Jo Jacks family

Full-time travelers or part-time travelers:

Part-time.  We are currently living in the Middle East as expats.  We have had many opportunities to travel while living abroad or by tagging along on my husband’s business trips.

Do you always take your kids along on your travels? 

Almost always – I can count a few precious days when my husband and I escaped for a romantic get-away (Thank you Grandma and Grandpa!) And an annual girls-weekend away helps me maintain my sanity, or at least I commiserate in the insanity of motherhood.

Why do you travel with your kids?

We firmly believe that global travel helps build global citizens, so we take our children with us as much as possible.  Many people think travel with young children is a waste of money as they won’t remember the journey later.  That might be true, but the children will learn so much in the process.  They’ll learn how big and different the world can be, and allow their minds to open to new possibilities.  We do educational activities at home before and after every trip to help the learning and memories stick: a semi-world-schooling approach.

Best tip(s) to travel with children: You must pack a sense of humor.  Travel with kids can be exhausting and frustrating at times – but that is when my husband and I look at each other and start laughing until we cry.  The children feed off your energy, so if you remain flexible and positive, they will too.

Favourite destination for kids: We had an amazing trip to Sri Lanka this winter.  We loved the beaches, turtle hatcheries, safaris, elephant orphanages, train rides, tea plantations, and visits to temples with the children.  It was vibrant, exotic, safe and clean.  And the Sri Lankans loved children.  There was so much packed into a small island country.

Place you wouldn’t take your kids to: Living in the Middle East, we have heard about so many beautiful places that are now unsafe for tourists (i.e. Yemen, Syria). We hope one day in the future they will be possible again.

Favourite Unesco World Heritage site visited: Petra in Jordan.  What a thrilling experience it was walking through the narrow canyon with rose-colored walls and entering the lost city.  Our children loved it too – they are happy anywhere they can scramble over rocks and ride a donkey or camel. And Jordan is another favourite destination thatloves children.