One Off Big Family Holiday Suggestions - Teenage Daughters
Discussion
There will be no pictures of teenage daughters as they are 14 and 15 !
I've come into some money and want to take them and my wife on a one off holiday, all they've done before is the typical European beach holiday
I have travelled a bit more including Oz, NZ, USA etc but really enjoyed Thailand because it was so different and Kenya on Safari for the same reason
The issue is we all want different things and I'd like to try somewhere new, probably not in Europe
I like adventure and get bored easily
My wife is the opposite she's happiest at home, gardening
14 yr old is all about hair, make up and sitting by a pool
15 yr old would like a cultural experience
I'm thinking 2 weeks but it could be longer, budget max £10k none of us are bothered about 5 star hotels but we don't like camping either
Any suggestions of where to start / what have you done ?
I've come into some money and want to take them and my wife on a one off holiday, all they've done before is the typical European beach holiday
I have travelled a bit more including Oz, NZ, USA etc but really enjoyed Thailand because it was so different and Kenya on Safari for the same reason
The issue is we all want different things and I'd like to try somewhere new, probably not in Europe
I like adventure and get bored easily
My wife is the opposite she's happiest at home, gardening
14 yr old is all about hair, make up and sitting by a pool
15 yr old would like a cultural experience
I'm thinking 2 weeks but it could be longer, budget max £10k none of us are bothered about 5 star hotels but we don't like camping either
Any suggestions of where to start / what have you done ?
Road trip. Obviously.
I did a 2-week (ish) road trip down the Pacific Coast Highway from San Francisco to LA with my daughter when she was 13, just the two of us. Rented a Mustang. We did a detour into Yosemite and spent a couple of nights in the park at an Air Bnb - fantastic couple who were very welcoming. Otherwise we found smaller hotels with pools etc and Air Bnb places so it was an interesting mix. San Francisco was fantastic of course - lots to see and do (cycle over the Golden Gate bridge and get a boat back) and the drive was great - incredible scenery, all sorts of food available. We stopped in Carmel/Monterey (for the aquarium), Cambria (cycling along the beach path), Santa Barbara, Santa Monica and Venice Beach. We went to see the LA Lakers play and wandered along Rodeo Drive. LA isn't my kind of place tbh, but there's lots to see there. There was a shooting inside LA airport the evening before we were due to fly out, so that made things interesting. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend that trip though.
I did a 2-week (ish) road trip down the Pacific Coast Highway from San Francisco to LA with my daughter when she was 13, just the two of us. Rented a Mustang. We did a detour into Yosemite and spent a couple of nights in the park at an Air Bnb - fantastic couple who were very welcoming. Otherwise we found smaller hotels with pools etc and Air Bnb places so it was an interesting mix. San Francisco was fantastic of course - lots to see and do (cycle over the Golden Gate bridge and get a boat back) and the drive was great - incredible scenery, all sorts of food available. We stopped in Carmel/Monterey (for the aquarium), Cambria (cycling along the beach path), Santa Barbara, Santa Monica and Venice Beach. We went to see the LA Lakers play and wandered along Rodeo Drive. LA isn't my kind of place tbh, but there's lots to see there. There was a shooting inside LA airport the evening before we were due to fly out, so that made things interesting. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend that trip though.
I would probably look at somewhere like Argentina.
2 weeks will give you plenty of time to check out Buenos Aires (nice city, not too expensive, nice hotels +airbnbs, museums for the cultural one...), then head out to wine country (Mendoza), take the ferry and pop over to Montevideo (Uruguay) for a day (Prado Park is nice and should please the wife if she likes gardens..), go to Iguazu Falls (jaw dropping), for an adventure you could go to an estancia (ranch) and play gaucho (cowboy for a day). Food is also great if you like steak...
The US road trip idea is also a good one. I would probably do southern states (FL, GA, NC, SC etc) if I went again, but have done Cali and it is pretty cool. Depends how much time you want to spend in a car!
Edit:
I've travelled to a lot of Central and South America. Happy to give tips on any others I've been to if they are of interest.
2 weeks will give you plenty of time to check out Buenos Aires (nice city, not too expensive, nice hotels +airbnbs, museums for the cultural one...), then head out to wine country (Mendoza), take the ferry and pop over to Montevideo (Uruguay) for a day (Prado Park is nice and should please the wife if she likes gardens..), go to Iguazu Falls (jaw dropping), for an adventure you could go to an estancia (ranch) and play gaucho (cowboy for a day). Food is also great if you like steak...
The US road trip idea is also a good one. I would probably do southern states (FL, GA, NC, SC etc) if I went again, but have done Cali and it is pretty cool. Depends how much time you want to spend in a car!
Edit:
I've travelled to a lot of Central and South America. Happy to give tips on any others I've been to if they are of interest.
Edited by 22s on Tuesday 10th January 16:01
Best family trip we went on when mine were young: LHR - Las Vegas - Honolulu - 7 night cruise round the big Hawaii islands - Honolulu - LHR via LAX.
Grand Canyon whilst in Las Vegas. Cruise was a with NCL, very casual with onboard kids/teen clubs etc. I pre-booked hire cars at the island stops to see volcanoes, turtles on black sand beaches etc, rather than join the boat's excursions.
Not sure how much it will cost now with the weak pound but we got itinerary fixed with Trailfinders. Can't fault them. They even arranged Premium Economy back from LAX for just £10 more than Economy per person.
Grand Canyon whilst in Las Vegas. Cruise was a with NCL, very casual with onboard kids/teen clubs etc. I pre-booked hire cars at the island stops to see volcanoes, turtles on black sand beaches etc, rather than join the boat's excursions.
Not sure how much it will cost now with the weak pound but we got itinerary fixed with Trailfinders. Can't fault them. They even arranged Premium Economy back from LAX for just £10 more than Economy per person.
We did a roadtrip around Morocco when our kids were the same sort of age with a company called Flee winter, I think it was 14 days, a couple in Marrakesh, a few in a lodge in the High Atlas Mountains, a night in a camp in the Sahara sand dunes, finishing up in a villa on the Atlantic coast for 4 days on the beach / by the pool, (there were various hotel nights and visits between the main stops).
They provided a driver and 4x4 for the trip, the accommodation was fantastic local hotels and Riyads, it was a real experience of how other cultures live, waking up and watching the sunrise over the dunes in the desert was surreal.
The kids still talk about it now (8 years later).
They provided a driver and 4x4 for the trip, the accommodation was fantastic local hotels and Riyads, it was a real experience of how other cultures live, waking up and watching the sunrise over the dunes in the desert was surreal.
The kids still talk about it now (8 years later).
We went to https://www.atlantisbahamas.com, my then teenage daughters had a 'young' nightclub and could just wander around the pools all day with a wrist band to get food and drink and I got to spend some great time with my (sadly then) wife.
A good mix there
I suspect a road trip would only keep me happy "are we there yet ?"
I've done most of Florida / California and the problem with kids and the USA - it's very spread out, although I would like to visit Yellowstone but probably just me and my wife
Morocco / Africa with a multi location sounds interesting particularly if I could do some of the driving, I used Trailfinders 20+ years ago and they were good the problem is having a starting point
I'll run all the suggestions past them at dinner
I suspect a road trip would only keep me happy "are we there yet ?"
I've done most of Florida / California and the problem with kids and the USA - it's very spread out, although I would like to visit Yellowstone but probably just me and my wife
Morocco / Africa with a multi location sounds interesting particularly if I could do some of the driving, I used Trailfinders 20+ years ago and they were good the problem is having a starting point
I'll run all the suggestions past them at dinner
Cuba, Jamaica?
Costa Rica, Panama?
Brazil? Argentina? Chile?
Maybe a week in a city like Buenos Aires then a week in Barbados on the way back?
Another vote for Japan too - beautiful place, and lots to see/do
No way would I be taking my teenage daughters on a cruise - I want to know I can get away from them!
Costa Rica, Panama?
Brazil? Argentina? Chile?
Maybe a week in a city like Buenos Aires then a week in Barbados on the way back?
Another vote for Japan too - beautiful place, and lots to see/do
No way would I be taking my teenage daughters on a cruise - I want to know I can get away from them!
Lest summer we did a 6 week road trip across America (Route 66) and Utah with my 20 year old daughters.
Yes we had a couple of fallouts, probably my fault but on the whole thoroughly enjoyed spending time with them on holiday for one last time.
I thought they would get board but they absolutely loved it.
Yes we had a couple of fallouts, probably my fault but on the whole thoroughly enjoyed spending time with them on holiday for one last time.
I thought they would get board but they absolutely loved it.
SlackBladder said:
Vietnam, Cambodia or Thailand?
This, or all three. I'm back in Thailand now for the umpteenth winter for good reasons. It's hard to beat.Thailand is in a great position for sun escapes. Not too far (eco flights are bearable), relatively cheap accom. Lovely people. You get lovely hotels or, more rustic tree house if you prefer, or something in between. Load of opportunities for activities if you prefer. While the kids stay on the beach / by the pool... Sailing, snorkeling , diving, elephants, waterfalls, ATVs , the list goes on.
You can then very easily and cheaply pop over to Vietnam for loads more culture, or Cambodia for the ultimate in culture , Angkor Wat.
Currently the who covid "thing" vanishes (masks) as soon as you distance yourself from Bangkok . I've read on here that Japan is balls deep in masks and sanitising, not my idea of a holiday.
Last night...
A road trip is a great thing, but very risky when it’s 2 parents and two teenagers in a car for that long, the likelihood of arguments, fallouts and being stuck in a car with people that are starting to resent you is too large IMO
It’s always going to be hard when one wants to explore/learn and the other just wants to relax. Personally, I’d say to go the US, maybe start by going to Austin as there’s loads to do and historical places to visit(well, as historical as it can be in the US) like the Alamo . Then maybe over to LA for the real touristy stuff (Universal Studios, film locations, etc), then finish with a few days in Hawaii for relaxing by a pool.
It’s always going to be hard when one wants to explore/learn and the other just wants to relax. Personally, I’d say to go the US, maybe start by going to Austin as there’s loads to do and historical places to visit(well, as historical as it can be in the US) like the Alamo . Then maybe over to LA for the real touristy stuff (Universal Studios, film locations, etc), then finish with a few days in Hawaii for relaxing by a pool.
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