Family travel five: Virtual vacations at home
At home with the kids? If we can't travel to a favorite hotel, resort, restaurant or ranch, we can always pretend. Here are five ways to create a virtual vacation in your own home.
1. Go Camping
Updated
Whether you set up a tent in the backyard or the bedroom, with a little imagination you can enjoy all the fun of a real camping trip without spending travel time! Create a campfire using flashlights under a towel or thin blanket. Listen to the sounds of your own backyard or create an alternate sound track featuring birds, waterfalls, streams or trees rustling via a music or meditation app. Tell stories around your campfire, sample s'mores, sing songs and plan for your next adventure.
Pro tip: REI offers advice for introducing kids to the outdoors through camping in your own yard and beyond.
2. Enjoy a Spa Day. (Or Week)
Updated
Channel the services of a famous resort spa and pamper yourselves at home. Give family members the chance to reserve a manicure, masque, foot or head massage, a salt or sugar scrub, a relaxing soak or whichever services your creative minds concoct. Craft a soothing play list via your favorite music app, gather candles and supplies from your own beauty stash, your kitchen and you're good to go!
Pro tips:
___
The Arawak Spa, at Belmond Cap Juluca on the Caribbean island of Anguilla, recommends a detoxifying soak to ease the tension of these stressful times.
___
Arawak Salt Soak
___
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup salts (Epsom, Pink Himalayan, Sea Salts)
- 1 cup baking soda (softens water)
- Essential oils if available in home (5-10 drops)
- Loose tea leaves
___
To make:
Combine ingredients in a mixing bowl. If possible, crush or grind the tea leaves to open up natural oils in the plant and allow it to mix well with the salts. Once combined, run a hot bath and add 3 tablespoons of the mixture to the water. Soak in the tub for 15 minutes.
___
Suggested blends:
Invigorating: peppermint or citrus oil /or tea leaves
Calming: Chamomile tea or oil, green tea loose leaves
Detoxifying: Rosemary Anise or Ginger /oil or tea leaves
___
The Lodge at Edgewood Tahoe suggests this post-winter scrub, which makes use of pine needles reported to be both antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory.
___
Alpine Mountain Scrub Recipe:
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1/2 cup coconut oil
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons freshly chopped pine needles (optional)
- 12 drops of essential oil (optional)
3. Play Restaurant
Updated
Take turns playing Executive Chef and encourage every member of the family to play a role. Plan for various theme nights that might include an island luau, a ranch cook-out, mountain meadow picnic fare, a safari sundowner or a Mexican fiesta. Encourage the kids to make their own menus, placemats and other decor. Choose music to suit the "destination."
4. Host a Happy Hour
Updated
Don't let social distancing requirements keep you from staying in touch (virtually) with family and friends. Plan a "happy hour" video call and encourage the group to join you in a toast to future family travels.
___
Pro tip: Serve a kid-friendly mocktail like the one offered by restaurant ZuZu in Scottsdale, Ariz.'s Hotel Valley Ho.
___
Tranquil Tonic
Ingredients
4 oz. blood orange juice
6 fresh raspberries
1/2 oz. simple syrup
3 oz. LaCroix grapefruit sparkling water
___
Instructions
Combine the blood orange juice (regular orange juice also works well with this recipe if blood oranges are not available), simple syrup and raspberries in a shaker, then muddle. Strain and pour into a glass; top with LaCroix and garnish with an orange slice and a raspberry.
5. Your Fitness Center
Updated
Take turns leading a yoga or Pilates class. Choose from a wide variety of exercise classes available online. Venture out for a fitness walk. Consider taking the kids on a "bear hunt," by walking through your neighborhood in search of teddy bears placed in the windows of neighboring homes. The idea of creating window-based scenes using teddy bears and rainbows is spreading around the world. If it hasn't reached your area, perhaps you and your family can help expand the trend. #BearHunt.
___
Pro tip: Tara Cruz, senior spa director at Four Seasons Hotel New York Downtown, recommends starting each day with simple stretches, breathing exercises and positive thoughts to stay healthy during challenging times.
___
(Lynn O'Rourke Hayes (www.LOHayes.com) is an author, family travel expert and enthusiastic explorer. Gather more travel intel on Twitter @lohayes, Facebook, or via FamilyTravel.com)
As featured on
Every journey changes your life. For my family, it was the trip in the summer of 2005 that made the difference.
