5 reasons to start traveling full time with kids NOW
Lots of people postpone living their traveling dream life. They wait until retirement or until their kids are grown up. The idea that your traveling life ends when you start a family is widespread. This is such a waste! Why sit around at an office 40+ hours a week, facing traffic jams every day and yearn for your next holiday? Because traveling with kids is irresponsible? Well, I’ll give you 5 reasons why you should start traveling full time with your kids right now!
1. Kids learn to live their own meaningful life
We create for our kids a new definition of ‘normal’ and they are free to choice their own path. If they want to have the regular path of college, job, and mortgage, they can. If they want something else, they have the freedom to do so. We make our kids see that there is so much more possible in life than most think. There is no ‘someday’. That someday probably won’t come. With the right motivation, it is possible to live a memorable and meaningful life right now.
Also, living on the road means living a simple life; without lots of toys and clothes. They learn to appreciate small things in life and they learn they sometimes need to say goodbye to things they are attached to. This makes them less materialistic, which I think adds to creating a meaningful life.
2. Traveling full time leads to global awareness and respect
By traveling full time they experience so many different cultures. Their global awareness is enormous! Traveling learns children to see differences different. They learn to respect themselves and others, where ever they are from.
This awareness benefits them the rest of their life. They can be generous and open-minded toward everyone, no matter their background. If more politician, world leaders and CEO’s would gain this insight, it could save lives.
3. Stability comes from within
Traveling kids experience that stability comes from within, from themselves and their family, and that ‘home’ has a broad definition. They don’t need regular school days, sitting in a classroom 5 or 6 hours a day, and going to sports and hobby clubs and having play dates. Stability is having their parents around, having breakfast every morning without rushing, and having the time to explore the world together.
Want to read more about stability on the road? Read my blog post about working and traveling with kids and my blog post ‘Stability for traveling families: is traveling full-time with your kids irresponsible?‘.
4. Slow travel means getting involved with local people
Traveling full time with kids equals slow travel. It is therefore so much different from the regular vacation. Vacation is mostly about being some place else for one or two weeks, visiting as many interesting places as possible while feeling obliged to relax as much as possible as well. Traveling full time and spending months in one place is all about being together as a family, exploring a destination, learning its language and get involved with its culture and local people.
5. Living on the road is a powerful way of learning
Traveling is education in its purest form. No classroom can equal the learning possibilities of kids living on the road. A teacher can tell vividly about the old Greek or World War II, but seeing the Greek temples or the extermination camps yourselves leaves a lasting impression.
Traveling full time also increases children’s creativity. They see how people all over the world earn their money and that the vast majority doesn’t wear a suit while traveling to an office every day. They see how so many people are small business owners and we hope this inspires them to start their own, even when only 8 or 10 yo.
Sidenote: It is not my purpose to advocate that every family should live a nomadic lifestyle. I only want to point out some arguments in favor of traveling full time with your kids and tackle some misconceptions about this topic.
What do you think is a good reason for traveling full time with kids?
