New Travel Forum Launched

March 9, 2008

Planning the perfect family vacation often involves talking to other travelers.  Simply reading through all of the available advertisements and brochures doesn’t always give you a true idea of what the destination is like.  After all, those things are put together in an effort to draw you in and to get you to spend money.  That’s why I like to visit forums and share idead with other people.

Today, I learned about a new travel forum, which you can see check out at http://www.lmvr123.com/forum/.  It’s pretty new, so there isn’t a whole lot on there yet, but I am sure it is going to get busy rather quickly!  I am going to head over there to see what types of conversations I can get going – Care to join me?  See you at the forum!

By admin | Posted in General Family Travel Tips, a, advertisements, and, brochures, family, forum, forums, idea, idead, involves, learned, people  today, perfect, planning, reading, share, simply, talking, the, travel, travelers  , true, vacation, visit | Comments (0)

A Friendly Reminder For Keeping Your Finances Safe When On Vacation

July 10, 2007

When on vacation, you are at an even greater risk than usual of having your credit card information lifted from a thief.  This is particular true when on a family vacation since you will be so distracted by the kids.  With all of their excitement and your concern about keeping an eye on them, it is easy to accidentally misplace your card, to have it stolen, or to simply drop it.   So, in this installment, I am going to focus more on educating YOU while on vacation rather than educating your kids.

First of all, never leave your credit card in your hotel room.  It is unfortunate, but cleaning service personnel have been known to steal credit cards or just credit card information when left in the room.  If you do need to leave your card behind, be sure it is kept in the safe if your room has one.

Next, make sure to copy down your credit information before you head out on vacation and keep it seperate from your actual credit card.  This includes the account number and the toll free customer service number.  This way, if your card is misplaced or if you lose it, you can call the credit card company right away and close the account. 

Since there is the possiblity that your card will be lost or stolen, you should also bring along an extra credit card just in case.  I am embarrassed to admit that I have lost cards on two different vacations, one when I went to Shenandoah National Park and one time when I went to Wisconsin Dells.  The fact that I had a back up card was a lifesaver when it came to enjoying the rest of the vacation.

Finally, if you are going out of the country, be sure to contact your credit card company ahead of time.  With all of their anit-fraud software, your unusual spending in a foreign land may set off some alarms.  So, to prevent hassles while on vacation (which is even more of a problem when you have antsy children waiting to move on to the next activity), call the 800 number ahead of time and have a great vacation!

By admin | Posted in Educational Family Travel, General Family Travel Tips, a, accidentally, an, card, concern, credit, distracted, drop, easy, eye, greater, it   , keeping, kids  , lifted, misplace, risk, simply, stolen, the, thief  , usual | Comments (0)

Introduction

June 26, 2007

As the first official blog of my family travel and education blog, I would like to introduce myself and explain my goals and the purpose behind this blog.  As a mother, teacher, and avid traveler, I have found that uncovering little gems that make for great vacation destinations for my family can sometimes be tricky.  Since I have four children, simply finding accommodations for my large family can be problematic at times.

Although I love the typical tourist attractions,  such as Disney World, I am always on the look out for more “off the beaten path” family vacation destinations.  Personally, I am always looking for a way to incorporate some nature into my family vacation.  Unfortunately, I live in northern Indiana.  As such, finding great natural retreats in my area can be a bit difficult at times. 

In addition to just having a love of travel, I also feel that taking family vacations is important for my children.  As a teacher, I see so many children that do not realize that there is an entire world out there waiting for them to explore.  By taking my children on regular family vacations, I hope to help them develop a more worldly outlook and to realize that the world is there for the taking.

Having said this, my goal with this blog is twofold.  First, I hope to help parents find great family vacation destinations.  Second, I hope to help them find ways to make their family vacation as meaningful and educational as possible.  As such, I will provide advice for planning family travel, I will describe my experiences in planning and visiting various destinations, and I will provide educational “lesson plans” of sorts that can provide the framework for you as you travel. 

 If you don’t know it already, there is currently a wonderful web site out there that does provide activities that tie into various vacation destinations.  I have actually written some of the activites for this website, called Home & Abroad, and I hope to extend my expertise to you in this blog as well.  Go ahead and start using this site for now to give you a little help with your vacation planning.  In addition, you can visit my website if you are still interested in learning a little bit more about me.

I look forward to sharing with you and, please, if you have any questions or comments, feel free to post them!  I always love to hear from others!

By admin | Posted in Getting to Know Me, a, accommodations, and, attractions, blog, blog  , destinations, education, explain, family, finding, goals, great, introduce, large, love, mother, my, official, purpose, simply, the, tourist, travel, typical, vacation | Comments (0)