Extended Family Vacations on the Rise
Friday, March 13th, 2009
Times are tough for most people right now. Budgets are getting cut to the bone and one of the first items that tends to get cut is entertainment. Often this means that the family vacation is shelved for the year. Many families are seeing the benefit in traveling with extended family to keep the vacation in the budget but to make the vacation more affordable.Traveling as a family - with grandparents, cousins, aunts and uncles - is like traveling with a tour group. You can usually get discounts on tickets to events, travel and even accommodations thanks to sheer numbers. The best part about this tour group is that you already know and trust everyone involved.
Family travel is also good because there are more people to help watch the younger people in the group. There is less chance of one of the children wandering off when there are so many eyes to help keep them safe.
There area few down sides to traveling with the family. You can not get away from the tour group once the vacation is over. You are stuck with them for life - no matter how bad the travel experience might have been.
Traveling with your family also means that you don't get away from your family while on vacation (and for some people that is one of the best features to vacation time). It can be made even worse if quarters are close on the trip.
Family vacations are great for everyone on balance despite the few negatives. These group vacations give you the opportunity to save money through group discounts or shared expenses (like groceries or gas). It is easier to have a self catered vacation because you can split up the cooking and cleaning duties. And family vacations are a great way to tie the generations together and build lasting bonds.