A family vacation is supposed to be about bonding, which isn't easy when the men want to play golf, the women want to lounge in a spa, and the kids want to play all day. That's where grandma — the social director extraordinaire (SDE) — comes in.
She can schedule fun things in which everyone can participate, or — after the kids go to bed — entertainment just for adults. A little friendly competition can even be included with the winner awarded a prize (which grandma has stashed in her suitcase). Unless she ordains an assistant for the trip, just remember, Granny is in charge.
The family matriarch can get the show on the road even before the plane takes off. For example, she can casually find out a couple of each traveler's favorite movies and rent them. If bad weather hits, a choice DVD will appear from her suitcase magically.
Here are some of this granny's favorite plans for a family powwow.
Daytime Activities
Find a daytrip that will interest everyone. For example, our family trip to St. Maarten/St. Martin included a visit to a Butterfly Farm. The kids were fascinated by the flittering creatures while the adults not only enjoyed watching the kids, but took home some useful information about attracting butterflies to their gardens.
A picnic or a beach day is always a fun family event. Hours alongside the surf can include a sand-sculpture-or-sand-castle contest. Dream up novel ways of burying grandpa in the sand. Search for shells. Getting doused by waves, while trying to retrieve that weird shell, is always good for laughs. The most unusual shell can win a prize.
But what if it rains? Grandma is ready. Besides the DVDs, the social director has other stuff to do like puzzles or extra paper and pencils for fun, all-ages games like Pictionary, hangman, or celebrity (a form of charades where you get a name and must give clues until someone guesses correctly).
Of course, there's always the sing-along. You really can't attain full volume if you're staying in a hotel room, but in a villa or a large time-share, noise isn’t a factor. The family can vote for the worst singer, usually, the person singing the loudest. That honor means he or she has to buy everyone ice cream.
Evening Activities
After dinner, often it's still early. While there's a tendency to flop on the couch and flip through channels on the TV, that's not a good way to promote family bonding. Better to organize movie night, charades, bingo — games that can fill the evening. Create a trivia game about trip activities, family history, or other simple things. Just remember to make it easy enough so the little ones can play and the older kids won't be bored.
A talent show might sound dorky, but that is half the fun. And it doesn’t have to be solo. My grandchildren and I perform hand-puppet shows. A few puppets don't take up too much suitcase room and the kids love it. They set up rows of chairs like a theater and make up a silly theme and ad-lib. Once, my 3-year-old grandson forgot to put his puppet above the table and did his whole performance under a chair.
Besides putting on a puppet show, there can be singing, dancing, silly poetry, or whatever. But this is one of those things where you need to get your act together before you leave. Showcase everyone's special talent, whether its wiggling a loose tooth or raising one eyebrow.
Casino night is another happening event. Everyone can play card games like Uno, old maid, go fish, rummy or even blackjack. If you're playing with the kids, don't do it for money; that creates bad habits. Wait until they go to bed before you bring out the bucks.
The adults in our family always have a book club. The toughest thing is to get a book that everyone wants to read and one that can create a good discussion. Last year, no one liked my daughter's selection, but it did prompt a lively debate and gave us all a reason to give her grief.
You don't have to have a planned activity every night, although it does make empty hours in the villa or hotel room quite entertaining. You might think these things are corny, but I assure you, the SDE does not. And remember, Social Director Extraordinaire is an equal opportunity position that can be filled by grandpa as easily as grandma.
Trip preparations
- Your top priority: Create a master plan.
- Accumulate prizes (small toys for the kids and cheesy gifts for adults).
- Bring at least one copy of the book-club book.
- Plan Grandma’s trivia game.
- Pack a small bingo set, Scrabble game, Uno, cards, dice, and jigsaw puzzle.
- Fill an iPod with all sorts of tunes, including Glenn Miller and Hannah Montana, for an impromptu dance party.
- Take speakers for the iPod.
More ways to get the most from family travel time:
* The Politics of Family Vacations
* 100 Free Things to Do with Your Grandkids
* Take Our Travel Quiz
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