travel planning - Pitstops for Kids

Teen travel checklist: Preparing your teen to travel abroad

March 27, 2017 By Amy Hagstrom

Last week, our teen departed for three weeks in Italy, without his parents. He traveled with a small group of student ambassadors for a cultural exchange and school program, and while chaperones will be available, they won’t be with him 24/7. Because our teen is still under age 18, there are some things he needed us to prepare for him before his trip.

Teen travel checklist: Preparing your teen to travel abroad:

In addition to packing appropriately for the length and location of a teen trip, these practical steps should be taken before departure:

Make color copies of:

Color copies of your teen’s passport to be distributed to 1. his or her trip leader or chaperone, 2. into teen’s own bag as a back up, 3. to you, his or her parents. Remember that your teen’s passport should be valid for at least six months past the date of the trip.
Photocopy of all credit cards or debit cards, both front and back, to be distributed it 1. you, the parents and 2. teen.
Copy of any doctor note needed and health insurance card (especially if your teen is on any prescription medication), distributed to 1. you, the parents, and 2. teen. Remember, all prescriptions need to travel in their original bottles.
Copy of any travel insurance plan to 1. teen and 2. parents.
Copies of health insurance plan.
Make paper copies of phone numbers needed, both at the destination and at home. Include parents’ contact numbers, host family numbers, chaperone numbers, and the teen’s cell phone number (since it may differ than the usual).

Make a phone/communication plan:

Parents and teens have several choices when it comes to a phone plan abroad.

Cell service plan: You can check with your cell service carrier to see what types of international plans are available to you short term. Ours used to be $30/month data plan, with no sign-up cost, with AT&T, but it’s recently switched to a less desirable $9.99 per day.
SIM card with unlocked phone: If you have an unlocked cell phone (such as an old phone that’s no longer attached to a plan), you can have your teen bring this phone and purchase a SIM card once in the country he or she will be visiting. SIM cards are fairly inexpensive, and allow teens to use a short term local data plan that’s prepaid.
Cheap new phone in destination country: Of course, teens can simply purchase a cheap phone with a local pay-as-you-go plan in the country they’re visiting. Pick one up at most pharmacies and convenience stores.
WiFi only plan: If your teen will have WiFi access in the form of hot spots where he or she is traveling, you could opt for him or her to simply bring a phone that’s kept in airplane mode, for WiFi use only. Buy a mobile WiFi hot spot plan, or rely on free WiFi in hotels, cafes, and the like. Whether this route is an option for you will depend on the destination.

Make a money plan:

How will your teen access cash and pay for things on their own? Savvy travelers know that it’s best to use debit cards for accessing cash from ATMs, and credit cards for other purchases and reservations, provided said cards have low foreign transaction fees. However, if you have a teen who is travel at under age 18, some banks in the US will not issue him or her a debit card in their name. Instead, before the trip, add your teen as a named user on one parent credit card. The teen will be issued a card in his or her own name, which can be used for emergencies.

Then, we suggest purchasing a prepaid travel gift card, such as Visa TravelMoney, which teens can use like debit cards. These cards are travel-specific, so they come with low currency exchange fees and low ATM fees (look for ones with ATM fees of less than $4). Even better: if you’re a AAA member, go to your local branch and buy a AAA travel card. You will need your teen’s driver’s license or passport, plus date of birth and SS# in order to get the card in his or her name, but this card has fewer fees attached to it than the ones you can buy in any pharmacy or grocery store. Parents can add money to these cards as needed from home, and view the balance at any given time, which is a nice feature.

Tip: If your teen is supposed to start his or her trip with foreign currency already in hand, make the request for the exchange at your bank at least one week ahead of time.

Enroll your teen in STEP:

First, you’ll want to check the CDC for any needed vaccines for travel. Next, head to the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program, or STEP, to enroll your teen for their destination. All STEP does is alert you to any travel warnings, with the peace of mind of knowing that your child’s travel plans are noted with the Department of State. Should he or she need any help in case of emergency while traveling, alerts and instructions will automatically be communicated to her.

Stock your teen with over-the-counter medications:

I always create a personalized first-aid/medical kit before traveling abroad, because it can be challenging to find the same medications in foreign countries (or at least the same brands, so you can recognize their uses). I include standard over-the-counter medications for headaches, nausea, sinus colds, and flu, plus band-aids, medical wrap/tape, and vitamins. For teens, I write the use of each medication on the back of the boxes clearly in sharpie pen, just to make it easy. Of course, if your teen needs to take prescription medications, have them carry them in their carry-on luggage in their original containers.

Talk with your teen before departure:

Make sure your teen knows that he or she will be acting as an ambassador for our country. With international relations tense in this era, it’s more important than ever that your teen act with respect, kindness, and awareness while abroad. Encourage them to embrace the new, to look for commonalities, and to forge friendships while traveling. Pack thank you cards for your teen to fill out and hand to people who help them or host them during their travels.

Discuss any laws or rules that may differ from your home country. For instance, we talk with our teens about our family rules for drinking alcohol abroad, since the legal age limit differs in most countries, and we remind them of laws they may not be aware of in their destination countries. We encourage trip leaders to require ‘code of conduct’ type contracts with teens, to ensure respectful and safe behavior.

Tip: Read our post on travel safety and getting past the ‘fear factor’.

Do you have tips for preparing teens to travel abroad? I’d love to hear them in the comments!

Tip: Check out our other posts about teen travel!

Traveling with kids with Down Syndrome

March 21, 2017 By Amy Hagstrom

In honor of World Down Syndrome Day, it’s my pleasure to share a personal post from our midwest travel contributor, who travels with her family of four kids, one of whom has Down Syndrome.

Ten years ago, I found out that my newborn daughter had Down syndrome. At that moment, I was far too worried about things like walking and talking to consider the implications her diagnosis might have on our ability to explore the larger world. But as our life with Julianna has unfolded, I’ve found that a disability doesn’t have to be a death sentence on dreams of travel and adventure.

Author’s daughter Julianna on a beach trip.

First, a word of caution. There’s a truism among the disability community: “If you’ve met one person with Down syndrome, (or autism, or any other disability), you’ve met one person with Down syndrome.” This post is the experience of one family, whose child is both verbal and mobile. Still, I hope it illustrates that traveling with kids who have disabilities is a reachable goal.

1. Plan around your family’s unique situation.

The key for our family has been planning around the abilities of all our children—not just Julianna. By the time Julianna turned eight years old, she had visited Mackinac Island (twice), Rocky Mountain National Park, and Disney World. Some of these trips were more successful than others, but each one fine-tuned our understanding of our kids’ limits and, equally important, our own. When we look at available activities, we choose what is appropriate for our whole family. Sometimes—often, even—this means we don’t get to do some of the things that would be more interesting to us as adults. (Sound familiar?)

2. Look for child care where you’re going.

On the other hand, some places—cruise ships and some nicer hotel/resorts—offer group programs or vetted babysitters for hire. We have taken advantage of that both at Mackinac’s Grand Hotel and on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship. Of course, some kids with more significant special needs will need a special kind of child care provider—but don’t rule out the possibility before you take the time to talk to the people in charge. You’ll never know unless you ask.

3. Ask about accommodations for disability.

Many places go out of their way to accommodate people with disabilities. For example, Disney World offers a disability pass that gives families a set return time (much like a Fast Pass) so you don’t have to wait in long lines. Many other amusement parks offer similar services.

4. Look at travel as an opportunity to increase awareness.

I remember sitting in a Golden Corral in Valdosta, Georgia, and realizing that two or three adults were staring at my daughter. But not an ugly, cruel stare—on the contrary, they had the look of dawning understanding. I could see them realizing, through seeing my vivacious and charming daughter interact with other people, that disability is not a curse—that it can, in fact, be beautiful.

In this way, Julianna serves as an ambassador for Down syndrome. She loves people, and she functions at a high enough level that she can overcome—or perhaps the better term might be “overwhelm”—most people’s inhibitions.

One particularly memorable New Years Eve, we were taking shelter from a tornado in a McDonald’s in Nashville, Illinois. While we were trying to keep her brothers entertained, 3-year-old Julianna slipped away. We found her walking up and down the aisles saying “Ah! Ah!” (how she said “hi” at age 3) and waving to other refugeed travelers. When we caught up, she was sidling onto a bench and eyeing someone else’s box of french fries. We ended up in conversation with that family and several others, comparing weather reports and swapping travel stories. It was a moment of connection we would never have had without her.

5. Take reasonable precautions.

Of course, there’s a flip side to having a child with a developmental disability who’s never met a stranger. One December, we were waiting in line to tour the “Holiday Train” when Julianna simply disappeared.

It’s every parent’s nightmare: a big space, lots of exits, thousands of people, and a child who, although verbal, has trouble making herself understood. She didn’t yet know how to ask for help, and worst of all, we knew she wouldn’t even recognize she needed it.

Eventually, we found her riding the kiddie train at the end of the terminal. Mind you, this was a train that cost $5 to ride. We asked the operator, “How did she even get in?”

She answered, “Well, she just acted like she belonged there…”

After this, we ordered a medical bracelet and necklace with our mobile numbers engraved on them. We also have tags that attach to her shoe laces. Julianna has been coached extensively and repeatedly on what to tell an adult if she doesn’t know where we are.

It’s worth it!

As Julianna gets older, she’s less prone to wandering and better at following instructions. Traveling has given her lasting memories—from the fire-breather at the Chinese Lantern Festival to meeting Tinker Bell—that she still talks about.

Your special needs child will likely always face limitations the rest of the family does not—but you know how to plan around that; you do it every day. The rules don’t change when you travel—they just require a little more advance prep to be familiar with the possibilities and prepare for the possible pitfalls.

You want to travel with your special needs child? Go for it. You’ve got this.

Introducing Twist: a digital magazine celebrating family travel

March 7, 2017 By Amy Hagstrom

Who has not been inspired to try a new destination after seeing gorgeous photos of a friend’s trip? Or has not turned the pages of a glossy magazine and drooled over a hotel spread? We all have, and I know that for me, I often get new travel ideas from other parents who have adventured before me. The idea of sharing travel ideas through personal experiences is, of course, the message and intent behind Pit Stops for Kids, and any story I write elsewhere.

Introducing Twist travel magazine:

I’m proud to say that I’m now contributing to another, new outlet for sharing travel experiences and inspiration: Twist magazine. Twist is the brain child of Keryn Means of Walking On Travel and Andrea Fellman of Wanderlust Living, and will come to your computer screens in high resolution, digital magazine glory. I know that when I previewed this first issue of Twist, I was inspired myself by the travel destination pieces packed into its pages. There are now 2-3 new places I cannot wait to take my kids!

In addition to destinations, Twist issues will always feature gear reviews and travel style and trends for both parents and kids, plus practical advice and currently trending travel services and tour companies. Because TWIST will be seasonal, and features over a dozen contributors who are all family travel experts, you can expect to get the very latest in travel news, travel deals, and travel inspiration.

Please go HERE to download your first issue of Twist. I am confident it will not be your last!

Apple Watch travel tips

March 1, 2017 By Amy Hagstrom

I bought my Apple Watch for heath and GPS exercise tracking. I regarded its travel uses with skepticism. After all, I have a phone, which already accompanies me on trips, and saw no need to carry two devices for the same purpose. However, after using the Apple Watch for a few months, I’ve found it to be an extremely useful travel tool. It’s not great for everything, but it’s helpful enough that I no longer travel without it. Ready for some Apple Watch travel tips?

Apple Watch travel tips:

For me, the prime benefit of traveling with my Apple Watch Series 2 is the ability to keep my hands free and my phone stashed away. Using the apps on my watch means I can keep my backpack or tote bag closed, my eyes up, and my distractions to a minimum. Here are the uses I’ve found for my watch on travel days:

Boarding passes in Passbook:

When I check into my flight online, I use the appropriate airline app on my phone. Then I save my mobile boarding pass to Passbook. When I open Passbook on my watch, my boarding pass is right there. I can scan it at the gate and at security and never have to dig my phone out of my bag. I also keep the airline apps I use on my watch, because they will alert me of any changes to my flight right on my wrist.

Note: the TripIt app is now available for Apple Watch too, and I find it very helpful to get their alerts.

Directions on my wrist:

I have no sense of direction, so when I travel, I rely heavily on my Maps app. When I use Maps with my phone, I’m distracted, looking down at my screen while I walk unfamiliar streets, or worse, glancing too often at my phone while driving in unfamiliar cities. When I set up mapping directions on my phone before I depart, they sync to my watch, which gives me point-by-point directions as I go. I wasn’t sure if I’d like haptic touch (where the watch buzzes and vibrates to indicate which way to go), but I find I love it. I can drive and be confident about when to turn without taking my eyes off the road.

News bites in real time:

I have the CNN and New York Times apps on my watch, and appreciate how I can stay up-to-date on news as I travel. Yes, I could see updates on my phone, but how often, on a busy day, do I actually take the time to open a news app and read? With CNN and NYT on my wrist, short, one-line news bites are delivered to me, helping me be more aware as I travel.

Note: there are many other great news sources; for my watch, I chose CNN and NYT because their app headlines are particularly succinct and digestible…good for the small screen of my watch.

Apple pay on the go:

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve approached the register at an airport newsstand store or dining venue and had to dig around in my bag for my wallet or phone to pay. It’s time consuming, and can be unsafe to open everything up…important things could easily fall out of my bag. I use Apple Pay on my watch, and I’d say it works easily 70% of the time. The other 30%, it’s a big pain in the butt because it doesn’t work for some reason and I have to dig my wallet out after all. So there are negatives to using Apple Pay, but still worth trying.

GPS tracking for safety:

Some people don’t like to track their GPS, and I get that, but when I’m in a new city, I still like to run outdoors when it’s possible. I appreciate the fact that with just my watch, I can track my route, so I can easily find my hotel again. Also, in the case of anything going wrong, my route is tracked on my phone (which is back at the hotel room), so my family can more easily find me. It’s just a precaution, but one I appreciate.

A few of my favorite Apple Watch apps (not mentioned above):

TripIt: great to plan travel and get live updates on your travel plans
Timer: fun to time waits in line (so you can prove to kids that they haven’t been ‘waiting forever!’)
Breathe: a nice relaxation tool on travel days
Uber: I’ve found it to be pretty seamless as long as your account is up-to-date on your phone
1Password: for when I’ve forgotten a password that I need to enter on my phone and my computer isn’t handy
Music: I pair with bluetooth headphones and listen to music on the go

What I never use Apple Watch for:

Email: heck no! Way too small a screen
Photos/video: though I know people who like the remote camera app
Banking/Paypal: no real reason other than the small screen
Social media: I like to see Instagram, Facebook and more on a bigger screen

Do you have an Apple Watch? Do you use it for travel?

5 Tips for Traveling to Europe With Kids

February 15, 2017 By Amy Hagstrom

Traveling to Europe with kids is an exciting, rewarding, and exhausting experience. You’ll create lots of family memories and give your kids invaluable chances to experience other cultures. At the same time, you need a lot more planning and plenty of patience.

Plan Travel in Advance

It is so important that you do your research. Plan your destinations and transportation on Europe-specific travel platforms like GoEuro before you leave. Decide how you’ll be getting from city to city, whether that be by bus, train, or plane, and book those tickets while you’re still in the states. The last thing you want to deal with is tired, hungry kids while you’re figuring out train tickets in an unfamiliar place where you don’t speak the language. As an alternative, you could book a pre-arranged Europe tour if you want to avoid the hassle of planning.

Concentrate on Fewer Locations

When you’re in Europe, you’ll be tempted to see as many spots as you can during your visit. Focus on getting the most out of just a few locations if you’ll be there for longer than a week, and concentrate on just one if you’ll be there for less than a week.

Planning your transportation through Europe is simpler when you aren’t hopping among five cities in four weeks. Similarly, if you focus on smaller destinations, such as Bath instead of London, you’ll have an easier time exploring with kids. Big cities can overwhelm children, but they’ll adjust to smaller places more quickly.

Leave Room for Downtime

When traveling with adults, you might be able to see four museums and monuments in one day without hailing a single cab. Kids get tired and bored more quickly, though. Plan for downtime, but be open to rescheduling or extending it depending on how your kids are feeling. Otherwise, you might have to cut short a visit to the Louvre or cancel a tour of the Colosseum.

Plan for Emergencies

Kids get lost even when you’re paying close attention. When it happens in a city where you don’t know the language, the experience is especially terrifying. Create contingency plans before you start packing. This might include giving your kids cell phones or GPS devices so you can locate them or telling them to stay put as soon as they realize they’ve lost you. Rick Steves has lots of great ideas for families who want to plan for this kind of emergency.

Try Not to Check Bags on Flights

When kids are young, they can only carry a small backpack containing a few belongings. You’ll have to carry the rest. In Europe, you’ll be doing a lot of walking. Imagine lugging two or three gigantic suitcases behind you while you walk from the train station to your hotel!

To avoid this situation, pack light. Cut down on toiletries and nix the non-essentials such as hair dryers and excess makeup. Plan to wash clothes while you’re there, and research accommodations that offer laundry facilities. Pack one carry-on per adult to make your trip simpler.

Traveling with adults has its own list of perks, but taking your kids to Europe is a rewarding experience. Plan ahead to design a trip that nobody in your family will soon forget.

Moving abroad? The hidden costs of expatriation

December 21, 2016 By Amy Hagstrom

Not surprisingly, more families are considering the possibility of moving abroad than ever before. Becoming an expat family can be beneficial in many ways, but of course, a decision such as this takes careful consideration. After counting all the pros–a better way of life, lower living costs, and a chance to broaden your horizons–also consider a few things you may not have thought of yet.

Surprisingly, there are many hidden costs when you are considering moving abroad. The reason for this is that there are many more things to organize than if you were on a trip. Aside from the usual housing expenses, there are also several bureaucratic expenses to consider when moving abroad to include the cost of translating and notarizing them. Consider the following hidden costs before deciding that relocating as an expatriate is within your realistic budget:

Moving Money

One of the most difficult assets to move abroad is your currency. The reason for this is that many times, an expatriate needs to have enough capital with them if they plan on starting a job in a new country. Until their first paycheck comes, they have to be quite careful that they have enough to cover the rent on a new apartment and deposit, for example. The rent aside, there are many other expenses to get started including preliminary food and administrative expenses related to getting settled.

Should you decide to bring currency from your home country, it is highly recommended that you utilize money transfer companies to conduct your transactions. Once you establish a local bank account in your new locale, the process will be quite streamlined, which will enable you the potential to save a great deal of capital when you are both moving money to your new locale and when you transfer your earnings home.

Be sure to carefully shop around when consulting various money transfer companies in order to ascertain which companies would provide you with the best possible rate to move your money efficiently. There are review sites around like InternationalMoneyTransfers.org which help you digest all the information without all the legwork via detailed reviews (here’s an example review).

Moving Your Family

It is one thing to expatriate solo; however, if you are planning on bringing your family, it could be quite beneficial for you to consider what additional expense this will cost you until you receive your first paycheck. Pertaining to children, children have many expenses related to education and establishing a reliable home base for the child to be raised in.

Overall, you should follow the rule of tripling your budget when moving your family in order to adequately plan for last minute expenses that are necessary to allow your family to both move and transition effectively into a new culture. Doing so will make your life far easier in those first few months when you are getting acclimated.

If you have pets, you need to consider how much it will cost to move them as well. There are many expensive airplane tickets that involve pets. Additionally, many jurisdictions have relocation inspections for pets to undergo that can be quite costly when passing through customs. Be sure to take these considerations into account so that you do not have any unfortunate financial surprises waiting for you when you arrive to your new locale. If you take these issues into consideration, you will be better prepared for your upcoming move.

Tip: Check to see if you need an apostille service, required for all documents destined for use outside of the United States.

International Shipping

Another aspect that many individuals attempting to expatriate fail to take into consideration is the exorbitant cost of shipping your belongings from Point A to Point B. It is vital that you take this cost into consideration if you are moving to a destination that is quite far from your home country. “Unlike local moving, shipping can be something that makes or breaks your move, particularly if you are moving furniture.

In addition to shipping, be sure that you take into consideration the customs duties associated with shipping your belongings and the time that they will be held and inspected in customs. This is particularly true for larger items that you may be shipping such as cars and furniture. Failure to budget and plan for these situations is something that will cause you a great detriment in your finances. Be sure that you over budget for international shipping and customs duties to avoid any problems as you transition to your new country of choice.

Concluding Remarks

To conclude, expatriating is a very exciting time for both individuals and families. That being said, there are many unprecedented expenses that pop up here and there as any individual or family is making such a major transition in their lives.

Be sure that you consider this carefully when relocating abroad. Where many expats make critical errors is in failing to plan for the unexpected financially. Ideally, you should plan your budget for your move for at least one month in order to plan as accurately as possible.

This, combined with using money transfer companies is something that will serve you quite well as you transition to your new locale. Thus, be sure to carefully plan for your move abroad and do not discount any possible expense because odds are that you will come across many surprises as you relocate and that is surely part of the adventure of being an expat. Good luck!

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Top travel destinations of 2016

December 19, 2016 By Amy Hagstrom

Here at Pit Stops for Kids, we travel approximately once or twice a month, all year round. In December of every year, we take a moment to reflect on the past year’s trips, and try to select the five that stood out the most. It’s a tough decision, and always, there are multiple contenders. But we have our winners! Use the list below as inspiration as you plan your travel for the coming year!

Top travel destinations of 2016 in the US:

While we promote traveling abroad, it’s wonderful that the U.S. is such a large, diverse country. There’s plenty to see and do right here at ‘home’. Below, read about our favorite ‘finds’ in the US:

Alta, Utah:

Honestly, you can’t go wrong anywhere in the greater Salt Lake City area at any time of year. The Wasatch Mountains beckon in all seasons, with mountain biking and hiking opportunities in summer and world-class skiing in winter. We’ve previously explored Park City, Utah, which we’ve named a Best Ski Town. But the narrow slot canyons of SLC also offer amazing mountain vacations, with a decidedly different ambiance.

Alta Ski Resort is tucked away by Cottonwood Canyon, where the ritz and touristy vibe of Park City melts away, leaving a focus on the mountain terrain and cozy accommodations. At Alta, you’re more likely to run into locals than celebrities, and while the ski runs are on the challenging side, there’s a full area dedicated to beginners, and neighboring Snowbird offers additional acreage next door. We absolutely recommend staying at the Alta Lodge if it’s in the budget; this idyllic ski lodge includes most meals and a wonderful kids’ program. Plus, you can ski from the back door. One thing to note: it’s skiing only at Alta, no snowboarding allowed.

Mt. Hood, Oregon:

You know we have a ‘type’ when it comes to family travel destinations…the more outdoorsy, the better. So apologies if mountain vacations aren’t your thing, but stick with me here. Mt. Hood, Oregon is a destination that offers a little of everything: the beauty of nature is all around you, excellent and challenging hiking and mountain biking is right outside your door in summer, skiing abounds in winter. But wait, there’s more…the charming wine and cider-boasting town of Hood River is just a short drive away for foodies (our pick if you’re vacationing without the kids), and Portland is adjacent as well, ideal for those who want to include some city touring into their vacation.

Rent a cabin in Government Camp, and explore for a long weekend, like we did, or stay slightly closer to the city in Collins Lake Resort or Resort of the Mountain. Or do the ultimate: stay at historic Timberline Lodge.

Up next, top travel destinations of 2016 internationally! Click on the button below to continue.

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Tips to keep your family safe while traveling

December 1, 2016 By Amy Hagstrom

Traveling the world is a great way to introduce your family to different cultures while having a fun time abroad. While in our experience, travel tends to be safer than your average day in your own hometown, every trip raises the possibility of risk. Before you leave home, study the following three tips to keep your family safe as you travel the world.

Make a Copy of Your Passport

Losing your passport can make traveling between countries difficult. If you don’t have your passport, you may not be able to re-enter the United States. Making a copy of your passport will enable you to replace it more easily.

Make two copies of your passport. Give one to a person you trust to keep it safe. Keep the other copy with you while you travel. You can email a copy of the passport to yourself so that you can access the information when needed.

If you plan to email the copy, make sure the places you visit have email access and printers. If those places do not, then you should carry a printed copy.

Learn About Possible Travel Advisories

The U.S. Department of State (DOS) maintains a list of travel advisories that will help you avoid unsafe countries. If a country has a travel alert or warning, then you should read about potential hazards that could affect your trip.

The DOS divides travel advisories into two groups: warnings and alerts. Warnings usually refer to long-term problems such as civil wars, frequent terrorist attacks, and unstable governments. Some of the warnings stay in place for years, so you should think carefully before visiting these countries.

Travel alerts usually refer to short-term events such as elections, elevated risks of terrorist attacks, and outbreaks of viruses such as H1N1. Travel alerts aren’t as serious as warnings, but you should still learn about the reasons for the alerts and plan to keep yourself safe. You may want to delay your trip until the threats have passed.

Get a MedjetAssist Membership

No amount of preparation can protect you from unforeseen medical issues. You never know when a simple slip and fall could break one of your limbs or an unknown medical condition will affect your health.

Unfortunately, many countries do not have reliable health care services that you would expect to receive in the United States. Some countries don’t have the capital to invest in high-tech medical facilities. Some rural locations are so far from large cities, which can delay medical assistance.

You can keep yourself safe during a medical emergency by becoming a MedjetAssist member. MedjetAssist arranges air medical transportation for its members when they are hospitalized. You can’t predict what will happen while you travel the world, but you can prepare for unexpected events.

While avoiding countries or regions with civil unrest or threats of terrorism is best when you’re considering international travel, you should still prepare for unexpected situations you may encounter during your travels. As long as you follow the tips outlined above, you can help your family to have a safe and enjoyable time abroad.

Image via Flickr by seantoyer

Teaching Kids About Travel Photography Etiquette

July 28, 2016 By Amy Hagstrom

Everyone takes photos when traveling—it’s part of the whole experience. Now if you enjoy traveling to new and exciting places with your kids, then at some point they are going to want to take some photos of their own. Children today are particularly tech-savvy and can work most devices without needing much instruction, so photography is something that you can (and should) allow and encourage them to learn. Parents can even provide their children with a simple, kid-friendly camera to practice on, so that they won’t have to keep whipping out smartphones or iPads (a surefire way to attract thieves) to capture the sights.

But before you give your child a camera, remember that there are certain rules in travel photography that everyone (even non-professional shutterbugs) need to adhere to. Here are some of the most important rules of photography etiquette that you need to teach your kids:

Always ask permission from a parent, guardian, or any adult companion.

In travel photography, the golden rule is to ask permission from the people whom you plan to feature in your photos. But for your children, the golden rule should be to ask you for your permission before taking photos of anything—at least until they are old enough to know how to discern which situations are appropriate for taking photos and which are not. This way, you can properly guide them, as well as facilitate their interactions with the locals. After all, someone will still need to ask permission from whomever your child wants to take photos of—a crucial step that you cannot forego, particularly in foreign countries where the customs and norms may be different from where you are from.

Having your child inform you first before taking pictures prevents him from breaking certain social rules (regarding photography)—and getting himself into trouble—in the country you are visiting. Some places, like in Indian or Japanese temples, have a strict ban on any type of photography. In other places, it may be considered rude to take photos of people in the street. You cannot expect your child to be aware of or remember all these different rules, so it’s best to have him ask you before he whips out a camera.

Respect personal boundaries.

If you have yet to teach your kids about the concept of personal space and boundaries, then this is the perfect time to address it. Unlike adults, children are accustomed to affectionate physical interactions (mostly with their parents, grandparents, siblings, and even their friends). It is completely normal for a child to, say, touch his mother’s face or sit on his father’s lap, which is why he might find it strange that this type of interaction may not be accepted or welcomed by other adults.

Before you decide to trust your child with a camera on your travels, you need to teach him about the “personal bubble.” Most children would normally have no qualms about thrusting a camera into someone’s face or squeezing beside someone to take a quick selfie, so it is important for your child to understand that some people are very particular with their personal space and may possibly take offense when other people—children included—violate their sense of space by entering their “personal bubble.”

Avoid using the flash (unless absolutely necessary).

As you probably already know, some tourist spots—particularly art galleries, museums, or zoos—do not allow flash photography within the premises. But children aren’t particularly fond of reading signs, so there’s a very good chance that they wouldn’t automatically know this important rule. Therefore, you need to make sure that your child is made aware of these crucial rules and that he learns how to turn the camera’s flash on or off before allowing him to take photos in public places. Otherwise, this can lead to some very embarrassing situations.

Also, people generally don’t like having a bright camera flash go off in their faces, so make sure that your child knows to turn off the flash when taking photos of the locals and other tourists.

Don’t block the view.

Children aren’t always aware of what is going on in their surroundings, so it’s important to remind them that they have to be mindful and considerate of other people when taking photos. For instance, when you visit a tourist hotspot like a historical landmark or any of the other popular photo-op spots, there will most likely be a horde of other tourists and photographers there who are also trying to take photos of their own. Remind your child not to block anyone’s shot or “photobomb” another tourist family’s photo session. Teach him to patiently wait his turn until other people are finished, so that he can take his photos without bothering anyone or ruining other people’s photo-ops.

Being polite when taking photos in tourist spots must be a continuous learning process—it doesn’t end with just telling your kid what he can or cannot do. Keep an eye on your little one’s behavior, remind him if you must, and don’t forget to give words of affirmation every time he does something right.

Impact travel with teens: What to expect on a Fathom cruise

July 11, 2016 By Amy Hagstrom

If you have kids over age 8, and are ready to dive into some form of volun-tourism while you vacation, a Fathom cruise to the Dominican Republic may be a great place to start. Fathom cruises combine the fun of a cruise vacation with a meaningful way to give back, and, perhaps even more importantly, a way to connect with local people in a meaningful way, getting to understand local issues, customs, and dynamics.

Fathom, a child company of Carnival Cruise Lines, is the first cruise line to dedicate itself to this type of ‘impact travel’, with week-long routes to the Dominican Republic, and (currently without impact activities), to Cuba. The ship, Adonia, docks in the new Amber Cove port by Puerto Plata, far from the all-inclusive resorts of touristy Punta Cana, and focuses on the under-developed side of the island.

The concept is a simple one: bring in cruise passengers on a regular basis who can 1. impact the economic situation of northern Dominican Republic, 2. come alongside Dominicans to add manpower (and woman and child power) to their current, established projects, classrooms, and businesses, and 3. make meaningful interpersonal connections in the process.

The regular, scheduled shiploads of volunteers give your week-long effort a bigger impact, and your tourism dollars help a part of the country that otherwise is often overlooked.

I took my 17-year-old and 14-year-old on the Adonia to the Dominican Republic in June, to see exactly how it all works and how much impact we felt we had. I’ve taken part in ‘mission trip’ type vacations before, and the level of actual usefulness of such trips vary greatly. I wanted to know whether Fathom’s formula was different, how much good was being done, and how it actually felt to go on their ‘impact activities’ with my teens. And because the ship and cruise line is so new, I wanted to share the scoop on what to expect from embarkation to disembarkation.

What to expect pre-trip:

When you book a Fathom cruise (which, by the way, is a bargain compared to other Caribbean cruises…see pricing here), you’ll be sent an informational email with information about your boarding date and disembarkation date. The Fathom’s home port is Miami. It’s important to note the exact time on the dates, because like any cruise, the ship won’t wait for you. Be sure to book a flight that allows plenty of time to get to the port, even taking possible delays into account. From the west coast, we opted to take a flight an entire day early.

You’ll also get access to the Fathom Trip Planner, which you can log onto online at Fathom.com once you have a booking number. Get onto your trip planner as soon as possible, because this is where you sign up for your impact activities…the activities you’ll do in the Dominican Republic alongside locals. Examples of impact activities include laying concrete flooring, building water filters, planting trees, helping in a chocolate production facility, and teaching English. Alongside these activities are also ‘recreational’ activities you can book through Fathom, which are essentially organized cruise excursions such as snorkeling, city tours, catamaran sailings, and the like. You can book up to six activities total per person, and impact activities DO fill up fast.

Some things to note when deciding on impact activities:
Kids need to be on the same impact activity as at least one parent
Impact activities are all free, apart from a small supply fee for a few of them ($10 range)
Most impact activities are half a day (either before lunch or after), then a few take 3/4 a day
If the impact activity you want is full, try again a few more times before your cruise (people drop things as their schedules change)

I recommend picking your impact activities first, then filling in the rest of the space with ‘for fun’ activities. The offered port excursions are solid, but pretty expensive, like all cruise excursions. We actually only did one of them, the power-assisted snorkeling afternoon. The other things we were interested, which included a city tour of Puerto Plata and a hike to the 27 Waterfalls, we opted to book on our own.

It’s easy to book excursions on your own, either before your trip (recommended) or at Amber Cove. For a private tour of Puerto Plata and the surrounding area for less cost than the big group bus tour offered by Fathom, we hired a private guide (basically a taxi) through Marysol Tours.

We booked our hike and swim at the 27 Waterfalls through Iguana Mama, a local company that now operates tours out of Amber Cove. We went with other cruise passengers, but booked this on our own because Fathom did not yet offer it officially.

See all our posts about Dominican adventures.

Up next, packing advice for a Fathom cruise! Click on the button below to continue.

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