Family holidays and teenagers rarely mix (I should know, it wasn’t that long ago!). Too young to enjoy the delights of being an adult and too old to even consider the kids clubs, it’s difficult to keep everyone happy especially if you have children of different age groups. Here’s an idea;
Tell your teenager that you are going away for the weekend. Charge them with choosing the destination (within a specific mile radius), the route, tell them they must ensure that the destination/s must suit the whole family and give them a budget. Let them plan the trip in it’s entirety. Where you’ll stay, where you’ll eat, what you will do etc… Help where necessary but try to trust their decisions.
Teenagers feel out of control much of the time, I think this exercise will, not only occupy them for part of the summer but will test their planning, budgeting and organisational skills. It will give them a chance to be seen and treated as an adult without needing to rebel or make wild breaks for freedom. You may even end up visiting somewhere you’d never considered before and loving it!
Photo by flickr user Curtis and Eric
