People always tell me, “It’s good that you are traveling now, because once you have kids, you won’t be able to!”  

But does that have to be true? I know of many parents who bring their kids right along with them, and still really enjoy their experiences. I decided that I needed to interview someone who has experience with traveling with kids to find out if it really is as doable as I am telling myself it will be some day.

Daniel and Jill have two girls, Alina (9) and Sofia (6), and have enjoyed traveling as a family every summer excluding the years when the girls were first born. Both parents work in schools, and so summers have become an opportunity to go on extended trips. I was able to ask Daniel all about how they have managed to keep this up!

How much traveling had you done before kids? And where have you gone as a family? 

Jill traveled extensively in Asia before we were married because she taught in Korea for 1 1/2 years. She also spent a summer in Ecuador before me and I spent nine weeks in Chile before her. We went to Argentina and Bolivia and then Spain, Portugal, and Morocco for our honeymoon.

I have now been to Guatemala five times, three times with Alina and Jill. Each time that we have gone down there, we have explored other countries like Mexico in the Yucatan, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua. We once spent a summer in Colombia and loved it!

We have also gone to Europe twice as a family, including England, Ireland, Scotland, France, and Spain.

Why is travel important to you?

Jill and I both had dads who loved being in one place, in the country not far from the cities where we grew up in. They wondered why we both had this desire to travel. Their thinking was, "Why go anywhere when we live in paradise?!” My second summer working in schools I went to Costa Rica and my parents joined me for part of the time. That opened my dad's eyes to travel and adventure. Jill took her dad to Thailand a couple years ago, and that blew his mind. Although both of our parents can't be on the road for more than three weeks at a time, they now understand it. Jill and I want to instill the wonders of different places and cultures to our children. I think they get it. 

How is traveling with children different than without? I’m assuming slower…

We stay at nicer places. We almost always make sure we have our own bathroom. We switch quickly if we feel an area we are in is unsafe (ask us about el Centro in Medellin!!!!). We skip some beach and jungle areas where Malaria risk is greater. We even have stayed at all inclusive resorts because it takes away from how relentless it is to constantly try to find food and lodging. We always find deals on these resorts. For example, we stayed at an all inclusive resort in Playa del Carmen for only 100 dollars per night.

The other thing that of course is different is that we don't go out much in the evenings. In Colombia we'd go out for lunch and eat in for dinner. Antigua, Guatemala is a little different for us because we know it so well and there are lots of people on the street. Bad things don’t tend to happen until 2 am, so we've only had amazing times there. 

Well, now you gotta tell us about el Centro in Medellin! What happened there?

We booked on-line because one thing we always do is have at least our first few days set up before we leave. The place was a beautiful and affordable boutique hotel with lots of glass and marble, and the people who ran it were great. The woman (who wore teeny clothes) had a daughter and loved our girls. We had a beautiful, gigantic room. 

Then we met a guy from Montana who was mugged in broad daylight right in front of the place. He warned us to get away because of how dangerous it was around there. We explored a bit only in the day, but walked down the wrong street and the hookers and junkies were everywhere. Our eldest daughter freaks out easily, and even we were a little freaked out. 

So, we found a wonderful hostel for 42 dollars per night near the University. We had the only private room that had five sets of bunk beds. The workers and other guests were all wonderful. There was even a pool. They call Medellin the land of eternal spring, but it felt like eternal summer. Every day was in the low 80s and not too humid.  

How do you think this travel benefits your girls? 

We have been trying to keep them in Spanish and there is no better way than living with a family and being in a Spanish speaking country.  Also, I hope it's made them more flexible and empathetic to realize that not everyone is white and rich!  They learn to rely on each other, and they learn to be less attached to home and gadgets.  

So are the girls in a Spanish immersion school? Do you and Jill also speak Spanish?

They had a Spanish nanny and went to a Spanish immersion preschool.  Alina quit her after-school Spanish class the year before. Sofia still goes one day a week.  We were told it gets harder to keep up by a mom we met in Colombia who lived in Boston but pushed her now fluent teenage daughter. We are not as pushy!  In Colombia, we enrolled them in Spanish Camp and in Guatemala we all go to language school and do a family stay.  It is so cheap!  

Jill and I have tried to learn Spanish and after 4-5 weeks of one-on-one amazing instruction for five dollars per hour, we are both intermediate.

How do you pack for your kids? 

Jill packs way to much in my mind. We bring too many clothes and books they never read. Packing depends on where we are going. We almost always have to pack only what we can carry. I'd love to try for just carry-ons.  I think this is possible. We could get better at this…

Of course their iPad is an essential. It saves lots of room from the old days of mini-DVD players and all the DVDs.

What’s the hardest thing about traveling with kids?  

They miss their friends. I suspect this will get harder as they get older.  The other hard part is that right now they have little say in where we go or for how long....

It's also hard that we leave in the summer when the weather is so nice in the Pacific northwest. We can’t bring any camping gear with us, so our girls have never been camping, which is a mockery of a travesty of a sham!

Do they seem to enjoy it though? 

They do enjoy it and want to go every time. They seem proud of being adventurous. It is especially helpful when we can point out one thing they can look forward to on the trip, like seeing their cousin or the Eiffel Tower.

How has family travel changed for you as your girls have gotten older?

As they have gotten older, we have made a concerted effort to hook up with friends who have similar-aged kids for large chunks of our vacation time. Almost everything about it is now easier. Jill and the girls like to leave a little time (at least 4-5 days but oftentimes longer) to return home earlier before school starts. I like to come home the day before I have to!  It drives Jill crazy that I can live out of my suitcase for a few days upon return and unpack over time.  The dark side of OCD is Jill's need to have everything put away before she can sleep.

I wish I was that disciplined. Sometimes it’ll take me a week before I unpack. *hangs head in shame*

Yeah, Jill would probably say I take at least a week, but I think she’s rubbed off on me. I used to put things away after 9 weeks, so a week is a vast improvement....

What tips and tricks do you have for flying with kids?  

The bright side of Jill's OCD is she is incredibly organized and the girls have everything they need (and then some!). We are spoiled because our girls are amazing flyers/travelers. They love having their own cool backpacks/suitcases and getting to drink Sprite!!!!!! They enjoy little things like looking for the luggage. 

We leave ourselves plenty of time. I have only taken the Light Rail when I have not had the kids because Jill is anxious about getting there and because we have lots of luggage.  

In terms of seat selection, We often travel three across and give one adult a break, switching out (although Jill often gives me a break because I am so deserving!).  When the girls have gone through rougher getting-along patches, we have sat two and two, giving them a break. Plus, if Sofia was going to kick the seat in front of her she'd only be kicking me!

We learned an important lesson when Alina was a baby and it was our first international flight with kids. We both stayed up the entire flight, and so Alina was not as jet-lagged as the two of us.  Never again! Now we sleep.

This past summer, I traveled 3-5 days behind the girls on all of our flights (to NYC, Utah and back to SeaTac).  This worked out fine now that they're older. We wouldn't do it on international flights, but my true summer break were those days away from them. We have all summer together. I had to work longer, I missed some time with the in-laws, I had extra time with my family that Jill didn't need, and I had a road trip with my father-in-law (to Nevada). Jill had the time she wanted back home and I had a chance to see an old friend and have special time with Grandpa, who can only take the grandkids for a limited time but has a higher tolerance for me. 

Wow. It sounds like you have quite a system. It’s funny how much more thought goes into flying when you are a parent…

Yeah, each year is a little different. For example, my niece is getting married on June 25th on Orcas Island so we will all be leaving together....

How do you afford 4 plane tickets? Do you use a miles rewards card?  

We can afford it only because Ballard is so rentable and hot right now.  We got $2,900 per month this past year in rent. 

We have used mileage, but are careful and save them up. Jill says for Asia, I say either Europe or South America. It can be tricky. For example, when we went to London, France, and Spain, British Airways wanted 700 additional dollars on top of the 75,000 miles. 

But also, it’s cheaper to live in Guatemala than Seattle, even when you factor in airfare, so the money we make from renting evens it out. 

So you rent your house out? Do you use AirBnB or what? 

We have rented through AirBnB before for winter break when we’ve gone to Jill’s family in Utah. During the summers we have used UW Visiting Faculty Housing and when desperate, Craigslist (no taxes this way as opposed to AirBnB). We rented once through Seattle Opera Co. when they did Wagner's “The Ring”. It is a big production and they pay 100 dollars per day!

What ages did kids fly for free? 

Until two. We tried to do big trips just before their second birthdays!  For example, Sofia's birthday is August 11th and we returned from Colombia on August 10th! But then we missed our flight in Miami and I managed to convince the airline to get us on another flight, or if they insisted on having us stay over they'd have to find us four tickets instead of three.

I would fight for that, too! You’ve gotta take full advantage of that free ticket! 

How do your girls handle time changes?  

Way better than adults!  I have heard that it impacts kids less so than adults. This of course is tough when they are all jacked up about a new place and the parents are both semi-comatose…

You went on a big road trip in the East Coast last summer, right? How was that? And how did the family hold up with all that driving?

We often begin and end trips in New York where my mom has a house in the country and Jill’s sister lives in New Jersey right across from NYC. This past summer, we based in NY and did a road trip to Washington DC, Savannah GA, Charleston, and Myrtle Beach SC. We also spent time in Utah and Nevada. 

We loved the South! The food was unhealthy but delicious!  Savannah and Charleston are gems.  We loved DC, and I think we will love it a little more when the kids are older and when we can find a cheaper way to stay there. This time we stayed around the corner from the Ford Theatre where Lincoln was shot. It was spendy, but again, this is one of the sacrifices of having kids. We didn’t even take the Metro or get in the rental car, but instead walked everywhere thanks to a great central location. This meant that the hotel was a lot more than staying outside of town. We couldn’t afford a place with a pool, but we had pools in all the other places we stayed in.  

We broke up the trip going down.  I have a buddy from work who got a job at Coastal Carolina University. Apparently, when you sell a house on Capitol Hill in Seattle you can afford to buy a house in Myrtle Beach with 5,000 square feet, a few acres of land, and a swimming pool. The girls loved the pool and the cushy amenities. Plus, John has three boys close enough to the girls in age. Since we are normally out of the country, it was weird being in the USA for the 4th of July, especially in the South.

After breaking up the trip going down, we thought we would drive back and stop in Philadelphia or New Jersey, or until the girls melted down 16-17 hours later. We made it all of the way back to Woodstock, NY.  I miss my home there and subject my family to some crazy shit just to get back there.  We did a similar thing driving to Nova Scotia. Jill is still mad that I blew off Acadia National Park in Maine just to get home... I probably shouldn’t even bring it up…

You know how return trips always seem shorter? Well, maybe I push this with long stretches, but I try to wrap my entire family's head around this concept.  They are all a tad skeptical, but I do most of the driving. The car is great and getting new iPhones in DC probably has enhanced our awesome marriage more than we'd ever have dreamt. I usually drive and in the past Jill would navigate and I would trust her instincts and then do the opposite. This Google Map thing is a relationship-saver!

I remember as a kid two hour drives seemed interminable. My girls are great, and they love getting all set up in their spots. It helps if they have a movie, and we have gotten better at downloading movies on iPads, although they take up so much memory!

So what’s next? Where do you plan to go next summer?

This Summer Jill wants to go to Cuba, but I’m a little concerned about infrastructure. I am thinking of basing in NY and then going to the Dominical Republic or Puerto Rico.  I could easily go back to Colombia or Salta, Argentina. Jill always wants to go somewhere new, and is willing to do the work for it. So we haven’t decided yet.

While traveling with kids sounds like a lot more work, I do believe it is worth it. If Jill and Daniel can do it, than one day when/if I have kids, I can, too!  

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