Teh Travel Bug – I Haz It

Posted by Miss Maccy on Feb 27, 2009 in Travel with kids

WARNING: DO NOT READ THE FOLLOWING BOOK UNLESS YOU ARE PREPARED TO SELL ALL YOUR POSSESSIONS, POSSIBLY YOUR LEFT KIDNEY, AND CONSIDER RETIREMENT PLANS TO BE SO LAST MILLENNIUM.

[amtap amazon:asin=1906098034]

Yesterday I discovered this book at one of our local libraries and nearly od’ed on the excitement of it. The library must have accidentally ordered the book before the recession was official or something. The author, William Gray, writes for the UK magazine Wanderlust. After reading this book I have a serious case of wanderlust myself.

Peaks of Greatness:

Will (as I now like to refer to him) has travelled with twins and has lived to tell the tale, which he tells honestly.
He has great sections on general travel tips and then specific tips for each of the categories of babies/toddlers, children and teens.
The main part of the book is divided up geographically and covers the whole planet (woo-hoo). Each geographical section contains highlights and kid friendly attractions for different age groups. Unlike a backpacking guide book which might assume you can spend three months in one suburb of outer Mongolia, Will goes for the jugular in each location. Along with family friendly accommodation, tour operators and food recommendations, he has included bonus nuggets of information such as suggested books to read and DVD’s to watch.
It’s colourful, it’s glossy. It can be read in bite sized chunks which is helpful for sleep deprived parents and those with post-pregnancy brain.

Valleys of Despair:

It is ad supported. Not offensive and very relevant travel ads (and not many of them) but it does “magizinify” the experience. However, if that is the difference between having a super fabulous travel book or not, I can live with the ads.
Egypt. I get it. It’s fantastic and educational and incredible and we are not going there. So don’t rub it in already.
Carbon offsetting. See “Egypt” above.

Overall this is a fabulous book packed full of great advice. I’m finding it particularly useful because we only have a week in each of the major cities, so it’s great to see suggested itineraries suitable for kids and families. EVERY library should have a copy.