Travel: A True Gift

This month's post is brought to you by one of H&K Luxury Travel's travel consultants, Amber Dixon.  She is a great resource for family vacation planning and we are proud to have her as a guest writer for our blog.  Enjoy her insights and tips.

As a parent it is so easy to get caught up in the day to day grind of school, homework, activities, cooking and laundry – not to mention making sure you are raising your children to be decent, productive human beings.

One of the greatest gifts I have been able to give myself and my children has been one on one travel. I was recently in New York City with my middle son, Thomas, and it was the best trip ever. Just the two of us – no siblings, no spouse, just us. We were able to focus on the things that Thomas likes to do, move about the city more quickly than if we had more people in tow, and he had my undivided attention. But the greatest part of traveling one on one with one of your children is that you learn things about them that you didn’t know before – like the simple fact that Thomas likes kid shows that aren’t animation and wanted to see the new Beauty and the Beast movie.

Traveling with kids – no matter how many – always brings unique challenges and you can make the most of your vacation by making some simple choices and thinking ahead.

1.  Choose Your Flight Times Wisely
Do as I say, not as I do. We live a couple of hours away from the closest large airport so when we travel as a family we generally pick a late morning/early afternoon flight so that we don’t have to wake up and get everyone ready at the break of dawn. I chose an early morning flight for our one on one trip to New York City which required us to leave our house before 6 am. That was a mistake. Thomas was tired by the time we got to New York City and we spent most of the first day just hanging out and had an early bed time. A later flight would have allowed us to sleep later and be more adventurous our first day in the city.

2.  Let Your Kids Do Weird Things
Thomas loves pigeons. When we were in Washington Square Park there was a man who was feeding and holding pigeons. Now, this is not normally something I would encourage my children to do because it seems ridiculously dirty.  But I could tell Thomas really, really wanted to hold and feed a pigeon as he stared longingly as some other kids joined in. So I handed him a few dollars to donate for the bird seed and he had the absolute time of his life with those pigeons!

3.  Consider Your Kids Interest
Maybe the most important thing to consider when traveling with kids is what they are interested in. No matter where you travel if your days are full of only things that interest you as the parent then your kids behavior is going to be less than ideal. Thomas loves candy so we made several stops at candy stores, including Dylan’s Candy Bar. We also took into consideration that Thomas loves dance, drums and was interested in seeing the One World Observatory when planning our days. We also chose to see STOMP off-Broadway and Thomas belly laughed throughout the show because it fit his taste in entertainment and humor perfectly.

4.  Be Flexible
When traveling with kids even the best plans need to be tweaked. One of the things we wanted to do was eat at the Cookie Do restaurant that has recently become a viral sensation. But, due to the weather (it was cold and rainy) I knew that no one would be happy to wait in the two hour line. We also spent more time than I would have preferred playing in Central Park but at the end of our trip that was exactly what Thomas needed to do before traveling home.

So take your kids to explore new places! It is one of the most precious gifts you can give your children and yourself.

Travel Trends for 2016

A new year is upon us. New years bring new beginnings and new opportunities.  Maybe you are one of those persons that like the newness of the new year.  Maybe you like to think about doing things you have never done or seeing places you have never seen.  Well the travel industry is well equipped this year to offer everyone something new and exciting.  Here are some examples of what is hot for 2016.

1) Cuba.  This destination has been making the news now for quite some time but it is still very misunderstood.  It is not "open" to tourism as some headlines make you think.  But it is accessible through the right tourism channels.  Now is the time to investigate those channels before it does become more open and more hotels and resorts descend upon the pristine beaches staking their claim for the future.

2) The "other side of Mexico."  Major hotels and luxury resorts are seeing the potential in places like Cabo San Lucas and Zihuatanejo/Ixtapa.  These are still destinations where you can escape the larger crowds that flock to the Caribbean side of Mexico.  Hotels to consider are the new The Cape in Cabo and Capella in Ixtapa.  Enjoy some of the most gorgeous sunsets and beautiful beaches found anywhere in the world.

3) Experiential Travel.  More and more travelers are weary of the same old same old when it comes to vacationing.  Sitting on a beach with an umbrella drink was fun the first 5 or so times, but thanks to social media, more travelers are seeing that there are exciting experiences awaiting them out in the big old world.  So travelers are now looking for their vacations to be one of a kind experiences that they can brag about to their friends via sites such as Instagram, Snapchat etc.  This makes destinations such as Costa Rica or Guatemala places that are seeing increases in tourism.

4) Year of the Dragon.  I am using that phrase generically to show that so many areas of Asia are on the radar now for 2016.  When large luxury hoteliers such as St Regis or the Four Seasons start building new properties in areas, you know that they are seeing trends that are making these destinations the next hot area.  Such is the case with Japan, China and Korea.  If you have been to Hawaii, you are already half way there.

5) River Cruising.  No longer are river cruises for those that carry certain cards to get certain benefits because of their birth dates falling before a certain year.  Get what I mean? Tour companies such as Tauck and Disney are seeing that river cruising is for all age groups within a family.  It is one of those vacations where grandma, grandpa, mom, dad and son and daughter can all go together and have something enjoyable to see and do during the vacation. This means that staterooms, menus and activities are all being designed to cater to all ages and families are seeing this as a great opportunity for the whole group to get together for a once in a lifetime vacation.