Planning The Perfect Big Family Trip

Taking a trip with the family is a great way to enjoy a break and catch up. Families can find it difficult to spend time together, so an annual trip with your extended family can be a fun way to reunite and make some special memories.

Planning a trip is stressful at the best of times, but when you throw group travel into the mix, be prepared for even more stress and chaos - think Home Alone! But with some organization and some useful advice, you can enjoy planning your special family trip.

Plan your next family adventure with these tips for planning the perfect big family trip.

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Choose the ideal weekend

Getting a large group of people together isn’t always easy. People have different work patterns, different commitments, and there’s always the occasional one-off event like a wedding that can cause problems finding a date for everyone. Try to plan at least six months in advance, and confirm a date with everybody so that they can keep it free. If there’s one date that tends to suit everyone each year, you can make it an annual weekend that will make it easier to arrange year after year.

To help save one person from always being the organizer, each family could take it in turns to help ease the burden and to share the work fairly.

Pick a great place

While spending time with your family can be enjoyed wherever you are, picking a good destination can help make sure that everyone has a great time. It’s a way to tick destinations off your bucket list and gives you a chance to get away from home and all of the distractions that can usually affect your time together. There are plenty of amazing city destinations to visit as a group, while popular places like LA, Philadelphia, New York, and Boston also make some fantastic destinations for your trip.

Make the journey fun and affordable

A trip away can be a treat, but with everyone’s budgets being different, it’s better to keep things as affordable as possible. A charter service from US Coachways allows you to travel as a group in style, which can work out to be very affordable between you all. Plan some activities for the journey - some games and a brilliant playlist can get your weekend off to the best start.

If you’re only going away for the weekend, try to choose somewhere that isn’t too far for everyone to get to. You’ll want to spend time with each other, not on the road, so try to find places that are within easy reach of your home. 

Create an entertaining and flexible itinerary

With weekends together being as rare as they are, you’ll want to make sure you’ve got enough planned to make the most of your time together. A fun and flexible itinerary can help make sure there’s enough time for family activities, while also making sure everyone gets some time to themselves. Activities can include tours, trips to theme parks, etc. or you can spend time together playing games in the park or on the beach! Keep things flexible so that you can change plans depending on the weather or the mood on the day!

Finding things to do as a family can be difficult when everyone is a different age. But trying to find some common ground is important to ensure everyone has a nice time. Food is something that can bring everyone together - everyone’s got to eat. Split responsibility for food between you all, some easy dishes that will feed a crowd can be a crowd pleaser and will help keep costs down on your trip too.  

A group photo is a must

A family photo is the perfect way to capture the memories of your weekend together. It can be very rare to have your family in one place, so taking the opportunity to take a photo is a must. As these opportunities are rare, you’ll need to learn how to take a great group photo to help you get the ideal shot.

Spending time with your family is important, and big group getaways can be full of fun and excitement that helps keep a family close together. With some good planning and plenty of family travel tips to follow, you can arrange a memorable family trip. Many families take a trip as an annual family tradition, so why not make this the year you start yours? Now all you need to do is decide where you want to go!

Supporting An Elderly Relative

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Having an elderly relative in your life to take care of can be hard. Not only do you need to worry about all of your life problems, such as juggling looking after a home, and going to work, you will need to spend time ensuring they are well looked after. It can take up a great deal of your time, and often you will feel tired, and that you can't get a break.

You may need to help with several areas of your loved one's life. These may include helping them dress and wash, as well as cooking for them, and buying groceries. You may need to help them up in the morning and into bed at night. They may have mobility issues and require you to take them places. Fundamentally though, if they live alone, they may rely on your company to get them through life.

Ask For Help From Your Family

It is vital to get as much support from those around you during a time such as this. Enlisting the help of your partner, or children may be beneficial and will take some of the burdens off you.

If you have any siblings, you could involve them too. Having as many people who can pop in and visit will mean that there is not a sense of resentment either if it feels that it is all falling on you to do everything.

Come up with a plan between you as to who will go on which days. Try and keep to a regular schedule if possible as this will help you to get the best coverage of care at all times.

Use A Care Visitor Service

There will be private duty care services within your area that will help to take the pressure off you. Hiring a specialist caregiver to visit each day will mean that your loved one will get the best attention possible. You will be able to rest easy, knowing that their every need are being met and that they are in safe hands.

A care visitor will be able to help with all of the day-to-day support that your loved one will need, including assisting them in dressing, washing, eating, and get about.

Get Respite Care

If you are devoting a massive part of your life to caring for your loved one yourself, then it is only natural that you will feel exhausted by this at times. You will need to take a break.

Going on holiday from time-to-time will ensure that you get the opportunity to unwind and recharge. This will help you come back refreshed, and better able to take care of your loved one.

During this time, you may wish to take your family member to go and stay in a respite care center. Have a look for a home that you feel will give them the best experience. Many run social activities and have a very supportive staff that are there 24/7 to take care of all of their needs.

How To Plan Your Next Home Move

If you’re getting ready for a big house move and feel as though you haven’t made sufficient steps to plan the whole endeavor properly, then there are a few steps that can be taken to help ensure that you get things right. Failing to prepare can leave you in a very uncomfortable and stressful situation that might otherwise have been avoided.

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Reduce And Pack Your Stuff

Realistically, before you decide to pack your belongings, it’s best to reduce the amount you have. Whether this is through selling online or simply throwing away, the less you have to move the easier it will be. If you take the chance to sell your old stuff, you will also get the added bonus of more money to spend to improve the experience even more! Once you’ve finished reducing and feel comfortable with what you have, get in contact with some professionals (find local movers here!) that can help you to evaluate which vehicles are needed to transport your stuff and how you’re actually going to get to your new home, as this will relieve a lot of pressure. Attempting to complete this step on your own will be almost impossible unless you already have some kind of van or truck to carry everything safely, so be sure to seek help!

Redirect Your Mail

Leaving your mail to be sent to your old address is such a huge mistake. This could mean that your personal information and private details such as bank card data and medical records will be going straight into the hands of someone else. It’s so simple to get in touch with the most important businesses, organizations, and individuals (such as work, family, doctors, any subscriptions, insurance) so that you can let them know about your upcoming move, but you can also contact your mail service to ‘redirect’ everything with your name on to your new home. It would be so easy for someone with bad intentions to take advantage of your personal information, and you could end up in quite a frightening situation if they are able to decipher a lot of data from your mail.

Prepare For Arrival

Failing to sort out your different energy, water, and any other providers will leave you in a sticky situation. It’s not always an instant change when you start a contract with a new society, so you may end up being left without warmth or power for weeks or even months if you dedicate to try and arrange it all on the day of your arrival. By being proactive and ensuring that you have already established which providers you will be making use of before you reach your moving date, you will save a lot of time, money and effort for the future!

With any luck, these tips should help you to get ready for your home move and plan all of the necessary steps to make it as hassle-free as possible. Reduce your stuff, redirect your mail and establish your different utility providers!

Key Pros and Cons of Online Promo Codes

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Everyone loves a good deal – whether it’s on an item of clothing, a food product or free shipping. And that’s where online promo codes come in. When you go to the checkout, you will often be greeted with the ‘voucher code’ or ‘promo code’ box which will then send you to Google to search for a discount code. But are they really all that they seem? Here are some of the top pros and cons that come with using online promo codes!

Let’s start on a positive note – the pros! 

They save you money

One of the main pros of online promo codes is that they are a great way of getting a discount online; available on a wide range of websites, they can save you hundreds of dollars. Everyone likes to save money where they can, and a promo code is an ideal way of doing this. Before applying the code, however, ensure that you read through the terms and conditions – you don’t want to be caught out by the small print!

They are easy to use 

Almost everyone now can use a computer with ease – and promo codes are no different. There are lots of websites (an example of a company that’s on a voucher code website is Fanatics) that lay out the offers to you in an easy-to-use format, allowing you to get the code with a click of a button. You can then copy the code and put it in the box on the website. By subscribing to a voucher code website, you will be informed of the latest offers and deals – allowing you to get fantastic discounts on items just in time for that special occasion!

They will make you loyal to the brand 

When a company frequently offers promo codes you are more likely to go with them. However, it’s important to think about the reason as to why they always have sales or voucher codes – e.g is the quality poor? If they are from a company that you know and trust, you will then recommend them to others, allowing more people to reap the benefits of the promo codes.

So there are three of the main pros that come with using online promo codes. But are there any cons?

They can make you overspend

Everyone has been there. Tempted by more sales items or great discounts, you can easily spend more money than you first intended. Online promo codes are incredibly tempting – highlighting seemingly incredible deals that you can easily use. But when you notice these savings, it’s important to not go over the top and overspend. Yes, you can reap a great deal – but don’t put your finances at risk because of a promotion.

Final Thoughts 


With there only being one major downfall for using online vouchers it’s clear that the benefits outweigh the disadvantages. As long as you use the codes sensibly, there shouldn’t be any damage. Before you use the code, however, read the expiration date on the code and reviews on the voucher website itself – you don’t want to risk the security of your device for a discount after all!