Lost Your Heart? Find It in San Francisco

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Have you lost your sense of romance, place or even hope?  There is no better city to reclaim them than San Francisco.  Bravely and dramatically facing the Pacific and drawing in and attempting to coddle its restless and luring bay, San Francisco calls to the adventurous and aching heart as well as to those seeking comfort and a sense of home.  It is a paradoxical city.  The birthplace of the hippy movement and eclectic crossroads of the American West Coast is now home to some of the most expensive real estate in the United States.  The iconic, Victorian architecture, ever welcoming, is out of reach financially for the average citizen; yet, you do not need to set foot in one of these beautiful homes to feel received.  Very few American cities elicit such a feeling.

Home to just over 800,000 people, San Francisco’s relatively modest population surprises most. Yet within a somewhat small geographical area, there is no place more alive.

Chinatown

For a sojourn into the truly exotic, all you have to do is visit Chinatown.  Chinatown has the largest Chinese community outside of Asia.  Restaurants, shops specializing in embroidered linens, and Asian pharmaceutical-type stores with remedies of pungent, dried roots for all sorts of ailments transport you into a lively dream.  Bring your walking shoes for a vigorous stroll up and down hills.

Little Italy

Home to numerous cafes and restaurants, Little Italy is a favorite destination of both San Franciscans and tourists.  There is a bright and open feeling to many of the cafes—a strange contradiction in that it is the birthplace of the restless Beat movement.  City Lights, the bookstore and publisher that first introduced Allen Ginsberg’s visceral poem, “Howl” still thrives.  Founder Lawrence Ferlinghetti’s poetic dream breathes in the 21^st century.

The Financial District

To experience the rhythm of the city, go to the financial district on a weekday.  Busy, well-dressed sorts walk quickly to their next appointments; however, California being California, there always seems to be time for a quick jog at lunch.

Sausalito Ferry

The Sausalito Ferry takes you across San Francisco Bay to where else?  Sausalito.  Even if you don’t disembark in Sausalito, the ride across the bay is worth it.  You get a closer view of the infamous, former prison Alcatraz in the middle of the bay (truly eerie). 

Sausalito itself has a long tradition of drawing artists, and a walk through town yields sightings of many eclectic, creative treasures.

Fisherman’s Wharf

Fisherman’s Wharf offers tasty and fresh seafood most of its lively day.  For a reasonably-priced and fun lunch, buy off of the street and watch the human parade go by.  For a more sophisticated meal, try dinner in one of the Wharf’s many restaurants overlooking the bay.

Ghirardelli Square

Even if you’re not a fan of Ghirardelli chocolate, Ghirardelli’s famous square is both energetic and one of the best places in the city to sit down with a good cup of coffee and look out onto a spectacular view of the Golden Gate Bridge.

Would you like to visit swank and funky San Francisco? International Vacation Home Exchange offers these premium luxury home exchanges in the San Francisco area.  Read how this works and testimonials.

Thank you to travel writer Sona Schmidt-Harris -  You can follow her on Twitter @Sonag2000

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How to Sightsee With Kids and Keep Your Sanity

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We’ve been fortunate enough to travel extensively with our children over the years.   My kids have passports filled with stamps to prove it but I can remember a time when the mere thought of sightseeing with kids in tow was more than just a little intimidating.  Here are a few tips I’ve acquired over the years that will help make the travel more enjoyable for both kids and parents alike.

Ask About Children’s Activities

When touring places like abbeys and cathedrals, I’ve found they usually offer some fun activities to keep kids busy.  This might include a scavenger hunt, a checklist or some other activity that when completed the child can turn in and receive a prize.  It’s worthwhile to inquire at the ticket counter if they offer any of these activities or you can come up with some on your own.  They have always proven to be great family fun and you can even learn a few things yourself along the way. 

Book Private Tours

Always try to book private tours whenever possible.  Large group tours are tough on the little ones.  They have a difficult time seeing and hearing what the guide is saying and can lose interest easily.  When you book a private tour you can tweak the agenda to suit the age of your children and move at a pace that keeps the young ones interested. 

Purchase Tickets in Advance

It’s a good idea to not only purchase your tickets in advance but to book any Fast Track or VIP packages that are offered.  The cost is a bit more but you’ll save a bundle in stress and aggravation.

Limit the Walking

Little legs can only walk so long.  Most major cities around the world offer some type of city bus tour.  I think we’ve been on every one of these types of tours in just about every European city.  They are a great way to give the kids a rest (grownups as well) and still learn some history or facts about the area.  They also provide an easy, economical way to get around the city.

Treats and Rewards

A well-deserved treat is always in order after hours spent touring the sites.  Gelato, a toy or the promise of a dip in the pool has always been a few of our favorites.  Staying in a home exchange property with a pool is great way to travel with kids.  IVHE.com has many luxury homes all around the world and many are available with pools. Check out the amazing pool offered at this vacation home located just outside Paris or jump into the pool located at this exclusive property in Siena after a full day of sightseeing in Italy.  What kid wouldn’t endure a 3 hour Vatican tour if he knew he’d be doing a few cannonballs in that pool at the end of the day?

The most important thing to remember is that planning ahead is key when traveling with young children.  Sadly, the days of “just winging it” on holiday are long gone but if you put the time into a well thought out and organized holiday you can enjoy a trouble free get-away and be able to show your children what most kids only get to read about in history books. 

Thank you travel writer Lisa Medeiros.  Follow her @lisamedeiros_

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The Benefits of Travel for Kids

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As a child, I had the good fortune to travel frequently. My parents weren’t globetrotters – in fact, quite the opposite. It was a stroke of luck that I had the ability to travel so early and so often, but I’m so very glad that I did. I took my first plane ride when I was three; a family trip up to Minnesota for my grandparent’s 50^th anniversary.  Accompanied flights with relatives to New York followed soon after that. By the time I was eight or nine, I was flying across the country all by my lonesome (with a responsible adult waiting for me at the receiving airport, of course), and by 12 I had a Delta wings collection that could rival the best of them. At 14, I had a once in a lifetime opportunity to travel abroad as a student ambassador with the People to People International program. We toured four countries in Europe and I had a host of “firsts;” I took my first trips via train and ocean liner, I went farther from home than I had ever gone before, and I experienced cultures, cuisine, and jetlag unlike any I had ever known.

While anyone can see why parents might be reluctant to send their children off to travel, and while the obvious logistical and financial burdens of raising a well-traveled child are many, if you have the opportunity to expose your children to all the wonders of the world, I highly encourage you to take it. There is no greater gift you can give your children than a well-rounded world view and an adaptability that they can carry with them into adulthood. I am thankful every day that my parents and sundry relatives gave me the chance to experience firsthand what it is like to step into the unknown and out of my element.

I would not trade my travel-filled upbringing for anything. For my parents, sending me off for summers with my aunts and uncles in California, Ohio, or New York was just a very convenient way to get me out of the house for a couple of weeks at a time, but to me it was an unparalleled adventure.

I firmly believe that having the opportunity to experience other places both near and far, at such a young age taught me a perspective well beyond my years. I learned to embrace change and to try new things, and by doing so I gained a worldly confidence that a bookish girl like myself very badly needed at that age. I learned empathy, seeing firsthand that people around the world had lives just like my friends and family back home. I learned courage, having to navigate intimidating airports full of businesslike adults at a young age. I learned to be okay with uncertainty, never knowing quite where I might be heading that summer. The gift that I am most thankful for, though, is that I learned to love travel. It is a passion that is still very much a part of me today, and it means that I will continue to learn new things for as long as I am able to continue.

I would urge the parents among us to encourage their children to travel often and far, to give them the opportunity to take risks and to see the world while they have the luxury of youth. You don’t have to take my word for it, it has been shown that children who travel do better in school and in many other aspects of life. To make a long story short, if your goal is to raise successful, well-rounded, empathetic, and happy children, then your methods should certainly include a decent dose of travel. It’s one of the most surefire ways to ensure that your children turn into kind and adaptable adults. In the immortal words of Mark Twain, “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness.”

Thank you to travel writer Emma Sledge.

Home exchange is a perfect way for families to travel; plenty of space for kids while saving thousands in accommodation costs.  

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Turn a Vacation into a Relocation

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If you travel with any frequency, you’ve probably found yourself saying, “Let’s stay here forever!” at least once. You may have turned to your travel partner and started having hypothetical discussions about moving there for good. In some instances, these discussions might have even gotten serious. Heck, I have known a few people who wound up buying a house this way, so never discount the importance of the hypothetical discussion! However, most of the time a move to a relatively unknown place isn’t spurred by a vacation. It can be brought on by a new job, a family event, a marriage, or any number of big life changes. Moving is actually one of the most stressful life events, having been linked to maladies ranging from the onset of dementia to depression in children. So why, then, does moving seem like such a grand idea while you’re on vacation? Part of the reason is that you gain a sense of familiarity for an area when you visit, which is actually one of the key tips for reducing the stress of a move. 

If you do find yourself facing the possibility of a move, using a vacation as a tool to research the location is a fantastic idea, simply because of the familiarity you are able to develop with the area. If you are on the fence about making a move, or if you are planning a move to an unknown locale, try having a bit of fun and plan a vacation around your decision to relocate before committing. Even if you only have a few days, you can learn valuable information about a place that can help ease the stress of moving later. Make sure to bring the whole family along to ensure that everyone is engaged and invested in the process.

Planning this trip will likely be a bit different than planning a typical vacation, since your travel will actually be part recon mission and part vacation, so you will have to take a slightly different tact than you might normally employ. Instead of researching good bars in the area, you might be looking at schools. Instead of making plans to visit a museum, you could find yourself checking out the local supermarkets. Using a vacation to research a move will be different, so don’t be afraid to do things a bit differently. Rather than hopping on Trip Advisor or Yelp, try using local resources, such as blogs or Facebook groups, to research community topics and canvas the locals for opinions.

Instead of staying in a hotel, which would often be in an area set away from the residential parts of town, you might consider other options. For instance, staying at a property listed on IVHE will give you an opportunity to feel what it’s like to live in a real home in the area. You will get real-life experience in the neighborhoods and might even be able to ask a local or two for their opinions. Because you’ll have a limited amount of time to research for this potentially life-altering decision, you’re going to want to make the most of it. Do as much research as you can on the front-end, including narrowing down the sections of town you’re most interested in living in, so that you can truly immerse yourself in life once you arrive.

The next time you’re thinking about uprooting, try planning a vacation first. Taking a vacation as a way to research a move allows you to see an area for what it truly is – not just for an hour or two, but at all times of day and night. Taking the time off to focus exclusively on your destination is also helpful when it comes to forming an opinion on an area. While you might not do all of the typical “vacation” activities on this unique trip, if you determine that the area is right for you, you’ll be immensely glad to have familiarized yourself beforehand. Taking a vacation as a way to research a potential move will help cut down on moving stress.  I can even prevent you from making a potentially disastrous move if you find yourself saying, “It’s nice to visit, but I’d never want to live there.”

Thank you to guest travel writer Emma Sledge.  

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Start Your Travel Traditions

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This holiday season, you will likely overhear friends and family talk about holiday traditions. These traditions can be everything from family gift exchanges to reading a holiday book every night leading up to Christmas. These traditions are typically passed down from generation to generation. But traditions don’t have to stop once the holidays are over. If you are planning a trip here soon, you should consider starting your own travel traditions.

Travel traditions come in many shapes and sizes. I know people who travel to different international destinations every year to celebrate their wedding anniversary. Maybe you have a favorite vacation home exchange you want to visit annually with the entire family. There are many fun ways to begin travel traditions. To help you brainstorm, here is a look at some of my own personal travel traditions.

Book an international vacation every other year. My husband and I love to travel. On even years, we will travel abroad. We’ve been to Mexico, Europe, and South America. Once we return from our trip, we begin saving and planning our next trip. Next year, we are eyeing either Spain or Japan. Click on the links to view International Vacation Home Exchange properties in both countries.

Celebrate Mothers Day (or any holiday or occasion) with a road trip. I am a new mom so this is a new travel tradition for us. Every Mothers Day weekend, we will take a road trip somewhere as a family. Earlier this year, we spent the weekend in St. George, Utah. Some of you may travel to grandma’s house for Thanksgiving as your travel tradition. Make the holidays, or special occasions, excuses to travel. (For tips on surviving that trip to your grandmother’s house during the holiday season, check out this IVHE post).

Keep a travel journal. How you opt to document your travels is strictly up to you. Me? I prefer photos as opposed to words for my journal. Pictures, after all, are worth a 1,000 words. This is a great tradition that you can share with friends and family. Technology also makes it easy for you to save your journal digitally.

Purchase keepsakes from your vacation. I have a collection of picture frames from all of my travels. My mom purchases bells from all the places she visits. Maybe you bring back a rock or some sand. Or you buy a postcard from every city you visit. Whatever it may be, begin a travel tradition to collect keepsakes from your travels.

The great thing about traditions is you can always begin new ones whenever and wherever you want. Whatever that tradition may be, make sure it is special and unique to you.

What are some of your favorite travel traditions? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

Thanks to travel writer Carla Pruitt. You can follow Carla on Twitter @crobscarla

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Dream Vacation for Young Families

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Turn the dream of a vacation into reality - a guide for young families

Imagine yourself on vacation in Costa Rica, sipping coffee on the veranda with your spouse, while your children play in the surf nearby.  Sound realistically and financially impossible and totally out of your reach? For many families with young children, renting a hotel room or house right on a beach is an impossible dream, not to mention overwhelming in terms of logistics. Traveling with kids takes so much effort and planning.  But with home exchange becoming more and more popular, families can make it happen with minimum planning and even less financial output.

Turning the dream of a vacation into reality

The concept of a vacation home exchange is very simple.  Exchange your home for someone else’s home.  Enjoy vacation with free lodging.  Sounds easy when you are a couple with no children to think about.  But what about when you do have young children?   Young children are messy, young children get upset about people “touching” their toys.”  Young children are loud!  In short, young children can be a liability.  

All of these fears can be put to rest.  When exchanging your home for someone else’s home, families with young children are exchanging with other young families so they are able to relate to each other and understand one another.  Both homes have toys and both homes have child proofed areas.  If something gets broken (which is unlikely) the family staying in the home pays for the damage.  A common practice is to put breakable or valuable items out of reach.  Everything is discussed with the other family beforehand. 

What are the benefits of home exchange for young families? 

•  First, the obvious - savings.   Families can save literally thousands of dollars when not paying for lodging, no matter what part of the world they holiday.  And the savings doesn’t just stop with lodging. When you have your own kitchen, you cook in your kitchen, resulting in more savings.  These savings leave more money for things such as car rentals, tours and activities.

•  Save time on packing.  Packing toys for children are the bane of every parent’s existence.  With home exchange, there is a host of new toys for children to play with.

•  Children love it.  Who’s house are they in?  Where did the family go?  There are endless imagination possibilities and young children love that there are toys, games and various other things for them to play with.

•  Feeling a part of the community.  In a house, you are part of the neighborhood and truly experience the vacation as a local. In short, you feel at home.

If you are a family and certain places in the world seem out of reach, consider home exchange.  The savings and opportunities can turn your vacation dream into reality.

Originally from Chicago, Melissa Downham is a portrait photographer with Z. Noelle Photography and a travel blogger at www.theroamingfamily.com.  She lives in Denver, Colorado with her husband and two children.

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