Help me make my daughter’s dreams come true!!

[Dungeonsandwagons]

My 8yr old is desperate to go to some far flung places, top of her list are America, Central America and Japan. I’m a single mum and I would LOVE to take her travelling and have adventures together. Currently we’ve only done European countries and I’m not dissing Spain etc but it’s not culturally massively different. She really wants to see something different.

However, I don’t have a never ending budget. Also as it’s me and her alone I don’t want to rough it too much / need to be aware of safety. Are there any tips on taking some more adventurous trips that satisfy her desire to see something different but that might not cost the earth?

any help appreciated!!!

I’ve been thinking about you today OP…. we have some very adventurous friends who’ve taken their DD all over the place from being a baby. She’s even trekked to Everest base camp ( I think she was 12/13). They have a camper van and have all sorts of adventures in the U.K. and Europe too. We can’t afford a van yet but I did find this site that allows you to book vans direct from the owners. You could go to some out of the way places in the U.K. ( costs from about £60 per day)

Also check when the school inset days are. We got lucky one year and had one on a Friday in June which also happened to be my birthday. We managed a long weekend ( thurs - Sunday) in Berlin on hand luggage only. Flight costs were reasonable given it was out of school holidays.

My final recommendation is to check out the travel section in your local library. Not only for guides but Lonely Planet have done a number of coffee table books for amazing out of the way places to visit. Great for inspiration on a winter night.

https://www.camplify.co.uk/s?seed=51538&page=1&utm_campaign=CAMPLIFY_PPC_HIRERS_UK_ROE&utm_source=adwords&utm_medium=ppc&gclid=CjwKCAjw3dCnBhBCEiwAVvLcu4fD08rhT2fx-5kzEb9oWdIr59gERHyWHj3VOMYN7eP8p-hXgEr0wxoCnDAQAvD_BwE

That's fantastic you want to travel with your DD. I think travel is just as important as education. It's fascinating seeing other cultures and places.

I started when my daughter was 8 and took her to a few European cities. I've been to a America and Japan myself and one day will take her to Japan as it's a lovely country with lovely people.

I've read a lot of your thread and would love to travel to Marrakesh. It's always been on my list but was never sure about safety but now I've read this, I'll definitely bump it up my list.

Enjoy your travelling 😁

thailand? Flights aren't cheap but it is cheap once you're there. Jordan also very cool.

Good idea on the inset days - schools do love em!

People are being ridiculous- wanting experiences over material goods is a great thing. Interrailing could also be very fun. Tunisia and Azerbaijan I've heard great things about and a family friend took her daughter of a similar age. Georgia is on my bucket list (but will be waiting for the political situation with Russia to calm down). What are her (and your!) interests? History, music, art, food? Hungary could be a shout if you get off the beaten path. Slovenia also quite 'different'.

Dungeonsandwagons I’m sorry you’ve had some shitty comments (gotta love Mumsnet!)

FWIW indulging my kids’ dreams is one of the joys of my life, and I work hard to earn the money to afford that. In return, they indulge my travel whims to climb boring bell towers and pottering around esoteric museums.

When he was seven, DS wanted to see the Statue of Liberty. So we took him, and had a great couple of weeks in New York and Virginia. This year, he wanted to see Semana Santa in Andalucia, so again, off we went. This year we initerrailed across three countries together. All wonderful trips! DD wants to go to Glyndebourne next summer, and do she will. I’m also saving to take her to Argentina as a post-GCSE well done surprise, which will be a dream come true for her. In return, they are schlepping over to Namibia for me and their dad, despite serious reservations about the insect life. I know they’ll love it when they get there.

The wonderful thing about having kids who are interested in the world is that they open your eyes too. They learn that the world is their’s for the taking, and that’s a message parents need reminding of too.

Georgia is on my bucket list too. It looks amazing.

Slovenia was our family holiday this year and we all absolutely loved it. That would be a great spot for OP and her daughter.

She’s really into music, history and wildlife. Not so much into adventurous food although she’s not too bad. Also definitely not an hiking/ extreme sports type child!

Where did you go in Slovenia @Labbingtons? I went to Ljubljana a thousand years ago and it was lovely - but insanely quiet!

Dungeonsandwagons we did two days in Ljubjana, at week at Lake Bled and five days in Piran on the Adriatic coast (we nipped over to Trieste and along the Croatian coast.)

It was one of our best family holidays. So much to see and do, lovely food and so beautiful. The Slovenians are rightly very proud of their country gorgeous little country.

Hi @Dungeonsandwagons . I think it's bloody brilliant your daughter has a natural curiosity for different places. What's your budget like?! If you can stretch to it, I would advise going to South-East Asia.

Flights are actually not too expensive in low season. Both countries are beautiful and so much to do and see. Both places are ridiculously cheap if you live and eat like locals.

I personally don't think your DD would get much out of from going to the US. I mean, it's still a Western country at the end of the day. Japan sounds amazing, but I'd imagine expensive.

@Dungeonsandwagons Oman is stunning and safe for female travellers. I’ve been once and planning to go again either next year or the year after.

So for history within Europe for starters I'd look at Rome, Berlin, Sicily, the Andalucian cities like Granada, Toledo. Outside Europe India, Vietnam, Egypt.
For wildlife in Europe there is a forest in Western Poland that has Bison, Iceland, bear/wolverine watching in Finland, Danube delta for birds. Outside Europe Costa Rica, Belize, Namibia, Sri Lanka, Borneo are all easy countries.

Three and a half grand? That's a bit more than sensible

My ds loves trains and I’ve always thought interailing would be interesting and fun.

However he’s a wheelchair user (manual/self propelled) - what are the trains like for access in Europe? It’s so easy here in the uk.

Try Turkey or Greece! The beautiful azure sea and architecture let you know you’re definitely abroad!

Some people seem to solely post on Mumsnet as they get some satisfaction out of being snotty, superior bitches, ignore then op.

I'm getting some inspiration from this thread for places to take my DD too so thanks!

The thread is 2 years old, revived by @OneFluentCrab spamming it.

Where did you end up going OP?

Ooh this is an old one… still, interesting to read through all the recommendations. OPs DD must be 10 now… I wonder if she’s still an adventurer.