready to go, right? Not quite.

There are some other things you should do, too. A good old-fashioned light timer isn’t enough security for your home. Think seriously about an alarm system. Not only will it save your belongings, it will also save you money on your homeowner’s insurance.

Secure the house. Turn off the water at the meter, so that any leaks inside the home can only release a tiny amount of water until you’re back home and prepared to react. Make sure that you also turn off your water heater. Unplug expensive appliances in case of lightning. And have the post office hold your mail so that burglars don’t see your box filling up.

Communication Plans

It’s not enough to have a phone and a whole army of chargers. You need to check out your plan. Talk to your carrier and make sure that your travel will move you seamlessly–and affordably–into roaming mode.

Check coverage, too. While most large cities will have sufficient towers for any carrier, remote areas may not. It could be safer for you to get a prepaid phone to use on the trip if one of those will get you coverage in these rural locations.

Have a landline number available whenever possible, and share it with someone back home who also has a landline. During disasters, cell coverage can be lost while wired lines remain intact. It will be easier to check on everyone’s safety if there’s a landline each way.

Travel is a time when we get to escape from all our worries. We don’t need to replace them with other worries, so before you hit the road, be sure you’ve made proper provisions for the things that could trip you up while you’re away from home.

Filed Under: Travel & Planning

Family Travel Planning with Tw-oddlers

September 3, 2015 By Jillian

For more than two years we went where we wanted, when we wanted as we traveled around the world. Compromise was relatively easy as a traveling couple, especially since we have the same interests. Fast forward five years and travel with children in tow, let alone two year old twin girls and another on the way, is a whole different story. In fact, those family holiday spots we used to avoid as a couple are looking awfully appealing these days. Marketing slogans like “something for everyone” and “family fun” not only catch our eye, but also factor heavily into our planning family vacations.

11923334_10103173098262494_3867469051792587250_oAlthough we avoided these places as a couple, we’ve found they really aren’t bad at all. In fact, the travel industry seems to be adjusting quite well to active, millennial parents, who want the family vacation, memories and the whole shebang as well as a little adventure and excitement.

As we put together our family travel plans for next year there are some options that have caught our eye.

Travel by Ferry. Believe it or not, ferry travel is not only adventurous, but also relatively inexpensive for large families and a great option for covering distance or getting beyond the typical tourist track. Did you know that you can see the Alaskan coast by ferry, getting off whenever you want to do some fishing, hiking or even camping in seaside villages? You can even camp aboard some of the ferry boats. For those of you eyeing the other side of the pond, Brittany Ferries family holidays, which run between the UK and France, even offer booking assistance and excursions once you are in France. Yay for less planning with twin toddlers in tow.

Family Resorts. When the twins were six months old we went on a 11427234_10103083496460224_3363179687881814894_nfamily vacation to a Club Med family resort to celebrate a milestone birthday for Danny’s grandma. Admittedly we were skeptical, but even though our kids weren’t old enough for the kid club activities, we could totally see the appeal. Plus some of these places have activities that go above and beyond sailing races or sand castle contests – like zip lining, river rafting or ocean kayaking, sparking interest in our more adventurous side. For family travel inspiration check out family adventure activities at Woolacombe Bay Holiday Parks or places like River Riders outside of our old stomping ground in Washington, D.C., both of which are TripAdvisor award winners.

Sure our two year olds may a bit too young to battle for dominance in floating gladiator style orbs, but we certainly aren’t…

Have you joined the family vacation club? Been to any of the places listed above? Let us know your thoughts, tips and support.

Filed Under: Headline, Travel & Planning Tagged With: adventure travel with kids, family travel, travel with twins

Traveling With Twins: Getting Airport Security Alive

January 12, 2015 By Jillian

Traveling with twins, especially infant twins or twinfants as they are sometimes called, can be a logistical challenge.  A friend calls it a choose your own adventure.  Do you a) attempt to wear the babies through security hoping that a TSA agent doesn’t make you unwrap what is sure to be a sleeping infant when you get to the X-ray machine or do you b) attempt what is sure to be a nightmarish experience with a double stroller, babies and baby accessories through security.  Choose wisely my friend because there is little as difficult as trying to get through airport security with twins as other passengers are admiring them, glaring at you or trying to cut you off and your flight is boarding.

Airplane Travel With Twins

We lost our twin airport security virginity when the girls were 9 weeks old.  I read suggestion after suggestion from other twin parents and finally decided that we would go the stroller route – I couldn’t cut the cord from the stroller.   As we approached airport security I felt as though we were the opening scene for a new reality TV show: Survivor: Twinfants.  Between the oohs and ahhs we got from vacationers to the icy stares we got from weary business travelers I dreaded the inevitable snaking line leading up to security.

As we walked up to the line we were waved into the VIP, more miles than you can ever dream of and crew security line. HURRAY!  It turns out that taking the double wide stroller means that TSA doesn’t want you standing in line with everyone else either.

IDs and boarding passes checked, we were politely assisted by a TSA agent who gave us the 4-1-1 on how we could most efficiently travel through the Xray process.

1. Shoes and toiletries first (duh)

2. All car seats must go through the Xray, so wake that sleeping baby up and wrap them to your chest. We went through the machine with ergo baby carriers with no problem.  Turn the car seats upside down through the Xray machine, there is less to get caught on the machine.

3. Send the stroller through, if possible.  Double wides usually don’t fit, but front/back strollers do.  Sending the stroller through the machine is must faster than waiting to be wanded.

4. Let TSA know if you are sending through breastmilk/formula.  You may take more than 3 oz through, but our experience with how it is tested/verified varied greatly.  Some places put the milk containers in a tester, others poured out a small bit to test, others didn’t seem to bother even looking at it (maybe they felt bad for us!)

Special Notes: If you carry a baby through the Xray machine, your hands will need to be tested.  When your twins are walking, walk them through right in front of you – then no one needs to be tested.

 

After almost a year and a half, our kids are true frequent fliers and we often get through security faster than families with one baby or even older kids.  It’s all about being prepared and practicing!

Filed Under: Family Travel, Headline, Travel & Planning Tagged With: family travel, travel with twins

Surviving Disney World With Toddlers

December 16, 2014 By Jillian

10347235_10102770580665984_2565926943526677332_nSo we made it. No, seriously. And it was better than we expected.  I’ll be the first to admit I dreaded the lines, the screaming kids and the inevitable break down our kids would have at Disney World, but you know what, it didn’t happen.  That’s right, our kids were wide eyed and excited about EVERYTHING at Magic Kingdom, and frankly who could blame them.

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Here’s our top 5 tips for surviving Disney World with toddlers:

  1. IMGP2199Bring your own stroller.  Our kids napped on the go at Disney, and having our stroller was so much easier than having a hard plastic rental.
  2. Download the app and book your fast passes for the morning!  You can get a secret fourth fast pass either at the fast pass+ kiosks or on your phone once you’ve used up your three for the day.  And once you’ve used the fourth you can get a fifth and so on…
  3. Tie something to your stroller so it is easy to identify!  And no, a mickey mouse tag is not unique in Magic Kingdom, nor is your kids nemo stuffed animal!
  4. There are actually some quiet places in Magic Kingdom for downtime – we took the girls to Tom Sawyer Island for some running around time and time away from the crowds.  They appreciated it and so did we!
  5. Disney’s baby room is going to be super crowded.  Just saying.  It’s great that they have it, but man it is crowded.IMGP2160

Have you survived Disney World with toddlers?  Share your tips below!

 

Filed Under: Destinations, Family Travel, North America, Travel & Planning, USA Tagged With: disney world, travel with twins, Twin Travel

Turning a trip into an Indefinite Travel Lifestyle: Antonio & Amanda’s Story

October 7, 2014 By Guest Blogger

Editors Note:  There are many people out there traveling – individuals, couples and families.  From time to time we like to bring you their stories to serve as inspiration!

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For over a year we meticulously planned a bicycle touring trip that would take us from California to Spain in 4 years. A month into our grand journey we admitted to each other that we no longer wanted to do the trip.

The truth was we both wanted something much more. The freedom of the open road, the ability to change plans on a whim and the sense of independence was powerful. We had become addicted to the unknown and our well laid out trip had become a burden.

It was simple, we wanted a lifestyle that would allow us to travel…indefinitely. We wanted a life of adventure. So we through the plans out the window and slowly turned our dream trip into a dream life.

So how do we do it, travel indefinitely? Some people think that we are wealthy or that our parents regularly restock our bank accounts. That’s certainly not the case.

Bicycle touring had taught us a lot about living simply. This is the main reason why we can maintain this lifestyle.

14134022049_a4a82f2fc6_zOn average, we live on less than $10 a day per person.  It’s not very difficult, traveling by bicycle is much cheaper than backpacking. Obviously there are no bus tickets to buy but more importantly, it opens doors. Invitations to stay the night in peoples houses or offers for dinner are a regular occurrence while we are on the road. Of course we do not rely on roadside hospitality, we carry a tent and stove which allows us to camp and cook our own meals.

Along with our simple lifestyle we also work regularly. A few years ago we started to scuba dive. When we decided to turn our trip into a lifestyle we thought what better way to support ourselves than to find jobs doing something we love. So we spent the last year investing in our scuba diving training, completing our divemaster course in Belize and instructor course in Honduras.

Not only is it a job that allows us to dive for in some of the most beautiful dive sites, it is something that we can do all over the world.

Currently we are living in Panama, in a small town called Santa Catalina where we are working as scuba diving instructors. These short breaks to work are a great way to get to know a place, not just pass through it. It’s a pause that most travelers we meet either couldn’t afford or simply don’t have the time because they have to get back to work.14137640393_a41373ae5e_z

An infinite travel lifestyle isn’t for everyone. We dont have a house, secure jobs, car or huge bank account. Most days we don’t even know where we are going to sleep at night. What we do have is freedom, something we value more than anything.

 

You can follow Amanda and Antonio’s adventures at : http://www.cyclingelmundo.com/.

Filed Under: Family Travel, Headline, Travel & Planning Tagged With: couples travel, long term travel, work while traveling, working travel

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