Before the two of us grew up and began traveling worldwide on our own to advocate for children's rights, our family took a summer vacation in France. It didn't have the romance of Casablanca. But the tense moments were definitely there.
Mom and Dad planned four weeks in an apartment in the historic part of the city. They were excited but Marc, then 16, longed for his new girlfriend back home. Craig, 10, sensed Marc's displeasure and lobbied for more of his older brother's least favourite activity – museums.
It was tense. Bogie might have lost his cool. But, there's a reason we'll always have Paris. That's because in an effort to cheer everyone up, Mom and Dad let go of the reins and allowed us to plan the remainder of the trip.
Let your kids plan
Letting two young boys plan a vacation in Europe might seem riskier than escaping the Germans on a night-plane to Lisbon. But with risk comes reward. For us, the reward was having our eyes to the world. It prepared us for adventures to come.
Our parents like to credit our further travels to this one fateful vacation. They have a point. Allowing your kids to take part in trip planning exposes them to the world's incredible cultures, histories and traditions. With their curiosity awakened, they become more globally aware.
Our parents' strategy was simple. They gave us some travel books and a budget and told us to plan the next four weeks.
We were both bitten by the travel bug and excited to help. Marc, whose case of homesickness was miraculously cured, became our chief organizer.
Page 1 of 2 - on page 2: three great travel tips for parents!
