Does the expense and planning involved keep you from family travel?  Allow me to offer a simple solution:  celebration travel.

You apply the planning time and budget allotted for a birthday party to take a trip together instead.  We have begun a new tradition in our family of taking our kids on a birthday trip.  Our kids love it!  Here is how it works:
  • We set our budget based on what we would have spent for a party.  You might be surprised by how much a party actually costs -- consider location, food, entertainment, party favors, ect.
  • The birthday child brainstorms fun ideas.  Five-year-olds and  older can help Mom with the Internet research.  Younger children enjoy choosing from 2 or 3 good ideas.
  • We find ways to let the birthday child be king/queen for the day, we sing "Happy Birthday" at every meal, and we always bring special birthday napkins.
  • Then we celebrate the big event by being together as a family.

The most important thing about celebration travel is building memories and experiencing new things together as a family.  Additional benefits include:

  • Celebrating your child's special day for an entire day/weekend instead of a few hours
  • Mom can focus on showing her kids a good time instead of hosting 20 other youngsters
  • No messy party clean-up 
  • Rich experiences.  How do you compare a pony ride at your house to a night on a real ranch?

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