Family Travel Tip: Have Kids Keep a Travel Journal

If your kids can't write they can't keep a vacation journal, right?  Wrong!  Since my girls have been able to talk and draw they have kept a vacation journal.

A Vacation Journal for Kids Who Don't Write

For our most recent journals I took the girls to an office supply store and let them choose their favorite.  Brenna, my eldest, choose a hard cover journal adorned with rhinestones while Caelan, my youngest, choose a fun wire bound journal.  It doesn't matter so much how the journal looks, just that they like it.

Notebooks Used for Travel Journals
Notebooks Used for Travel Journals

At the end of each day we ask the girls to get their crayons, markers and pens from their activity bags and draw a picture of their favorite thing about the day.  It doesn't matter if you think it was the best thing of the day…  My girls have drawn everything from the cool game tables in hotel lobbies to water slides at a pool.  After they finish drawing we talk about the picture and I write a caption, the date and where we are. When we get home I add a photo that corresponds to the drawing.

kids travel journals
Travel Memories

These travel journals are fun for the girls to do and are terrific for sharing stories of our trip with friends and classmates.

A Vacation Journal for Older Kids

While any journal works well for older kids, too, I really do love my Family Rambling Travel Journal. The 4″x6″ size makes it easy to tuck into a backpack while the binder keeps it closed and the pen loop means a pen is always nearby when you want to grab it and jot down a note.

Family Rambling Travel Journal
Family Rambling Travel Journal

The pages are double side.  The front lists date, destination, weather, where we stayed and favorite restaurant or food.  The back of the page is reserved for the days highlights.  I like to tape ticket stubs and other small mementos to this page.

Inside Family Rambling Travel Journal
Inside Family Rambling Travel Journal

Of course this little journal is nice for moms & dads, too!  The Family Rambling Travel Journal is only $15– including shipping.

Another really neat idea is a vacation book.  My friend Minnemom makes these before her family heads out on roadtrips.  I admit, I'm in awe of her organizational skills.

Do you have your kids keep a travel journal?  I would love to hear how your family keeps vacation memories.

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One Comment

  1. Your kids travel journals are like ours! Filled with stories of random things that were impressive to them (eg the best thing about going on the plane was the breakfast). Sometimes VERY different to what I found impressive on the day! It’s lovely to be able to see the holiday from their perspective, though! I love the look of your Family Rambling journal and think it’d be a great investment for when they’re a little bit older.
    Thanks for your site!
    Emily

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