Take 12 Trips: 2016 so far
It’s the third year I’ve taken on the Take 12 Trips Challenge, dreamed up by Clare at Need Another Holiday – I was in two minds about whether to do it once more, but one thing I’ve discovered about travelling with kids is that the challenge is always changing.
In Year one, we were also in year one – past the nervous newborn stage but with teething on the agenda, crawling and walking to come as we travelled. Perfect for motivating me to keep getting out there. Year two, it felt like we were finding our feet but with my daughter developing her own opinions, there was more to adjust to.
Now, it’s year three. She’s old enough that we’ve ditched a lot of the paraphernalia and got a bit of a travel groove going: the new challenges are to head further off the beaten track and later this year, to work out how I combine school with seeing the world. So how has it gone so far?
Quick answer? Not bad. The first three months of the year are usually quiet for us – cold, grey, depressing and short of money.
But we kicked off January with a break at the seaside, heading to Brighton for a few days. Too cold and stony for sandcastles, we did find time to wander along the beach and head to the Sea Life Centre, set in its fantastic old Victorian building.
There’s plenty to entertain kids in Brighton but I’m glad we made time for the Pavilion. Not obviously family friendly, it was huge fun to wander round the ornate rooms.
Then a day trip to Winchester for me, enjoying the amazing cathedral and its history without a small person running around testing the acoustics.
A second child-free outing for me in February (is this a new trend?) just along the river Thames to Hawker House Street Feast where I guzzled a lot of wonderful food and realised I hadn’t taken Minnie to one of my favourite parts of London, Greenwich.
First up, another London day out which I’d been planning for a while and never managed to do – a trip to Coram’s Fields in central London, a play park that’s only open to kids and families, followed by a visit to the nearby British Museum.
I’d wondered how my three-year-old would enjoy it, after the more obviously child-friendly Natural History Museum and Science Museum but the activity trail for preschoolers meant we had a lot of fun. Check out my tips for more details.
Then into March where I finally got to put that boat trip along the Thames into action and whisked Minnie off to see the Cutty Sark in Greenwich where even her miniature attitude crumbled in the face of the clipper ship and its carved monkey…
And along with not one but three trips to National Trust properties – the start of spring at Polesden Lacy, a brief stop at Tyntesfield and a Easter Egg hunt at Cliveden – we had our second ‘proper’ break with a few nights away in Cornwall.
I still have plenty to write about there, including our lovely holiday home at Gwel An Mor and a visit (finally!) to the Eden Project.
But for a taste of our getaway, and a reminder that while she’s stopped teething it isn’t smooth sailing with a three-year-old, some Cornish beach in the shape of St Ives.
So eight trips or days out in total, more than meeting our goal of one per month. And the next few months are looking good as well. First, and most excitingly comes our *big* holiday to Burma.
Well, first comes a little break for me with a child-free weekend in Cardiff (see, I said it was a trend) at the travel blogging conference Traverse, with a little exploration on the side.
I have plans for another holiday overseas in June as well and some UK short breaks on the ‘must plan’ list so that should keep us busy until the school holidays. Beyond that, who knows? Here be dragons…
Main image courtesy of Depositphotos, all others copyright MummyTravels
12 trips in a year. and with a child! well done!:)
Thanks! We managed about 30 last year (inc days out) but not convinced we’ll beat that…
I can’t even remember the last time we travelled, apart from going abroad last year, we’ve only managed to do trips to my in-laws and the usual day-trips around where we live too. My sister’s family is visiting us soon and we plan to take them around! Hopefully the weather won’t shame us 😉
The nice thing about the 12 trips challenge is that it doesn’t have to be abroad – it really helps motivate me to explore more of my local area or fit in day trips. Hope the weather stays good for your plans.
It’s great that you’ve still been able to travel with kids. I decided to do a challenge from January to get out of the country once a month and it’s going well so far, it pushes you to explore more x
Thanks! And that sounds great – I’d love to try that, but I know that one’s not practical for the moment (not every month, at least…)
Ooh well we’d hit a lot with the day trips on the cruise! We’ve a night away next week in Abu Dhabi that I’m looking forward too and a potential final weekend away in Qatar to add. Other than that it’s all a bit quiet on the travel front here!! Look forward to adding some London days to our repertoire and copying your lead on the child free!!!
You would! Although I do tend to think of it in terms of single trips – so eg my long weekend in Cornwall counts as 1, even though we had several days out. Not that anyone’s really checking up on me (are they?!) Looking forward to reading about Abu Dhabi and Qatar, definitely worth making the most of it while you’re nearby. And I think I need to plan another child-free mini escape, see if I can really get the hang of it again!
Wow you have been busy! We love to go out and about as a family and this year we are even squeezing in two holidays before my daughter starts school in September and we are then bound by school holidays 🙁 x
I think that’s a good plan – I am trying to make the most of our pre-school flexibility too.
Now this sounds like fun! One thing I really want to improve on is getting out and about a lot more, I’m hoping it might get easier now the kids are getting slightly older. Great read 🙂
Thanks! Very fun – and it’s a great motivator to explore, even (especially?) when it’s on the doorstep. Have discovered all kinds of places nearby with my daughter that I never visited in the years living here before she was born.
Oh my goodness! 12 trips in one year sounds absolutely amazing – I am so very jealous 🙂
🙂 It’s about days out and exploring close to home as well – not that 12 holidays wouldn’t be lovely!
This is so inspiring! You have been to some beautiful locations already this year! It is great when they turn 3 & you can stop bringing the crazy amount of stuff around with you. We love to travel as a family – 12 trips in a year would be a challenge I’d love to take! Enjoy yours! x
Thanks! It definitely gets easier when you’re not packing a million things for a quick trip out. And I love the challenge – time seems to speed by so it’s a great reminder to get things organised, even if it’s a day out or trip to a local something or other that you’ve been meaning to visit.
Well done on 12 trips in one year. I love exploring my local area and its amazing what hidden treasures you can find when limited to home soil. But like you I like to mix up home and abroad so look forward to reading more of your posts and getting some inspiration. Thanks for linking up with #TheWeeklyPostcard
Thanks! I definitely think it’s a great way to make me focus on what there is nearby – it’s so easy to come up with long lists of places and countries to visit, but then you always overlook what’s on the doorstep.
Just noticed your new pic – very nice! I think you’ve done brilliantly. You should definitely take advantage of these last few months without the constraints of the school term to do as many trips as you can. Speaking as someone who would love to go travelling outside of school holidays!
Thank you! And I suspect I’ll regret not packing even more in once we get restricted to school holidays – although I’m not sure if that’s possible.
Where I am from originally is quite near Polesden Lacey, it is about 30 minutes walk from my old house. I am so envious of all your travelling!
My brother lives not far from there either, although it seems to be somewhere I only pass through to visit. And trying to pack in as much as I can before we can only travel in school holidays!
What a good challenge, great that you can include day trips, as we do plenty of those despite the lack of breaks abroad.
It’s a fun idea, isn’t it – and absolutely, I love that it includes travel at home as well to keep me exploring nearby too. Besides, lovely though it might be to head abroad every month, it’s not practical with a preschooler for quite a few reasons!
You’re off to an amazing start to the year; 12 should be no problem at all! Your daughter sounds like she is already an incredible traveler. Enjoy Burma!
Thanks! We should definitely manage 12 – I’m just hoping we can keep going with at least one per month in those first months after starting school. But she is a great little traveller, can’t wait for Burma…
Loving your new website Cathy:) It looks great.
Thank you!
And I haven’t even done a single travel since 2016 started. Oh what a shame!
There’s time! 🙂