7 Trips to Take With Your Kids While They're Still Little
Some on this list may surprise you but as a travel advisor & mom, these are the ones worth planning for. And bare with me this one is a longer post because it’s important!
Our children aren’t ours to keep. I’ve been sitting with that thought lately.
They are entrusted to us for a season — a beautiful, fleeting season where we get to hold their hand, witness their firsts, kiss their boo-boos, answer the endless questions, teach and guide them, and be their soft landing place whenever they need it.
But we’re on borrowed time, and somewhere deep down, we all know it. It’s why we crave for time to slow down. Why we take a million videos and photos and find ourselves scrolling through old ones, wishing we could revisit the days when their hands were still tiny and their world felt so big.
We’re on borrowed time, and somewhere deep down, we all know it. It’s why we crave for time to slow down. Why we take a million videos and photos and find ourselves scrolling through old ones, wishing we could revisit the days when their hands were still tiny and their world felt so big.
Parenting has always reminded me of gardening, of planting a tree from seed. At first, every little bit of growth depends on you. You prepare the soil, you water it faithfully, you protect it from storms and celebrate every inch of progress and every new leaf. As the years pass, you gently prune a few branches, give it the nourishment it needs, and watch its roots grow deeper than you can ever see.
Then one day without even realizing it that little seed becomes a strong, beautiful tree. It no longer needs you to hold it upright. It can weather the small storms without you. You still care for it and stand by it whenever you can. But it has become exactly what it was always meant to become.
So what do we do with this borrowed time?
We choose intentionally. We fill the season with experiences that shape who they're becoming. We take the trips that truly have an impact.
I admit it sounds cliche but I do believe travel is the best gift you can give a child. I believe it because I’ve seen it, in my own childhood, with my own kids, and in the hundreds of families I’ve had the privilege of planning vacations for.
Travel shapes their worldview. It builds their character. It teaches lessons no classroom can replicate like adaptability, curiosity, and the confidence to find their footing somewhere unfamiliar. It shows them the world is bigger than what they know, and that they belong in it.
For me personally, it was a two-week trip to Spain as a teenager that unlocked a part of me I’m so grateful for. The combination of being immersed in the language, the food, and the way life moved differently there… I came home braver and more curious about the world than when I left. I'll save that story for another time but that trip is part of who I am today.
The ones I've planned for my own kids, and the ones I recommend most when families ask me where to start. Not because they're the most impressive destinations, but because each one does something meaningful for kids at this age. Each one stretches them in a different way.
The Mountains
The Mountains
Something shifts when you remove the noise and put kids in nature. They discover what they're made of when the trail gets harder than expected. Mountain trips aren't about the destination, but it’s about what your kids discover about themselves when you get out of the way.
An International Trip
This is the one that changes them. I can attest to this myself! International travel is where the worldview-shaping really happen and it can be humbling and exhilarating all at once. Start somewhere more accessible if you need to. But get your kids a passport and use it. The sooner, the better.
Disney
Yeah, yeah I can already hear the critics but Disney earns it’s place because JOY and WONDER are worth seeking out and protecting. There’s something quite special about seeing your child light up during their princess makeover, hugging their favorite character, riding their first rollercoaster or watching in awe of the fireworks.
Big City Trip
If your family doesn't live in a major city, this one belongs on the list. The subway, the skyline, the pizza place that's been there for 40 years. Cities teach kids how to navigate — literally and figuratively. They see how other people live. They learn to move through the world with confidence.
Tropical Getaway
This one is for the whole family, not just the kids. Warm water, white sand, and a pace that lets you actually be present. For families running full speed through the school year, the tropics are a reset. Pace matters way more than a fancy itinerary.
A History Trip
Something changes when kids experience history outside of a classroom or beyond another Youtube documentary. A history trip gives them context and it’s the kind of perspective that lasts.
A Multi-Stop Cruise
Cruising solves one of the hardest logistics of family travel: waking up somewhere new without repacking, traveling and unpacking again. The contained environment means kids can have a familiar place to come “home” to after exploring a different country or island each day.
These seven trips aren’t meant to happen all at once.
They’re meant to be collected over the years, one at a time, in the season that makes the most sense for your family's ages, energy, and rhythms.
Designing them intentionally with the right destination, the right timing, and an itinerary built around your specific family is exactly what I do! I plan all of these: Disney, cruises, international trips, city escapes, tropical getaways, and everything in between.
And I’m here to help make it happen!
Ready to Plan Your Trip?
If we haven't met yet, I'm the planner behind the magic at Magical Moms Travel Co. I design Disney World, Disney Cruise Line, and Universal Orlando vacations for families, and I test everything myself first, from resort rooms to restaurant reservations, so my recommendations come from real stays instead of stock photos. When you're ready to take a trip off your plate, that's what I'm here for.
