Why is travel important for your teens? Children won’t remember the first time you take them abroad when they’re very young, but teenagers will remember every single moment. Teenagers are on the precipice of change, and if you can drill in an excitement and a thirst for adventure now, you’re going to have happy adults on your hands! Travel allows you to educate your teenagers on being citizens of the world, and between your efforts and the efforts and opportunities of their school, you can shape wonderfully educated adults.
Maximizing the opportunities that your children have for something new and exciting is important. They can learn new languages when you take them to new places, and they can learn how to live like a local on school study tours. Teenagers get to dip a toe into the cultural melting pot the world has to offer, and you get to be the reason they start looking beyond social media for excitement. So, how can you maximise your teenager’s experience while they are travelling?
Take Regular Trips
You don’t have to splash the cash to inject a little travel into your teenager’s life. We spend so much of our time in our local areas, and never really reach beyond our own town. Start with regular trips to local towns nearby. Your teenager can begin to make connections with the cities and towns that are more local to you. If you’re in England, spend time in London, but also go to Cornwall and see the beaches there. Look beyond your own front door but realise that you don’t have to go abroad to show them the sites.
Create Your Own Traditions
When you travel together, think about creating your very own traditions together. What if your teenager started their own collection of souvenirs? For every new country or city they visited, they could collect something that they choose. They could choose postcards, ornaments or keyrings. Something that will be memorable and meaningful to them will help you to create a new tradition that they’ll hold onto for life.
Talk About A Year Away
Some teenagers skip out on heading to university right away, and who can blame them? Why go back to school for three more years before you take a year out to see the world with friends? Travelling is a rite of passage for a lot of teenagers, and while some go directly to Europe, others head to Australia or America. Giving your teenager this freedom will make a huge difference to the way that they feel about the world and gives them some real-life experience.
Prepare Them
Teenagers need to be prepared for the world of travel open to them. It’s not all beach holidays; travelling involves seeing the tops of the mountains and the insides of the caves! It’s going to give your teenager some excellent adventures and you get a chance to watch them grow and develop as they discover the whole world. Travel matters to your teenager – so why not start researching now?
This is a collaborative post.
