Growing up, one of the biggest resentments I had against my parents was the fact that they took me around the world at a very young age. By the time I turned 7 I had been on two round-the-world trips. Unfortunately, today I hardly remember anything from those trips. I have photographs, but they don't bring about any recollections of the times spent traveling. I do have faint memories; of getting lost in a theme park in Canada, of getting scared in Disneyland, of the air-steward who wanted to "buy" me off my parents on a flight to Hawaii. But, I hardly remember the places, the people, or anything else for that matter.
All along my parents have stood by the notion that although I might not remember the travels, the fun I had at that very moment was worth the trips. And, it wasn't till I had my own child, and took her on her very first trip to Hong Kong Disneyland at the age of 1 did I understand what my parents had told me all through my adult life, and how right they were all along.
I know for a fact that Saanvi, my daughter, will remember nothing of the trips we have had over the last few years (She is 4 now). She already doesn't remember her first birthday that we celebrated in Hong Kong or the second one that we had in Singapore. But, the fun she had on these trips cannot be replicated. What is encouraging though is the fact that she has learnt a lot during these trips. She knows what a passport is and why we need a visa. She is aware of airplanes and even the fact that there are different airlines. Even small modalities of travel and being in another country, experiencing another culture, have all had a positive impression on her mind and if nothing else has made her a lot more confident and inquisitive about happenings around the world.
So, how important is traveling with children? Watching my daughter grow over the last 4 years, years that have been full of travels around the world, I feel that the knowledge that a child accumulates while being away from home is far more important than whether he/she will remember the trip a few decades down the line.
Now, travels with children don’t have to be overseas all the time. The excitement of searching for a tiger on a recent trip to Corbett National Park was at par with the excitement my daughter felt on seeing a cruise ship up close for the very first time. It's about making them experience the world from the very beginning. It's about enjoying the moment, living the moment. And trust me, the smile on any child's face, at any age, makes any trip worth the while.
So, if you are waiting to take your child out on his/her very first trip, don't hold back. All you need is a little spark of adventure (yes, traveling with kids, at any age, is an adventure), and the will to carry a suitcase full of diapers.
Bon Voyage!
