• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Home
  • About/Hire Me
    • About Me
    • Hire Me
    • Contact
    • Family
    • Faith
    • FAQ
    • My Running Story
    • Recipes
  • Disney
  • Fitness
    • runDisney Information Page
    • Fitness
    • Races
  • Parenting
  • Travel

Through Heather's Looking Glass

  • Disney
  • Fitness
  • Travel
  • family
  • About Me

How to Get Kids Excited About Traveling

June 29, 2022 | Travel

Some kids love the idea of traveling right off the bat, while other kids are more nervous about the prospect of flying or abandoning their usual routine.

If you have one such child, and you want them to enjoy traveling just as much as you do, you will be pleased to know that there are lots of simple things you can do to get kids excited about traveling, including the following:

 

Put some effort into the announcement

If you feel like your kids might be less than enthused about an upcoming vacation, start by finding an exciting way to break the news to them. For example, if you’re planning a trip to Disneyland, you could send them a letter from their favorite Disney princess telling them how excited they are to meet them, and it will immediately put them in the right frame of mind for the trip.  

 

Look it up on a map

Looking up your chosen travel destination on a map so your kids can see how far away it is, and then checking it out in an atlas or online to find out the most interesting facts about the place, from the local wildlife to the national dish, is another good way to get the kids excited about visiting. The more cool stuff they learn about the place, the more they will want to experience it all for themselves and you will have a much easier job of getting them in the mood for travel.

 

Let them plan the itinerary

Okay, so you probably don’t want to hand the reins over to your kids completely when you are planning what you will do on vacation, but you should let them get involved in the process. As a minimum, everyone who is google on the vacation, no matter how old or young, should be able to choose one attraction they want to visit. After all, it would be hard for anyone to get excited about a vacation where they were not getting to do anything fun for them, right?

Give each child a sheet of paper and give them a list of all the things they can do on vacation from surf camps to art galleries to theme parks. And let them make a list of what they would like to do in order of how much they would like to do it. Let them know they might not be able to do everything on the list, but that their top X choices will be included in your itinerary, and they are sure to have a lot of fun picking their top attractions out, and thinking about how great a time they will have when they get there.

 

Cook the local cuisine

If you have the kind of child who loved helping you in the kitchen or the kind of child who is pretty adventurous with the foods they will eat, then one thing you can try to get them excited about their upcoming vacation is to cook the local cuisine of the place you will be visiting.

Food and culture and inexplicably entwined, so they will learn a lot about the place they will be visiting vis the spices they use, and the dishes they prepare, and if they like the way it tastes, well trying the real thing is just one more thing for them to get excited about at the end of the day.

Learn the language

Okay, so it is unlikely that your child is going to become fluent in French in the month before you head off to Paris or that they are going to master Portuguese before you jet off to Brazil, but you can absolutely use flash cards and apps to help them, and yourself, learn a few key words like please and thank you, and doing so will not only make them more excited for the trip they are about to take, but it will also help them to better engage when on vacation. If you learn them important phrases like asking for help, then it could also help to keep them safe when you are on your next trip too, so it is really never a bad thing to do.

 

Read books

Reading books that are set in the location you plan to travel to is a really nice way to teach your kids more about the place in a way that they will find fun and engaging. If they get into that story, they will not be able to wait until they are walking the same streets that their favorite character has walked and they will not be able to try the same foods and visit the same attractions as the characters in the book either. To children, books are a real presence in their world, and by linking the fictional world with the real one, you can add some real magic to their vacations.

 

Start a scrapbook

You may think that is more traditional to start a vacation scrapbook after you have visited the location, taken lots of photos, and bought some souvenirs, and that is probably true, but there is nothing stopping you from starting a scrapbook with your kids before you go. 

Buy glossy magazines or download images of your vacation destination, and have the kids cut out and stick the images that most resonate with them, they can use it kind of like a vision board to show you what they would lie to do on vacation, while also finding out more about the place, and helping to whet their appetites for their trip.

Once the vacation is over, they can add their memories of the trip to their scrapbook and keep it as a reminder of all the fun they had and all the things they learned on their vacation. It’s the kind o thing you will all treasure when your kids are older and you’re looking back on the good times you had.

 

Show them your old vacation snaps

Showing your kids photos of the vacations you have taken in the past so they can see how much fun you were having and how beautiful the places you visited were is a great way to not only get them excited for their trip, but also to bond with them over your life experiences and the experiences they are going to embark on in the near future. They will love seeing mom and dad out of their usual home and work settings and they will feel like going on vacation is truly something special.

 

Start a countdown

We have advent calendars that count us down to Christmas, and as you will probably know, they are very effective at ramping up the excitement in children of many ages, and more than a few adults too! So, why not start your own countdown to your next vacation? Buy a calendar and mark off the days every morning with the kids and they are sure to start feeling the excitement ramp up whether they have been particularly excited in the past or not.

Travel is so good for children. It teaches them more about the world around them, different cultures, and new ways of being and living in the world; it broadens their horizons more than you can imagine, so the sooner you can get them excited about travel, the richer their, and your, lives will be, and the easier it will be to plan family vacations that every single one of you is onboard with.

Like this:

Like Loading...

Sign up for my newsletter

Primary Sidebar

I am Heather Montgomery, a 30 something southern girl living in Knoxville, Tennessee with my husband Bobby, 10-year-old daughter Emma Kate, and our goldendoodles Dolly and Luna. I’m just a regular girl who likes to workout, travel, hang with my family, text, and eat chips and queso. Be sure to check out my “about me” page for more info!
Thank you for visiting, and feel free to contact me with questions, (or for PR inquiries or press trip invites) at Support@HeathersLookingGlass.com.

Please, no guest post requests. 🙂

More about me

Privacy Policy

You can also find me here:

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Recent Posts

  • 5 Reasons to Try a New Way of Travel
  • Experience Superhero-Sized Fun at Gaylord Opryland DC Summer
  • Digital Nomads: Safely Working Remotely While You Roam
  • Tips for Surviving (and Thriving) as a Travel Ball Mom
  • Protecting Your Kids’ Eyes In the Digital Age

 

Search

How to Start a Blog

How to start a blog
We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.
  • Disney
  • Fitness
  • Travel
  • Family
I call it the lazy girl’s cookies ‘n cream dre I call it the lazy girl’s cookies ‘n cream dream cake—because it’s quick, no-bake, and made with love (and @BRCIceCream frozen treats 😉). #BlueRibbonClassics_Partner

This little recipe is one my mom used to make with me, and now I get to pass it down to my daughter. It’s messy, a little imperfect… and absolutely delicious. 💙

All you need is:

🍦  Blue Ribbon Classics Cookies ‘n Cream frozen hand-held treats

🍫 Whipped cream

🍪 Crushed chocolate sandwich cookies

➡️ Layer, freeze, slice, and enjoy!

Affordable. Easy. And honestly? A sweet memory in the making.

📍Find Blue Ribbon Classics hand-held treats near you. Link in stories.

#blueribbonclassics #brcicecream #makeitsweet #CookiesNCreamBar #NoBakeDessert #MomLife #SweetMemories #BusyMomHack
🌟 Giveaway!! 🌟 Escape to the peaceful side 🌟 Giveaway!! 🌟 

Escape to the peaceful side of the Smokies 🌿✨ 

Newly reopened @tremontlodge in Townsend, TN has everything you need for a relaxing getaway while still being close enough to all the excitement of Pigeon Forge:

• Spacious rooms & cozy suites 💛

• Indoor and outdoor pools + hot tub 💦 

• Fitness center 💪🏻 

• Complimentary breakfast buffet ☕️ 

• On-site game room + outdoor movie nights 🎥 

• Outdoor firepit lounge & BBQ area 🔥 

• Walking trails right on the property 🌲 

• A hidden speakeasy for the grown-ups 😉🍸

Just minutes from Cades Cove, tubing, and some of the best hikes in the Smokies! Right now I’m GIVING AWAY a two night stay at this serene resort!

Here’s how to enter:

- Follow @HeathersLG and @Tremontlodge
-Like this post 
-Comment your favorite thing to do in the mountains 
-Tag two friend in the comments (can tag more for more entries!) 

Bonus 5 entries! ✨ 
-Share on your stories and tag us so we can see! 

Not sponsored or endorsed by Instagram. Must be 18+ to enter. Closes July 3, 2025 at Midnight. Winner chosen on or around July 5th and notified by this account ONLY via DM and tagged on this post in the caption.
Hi! Nice to meet you. Can you tell me which you pr Hi! Nice to meet you. Can you tell me which you prefer, camera facing/talking to camera content or b-roll with voiceovers, and if you are feeling chatty…..why is this? 

#contenthelp #trialreels #popstroke
It was worth a shot. 🏝️ Share with someone It was worth a shot. 🏝️ 

Share with someone you want to “double check” with you! 🩷

#beachlife #beachlover #summervacation2025 #beachmemes
Future me had some thoughts during Prime Day 😂 Future me had some thoughts during Prime Day 😂 #Ad #NewChapter_Partner 

She’s tired, she’s juggling a million things, and she just wants to feel good without overthinking it. So this year, we’re prioritizing wellness while it’s on sale! 🛒 What’s in my Prime Day cart: 

✨@newchapterinc Every Woman’s One Daily Multivitamin – 20+ nutrients my body actually recognizes 
💪 Bone Strength Take Care – because #momlife is basically a full-contact sport and my bones need all the help they can get
 🧘‍♀️ Magnesium + Ashwagandha – my secret for calm & relaxation support 
🌿 All-Flora Gummies – dual-action gut support that tastes amazing (and with 55% less sugar!) 

👉 Add these to your Prime Day cart TODAY! Link in bio 
#NCxAmazonPrimeDay2025 #NewChaptervitamins
🏆 Backyard races, basketball showdowns, and tra 🏆 Backyard races, basketball showdowns, and trampoline flips — summer fun takes serious energy. And around here, the real MVP is a cold glass of @mayfielddairy Chocolate Milk. 🍫🥛 (ad)

And it’s not just any chocolate milk...it’s:
✅ Award-winning taste
✅ Rich and creamy
✅ Made fresh with local dairy
✅ From a trusted, farmer-owned brand that’s been bringing families together for generations 💛

Find it in the dairy aisle and make your summer a winner. 🙌 

#MayfieldMoments #ChocolateMilkWin #FarmerOwned #AwardWinningTaste #BackyardChampion #MomLife #SouthernSummer
We have been having a great June so far! We recent We have been having a great June so far! We recently spent some time in Pigeon Forge at @dollywood and @downtownflavortown, two of our faves. 

If you haven’t been to either, add them to your list! Dollywood has tons of great rides and shows (we are season pass holders so go often!) and Downtown Flavortown has amazing food, an arcade and duck pin bowling. They were kind enough to have us come visit and eat with them. 

Are you going anywhere fun this summer? 

#dollywood #downtownddlavortown #pigeonforge

Copyright © 2025 · Through Heather's Looking Glass · Theme by Bella Creative Studio

 

Loading Comments...
 

You must be logged in to post a comment.

    %d