How we plan our DIY family adventures

Are you ready to embark on an epic family adventure? With tips and advice for exploring the world together independently, this blog post looks at must-see destinations, planning advice, how to find cheap flights, and more;  we’ve got you covered!”

We’ve pooled all our knowledge and experience from our DIY family trips, and what’s more: we’ve done it on a budget!

Money

The big one. No one is going anywhere without the cash to back up those big plans, right?

When I had kids and the bills started rolling in and the costs started mounting, it was easy to get disheartened, and I really thought our travelling days might be over. We have always been frugal travellers (more out of necessity than anything else!)

We were no strangers to backpacking, hostels, couching surfing, and house sitting as a way to keep costs down and keep travelling, and as it turns out we preferred it this way. It meant that we saw a different side to the countries we were in, than if we had stayed in nice hotels all the time.

I didn’t realise how we were going to be able to do all of that with a baby, and then a baby and a toddler. We have adapted our style of travel, and we found a way to keep things a bit more organised and hassle free  ( not walking around trying to find the cheapest room in town- not much fun with a hungry or tired baby!) We still go for budget options and try to find the cheapest way to travel, although now a days we are looking at air b and b, family hostel rooms, glamping, eurocamp and family rooms in cheaper hotels.

We also save hard to fund travel over nearly anything else. Combine that with being a budget travellers, and we make it happen. Read more about how we finance our travelling here.

Planning and booking an independent trip

For anyone who is used to using travel agents or online holiday merchants ( Jet 2, Tui, etc) planning a trip independently from start to finish can seem daunting, but honestly it’s not that hard and it gives you full freedom to choose your time frame and itinerary. Click here to read the process I follow when planning a trip, as well as information on awesome adventure holiday destinations.

Driving abroad

We are big fans of driving holidays in Europe where we normally take our own car from the UK via the ferry crossing to France, and we have had road trips in Europe with the kids since they were babies to France, Switzerland, Austria and Germany. Read more about driving in France and Europe.

We have also had some epic fly/ drive trips that we have planned ourselves, we have done Route 101 from LA to San Francisco,  a circular route to Yosemite, Las Vegas and Death Valley in California, a 6 week North to South Island Road trip in New Zealand and a 4 week coastal adventure in Australia from Melbourne, Victoria to NSW.  Read more about how we plan a road trip here.

Flying

I am not a fan of flying, but, fly we must as there are places we love to travel to and flying is normally the only feasible way to get there in our time frame and budget ( although we have talked about doing a round the world trip by land and sea one day!)

Here is what we learnt about flying with kids, from our experiences with small babies to toddlers, and now, our primary aged children.

I’ve also become quite savvy in tracking down the best deals I can for flights – here’s what I do to try and keep costs down and find cheap flights.

Safety

Things we always do as a family to make sure we are prepared in an unexpected situation. Read more

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Hi! I’m Lizzie, a mum of two living in the Cotswolds. Here on Travel Happy Family, I share all of our travels with you, where we’ve been, how we got there, and how much it cost!

If you are looking for ideas on where to travel with your kids, inspiration for new destinations, or just want to follow us on our journey, welcome, and I hope you find what we write helpful

Happy travels! Xxx