"The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page."
—Augustine of Hippo
"It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end."
—Ernest Hemingway
One day, Rainer Jenss looked at his wife and said, "Let's do it now, while the kids are young." They'd always been dreaming about traveling the world—probably a hazard of working at National Geographic, like Jenss did for 16 years. So when they sold their house, quit their jobs, and packed their bags to spin the globe with their two sons, then ages 8 and 11, there'd been a shift. They knew it was a little crazy, but they wanted to give their boys that foundation. "They'd see the world and understand that it doesn't just revolve around us and what we do. There are other perspectives and ways to live."
They used an around-the-world ticket (issued by an airline alliance network) for 13 months, which allowed them to puzzle out the mileage and segment requirements among participating international carriers. They visited almost every continent, and spent less money than if they'd lived the year in New York. "The sacrifice is a year of income. But for me, that sacrifice was well worth it." The trip manifested into a profession: Jenss blogged the experience and was ranked one of the top 25 travel bloggers; and this March, he's launching the Family Travel Association, based in Nyack, which aims to inspire families to travel more and more broadly.
"One big factor of anxiety around family vacations is, 'Will the kids have fun?' Parents have it in their heads, 'All my kids want to do is play video games,' and if you're not exposing them to things, then yeah. It's up to the parents. When you learn to travel, you travel to learn." Jenss is a big believer in the positive effects of travel on children and feels that travel should be part of every child's education. "Trips can change a child's life," he says. "They learn new skills; it changes their cultural understanding; it connects you to the environment—kids are unplugged. Kids are curious about the world, and travel exposes them to things they only read about."
Most Americans, however, consider travel to be an indulgence. Studies show that every year, we leave earned vacation days on the boardroom table, and we usually rank among the highest in Expedia's annual vacation deprivation study, afraid that bosses and coworkers will penalize us for days off. The stress from work causes health issues and less productivity and costs us family time. For Jenss, it's a function of cultural values. He asks, "Why is it a virtue to work harder than someone else?" We value possessions over experience, but Jenss feels we should value a balanced life. Family travel is an opportunity to experience something unavailable at home. "Travel shouldn't just be recreational, it should be transformational."
For parents who worry that kids will only remember the inane aspects of an expensive trip, like the gelato in Italy, and miss the majesty of the Sistine Chapel, Jenss warns, "Don't underestimate your kids." It's about going for the authentic experience. Travelers who stay local through house rental outfits like Airbnb find a more personal, family-friendly experience. "When we were in Greece, we lived in someone's house," Jenss says. "We looked around the supermarket. It forces you to be more exposed." Family travel opens up the possibility of meeting locals, who are often especially friendly toward travelers with kids. "What's undersold and underappreciated about travel is that what's most memorable are the people you meet." To help his children become invested in the world trip, Jenss involved them in the planning process with books and movies. He had each child bring their own camera to connect with what they're seeing, a tip that works universally for engaging kids. But the ultimate goal, Jenss reminds, is "at the end of the day, you're creating positive childhood memories."
As someone hardwired to track travel trends, Jenss cites one that actually merges two: multigenerational travel and the gift vacation. "People want to spend quality family time together, and travel is a gateway to do that. One clear reason multigenerational travel is growing is that grandparents have the money, and they're paying for these trips. They're more active, healthier, living longer, so they want to spend more time with their kids and grandchildren."
Mohonk Mountain House, the Hudson Valley's all-inclusive mountain resort in New Paltz, has long been a destination for this type of informal reunion. Eric Domitrovits, director of sales, says that it's a significant amount of their business. "We're a family-owned resort, and people appreciate that, so we have families who come back year after year." With a vast array of activities, family members can be as active or relaxed as they choose. And it's the simple things that prove popular: going on a boat ride around the lake together, or playing a family board game in one of the cozy nooks scattered throughout the hotel. Staying in adjacent or adjoining rooms, family members leave notes for each other, and meet up for tea and cookies each afternoon in the gathering room. Domitrovits says it's a popular option for people during the holidays because it's the perfect place to come together. "We do all the planning for them, the meals. They just show up and enjoy."
Teaching Wanderlust or The Teachings of Wanderlust
"Travel is so rich when you're prepared for it," says Joanne Rendell, a fiction writer who splits her time between New Paltz and Manhattan. What started as an extension of family visits (Rendell is British, with family all over Europe) and homeschooling, grew into a lifestyle. After her 11-year-old son, Benny, took classes on the ancient Americas, they saw ruins first-hand in Guatemala. A study of ancient Greece led to a trip to Athens and Delphi. The Renaissance guided them on a self-designed art tour of Italy. She knows it sounds extravagant, and is sure to mention they're on a budget, saving money with house swaps and hostels. "In Assisi, we stayed in a simple convent. We never spend over $70 a night on a room."
She plans in partnership with her husband, Brad Lewis, an NYU professor, who joins them on most trips. Rendell does the legwork, researching flights and getting visas, while Lewis gathers the content. "You have to know your kids. You don't spend 10 hours in the Uffizi and then take the tour. You punctuate museum visits with a nice meal and work out a way to temper what the parents want to see with what the kids will enjoy." In India, after visiting temples, they'd lounge beneath a banana tree, reading. "There's this stereotype that kids can only enjoy corporately packaged Disney gods," Rendell says, "but you can make history interesting to them. When we saw the art in Italy, they've all got great stories, and if you're prepared, you can help kids access it."
For Lewis, travel is a way to break through the ethnocentric barrier and develop a cosmopolitan perspective. "You live here, but you have a sense of the larger diversity of cultures. You can have that experience with a book, but travel is another way that adds a sensory dimension to it: the scents, rhythms, the getting your feet wet in another place." Rendell knows all the travel feeds Benny's anthropological imagination. "Travel makes you ask questions about your own culture. In India, we saw a different style of living. There was poverty, but also a different way to eat, live, and be in sync with nature. And then you reflect back. We had these conversations like, 'What are they thinking of me with my camera?'"
In New York, Benny has classes and Brad works. "Some of our happiest times are when we're traveling," Rendell says. "There's the solidarity of being in a different place and relying on each other, the shared experience." It draws them closer, as does the preparation. At the time of publication, the family will be just stepping off a plane from India's classic golden triangle: Delhi, Jaipur, and Agra. It's a cultural-immersion experience since this time they're traveling with friends who have family there. Benny is curious about the Taj Mahal. "I've seen pictures and videos, and I think, 'Why is this one of the seven wonders of the world?' But when I see it, I'll believe it." He knows because that's how he felt at seeing the Grand Canyon for the first time. Lewis says he used to just get on the bus, listen to the tour guide, and go to the main hot spots. "It never occurred to me to make it a locus of study through the six months before and afterwards. But having done it that way with Benny, it's like adding sound to a movie."
They're traveling with Benny's friend, and the boys are looking forward to seeing a Mughal fort. "It's fun for them to share it with a kid their own age," Rendell says, sparking the next item on her bucket list. She's on the board of the Shakespeare youth theater New Genesis Productions, and has sights set on a tour of England with the troupe. Rendell's inspiration came while traveling there last year with Lesley Sawhill and Ron Aja, NGP's creative director and producer, respectively. "I was the tour guide, but seeing theater with people who have a deep background, we came out talking about the production aspects of it, which I wouldn't have noticed first." Uniting Sawhill's knowledge with Rendell's travel know-how offers a profound experience. Rendell feels that for the kids in NGP, many of whom have been working together for years, to see the Globe for the first time together would breathe life into it. "Nothing would top that."
