Who are we?
We’re you. And you. Just a family. Nothing special. We work a lot. We argue when we get tired. We’re always trying to spend more time together. We make sure we spend some time apart.
Why “Crazy Family Travellers”?
Well, that’s what we’re called all the time. Just last Christmas, I’ve had at least four different people tell me “You’re going to Strasbourg for Christmas with the kids? And you’re planning it on your own?You’re crazy!” We’ve made a vow. We’ll scratch off as many places of this whole wide world as we can, before we’re too old, weak or sick to travel. And the world is big. And the time is little.
Why blog about it?
When the thousandth friend came up to us and asked us for suggestions about their upcoming trip, we looked at each other and made up our minds. We’re good at planning a trip and we’re very good at doing it. You know what else we’re pretty good at? We’re awesome at talking about it! After twenty years of travelling alone, with one kid and then with all three, we are ready to share all the experience that could save someone out there hours of browsing, comparing and trying to decide while ticket and room prices are going up!
The writers
Travel seems like a distant dream for many people. They watch others go and share their experiences, yet they never seem to be able to make that decision. Trust me, I know. I was one of these people for a long time.
I thought travelling required extravagant amounts of money that I was better off spending on something else. I believed there were dangers impossible to predict. I felt flying was an unnatural way to travel. Until that first time, when my then girlfriend (now known as The Mom) convinced me to go to the Cote D’ Azur. Kinda forced me, to be honest, but all the same, it was my first trip as an adult. I’ve never stopped travelling since.
When our first son arrived, lots of people thought “that’s it, now they’ll stay put, its different now”! It was and there were some serious adjustments to be made. You see, we were really very young. Soon we were back on the road. When the twins came it was “for sure the end of all that vagabonding, there are five of them now, it’s just too hard”! Well, once more, we had to adjust. And some of our best trips have been made since. Now we’re starting to explore the rest of the world all together. I’ll let you guess the rest!
Travelling is second nature to me. I was blessed with a family that loved travelling (the all known group travelling-by coach-way most Greek families tried in the 80s) and I really got into it around the age of 10. So, I fell in love really early with doing luggage, trying to fit an extra pair of shoes in the backpack, choosing routes and searching for ticket offers around the world.
Unlike my husband I never doubted we would continue to travel the world. For me, seeing new places, tasting new cuisines, greeting new people and discovering new itineraries comes as naturally as breathing. Thus, I never hesitated when the idea first came up to pack for three and then for five. The only thing that stopped me was money, but I soon discovered that travelling with children was plausible if one was ready to make adjustments, changes and some serious planning.
As a foreign languages teacher, I have always believed that involving children in the process, any process, is what makes them learn best. So travelling with them is my way of teaching them how to be independent, sociable, tolerant, cosmopolitan, adventurous and above all, how to create family memories of freedom, sharing in great fun!
Letโs build something together.
Family Travel Adventures 