Bucket list holidays with teens

[WutheringTights]

Awake with peri menopause anxiety and the latest is the realisation that we likely only have 4 or 5 summers left with our eldest. We’ve mainly holidayed in the UK since they were babies and done very little travelling with them because of other priorities. I’m thinking about what holidays we could do over the next 4/5 years, before they no longer want to come with us.

Currently considering;
California - went there before kids and it’s an amazing place, would prefer to go once Trump is gone though
Japan - never been there, know nothing about it but everyone seems to rave about it
European inter-railing - everyone I know who has done it, loved it

We are not beach people and don’t like it when it’s too hot. We like looking around places. We recently enjoyed a city break in Istanbul. DH and I travelled a lot pre-kids but never to beach resorts.

Where do I start? What are the best holidays with young/pre-teens? Thanks. Xx

Watching with interest. Caring responsibities mean i'm unable to go far this summer but im absolutely determined to somehow put measures in place for next year as i feel ive let my teens down this year.

Their standout favourite has been Japan, by far....they ask to go again all the time !!

Second was Florida...not Orlando, which they found a bit dull, (asked to go back to the hotel as they were so bored in Magic Kingdom) But had a week in Miami at the end and the pristine beaches / cuban music and food and the slightly edgier places like wynwood walls plus stuff like going to walmart to bulk buy american candy made them ridiculously happy.

Wouldnt call it a holiday, but walking the Camino with our kids was a bucket list thing for us that we'll all remember forever

Dates are late June /beginning of July. Budget as low as possible 😬

I’d head to Thailand, you can get decent flights and it’s cheap when you get there for food and eating out, it’s beautiful and you can do it on a budget.

I’m really interested in a Namibian safari - did you have a company that organised your itinerary or did you do it yourself? Do you have any links please?

I was thinking of Switzerland with rail passes for a week. A safari would be good and Japan a place I've always wanted to go to. My daughter might try to eat all the sushi they have tho!!
Namibia sounds fantastic but I don't camp unless it's a deluxe 5* thing

We have a 2 week half term both this and next year. Thinking about Japan as my DD would like to visit. How much was your overall trip and where would you recommend visiting? Thanks

My DD is hitting double digits this year and it’s just hit hard that time is going so fast. We’re mapping out visiting every continent before she’s 18. Japan is one of the first she asked for and I hope she’ll have lots of input on the rest. We borrowed a few travel inspiration books from the library

I’m sure she won’t want to holiday with me forever so I may as well show her the parts of the world she wants to see. I can see the others later or squeeze them around.

Tanzania including Ngoro Ngoro crater then a few days in Zanzibar was one of my favourites. Egypt was great too. They all enjoyed Croatia too. Scandinavia is a big hit in our house too. DH used to travel a lot for work so we'd tag along.

We have had some lovely holidays now they are adults. We've hired a big villa a few times (every two or three years) and they come with partners. Everyone does their own thing if they want but lots of pool fun.

Japan is also on our bucket list op. That and a USA road trip. Kids are 9 and 12 atm so got a short time to get saving!

I’d look at Phuket if it really has to be long haul. But if she’s just after something “different” for her insta than the standard canaries/corfu then have a look at the Azores.

Our biggest bucket list holiday was to the Yucatan peninsula, Belize and Guatamala. We stayed in an eco resort called Akumal, then Chetumal, got the ferry to Caye Cauker, where we snorkeled with a manatee and sharks, then ferry to Belize and bus to Flores. From Flores we stayed at Tekal, which was amazing for its Mayan ruins and wildlife, and then up to lake Bacalar before flying home from Cancun. It was brilliant.

I’m currently in South Korea with my young teen and it is one of the best holidays we’ve been on. She is absolutely loving it. Everything is fairly cheap now we’re here too. Would definitely recommend it.

@GreenerDarker how are you navigating the language and script differences? That's what puts me off.

We did it in 10 days, so 2 weeks will definitely be amazing.

The flights were around £1000 for both me and my daughter (we flew with a stop-over in China) and around £500 for hotels. October is much cheaper than March/April but still beautiful warm weather and less people. The food once there is actually very reasonably priced and most temples etc are free.

We stayed in Tokyo 5 days and did all the touristy stuff you're meant to do there and travelled around there and then took the train to Osaka and stayed there the remainder of the trip. From Osaka, we went to Kyoto for a day trip (it's very close) and then to Hiroshima on the last day (I would recommend then flying back from Hiroshima). Don't miss out on Osaka and Hiroshima which were my teen's absolutely favourite places.

We went to the US post-GCSE, Boston, Rhode Island/Cape Cod and NY.
Her 18th birthday/post A-level trip was a tour of the Loire valley castles, quite niche but we had an amazing time and she loved every day.

DD has AuDHD, she doesn't want Asia or Safari so DH and I now plan Vietnam for us now as she is at uni.
She loved the Caribbean, we went to Barbados and St. Lucia.
For 2027 we think about Iceland together but it's not set in stone.

I know so many people who rave about Japan but I am not interested at all. I loved Thailand and Singapore though.

We tried that. I have fond memories of doing it as a child. But literally noone enjoyed it. Worst holidays ever. I think we’re possibly just not boats people.

@Dontlletmedownbruce Its not actually too bad. We’ve not been anywhere too far from the usual tourist trail admittedly. Dd(12) taught herself to read Hangul before we came which has helped massively. She knows some key phrases and is picking up more. We did book a small guided tour for a few places (DMZ/day trip to gardens) and a private walking tour round Seoul one day and these both helped too. As has having an eSIM with lots of data too for google lens and directions etc.
I would highly recommend it. So much variety. It’s beautiful, safe and so interesting.

Vietnam was absolutely the best holiday ever with teens.

DH and I went to Seoul and Busan and it was all fine, we used Papago app for translating, including taking photos of menus. We had no guided tours and managed fine. People were super friendly and helpful. On the underground stations are announced in Korean, Japanese and English and maps all have English on too. We paid for a wifi dongle you picked up at the airport so we had Internet everywhere we went. Only thing would be if kids are fussy they might struggle with food. It was fine for us because we'll eat anything but sometimes things weren't what we expected or we didn't really know it was lol.