By Rachel Felder
It is not easy to get a teenager to part with her phone. (Photo: Thinkstock)
It inevitably happens to every parent who loves to travel with their
kids: those once-docile young children become teenagers, and, when
they’re away from home, suddenly become moody, irritable, opinionated,
and glum. (Come to think of it, that’s the way most adolescents are at
home a lot of the time, too.)
The realization for me—the parent of a teenager who has grown up
traveling with her mom—came late last year, when a sunny winter week in
Miami was marred by my daughter sulking indoors, attached to her
computer, grimacing at the prospect of even a little beach time, a
stroll along Lincoln Road, or an afternoon at the Bass Museum.
Since then, I’ve come up with a handful of strategies to keep us both
happy, even as adolescent angst has set in. Here are my sanity-saving
pointers—all learned the hard way.
Far apart, right next to one another. (Photo: Thinkstock)
Pack the Right Gear: Traveling often includes planes
without Internet, television channels that aren’t in English, and train
and car rides without cell-phone signals or other kids to hang out
with. Just as you’d bring snacks and crayons for a younger child, make
sure your teen has plenty of distractions: movies and television shows
downloaded into a tablet or computer, books (to plow through summer
reading assignments), sturdy headphones, plus age-appropriate munchies
(in my daughter’s case, granola bars and small bags of popcorn). And as
mature as your 13-year-old may be, candy still goes a long way to make
kids of all ages smile.
Keep in Touch: If your teenager’s anything like
mine, at home he or she is glued to the cellphone for what seems like 25
hours a day. When we’re traveling, we earmark a time every day—the only
time every day—for smartphone or computer use. For us, it’s one hour,
strategically chosen to coincide with the time I tend to need a breather
from sightseeing, or simply have an energy dip from jet lag (it’s
usually mid-afternoon in Europe, late afternoon on beach vacations,
early evening on a visit to the Napa Valley). Sometimes we take this
break at our hotel, but often—particularly in Europe, where wireless
charges can be pricey—we’ll simply pop into a Starbucks
or local cafe. Otherwise, her phone is turned off, saving roaming
charges and the temptation to spend the day immersed in a group chat
instead of absorbing the destination at hand.
Picking one time a day to check devices is a useful tool when traveling with teens. (Photo: Thinkstock)
Hone their Concierge Skills: Since they’re on the
internet so much anyway, encourage your teens to research places to
check out, whether that’s the beach that other teens will be at or the
best local spot to get a cup of chocolate gelato. I’ve convinced myself
that there’s academic value in this—it’s almost like doing research for a
term paper, right? But, even if it’s just for fun, that virtual legwork
is an ideal way to get even the most sullen teenage excited about and
involved in an upcoming trip. Finding the best cheap and trendy clothing
shops in Madrid? That counts as useful research, too.
Sometimes it’s ok to ditch the museums. (Photo: Thinkstock)
Choose Your Museums Wisely: When my daughter was
small, she’d be up for full days in highbrow art museums, providing I’d
build in time for lunch, ice cream, and a stop in the gift shop. Now
that she’s older, I’ve learned to offset a morning in a museum with an
afternoon exploring, shopping, or going to an attraction she loves, like
the London Eye.
If I choose the museum, she gets to choose another activity, even if
it’s far less cultural. We go out of our way to find museums that are
accessible and teen-friendly, like the London Transport Museum in Covent Garden or Paris’s quirky Musée Gourmand du Chocolat.
How to entertain a teen with a sweet tooth? A visit to the Musée Gourmand du Chocolat. (Photo: Thinkstock)
Tie in School: Traveling with the
family is fun, but—unless you’re planning to just lie on a beach—it can
be filled with culture, too. Let your teen’s teachers know where you’re
going. Sometimes a trip can be the source of a great report or class
presentation when you get home, and prepping for that schoolwork can
help engage your teen while you’re away.
Rethink Your Souvenirs: When my daughter was
younger, trip mementos would be snow globes, a doll, and usually a
T-shirt with each destination’s name across the chest in bold letters.
As she’s gotten older, we pick up trinkets that are more subtle—iPhone
cases, little bags, a key chain with a bright magenta Eiffel Tower—that
all fall within a souvenir budget we figure out in advance. Even if
something doesn’t seem site specific—like, say, a plain blue top from Primark
on London’s Oxford Street your child will remember its provenance.
Since teenagers are so focused on their friends, if you find something
cheap and appealing (like the friendship bracelets we picked up on a
beach in Mallorca a couple summers ago), buy a few extras as gifts for
their BFFs back home.
Who doesn’t love a cheap souvenir? (Photo: Thinkstock)
No comments:
Post a Comment