I know how much you love this new series so here goes another one :)
This time I want to introduce you Tamara who gently answered all the questions, her husband and 11 years old daughter. Although Tamara and her family travel very often, they consider themselves as part time travelers since they aren't on the road all the time. But that's awesome! So we have different points of views here, in the blog. And this might be the situation of mostly of the readers: they don't want to travel as a lifestyle, they just want to go away to their family sometimes per year. Take your notebook and pen and write notes how to do it. Tamara said she wish to started earlier so... what are you waiting for?
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Thank you, I’m Tamara, a working mom of one, and together with my husband and 11 year-old daughter we are We3Travel. I started our blog to encourage families to travel more and to not be stuck in thinking that “family travel” had to mean amusement parks or beach vacations. By providing families with tips, destination reports and reviews, we hope to make family travel planning easier.
We are part-time travelers, which means that we have a fairly standard lifestyle (work, school, home, etc), we just prioritize travel in our free-time. Generally this means that we take one to two “big” trips a year, along with several long weekends and local day trip exploration. So in some ways, our life hasn’t changed a lot, we just aren’t home very much!
3 – Why did you take that decision?
We love to travel and believe that it is the best gift that we can give our child. It is just amazing to see your child learn about something in school and light up because they know all about it because they’ve been there! Through travel I’ve seen my daughter become more resilient and more open to new experiences.
4 – So far, which places you think are more kid friendly? Why?
I truly believe that you can take kids anywhere. It requires planning and some compromise but there is no reason why you can’t all enjoy any trip. I think the trick is to start small and get some confidence and success, then begin to branch out. Soon your kids will be craving new experiences.
5 – From all countries you have been, if you only could choose one country to live, which would be?
Italy, hands down. I’m just in love with Italy — the food, the architecture, the landscape, the people. Living there for at least some stretch of time is my dream.
6 – How do you travel? Do you rent an house? Go camping? Use bus or plane?
We are neither luxury or budget travelers, but somewhere in the middle. We definitely prefer to rent apartments or houses with Airbnb or Homeaway to get the extra space and more local experience. The one thing we splurge on is food — we love experiencing a place through its food and don’t want something you can find anywhere.
7 – Which kind of advices would you give a couple who have kids and want to travel badly but are afraid?
Just to do it! Start small with local experiences. Visit a museum, a farm, or a local attraction. Then do an overnight or longer trip somewhere that has the services to make you feel at home. Make sure to schedule downtime and do your best to stick to your children’s schedule. Soon you will be building up to longer and more exotic trips. Believe in your kids, they might surprise you! Once they learn to accept new experiences and try new things, they will be well-traveled foodies.
8 – Is it possible for a single mom or dad to travel with their 3 children? In your opinion, which are the main obstacles and how to find solutions?
For sure. I only have one child so it is hard for me to say but from what I’ve observed, one of the challenges is making sure you are sitting together on the airplane, especially when they are small. Airlines can be terrible about moving people around even if you book seats together and other passengers are not always helpful. I’m willing to pay extra for assigned seats, early check in, etc. to ensure a better flight experience.
9 – Do you have future plans? How is going to be your life the next 3 years? Do you want to keep traveling?
I wish my husband had more vacation time so we could travel more but we plan on keep squeezing in whatever we can. Next up we are going to Iceland and then I’m taking a two-week roadtrip with my daughter. Next year we are planning a couple of multi-generational trips to the Caribbean and Alaska, but are also thinking about Sweden. I’m sure there will be plenty of smaller trips in between.
10 – Why is travelling so important for you? What about your kids?
My daughter’s birthday is this week and instead of a present, she asked to go somewhere. She values experiences above material things. That alone is reason enough and proof that she enjoys it as much as we do. I believe that by seeing more of the world you become a more open and accepting person, and that is really important to me.
11 – How do you manage your kids and school?
We try to mostly schedule trips around school breaks, which can be harder on the budget. As kids get older it is harder to pull them out, but I’m not opposed to it. Our trips always have some educational element that outweighs missing a day or two. Luckily she is also a good student and can catch up quickly.
12 – By your travel experience, what would you do differently?
Started earlier!
13 – How do you fund your travels? While travelling or saving?
Since my husband and I both work, him full-time, me as a freelance marketing consultant, we have a steady income. We prioritize whatever extra we have for travel and we make the most of our credit card points and frequent flyer miles.
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