How to Create the Family Vacation of Your Dreams

INVOLVE THE ENTIRE FAMILY  
It’s important that everyone, including your kids, gets a say in the planning process. Organize a family vacation meeting. Order pizza and try to make it fun so that everyone stays engaged. Create a "wish list" based on these questions:

If you could visit any place in the world, where would you go?

What activities would you like to do that you’ve never done before?

PLAN YOUR SCHEDULE AND BUDGET 
Once you’ve gotten a few ideas together, work out your schedule. Summer is ideal, and if you go early enough in June, you’ll avoid potential crowds. Be sure to include a couple of extra days at the end of your trip, so you can adjust to being back at home.

Airfare, hotels, and food costs can put a huge dent in your wallet, so keep your eyes open for special offers and discounts. Maybe the kids can share a hotel room. If you own an RV and decide to take a road trip, you’ll save a bundle in food and lodging costs.

NARROW IT DOWN 
Take a look at your “wish list” again. Do you see a common theme in the activities? For example, if everyone wants to go swimming, a place with a beach or a water park may be your ideal vacation spot. These should be activities that everyone can participate in. If you’re focusing on swimming, make sure your kids know how to swim! If they don’t know how to swim, invest in some swim lessons before the trip.

HIRE A TOUR OPERATOR 
The Internet has made do-it-yourself travel planning incredibly easy, but depending on your schedule, it may be simpler to hire a tour operator. If you tell a tour operator, “We’re planning a vacation for our family for X number of days. In terms of where we're going, we need to decide between X, Y, Z. Our budget is X,” this should be enough for him or her to put together several options for your family to choose from.

RESEARCH THE HOST CITY 
Challenge yourself and the rest of the family to learn as much as they can about the city you’ll be visiting. It's always more exciting to visit a place after you've read about it. You may discover additional activities to do there.

TAKE PICTURES 
Give everyone in your family either a digital or disposable camera and tell them to take lots of pictures, so you can put together an album when you return home.

Author Bio: Annette Hazard is a freelance writer that is promoting pool cleaners in NYC for a fun summer at the pool. She often writes about family issues and is a mother of one.

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