It is human nature to stick to blood relatives who are thought of as allies through thick and thin. Regardless of distances, people find a way to be reunited with their immediate family more often and with long-lost kin from far and wide, once in every long while. Traditionally, these are held in venues close to the place where the majority lives or where the family’s roots lie.
These days when distances have been shrunk by technologies – fast planes and communication gizmos – celebrating family reunions have gone several notches higher. Destination reunions are seen as serving more than one purpose, that of reuniting the family and enjoying a great holiday with them.
But for a family reunion held somewhere far from everyone’s home and entailing quite an expense to be memorable, it has to have all the ingredients of a fun holiday for a big group of travelers, your family. Planning is key to a happy reunion held in a distant location. If you are participating in the organizing of the event, check out the suggestions offered by Travel Sense in the post Planning a Destination Family Reunion. Among the most important tip by Travel Sense is getting help from experts.
“What better way to gather loved ones than at a family reunion? Whether your family is large or small, consider getting help from the start by calling in the experts. Travel agents can take care of details ranging from recommending appropriate destinations to arranging for airline tickets, and making hotel or car rental reservations.
They are well acquainted with cruise ships and resorts that specialize in family travel. Travel agents can help families with last minute itinerary changes and cancelled flights, as well as arranging for family members with special needs. For large groups, a travel agent may have access to pre-negotiated airfare and hotel rates otherwise unavailable. And, a travel agent can serve as a friendly and patient third party to help prod those family members who may not be quick to decide on travel plans.”
The post suggested the following tips:
- Start planning early: Planning a reunion can get harder than you expected, especially with more relatives coming to join the affair. It is most important to have an organizing committee of some sort who can plan and prepare the event. Planning needs to be done early because booking a big number of hotel rooms, condos or vacation rentals is not easy. The relatives, who are considering attending must also make plans and arrangements – take a leave from work, find people to watch the house, dogs, etc.
- Select a date and stick with it: Consult the majority of prospect attendees and avoid busy dates when setting the date. Once the date has been set, don’t dare change it to please certain relatives. Many will start making plans and arrangements. Changing the date will cause them to have problems. The thing is, there will be a great date, but there will never be a perfect date. There will always be prospective attendees who can’t make it on a certain date.
- Communicate early and often: Keeping everyone “in the loop” will help them to plan their own travels and arrangements. Make sure that they have your contact numbers and that your “committee” will update everyone with the finer details of the planned event. Keep everyone sufficiently enthused and excited by soliciting ideas for a fun-filled reunion. Keep everyone updated as each detail is finalized.
- Plan activities for everyone: The only guarantee that the reunion will be a big success is when each person finds something to do with the other relatives. Active sports for the young ones and the young once, sedate activities for the elderly and the very young kids, assorted amenities and a broad range of options for everyone these can make every family member grinning from ear to ear or shrieking with fun. Of course, fun activities can be enjoyed more when there are great foods, comfortable beds to sleep, and comfortable and convenient transport arrangements.
The last, and certainly not the least, make sure you and the other organizers are not too tired or stressed to enjoy your much-awaited gathering of loved ones. Recruit help so you too can have great moments during your holiday with the family; all you need to do is ask so volunteers will come to help. Just make sure you stay at the helm so the “cooks” will not spoil the broth.
