Balancing Family Fun and Couple Time: Tips for Parents on Vacation

Taking your kids on a family vacation is a great way to strengthen your bond while creating memories that will last a lifetime. Research from Indiana University shows that family vacations can enhance your children’s well-being, improve their communication skills, and teach them important life skills.

However, as a busy parent, you need to balance family fun with time alone with your partner. Making time to focus on your bond will help you destress after a day at the water park and make you better parents in the long run. Finding some time for yourselves can give the kids a welcome break from you, too.

You don’t need to force your children to have an early night while you visit a local restaurant, either. With a little planning and preparation, you can ensure that your kids are being safely looked after and are having fun while you destress with your spouse.

Scheduling Your Day

Finding a way to schedule some parent time is crucial if you want to ensure that your kids are having fun so you can escape as a couple without feeling guilty. This can be tricky if you’re used to making spontaneous decisions when on vacation. However, putting together a quick schedule does not take away the ability to make sudden changes to your plans. Instead, consider creating a broad, blocked schedule that includes:

• Time for at least three meals
• A “slower” block of time focused on relaxing as a family
• At least one engaging activity for the kids — bonus points if it wears them out
• A bedtime for younger children
• Time to reconnect as a couple

This schedule still gives you plenty of flexibility while ensuring everyone’s needs are met. For example, if you’re staying at an all-inclusive hotel with your family, set a schedule that ensures everyone gets plenty of time to wake up and fill their boots before heading out for a fun adventure. You can plan the specifics of your day together as a family and may find that your children are surprisingly excited to attend the hotel’s kids’ club while you relax elsewhere.

Giving Kids Agency

Once you’ve created your broad schedule, it’s a great idea to give kids agency by letting them pick the specifics. For example, if you’ve decided as a family that you’d like to visit the cinema, consider letting the children pick the movie. This is easily done if you’ve booked accommodation at a family resort with great activities for the whole gang all day.

If your children struggle to make decisions, or you suspect they may be disappointed with their choice, consider giving them a list of activities you know they’ll love to choose from. Doing so can ensure you stay in control of the schedule, too, as you can select activities with a clear start and end time. If you’re looking for child-friendly holiday activities, consider:

• Day-tripping to a nearby museum, zoo, or mini-golf;
• Seasonal activities like pumpkin carving in the fall ;
• Geocaching in a local nature reserve;
• Guided arts and crafts classes;
• Kayaking and canoeing with older children.

These activities are sure to excite your kids and help them burn off some energy. You may even be able to leave the kids under the supervision of a trusted adult while they paint ceramics or take a guided tour around a museum. Just double-check the accreditation of anyone you leave your children unattended, as every adult in the area should have safety training and a background check to ensure that your kids are in good hands.

Camping with Children

Camping with children may initially sound like a surefire way to ensure you don’t get any time to yourself while on vacation. However, in reality, camping is a great way to tucker your children out and find some couple time in the evening after hiking all day and roasting smores by the campfire.

Backpacking gives you a chance to experience unique thrills with your children, too. For example, if your kids love sci-fi and are enthralled by the idea of far-off planets, consider stargazing while camping. Planning a stargazing holiday can be a lot of fun, too, as kids with a passion for science will enjoy pouring over star charts and will be keen to assemble telescopes and binoculars. You may even find that your children fall asleep while resting on comfy camping chairs, thus giving you some time together as a couple while keeping an eye on your kids.

Consider planning a few hikes before you get to the campground. Hiking is a great way to ensure that children go to bed on time later and will give you a chance to create memories that last. Be sure to pack a well-rounded day camping supply kit, as this will aid your efforts to keep everyone healthy and happy while away from home.

You can’t go exploring trails as a couple when you’re responsible for the safety of your children. However, you may be able to find some couples if you’re open to the idea of camping with family and friends. This can be a great way to ease the burden of parenting while on holiday and will help your children form strong bonds with their friends.

If you do decide to camp with friends, be sure to vet any couples that also have kids before you agree to a joint vacation. You don’t want to agree to holiday together, only to find out that your friends regularly drink to excess or don’t intend to share the parenting responsibilities.

Vacationing with Grandparents

Visiting the grandparents is the easiest way to ensure your children are having fun while you can make some time for yourselves. Most grandparents are extremely keen to spend more time with their grandchildren and will happily spoil your kids with all manner of treats and fun activities while on vacation.

Vacationing with your parents is a great way to reaffirm your family bond, too. It’s easy to lose track of time during your day-to-day life, and unless you live in the same town, it may have been months since you last spent quality time with your folks.

Be sure to work with your parents when creating a vacation schedule together. As excited as they may be to spend time with your children, you can’t expect them to suddenly change their schedule due to a last-minute trip. Instead, find a time of year that is suitable for everyone and begin creating a schedule together to ensure everyone feels that their time and boundaries are respected.

When your kids are playing with your parents, consider making time for a longer break away from your responsibilities as a parent. For example, if you both enjoy wine, consider attending a wine tasting. Just be sure to give yourself plenty of time to savor the experience. Try to avoid getting intoxicated and book a taxi for your journey home to ensure you are still capable of having family fun when the day is over.

Taking a Kid-Free Break

If you’re struggling to find time to reconnect as a couple while on holiday, you may need to find a babysitter to take care of the kids while you relax with some time together. However, if you have older children, convincing them to stay with a babysitter can be difficult.

Rather than forcing your children to stay home while you go on holiday, consider finding age-appropriate activities that are led by responsible adults in your area. For example, if you have a mixture of older and younger children, but all are into fantasy films and epic adventures, consider sending them to a Live Action Role Play (LARP) camp. These camps offer activities that cater to a range of ages and ensure that your child is safe while you take a vacation of your own.

If camp doesn’t sound fun to your children, consider offering a stay-away volunteering experience. There are plenty of worthy causes across the nation that benefit from the hard work of volunteers, and older teens will benefit from having hands-on experience with a charity. You may even be able to set up a cultural exchange with programs for citizens from outside of the USA.

Before you put your children on any overseas flights, confirm that they actually want to go on a cultural exchange abroad. If they’re excited about spending time abroad, consider working with a recognized program that sets up safe exchanges with trusted families overseas.

Conclusion

Finding time to reconnect while on vacation with your family can be a real struggle when caring for kids. However, proper scheduling and a proactive approach to finding childcare can ensure you always have time to relax together.

Just be sure to schedule plenty of time for family fun, too. Engaging in activities like hiking, stargazing, crazy golf, or swimming can strengthen your bond and wear your children out. This will give you plenty of time to unwind and reconnect in the evenings when your kids are sure to be tired from a long day of exercise and sightseeing.