Should You Take Your Kids on Vacation?

Do kids belong at home or on a plane? (Photo: Thinkstock)

Apparently, we struck a nerve last week at Yahoo Travel when we published a story about the worst travel destinations for kids. It’s ok: we don’t mind being called stupid, selfish, and insane.

To be clear: the editors of Yahoo Travel and I believe strongly that exposing children to other cultures, seeing the world, and meeting people in other places makes you a more well-rounded, open-minded, and accepting person. Sure, travel can be expensive, but if you have the means to do it, we fully support taking your kids along for the journey. If you can’t get on a plane, get in your car and go away for the weekend. Can’t afford that? Get a $15 subscription to National Geographic for Kids. Go to the local library and check out (free!) books about other places. Show your children videos and movies about travel. Cook food from around the world.

Raise a global citizen.

But not everyone agrees. A good portion of the commenters believe otherwise: that kids should stay home — or go to grandma’s house. So what do you think? Take the kids on vacation or not? We’ve got the arguments, pro and con.

DON’T TAKE THE KIDS!

Who needs to travel? Kids can have plenty of fun at home. (Photo: Thinkstock)

I don’t see any point in traveling with children under the age of six to foreign destinations. They can’t remember anything and they don’t know how to behave. People just want to one-up everyone else these days. There are strange bacteria in other countries that your children are not used to — why put them at risk just so you can brag your 1-year-old was in Morocco? —Learnedhand

What about some common sense? Why not budget money to spend when they’re old enough remember the trip, or a better education? What about spending quality time with elderly relatives — do it while they’re still healthy enough to have great fun and build a relationship with your kids, tell stories, teach values and hobbies. Most people’s deepest regrets and dearest wishes are that they could go back in time to have quality time to spend with significant family/friends, not laying on a foreign beach looking exactly the same as at home. How about creating simple, mindful staycations with family, invest in education and the parents retirement, so they aren’t a burden. —Microbiology

Related: No Kiddie Pools Here: Romantic Hotels Where Small Children Aren’t Allowed

Bring the kids to grandma and grandpa’s. (Photo: Thinkstock)

When I was a kid, the big vacation of the year, every few years, was to go visit our family out of state. You don’t have to have such extravagant vacations with your children. I honestly wouldn’t want to take kids overseas when they’re young. I would want them to travel and see the world, but I would wait until they were old enough to really appreciate other cultures. If you want to travel, that’s fine, but plan a trip with your spouse and friends at a time when you can take the kids to their grandparents’ for a week. —Kristin

Egocentric parents traveling solely for their needs and pawn it off on their kids, yet mature travelers have to suffer with these ill-behaved parents and their child victims. Not only will none of your kids be president from thier travels, but they will work at a fast food joint and wonder where their misplaced sense of entitlement came from. —milton p cheesestein

Related: We Hate Your Kids - and Other Confessions of a B&B Owner

Camping is a great early trip. (Photo: Thinkstock)

Don’t take your kids ANYWHERE until the age of 6. They won’t remember anything and can’t really appreciate it. Use those years to vacation with your spouse alone and reenergize and build a strong relationship. At 6 to 10, only take them camping, the beach close to your home, or snow vacations to learn to surf, ski, snowboard, or hike. After that (age 11), you can start to take them to more “exotic” places like Hawaii or Mexico, or the Caribbean. Maybe at age 7 to 9, you can go to Disneyland. But only after camping or beach vacation. At age 16 or up you can then take them to Europe, Africa, Thailand, New Zealand, etc. Don’t do any of this until you have taught them to be good human beings, follow directions, obey elders, and think for themselves. This is a tough, close-to-impossible task. — Armando

The vacation your kids want is a trip to a hotel with a swimming pool. They couldn’t care less if that hotel pool is across the ocean or across town. Call the manager at a local hotel to negotiate a good rate during a slow week, and pack up a bunch of board games to play in the room between trips to the pool. Plan a few things you wouldn’t usually do but that make a great once-a-year treat, like a trip to the ice cream parlor to have sundaes for “dinner.” If you think of something you wish you hadn’t left at home, hey, swing by and pick it up! You’ll have a better time with your kids than any “exotic” vacation could provide. If you want to use the other half of your vacation time #$%$ that exotic trip, leave the kids at grandma’s house to bake cookies and look at embarrassing photos of you at their age while you hike the Serengeti. —TrishO

TAKE THE KIDS!

Europe can have a profound impact on a young mind. (Photo: Thinkstock)

My parents dragged me all over Europe when I was in elementary school. While I’m pretty sure they didn’t always appreciate it, it made a huge impression on me. I can still recall camping through Scandinavia, looking at El Grecos in the Prado, Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel in Rome, David in Florence, Rembrandts at the Rijksmuseum. I’m glad they put up with me, all that traveling at a young age has had a huge impact on my life and my ability to appreciate the cultural heritage of nations. —Trident

While I wouldn’t leave my kids with anyone while I took a vacation, why in the world would you not take children under 10 on a foreign vacation? We took our three children to Thailand twice, three weeks each time. They were 12, 7, and 5 the first time, 13, 8, and 6 the second. They had a blast and experienced life outside of their own microcosm. They saw, firsthand, how nice we have it in the U.S., and they learned how to operate in a different country under the cultural customs of other people. They have also been to Canada and Mexico, and we are organizing a trip to Germany this spring. I don’t understand how you can think that they are not better for having had those experiences…. oh, and at 16, 11, and 9, they remember as much, if not more, than I do about those trips. I would much rather my kids have a more worldwide view of this life than just what exists in their own backyard. —just me

Related: Raising Your Own Dora or Diego? Why Parents are Using Travel to Educate Their Kids

Pack up the kids and go! (Photo: Thinkstock)

I’ve gotten plenty of grief from my family and friends for my choices of family vacations. We took our 6-year old to Washington DC (people said she was too young to get it… she loved visiting the White House and knowing that the President’s kids, who weren’t that much older, lived there), our 7-year old to Northern California (people said she’d be bored at wineries and staying in B&B’s, but she loved getting sparking grape juice at the wineries and playing games in the B&B living room in the evenings), and our 9-year old to Gettysburg (she re-enacted several charges with my Civil War nut of a husband). Family vacations are about compromise, which means that everyone gets some activity that they really want to do… yes, some of the adult choices (wineries, abandoned prisons, Civil War battlefields, etc.) may not be “family friendly” to most people, but we feel our daughter is growing up to be more well rounded and less spoiled because she doesn’t get to dictate the entire trip. And guess what future family vacation our daughter is most excited about? It’s not Disney World — it’s a tour of the Civil War battlefields in Virginia. —Sarah

I really think more parents should travel with their children. It is far better than dumping them with the relatives. We traveled with our young children through six continents for 15 years. It was great and we got to experience things the average “tourist” never saw. People in other countries warmly welcomed us and treated families a lot better than the busloads and cruise ships full of tourists. Well behaved and well traveled children can be found with parents who spend lots of time with them. Go to any store, restaurant, park, zoo, or tourist area and you can readily see the parents who regularly travel with their kids. They are the ones having a great time. —Linda

Related: 5 European Cities That Are Surprisingly Kid Friendly

Playing on the water’s edge in Bar Habor, Main. (Photo: Thinkstock)

Yes, we went to Disney with our kids when they were 2 and 4 and they loved it! But they also loved going to a quaint town in Maine, where we stayed in a hotel with no kids’ amenities other than a pool — because we got up each day and went exploring or strolling. Wild-blueberry picking, tidepooling, to the ice cream shop, etc. My son was only 3 at the time, and he remembers almost every minute of it. It doesn’t make someone a bad parent if they either can’t afford to travel widely with their kids, or if they simply choose not to. But it doesn’t make someone a bad parent just because they do, either, as long as there is thoughtfulness given to making the trip fun for everyone. —Diana

Hopefully, I am doing my part to make my daughter somebody a little different than what I see in my generation and hers, too. My daughter is quick to make friends with the new students at school, even the ones that don’t look like her. My daughter isn’t afraid or too proud to ride a bus or navigate a subway. She realizes alone doesn’t mean lonely. She can read a map, give directions, be polite, and is gracious. These are all things that many adults can’t handle, so excuse me while I brag. —Caron

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