When you take the kids away on vacation it isn’t the same as when you go away with just your partner and there is a call to add something extra to the vacation. Instead of spending your days reading on the beach and enjoying some wine and good food of an evening, there is a need to include some entertainment and some adventure to the trip, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. My wife and I are very fortunate that our kids enjoy the same thing as we do, my son and I were even able to get 36 holes of golf in together during our trip to Portugal last year! There are all kinds of activities which you can chose from and here are some which we have enjoyed in the last few years.
Kayaking
Kayaking is great for the family because it is relatively simple to do and each journey will take you to see something new. We have kayaked on rivers through Costa Rica, over the Hudson River in New York and even taken the kayaks out on the sea during a trip to Australia a few years ago. Easy to get the hang of and the kids will absolutely love it, even more so when they tip over apparently!
Winter Fun
We took the kids on a skiing holiday a couple of years ago to Norway and they not only fell in love with the sport but they loved all of the snow-based activities. What the kids loved most was not in fact the skiing or snowboarding, but the husky rides which we took across these huge snow planes, reaching incredible speeds which left us all a little bit scared, and very excited.
Canyoning
Activities when you are on holiday are so much fun and we found that canyoning is a great adventure because it doesn’t require huge amounts of skills and you get the chance to discover some beautiful natural settings. We have done this with the kids in the southern Alps and in Costa Rica and they loved finding their way through the gorges, especially the abseiling which they were able to do down a waterfall in Costa Rica. This is an activity which you can find all over the world and I can assure you that any adventurous kids will absolutely love it.
Cycling
Something we have done on just about every family holiday which we have taken is renting a couple of bikes and heading out on a trek. Most holiday destinations have some great routes that you can cycle on and it gives the kids the chance to get out and about, and most importantly to stretch their legs. What I love most about taking the bikes out when we are abroad is the fact that you don’t know what you are going to see or what you will discover, which lends itself to some amazing adventures.
Next time you take the kids away have a think about some of these activities and see if you can entertain the kids with them, it sure beats wasting a day on the beach.
Here are some more fun summer activities.