When my husband first suggested taking a 4000-mile road trip as a family back in 1999, I resisted.
Being cooped up in a car for weeks on end with seven (at that time) loudly energetic children — two still in diapers — did not sound like a relaxing vacation to me. To be honest, it sounded more like a nightmare!
But my adventurous husband kept circling back to the idea. And he eventually convinced me to give it a try.
And I’ve been hooked ever since!
On the Road Again
We’ve added 5 more children to the family since then (and soon to be 12 grandchildren, as well). But we still love adventure and have traveled all over the world, with our children in tow.
Of course, we cover every trip with lots of prayer. We also plan plenty of stops along the way to help little ones work out their wiggles. And we do our best to make the journey as pleasant as the destination.
Over time, we’ve learned some amazingly effective strategies for saving money, maximizing travel time, making great memories, having frugal fun, and learning together as we visit new places (or revisit old ones). I’ve detailed all our family’s best ideas and practices in my new book, Pack Up & Leave: Travel Tips for Fun Family Vacations.
We’ve flown our family to Europe for free twice already (and have booked another trip for early next year). That makes a total of 26 free tickets!
We’ve discovered ways to get super-discounted or free entertainment while traveling. And we’ve learned how to leverage the meals we eat out so that we’re saving money and racking up miles for our next adventure, while we’re at it.
I know a lot of good tricks, but I am always looking for new ones, too. Ways to make our family travel even better and broader. Ways to stretch our vacation dollars even further.
Smart Travel Super Bundle
That’s why I’m so excited to be a part of an all-new Smart Travel Super Bundle.
It is cram-packed with information that will take even well-honed travel skills to the next level. But it also has is a great resource for beginners just starting to plan their first trip, or even for skeptics who’ve been swatting away the travel-bug for years.
I’ve spent the past month perusing the books and e-courses included, and I’ve been blown away by how much I’ve learned already. Strategies I’ve never heard before. Brilliant tricks for taking vacations on shoestring budgets. Travel options I never even knew existed.
Seriously.
Whether you’ve been globe-trotting for decades or are hesitant to take your first road trip (like me, back when), I encourage you to check out this bundle. Your next adventure awaits!
Thank you! I always enjoy reading your post! I only have five children and homeschool but your family is an inspiration and blessing!
“Only five?” That’s a much bigger deal — and a bigger job! — than you make it sound when your phrase it like that, Kristin. I remember feeling most overwhelmed with “only four.” Things finally started feeling a little easier somewhere between five and six. I hope you’ll find that to be the case, too. ❤️