×

Solo travel with grandkids can be fun

Sabin, Davis, Hetrick, Anderegg, Macalady, Walker, Darling, and Katers

Sandi Poindexter, grandparent and worldwide traveler has some suggestions for traveling solo with a grandchild in this two part series. Understanding your motivations and asking some basic questions at the front-end helps increase trip rewards and make it enriching and enjoyable, according to Poindexter.

Why are you going? Objectives range from helping parents and building memories to exposing a child to new environments and having fun while educating on the go. Will you take one grandchild, siblings of different ages or cousins of similar ages? Where will you go? Best choices include: somewhere you and your grandchildren want to go, you’ve been there before, you think your grandchild would like to visit, and you can afford to travel there.

Planning

What will you do? Research activities to create a list of options within your budget and common interests. Ask your grandchildren and their parents to narrow it down after discussion and looking at websites or travel materials. Besides amusement centers, many museums and parks offer interactive learning with costumes, scavenger hunts and educational play areas. This selection process involves critical thinking, self-awareness and consideration for the grandparent.

Is it a trip goal to explore diversity? One advantage of metro areas is sampling foods from a variety of cultures at one time whereas visiting a region allows more in-depth discussion on a specific culture and lifestyle. If understanding travel options is a goal, try varying types of lodging within the trip: hostels, bed and breakfasts, and high-rise hotels in a city center, suburban chain hotel, rented cottage or vacation home.

New travel

Is it possible to travel in a new way? Even a young child can compare trains, planes and cars: trains are better because you can walk around and the windows are bigger,” “Planes get you there faster,” “You can stop when you want in a car.”

Long trips often produce the “When are we going to get there?” question. In an airport, give a child a copy of the flight information and show them how to navigate from check-in to the gate. In a car, it helps if a child knows where you are going and can track your progress on a map. Before you leave, point out the starting point, routes and end points. Map reading, whether paper or digital form, requires spatial reasoning. Explain the map annotations for roads and exits and compare them to the roadway signs . There are several ways to apply math skills on a driving trip — compute gas mileage, estimate time based on distance and speed. Ask, what does 60 mph mean? If we have 120 miles to go, how long will it take to get there? What if we stop for gas?

For more see grandparentsteachtoo.blogspot.com and wnmufm.org/Learning Through the Seasons.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Grandparents Teach, Too is a non-profit organization of elementary and preschool teachers from Marquette, Michigan. The writers include: Jan Sabin, Mary Davis, Jean Hetrick, Cheryl Anderegg, Esther Macalady, Colleen Walker, Fran Darling, and Iris Katers. Their mission since 2009 is to help parents, grandparents, and other caregivers of young children provide fun activities to help prepare young children for school and a life long love of learning. They are supported by Great Start, Parent Awareness of Michigan, the U.P. Association for the Education of Young Children, Northern Michigan School of Education, the Upper Peninsula Children’s Museum and the Northern Michigan University Center for Economic Education.

Newsletter

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper *
   

Starting at $4.62/week.

Subscribe Today