are we there yet?
Picture this – you spend your youth backpacking, discovering some of the world’s most remarkable locations and getting away from the tourist traps. Then you get a little older, fall in love and soon you’re a parent – surely your days of adventure are behind you, right? Wrong!
In fact, Intrepid Travel is proving that travelling with kids can be even more rewarding than travelling solo. Intrepid’s co-founder Darrell Wade says that travelling with his family has opened up a whole new way of discovering the world; however, initially he was worried that his backpacking days were over…
“The same year I co-founded Intrepid, my wife and I co-founded our family. A travel company and kids both seemed like great ideas, but are families and real travel mutually exclusive? Would I ever get the backpack out again? Would kids destroy the incredible joy I have had from travel over the years? Anna and I were a little concerned.”
“My concerns have long since vanished. Our 3 kids all had passports by the time they were out of nappies and now have all done multiple trips around the world – some they can’t even remember. Let me tell you that families and travel do mix. We’ve had a great time together and grown closer as a family through our travel, but that’s not to say that it’s all easy. It requires a slightly different style than if you were without kids – a little more comfort at times (such as a pool) and some different activities (swap the museum for an elephant ride).”
And what does Darrell think is the best part of travelling as a family? “The absolute best thing about travel with children is that some extra doors open to you because I think you seem a bit more real and approachable to the locals. And you can see your kids grow too – they get new skills and a greater appreciation of the wonderful and varied world we live in. They’re happy to leave the Playstation behind and accept whatever new things come their way – kids are so much more adaptable and accepting than us grown-ups!”
It was from this philosophy that Intrepid’s Family Adventures were born. Designed to give families maximum adventure with minimum hassle, these trips have become a huge success. Intrepid is proving that adventure travel doesn’t have to end when you start a family. In fact, with a bit of additional planning and a flexible attitude, having a family means the adventure has just begun!
