Summer Travel Tips for Kids

Coopers Pack - Summer Travel Tips for KidsHow do you make a summer vacation or road trip fun, beyond just hitting the beach or swimming pool?  Here are some helpful tips to make your summer journeys memorable.

 

1.   Learn about where you are going, before you go!

• What is there to see?
• What is unique or different that you cannot find in your hometown?
• Is there something timely that only happens once a year?
• Of course everyone loves to hit the beach or swimming pool, but what else is interesting about where you are going?
• Do something different that no one else has…
• Allow the kids to choose one of the places to visit

Coopers Pack - Phinney researching New York CityBackground:  Read a travel guide, search the internet, talk to a relative or friend about their experiences there.  If you have an iPad or tablet, download a Cooper’s Pack travel guide which provides an entertaining and fun exploration of a city or region.

Goal:  Everyone wins when they are invested in trip.  If there are multiple kids, make sure each one gets to choose something—and split up occasionally so everyone gets some time alone from their siblings and the family unit.

 

2.   Bring a friend…

Coopers Pack Cooper and his friend LLBring your best friend…if they can’t go, bring your favorite stuffed animal friend.  Stuffed animals love to travel too!

Background:  It is always great to have a buddy go with you.  They provide balance and usually keep kids on their best behavior.  The cost to bring an additional person, especially on a road trip, is marginal.

Goal:  Definitely makes for a smoother journey…

 

3.  Take a camera!

Cooper's Pack - Cooper's CameraTake pictures or videos of your favorite sites, friends, stuffed animal and things you can’t see at home.  Tell a story with your photos…

Background:  This is our favorite part:  while traveling with Cooper, we’ve met so many wonderful and interesting people.  They often ask what we’re doing and sometimes even pull out their own character.  You’d be surprised how many people take a little buddy with them.

Goal:  Instead of taking the same photo of something that everyone else in the world has, by including your character in the photos you are telling a story.  This has been the easiest and most fun way to meet new people, from Thailand to South Africa, France to Chile, Tokyo to Greece.  People end up sending in their photos of Cooper and their own characters for our “Cooper Was Here” section of our website.  Can you believe that Cooper has been to Cartagena, Colombia, Bhutan (the whole country, and I didn’t even know it was a country), or Dubai in front of the world’s tallest building.

 

4.  Bring a small backpack

Cooper's Pack - Cooper's backpackBring a small backpack so you can carry your camera, stuffed animal, travel guide, area map and any souvenirs you buy.

Background:  My backpack is my office…it has everything I need to do anything, anywhere…

Goal:  To be prepared, yet comfortable…

 

5.  Carry snacks…candy bar, string cheese, gummy bears, granola bars, etc.

Cooper's Pack - Cooper's Select BiscuitsBackground:  You never know when you are going to get hungry and sometimes food is not always available, especially on an airplane.

Goal:  Hunger can ruin a trip, always be prepared…

 

Cooper's Pack- Cooper's journal and NYC keychainOther considerations for a great trip:

• Always visit a park if there is one nearby
• Buy a souvenir, something small yet memorable that will remind you about your trip for years.
• Take notes about what you saw and where you went
• Make sure everyone in your family/group gets to see/visit something they want
• Try the local food.  For example, who knew dim sum would be my favorite food had I not tried it…
• Be safe and make new friends

 

We’d love to hear about your upcoming travels and don’t forget, you can always send your traveling photos to our “Cooper Was Here” gallery to cooper@cooperspack.com

Cheers!

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One Response to Summer Travel Tips for Kids

  1. Summers are not very pleasant in certain areas of the world. What we do before heading to a vacation spot is check the weather forecast and daily temperature of that city or town. It helps us in deciding what to pack for the kids.