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There are lots of family adventure
stories already out there on the world wide web. We've put together
this page of links to help you find them. Follow the links and
start exploring.
We welcome suggestions for other stories
to list here. Please report any broken links.
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Links to published
feature pieces about family adventure in newspapers, magazines
available online.
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Links to websites and blogs written by adventuring
families about their past, present or future adventures.
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Links will open in a new window.The
Family Adventure Project is not responsible for the content of linked
sites.
The appearance of a link here does not imply any form of recommendation.
Articles and features
Go wild in the country |
See your feature here |
If you fancy a real taste of the great outdoors - away from the mini suburbia of campsites - try wild camping, says Dixe Wills in this UK Guardian piece. The views are much better and it won't cost you a penny: You genuinely feel part of the countryside, not once removed from it. |
If you have suggestion for a feature you think we should link to, please get in touch and let us know. It can be something you have written or something you have read that has inspired you to do something adventurous with your family. |
No set route, no return date |
Holidaying on the cheap |
The Weller family decided they wanted more out of life before it was too late and the kids all left home, so they sold everything, moved into a 1973 double-decker bus and set off on a journey across Europe. In this UK Guardian feature, Chris Broughton meets the Wellers and talks with them about their new lifestyle. You can read about the family's adventures and how it all ended on their blog, www.usonthebus.com
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It doesn't have to cost the earth to adventure as a family, even for extended periods of time. If you know how, you can take a long break with your kids and end up spending less than you would at home. In this feature from the UK Guardian, Kate Shipp explains how she managed to spend five months taking her family around Spain, Portugal, Morocco, France and Italy for £3,000. And Sally Hamilton offers some more money saving tips on family holidays here. |
Finding manenomes |
The longest ride of your life |
One of the challenges of family adventure is choosing activities and itineraries that will meet the needs of the whole family. In this feature Paula Holmes Eber, a long time family adventurer, reflects on what she's learnt about adventuring with her children by bike as they've grown up and offers a few tips on how to select a route your kids will love. |
Well family adventures don't get much bigger than cycling around the world. And if you want some advice about how to do it then you'd better ask someone who's done it. Here, Paul Eber Holmes shares hard won wisdom from her family's three years planning and fifteen months riding around the world. Given the right preparation, anything is possible. |
Have Kids - Will Adventure |
Adventure in the desert - children will love it |
2007 UK Sunday Times piece by Miles Barker on taking his kids (age 6 and 8) on an adventure holiday in Vietnam. Miles tells of some of the drama, pleasures and tension of travelling in unfamiliar cultures with younger children, especially when you're on your own. |
2005 UK Independent piece by Adrian Mourby about taking took his family to Morroco to introduce them to another culture. "They didn't like everything they saw but they didn't like everything at Disney either. At least here they were broadening their horizons rather than just shaking hands with Goofy." |
Where do we go from here? The Times |
A family affair - why spouses stay behind |
UK Times
piece by Rachel Tims, written nine months into a family gap year, about how spending time with the family is not as easy as it sounds, especially when used to the stimulus of work and career, on the challenge of 24/7 parenting with no school or school holidays, and some of the many dilemmas raised about the biggest question of all, what will you do when it's all over? Also online, The rats can race without us, Journey of our lives, Goodbye City, So Long Identity Born Free in Africa |
If you're struggling to persuade a family member to sign up to your family adventure dream, then this piece by Paula Holmes-Eber may help. Having biked 10000 miles around the world with her husband and teenage daughters she knows a thing or two about the intricacies of getting everyone on board. This is a piece not just about why spouses stay behind - but more importantly, how to change their minds. |
Kalahari with kids: The Sunday Times |
Family Adventures in Laos & Vietnam |
UK Sunday Times piece by William Gray about taking his five year old twins to stay with the bushmen of the Kalahari. Read just how different things can be on a family holiday. |
UK Sunday Times piece by Mary Ann Sieghart on travelling with teenage daughters to cook, sail, shop and elephant trek in Indo-China. |
Yipee
no school for a year: The Guardian |
Family
Adventures: The Sunday Times |
UK Guardian
piece on Andrew Nelson and his wife who took their three sons out
of school for a round the world trip of a lifetime. Get an idea
of how much it costs with budget figures and some practical tips
on making it easier to travel RTW with kids. |
UK Sunday
Times piece on Family Adventures: 'Just because you're a family
doesn't mean you have to settle for the beach. Simon Spilsbury takes
Kiah, 7, and Imogen, 5, off to the wilds of Thailand, while Jeremy
Lazell chooses ten more adventures to thrill you and yours.' |
Our
Big Adventure: The Times
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One
Hull of a School: Education Telegraph |
UK The Times piece by Mary Ann Sieghart about what prompted her
and her husband to leave the rat race for four months, and about
the chaos that ensues when you try to put your 'normal' life on
hold to follow a dream for a while. With a few interesting insight
into some of the practicalities that need taking care of when
planning a family adventure. |
UK Education
Telegraph feature by Richard Tracey in which he describes what it's
like to teach your own kids while travelling. Find our what a broad
syllabus travel can provide and get a little insight into the options,
mechanics, joys and trials of homeschooling on the road or, in this
case, when all at sea. |
Songs
of the South
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Package
deal or do it yourself? |
UK Guardian feature about campervanning with a toddler in New
Zealand. Jimmy Leach gives a taste of what it's like to tour the
wide open spaces of New Zealand in a confined space with a little
one. |
UK Guardian
feature in which family travel columnist Dea Birkett weighs up the
pro's and con's of packaged deals and independent adventures. Six
families explain their preferred itinerary, hopes, fears and budgets,
giving a few ideas for packaged and independent adventure destinations. |
Story
Book Setting for a Family Adventure
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South
Africa; A Big Country for Little People |
UK Guardian
feature about Jeannette Hyde's experience of taking her four-year-old
daughter to Geilo, Norway for her first ski trip. A family friendly
resort with lots of extras to keep little ones entertained, like
husky rides, sleigh rides, ski-dooing, ice-skating, wolf farms,
wild elk and reindeer spotting and even a chance to visit Santa. |
UK Sunday
Times piece by William Gray about a two week self drive family adventure
around South Africa's Cape, 'a civilised first timer's adventure.'
Details about itineraries and attractions around the Cape. This
kind of experience is a good way to build the confidence you may
need to plan your own more intrepid adventures. |
Perfect
kombi nation
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How
to find freedom with a campervan |
UK Guardian feature by Jane White. When Jane told friends she
was taking her three-year-old on a tour of New Zealand in an old
camper van they said she was mad. Well, was she? A good insight
into the trials and tribulations of campervanning with little
ones and the joys of New Zealand. |
UK The
Times feature by William Gray about his experience campervanning
with toddler twins in New Zealand. For him 'theres no better
way to explore than by camper van and theres no better
place to do it than in New Zealand.' If campervanning interests
you, read this and the feature perfect kombi nation also on this
page before you commit! |
Far
flung but for the kids |
Reserved for your online feature? |
UK Times
feature by Janice Turner about travelling a little further afield
with young kids. More adventurous destinations are possible with
kids and bring their own rewards as well as challenges. Find out
how Janice Turners turned her two small boys into travellers
in Sri Lanka |
If you've got a feature piece online about your family adventures and you'd like to see it featured here, then get in touch, let us have the details, and let us take a look. We're always on the lookout for high quality features that give other adventurous families ideas, advice or inspiration to get out adventuring together. |
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Websites and blogs of
adventurous families
Laural Ringler, Family Adventure Mentor |
Reserved for your website ? |
Laural Ringler and her intrepid husband have bicycled, backpacked and kayaked thousands of miles in Europe and North America both with and without their adventuresome two kids. So we know Laural can write with some authority about adventuring as a family. She's a regular contributor to Adventures Northwest Magazine, has published over fifty articles and is an adventure mentor for families, teens, individuals and groups. And now she's sharing her experience through her Family Adventure blog. She's also generously contributed a feature on planning family adventures to our site.
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If you've got a blog or website about your family adventures and you'd like to see it featured here, then get in touch, let us have the details, and let us take a look. We're happy to link to sites that give other adventurous families ideas, advice or inspiration to get out there. |
Six in the World |
Soul Travellers Three |
Sixintheworld is the site of a RTW family of six, age 4 to 38 who took on on an 11-month global adventure in August 2006. Their website and blog tracks their preparation, travels, and return to the US. You can even find out how much it all cost. A great example of a normal family taking 365 days out of their everyday lives to circumnavigate the world, explore interesting places, make new friends, and learn a little more about themselves and the world we all inhabit. |
Here's a family of three creating their own family odyssey. The mission? To see the world, know it more deeply, connect deeper with ourselves, as a family and with others, experience freedom, bliss and peace in new and profound ways. They're on an open-ended, years long slow trip RTW as a family adventure, unschool, spiritual journey and lifestyle, with time spent travelling interspersed with time living in different places on an itinerary across Europe, Russia, Africa, South America, Far East, Australia and New Zealand. |
Pilgrim's Progress: a BIG family hits the road |
The Aiken/Widom Family Year Off |
If you think it's a challenge travelling with one, two or three kids you've just got to look at this. A kiwi family with eight kids on a pilgrimage from Singapore to London and beyond, travelling overland all the way. Oh and with grandpa along too that makes 11. And still they find time for prolific thought provoking blogging giving an up to the minute insight into what it's like to live and learn as a family on the road. With info on practical issues like why, how, financing, packing, it's well worth a look. Now that's what I call a BIG family adventure. |
The Aiken/Widom clan love to travel. They've been travelling with kids since their youngest was born and now have over fourteen years of adventuring experience so can speak with experience of travelling with their kids at every age. Sailing, diving, trekking, cycling, overland, you name it they've done it. Since 2007 they've been blogging too so now you can share some of their experience and wisdom. Get an idea of what's possible with a look at their travelog of their recent 2007/2008 14 month long globe spanning adventure. |
Dreirad: Three Wheels on the Panamerican |
360 degrees longitude (Armageddon Pills) |
In late 2001, Swiss couple Rebekka and Florian left for a classic cycling journey to explore the American Continent. After one year, the arrival of baby Chan stopped them in their tracks in Vancouver. But a short while later they hit the road again, still determined to reach the Southern tip of Argentina. Chan, now 4 is part of the team and joins wholeheartedly in their quest for adventure. You can read journals and see extraordinary photos from their amazing journey with a growing toddler on their online journal, Dreirad. Never let it be said it can't be done with kids. Truly inspirational. |
The Higham family shared a lifetime of adventures in a year long RTW trip, visiting 28 countries, traveling by cargo ship to the southern tip of South America, hiking the Inca Trail, trekking in the jungles of northern Thailand, cycling in Europe. Find out what it took to plan for a year on the road, how they home-schooled their kids and what they learned along the way. Their new site 360 Degrees Longitude (formerly Armageddon Pills) chronicles their family adventure, offers useful advice on costing and planning a trip and promotes their forthcoming book "360 Degrees Longitude" |
Joe Kurmaskie, alias Metal Cowboy |
Us On The Bus: The Weller Family |
Joe "Metal Cowboy" Kurmaskie is Adventure Dad and author of cycle adventure books, Metal Cowboy, and Riding outside the Lines. In his latest book, "Momentum is your Friend," Joe chronicles a Grand Adventure he shared with his two sons Quinn and Enzo (ages 7 and 5) on a Cross Country 4000 mile ride. With 14' of bicycle rig and over 250lbs of kids and gear, it's an inspiring and heart warming adventure. And there's more, now Joe's on the road with wife and three, blogging a trans Canadian family adventure for a new book. Lots of inspiration here, if you dare. This guy thinks and lives BIG. |
Late 2007 and the Weller family finally set off on a 1973 Leyland bus for their family adventure, a let's just see where we get to tour of Europe. Realising their wasn;t much time left before the kids were all grown up, Brian and Dawn sold up their business and their house to make their dream come true. Having bought and fitted out a bus, Brian, Dawn, Amy (15) ,Alex (12) and Sam (9) have signed up for the school of the road. You can follow their travels and the pre-trip dramas of buying and fitting out the bus on their blog, at www.usonthebus.com |
The Vogel Family, a Family on Bikes |
See the World with Your Kids |
The Vogel family believe in the power of bicycling! For them it's an incredible way to get to know a country and people. And with children it's even more rewarding, seeing the world through children's eyes, and experiencing things in a fresh, uninhibited manner once more. In 2006/7 the Vogels completed a fourteen month bike tour of the USA and Canada. In June 2008 they're heading off to conquer the Pan American Highway in a world record attempt with their twin boys. You can visit their homepage or read their blog online. |
Sheila Scarborough blogs regularly and eclectically on all kinds of Family Travel experiences. With blogs on big city visits in Tokyo, London and Hong Kong, family travel in Asia, Europe, USA and family travel philosophy, her site is a wide ranging mix of personal experience, anecdotes and links to other resources on the web. Full of ideas, inspiration and contacts. You can read her blog online. Sheila blogs on Bootsnall, another useful resource for Independent travellers. |
Hollowtop
Outdoor Primitive School |
The
Fleming Family Travel Tales |
Thomas
J Elpel at the Hollowtop Outdoor Primitive School has a few stories
to tell about journeys that take children and families back to basics.
You can find some of his journalled stories online at his school's
homepage. He also has a wealth of wisdom to share in other publications
about primitive living skills. |
The Fleming
family gave up their 'nice' lifestyle at home, rented out the house,
gave up careers and took their two children (age 3 and 7) on a years
backpacking trip around the world. Their website chronicles their
experience and offers useful advice for others thinking of being
so foolish.
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The
Eber family and Bike for Breath |
The
Shulz family: All at Sea |
The Eber family biked their way around the world to raise money
for asthma research. On their website you can read more about
the family, their charity and their amazing experiences pedalling
15,000 km through 25 countries around the globe.
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The Shulz
family have taken the plunge, sold their house, put their possessions
into storage and set off to sail the seas on their family boat Regina.
Their website chronicles their current Blue Water Adventure experience,
shows how they've built up to their biggest adventure yet and gives
a good insight into educating on board. Informative, funny and philosophical. |
Curious
Kids |
The
Cleminson Family |
A site put together by five kids who travelled 100000 miles across
20 countries with their parents on a world tour in 1999. The kids
were 7,9,11,14 and 17 at the time of the trip and you can get
a great insight into what kids get curious about when they travel
from online extracts from their travel journals. |
The Cleminsons
live in Africa and enjoy a special relationship with their 4WD vehicle
Lily. She's as much a part of their family adventures as their two
young children. On their site you can read about their travels on
and off the road over the years. Beautiful photography brings to
life the pleasures of adventuring as a family and the spectacular
places you can explore in this part of the world. |
The
Orme Family: Family adventures by boat
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The
FuhKaui Family |
Eric Orme
and his family have one five month sailing trip under their belt
in 2003/4. Now they're planning a year long voyage down East Coast
Canada/USA to the Carribean, starting April 2006. Read about their
last trip when the kids were young and follow their progress on
their latest adventure sailing, painting and exploring as the kids
grow up aboard their yacht Tabitha. |
The FuhKaui
family have been on the road for years unschooling three kids. They
hit the road to find a better life and have came to realise it was
the only life for them. As they put it in their blog "Have
you ever woke up in the morning and wondered where you are? It happens
all too often around here....Follow our unconventional travels as
we enter our ninth year of Life on the Road." |
The
Activated Storytellers - Goza Family |
Cycling
Europe with a baby |
The Goza
family are The Activated Storytellers. Being on the road is more
than just a vacation for them; it's a fundamental part of their
work, life and existence. They've been on the road since 1988 and
raised and educated their son on the road. They are notorious nomads
- rarely staying in one place for more than two days, touring year-round
combining work with new experiences. You can read more about their
work, life and travels on their site. |
The Knoll Millers took to the road in 2006 with a baby and a
bike, cycling 1,300 kilometres and spending 68 nights in a tent.
If you want to know about the realities of touring with a baby
then Shelley's diary gives an insight into the daily adventures
of biking with baby. The site has lots of great photos too and
some useful information about the practicalities of what you need
to make a bike and the road your home. The Knoll Millers were
sponsored by Burley. |
Pedal to Paradise |
Reserved for your website ? |
Inspired by a bunch of chickens escaping from a chicken farm, the Goehring's took off with their daughter and her friend on a summerlong journey across America on bicycles in 2001. Over 4500 miles later they still believe, "You've got to keep pedaling if you want to get to Paradise." In extensive online journals you can read how the trip came about, the practicalities of making it happen and the dramas and delights of life on a classic TransAmerican biking route. |
If you've got a blog or website about your family adventures and you'd like to see it featured here, then get in touch, let us have the details, and let us take a look. We're happy to link to sites that give other adventurous families ideas, advice or inspiration to get out there. |
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Want to read more inspirational stories? Try these
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Stories and articles
families have written for us about their adventure experiences,
in their own words, reproduced here with permission.
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Details of published books
about family adventure. With links to Amazon to read the reviews
and buy. Your purchases support our work.
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Our own stories from
the road, written while on tour before children and as the family
has grown.
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