Travel with Teens – Tips for a Successful Family Vacation

Teenagers have a reputation for being moody, self-absorbed, and difficult. That reputation is typically well-deserved. They also are almost adults. That means if you haven’t exposed them to travel yet, you don’t have much time left to do so. It is possible to travel with teens and have a great family vacation. Here’s how.

Advantages of travel with teens

Remember when your kids were little and you had to lug all of their stuff and yours? That’s not the case with teens and that’s a good thing. They can carry their own weight, both literally and figuratively. Teens are old enough to be responsible for their own suitcase and their own belongings. They can be left alone for a few hours. Unlike infants, teens can tell you when they don’t feel good and why.

Teenagers are old enough to start understanding the world around them. They will absorb new surroundings and ask questions. They can also understand the answers. If your teen studies a foreign language, traveling to a country that speaks that language can be a great opportunity to reinforce the usefulness of that skill.

Teens can also be part of the trip in a way that younger kids cannot. Trips focused on more adventurous activities, such as scuba diving or trekking, become more feasible with teenagers.

Disadvantages of travel with teens

Teenagers want to be independent of their parents. Developmentally, this is normal and a positive thing. They have a tendency, however, to express that desire in whiny and negative ways. They can rebel by not listening or doing what they’re told. At home, this is upsetting. In some countries or situations, this is life-threatening.

Teenagers don’t want to spend every minute of the vacation with their parents. They may not even want to go on vacation. They may not understand the way relationships work in the country you’re visiting, which can lead to embarrassing misunderstandings.

Recommendations

Anticipate

Anticipate potential friction points before leaving home. If you always argue about what your teen wears, for example, don’t wait until you’ve landed in another country to have that discussion. It will end up being a sore point for the whole trip.

Communicate

Enforced small spaces can remove some of the barriers to communication that exist at home by forcing you to spend more time together. You’re in a small hotel room or suite instead of a large house. Use that time to your advantage. Create ground rules for screen time so that you have time to talk as well. Explain how much you appreciate their help with things like luggage and younger siblings. If you are lost or confused, admit it. They will appreciate your honesty.

Delegate

Give teens responsibility for their own passports, luggage, etc. If they forget their charging cord for their phones or lose something, don’t fix it for them. Instead help them to figure out their own solutions. Ask them to help navigate and read train schedules, maps, etc. In a few years they’ll be doing that on their own. Make sure they have the skills now.

Separate

Work with your teenager to plan separate activities she can do alone or with a group. Consider an all-inclusive resort where everyone in the family has time to do their own thing. If you get phone cards, get one for your teen as well. This gives her the same sense of freedom and independence that she has at home. At the same time, set clear expectations for activities that the family will do together. Think about high adventure activities where everyone can try something new together.

Traveling with teens involves the same type of balance that living with teens does – the balance between looking out for them and teaching them to look out for themselves. Follow these tips and you’ll find you have a great family vacation. You can find more tips in my book, Travel with Kids.