It’s January! Happy New Year! Christmas is over and it’s time to turn our thoughts to the year ahead, and with that comes my favourite part… travel planning for the year. We don’t travel full time so our process has to accommodate school, annual leave (PTO) and general life.

Last year we took a trip or had an adventure every month, which looked like this (pictured in this post):

January– Weekend in Salisbury

February– A winters walk and day out at the beach in Brean

March– Weekend away in Woolacombe

April– Easter at Cheddar Gorge

May– Half term week in Hope Cove, Devon

June– Weekend exploring the Cotswolds with friends

July– The start of a 4 week road trip in France

August– St Malo, Beaulieu Sur Dordogne, Loire Valley and  Il D’Oléron (France)

September– Camping and paddle boarding with friends at Croft Farm

October– Autumn sun and hot chocolate on the beach in Ilfracombe

November– Christmas light switch on and exploring Bourton-on-the-Water

December– Cotswolds Christmas markets

In previous years we have not planned our trips at the start of the year and found that it’s really easy to let life take over. School friends’ birthday parties, family events, chores and clubs stack up really quickly and before you know it you are part way through the year and you haven’t been anywhere. So in the past year or two we have started planning our family travel more consciously. Not every trip has to be a big one. A weekend a month should be manageable if you plan carefully and budget travel for some of them. Here’s how we do it.

1. Block out weekends before they get busy

Now is a great time to look ahead at your calendar and block time out for adventures. Look at the commitments you already have, family events, big birthdays and that sort of thing and put those in your calendar. Then block out time for fun! We look for a weekend a month and actually block it out and protect that time so that other obligations don’t take over. You don’t have to book or decide what to do yet but protect that time.

2. Look for deals and special offers in January.

There are so many sales on still so it’s worth checking out any specific accommodation or transport options that you want to book for the year ahead. Grab some cheaper Eurostar tickets, flights or ferry and sort out the rest closer to the time. If you want your accommodation booked, a lot of hotels have offers on too.

3. Set a budget

This could be an annual budget, a budget per month or a budget per trip, whatever works for you. 

We usually have a budget for our big family road trip in the summer, and then a separate sink fund for smaller trips that we plan along the way. Having money set aside specifically for trips helps us to book them when we see a great deal, or whenever an opportunity arises.

If unexpected costs arise (last year my car needed quite a bit of work that we hadn’t accounted for) we keep the trip short, stay local or just have a free day out instead.

4. Use inset (teacher training) days and bank holidays

We have two school aged kids so we have to travel in school holidays or at weekends which can be both limiting and expensive. So we look for opportunities to maximise our time. Teacher training days extend our weekends so we can go a little bit further. We’ve also found that weekends that are Friday-Monday outside of school holidays are cheaper than in the holidays. Using an inset day means we can leave straight after school on Friday, spend 3 days in a destination, and then get home late on Monday night in time for school on Tuesday. Weekend accommodation (2 bed, self catering, pools included) in Woolacombe, Devon that is priced at £153 for a random May weekend, would cost £315 in the Easter holidays! Plus a mid-term break feels like such a treat and really breaks the monotony of the school, work, weekend routine. We always come back feeling refreshed.

Bank holidays usually come at a higher price tag but can be a good way to save a day or two of annual leave that could be used later in the year for another short trip.

5. Add in a few easy, family favourite trips or days out

Sometimes we don’t want a new adventure but still want to get away and enjoy being somewhere different. So we will often head back to somewhere we’ve been before and know everyone will enjoy it. For us this is usually Woolacombe Bay because it’s only a couple of hours drive. We love the beach there, there are indoor pools to play in on rainy days and we know we can while away a weekend without feeling we have to fit every activity in or miss out.

6. Get the kids involved

Ask the kids what they want to do and where they would like to go. Usually my son always chooses the beach but recently he’s been learning about the Stone Age at school and has found it really interesting. As my parents live close to Stonehenge we can easily spend a weekend exploring Salisbury and go to Stonehenge so that he can learn more about it. Win!

My daughter likes walking and swimming more so we can plan to go to places with nearby child-friendly hikes and maybe a wild-swimming spot (or an indoor heated swimming pool in the winter!).

Not all trips you take have to be aimed at what the kids want but we’ve found it definitely helps to schedule in kid-friendly activities along the way to keep them engaged.

7. Make the most of local adventures

We are lucky enough to live in the Cotswolds so try to make the most of this area when we want an adventure that is low cost and doesn’t take up a whole lot of time (we still have to stick to annual leave allowances too). There are loads of outdoor spots to explore, a few wild swimming spots, hiking trails and lots of quintessential British countryside to enjoy.

8. Explore a nearby city without staying over.

There are a few really great cities within driving distance of us, if the same is true for you then think about a day out there. We get to pick from Gloucester’s historic docks, the spa town of Cheltenham, picturesque Bath, fun and creative Bristol or bookish Oxford with its lively but quaint university town vibes. All of these cities have some fab museums and attractions depending on what your interests are. Roman history? Bath. Street Art? Bristol. Medieval architecture or Harry Potter fan? Gloucester Cathedral. You get the picture. Don’t be afraid to explore close to home.

9. Camp for longer trips.

If you want to take a longer trip over summer but don’t have the budget for hotels in high season, consider camping. Whether you have the equipment or want to hire a camper van, Europe is very well set up for camping holidays. Our favourite campsite chain in France is Huttopia because they have a strong emphasis on camping with nature, and are very family orientated. Their sites have pitches if you have your own camping equipment, and cabins/ safari tents if you want something ready set up on your arrival. However if you prefer a lot of activities, clubs and evening entertainment, maybe something like Eurocamp would be more suited to you.

For those in camper vans who are more spontaneous and want a bit more flexibility there is a whole network of camping spots for a night or two that you can book through apps like park4night.

10. Visit friends and family to explore their areas.

This is definitely one we could do more of! We hardly ever go up to the North of England yet I have family in Yorkshire and would love to explore more of that area. I also have family in Hampshire and don’t make the most of that area either. It’s something for us to work on this year as there is loads to see and do in both of those counties.

In a couple of weeks we have friends from London coming to stay so I’m looking forward to showing them the local area and hopefully exploring closer to them sometime in the future. Plus adventures with family and friends are so much fun. Having other people along with us always means the kids have the best time.

And that’s it! We tend to keep plans loose unless there is something specific that we want to do and therefore have to book in advance. This gives us the opportunity to act a little more spontaneously and work around the kids’ needs at the time. How do you plan your family vacations over the year?