If there is one question I get asked more than any other, it is this: how do Jason and I plan a trip for our whole family? With six of us, we are juggling a wide range of ages and a long list of very different interests. And I am going to be honest with you. Sometimes the planning is hard, and it can get overwhelming. There have been plenty of trips where every single person wanted to do something completely different on the very same day.

But after visiting more than 70 countries together, I have landed on a handful of strategies that really work for our family and help everyone have a good time. Whether you are mapping out a massive family road trip across the country or flying overseas, the logistics matter more than you might think.

Below are our top 10 tips for family trip planning, plus how to put them to work in your own travel prep today. Fair warning: I am also going to spill the beans on one deeply humbling parenting fail. I promise my kids are well-behaved most of the time!

Tip 1: Have a Solid Plan

This might seem obvious, but you really do need to plan ahead. When we do not have a plan, precious time gets wasted and frustrations flare. If our whole family lands in a new city with no itinerary, chances are we will not get to see the things we were hoping to see, eat where we wanted to eat, or visit the sites at the top of our list.

We have extended family who love to poke fun at our travel itineraries, and it is all in good fun, but they are not wrong. Our itineraries are detailed. We even schedule our downtime and open time to be spontaneous or ask for local recommendations. But because we have a plan, we actually get to experience the things we traveled all that way for. For us, putting in the effort before we leave home is everything.

Hot Tip: Do your research early. Read blog posts, check out local tourism boards, and figure out how public transport works before you arrive somewhere new.

→ You can get our free Itinerary Builder here! It’s the easiest way to plan, keep track of everything, and send it out to anyone in your group. Plus, I like that it stays on your drive so you can reuse it and search your past itineraries. 

Tip 2: Know Your Group

You have to take the interests of your group into account. How do they like to vacation? Is their idea of a perfect trip a full week on the beach under an umbrella with a drink in hand? Are they history buffs, or nature lovers, or both? What are their ages?

Knowing this about your people makes all the difference. For example, I love a good beach day, but I am only good for a few hours by the water or the pool before I need something else to do. Knowing that helps us plan beach vacations (like our favorite spots in Costa Rica) that are balanced out with outdoor activities or a little exploring in the local towns. When you plan to the interests of the whole group, everyone ends up happier.

Tip 3: Take a Poll

Ask the members of your group what they actually want to do and which landmarks or sites they want to see. It turns the trip into something each person can look forward to.

In our family, I already know that a round or two of golf for Jason or an intense adventure activity for him and the older kids is what will really make their trip. So I check in with them on the activities in the area and do my best to make it happen. For example, Jason will be doing some intense rock climbing while we’re in China, while Benson and I go to a lantern-making class. 

Everyone wants to feel like they have a say, and a little input goes a long way toward a well-rounded family adventure. Include the whole crew in the process where you can. It is one of the easiest ways to get everyone excited.

Tip 4: Do Not Expect Too Much From Young Children

I have learned this one over and over: adults can usually have a great time at a kid's activity, but young children really struggle to have fun at an adult activity if it drags on too long.

If you have little ones in the group, keep the itinerary kid-friendly. A late reservation at a quiet, fancy restaurant with the whole family is usually not the move. Trust me, we have lived it. Even the most well-behaved child starts to unravel when they are starving, exhausted, and asked to sit perfectly still. "Hangry" takes on a whole new meaning when you are traveling.

Parenting Restaurant Fail 101

One night, after a long day of touring, we decided it was a brilliant idea to bring the whole family to a slow, romantic, upscale restaurant in Lake Como. Finding safe food is always a priority for me because I have celiac disease, so we had researched this spot specifically for its gluten-free options. Every other diner was dressed up and quietly enjoying their meal, and in we waltzed: a party of six Americans with tired, hungry kids.

The then three-year-old was in absolutely no mood to sit still. He got bored fast, and boredom is a recipe for disaster. I watched him gulp in a big breath of air, and I knew exactly what was coming, but it was too late. Out came the loudest burp you have ever heard in your life.

Every single head turned toward our table, and then the whole restaurant went dead silent. It is hilarious now. In that moment, it was a pure nightmare, and I knew that if I had planned it better and even had snacks on hand, it could have been mitigated. 

Hot Tip: Keep museum visits and adult-focused activities to a reasonable time limit. We also like to prep the little ones ahead of time on where we are going and what to expect. Plenty of times, half of us stay in a museum for another hour while the other half heads outside for a snack. That flexibility really ups the odds of a good visit for everyone.

Tip 5: Do Not Expect Everyone to Do Everything

When we expect everyone to do every activity, we end up disappointed and frustrated. It is so much better to give the group some room to choose.

Let the person who tends to get seasick sit out the boat ride. My whole family loves to jet-ski. Everyone but my mom. So we have figured out that everyone else can go have a blast on the water while grandma stays back on shore and gets some quiet one-on-one time with whichever grandkid needs a breather.

Meanwhile, the rest of us are out there going wild, and everyone is happy. Life is just easier when nobody is forced into an activity they hate, or when there is some give-and-take.

Tip 6: Consider a Cruise or All-Inclusive Resort

Cruises and all-inclusive resorts offer a whole menu of tours, excursions, and activities at all hours. Maybe the teenagers want to sleep in while the early risers are out photographing the sunrise. Maybe Jason wants to go on an organized snorkeling trip while I read a book by the pool all day.

The point is, on a cruise or at an all-inclusive resort, there is so much flexibility and almost always enough to do for everyone. It is one of my favorite ways to get a big group happy if we are traveling with a multi-generational group or with a bunch of families.

We’ve cruised on quite a few different cruise lines, but we’ve been really happy overall with Celebrity Cruises! 

Tip 7: Do Not Over-Plan

As much as our family needs a plan, I have also had to learn NOT to over-plan. It is so easy to get ambitious when you are mapping out a big trip. I cannot tell you how many times I have wondered whether we will ever make it back to a destination, gotten swept up in wanting to "see everything," and packed the schedule way too tight.

And then the trip becomes a chore. Everyone gets so tired and overloaded that it stops being fun. For us, travel is about wandering, experiencing, and spending real time together. That is awfully hard to do when you are sprinting from one attraction to the next with no room to breathe.

We usually like to stick to the two days on, one day off rule. I also really like to save a day or two at the end of the trip to fill with local recommendations or places we might want to go back and see. 

Tip 8: Give Everyone Some Space

This is my number one tip for group travel. In my experience, enough space is the single biggest key to everyone getting along. Everyone needs their own space, and that goes double for older kids and teenagers. 

I try to make sure our hotel rooms are roomy enough, and I keep an eye out for the moment nerves start to fray. I know families who squeeze everyone into one standard hotel room to save money, and it works for them! We’ve learned that really doesn’t work very well for our blended family. So getting two hotel rooms, if we can, or getting an Airbnb works best. You can learn how we find and pick incredible Airbnbs here! 

Beyond that, cramming everyone in usually runs up against hotel occupancy policies, and for our family it is a recipe for a meltdown. We all need a spot to retreat to when we get on each other's nerves, and that WILL happen at some point on every trip.

This is exactly where our points and miles strategy earns its keep. By using rewards, we can book a spacious vacation rental, grab two adjoining rooms, or lean on my Hyatt Globalist status to land an upgrade to a suite with a separate living area.

Tip 9: My Three Best Planning Hacks

After years of trial and error, here are my three favorite ways to actually build a family itinerary:

The Two-to-One Ratio: For an active vacation (think theme parks, hiking somewhere like the Grand Canyon, or touring through Europe), I plan two full days of sightseeing followed by a day of real downtime. That lets everyone reset and recharge. Sometimes a slow morning or an afternoon by the pool is exactly what the doctor ordered.

Balance the Clock: Try not to follow a late night with an early morning. It is not always avoidable, but it makes a massive difference when everyone is well-rested.

Leave the Last Day Blank: Especially on a heavy sightseeing trip, leave the very last day wide open. If something unexpected comes up, or there is an attraction you missed and want to circle back to, you have the time. More often than not, everyone is tired by the end anyway, and it turns into a lovely day to rest, wander, and get off the beaten path.

Tip 10: Send Out the Final Itinerary Ahead of Time

Once the plans are locked and the itinerary is set (at least a few weeks before we travel), I love sending the document out to everyone involved. That way the whole group knows exactly what to expect.

With a few weeks of runway, you also still have time to make changes or cancellations if something needs to shift. And there is something really fun about sitting down together to go over the plan for an upcoming trip. You can review the packing list, talk through expectations around social media and screen time, and go over the timing for tours.

When we have traveled with a dedicated travel company, they always send the final itinerary out a month or so ahead for us to review. I have found it is smart to follow that same example when we plan our own trips.

Bonus Tip: Use the Right Travel Cards to Fund the Fun

Funding a vacation for a blended family of six is no small thing. That is exactly why a strategic points and miles approach is so critical for us. By putting our everyday spending on the right travel rewards credit cards, we earn points that cover our flights and hotel rooms.

If you want to start earning points for your family trips, we have an entire guide to the four best cards for beginners. Each card has a reasonable annual fee, can fund a trip from a welcome bonus, and can help your family travel repeatedly on points and miles if you do it right. 

→ For the full breakdown of how we travel the world without breaking the bank, head over to our free Points and Miles Crash Course.

The Bottom Line

These are just a few of the strategies we have picked up after a whole lot of travel and plenty of trial and error. In the end, follow your gut and experiment with what works for your family. What works for one group does not always work for another, and nobody knows your people better than you do.

Happy travels!

Kam