Traveling with Teens | Challenges we face and how to overcome them | Electronics & Phones

May 6

Heading into the final stretch of our series discussing all the things that come at us as parents when traveling with teens.

Phones, electronics and all the screens that take our kids away from us is a hot topic for all parents! If you are jumping in here, this is the fourth post in our five part series about the challenges that come when we travel with our teens. It’s not meant to scare you but instead prepare you. Truth be told, traveling with our teens has been an absolute highlight to family lives.

In case you missed it, this series was created from an Instagram live series that I did with two IG friends that are in the same boat. We are three moms with seven teenagers between us, all ranging from 13 to 18. We are all passionate about traveling and truly find so much joy in the experience of traveling with our teens but we like to keep it real and sometimes those joys come with some struggles and challenges. The good thing is we (and you!) are not alone.

All the hurdles we face are very common and hearing how others have tackled those challenging moments have helped us all keep our minds open and have given us new ways to approach our teens when we make travel plans that include them.

It’s almost mind-blowing to see how much we discussed in one IG live. It’s also amazing to see how many layers there are when traveling with teens.

Before we start, let’s do a quick introduction of the women I had the pleasure of chatting with online! Be sure to check out their IG pages—they offer so many travel ideas, suggestions and honest mom talk about life with teenagers.

Jen in Puerto Rico with bright colorful buildings behind her — Jen is based in South Carolina and is a mom of three teens ranging from 13 to 18. You’ll find her on IG @gofamilyadventure

Laura on a swing with pink flowers — Laura is based in Southern California and is a mom of two teens, 14 & 16. Follow all their adventures @travel80by80

Let’s dive in to the hefty top of phones and traveling with teens.

Q: What do you do about your teens and their cell phones when you travel?

One of the biggest struggles on a daily basis in life with teens is the reality of cell phones. They are rarely without them, on them more than we’d like and if we are to be honest, it’s their main form of socialization, whether we like it or not.

With everything in life, there needs to be balance and communication. Traveling with teens is no exception. Traveling with our teens is truly an experience that brings families closer together but that’s not to say there won’t be bumps along the way.

Here are some ways we deal with technology when traveling.

Give them the downtime they need. Once again, it’s all about balance, right? If we’ve spent all day together, exploring and enjoying our surroundings then once we are back to the hotel/rental unit and on wifi, phones are fair game.

We figure if they’ve been present while we are traveling as family, they deserve time to connect with friends online. Bonus is if we have our own rooms or space, they have privacy to take some time to talk to friends without eyes all over them.

All three of us stand by the rule that when we reconvene for a mealtime, phones are back down. Essentially it comes down to the fact that the reward for participating in all the family activities is no-nagging time with phones. After all, even teens need incentives sometimes!

Our general rules about phones when traveling include…

No phones at tables and no international data. They are encouraged to take pictures when we are traveling but have to wait for wifi to post/share/send.

Teens can be pretty inventive about how and where they find wifi but especially if you are traveling internationally and even in airports, it is important to discuss online safety with teens. They’ll hop on any free wifi but that’s not always safe to do. Set those rules before you go!

If driving, it’s ok for them to be on phones. Don’t be hypocritical, if we are on our phones, they should be allowed to you. Music is really important to many teens, if listening to music can help create space in cramped quarters or provide relaxation on a busy day, let them have that. Just be sure they’ve downloaded music before they go so they are not using data to stream.

We all agree that denying them time on their phones, can make them feel connected with friends and by doing so, they are less resentful or anxious about missing out on what is going on at home.

Offering a little hope…

While time away from their phones is often a top reason for pushback and attitudes when traveling, rest assured that it does get easier with time. Like with any addiction (I kid, sort of) the first few hours away from the item or resource of pleasure can be hard but give them time and they will see that they don’t always need to be “connected” to the world of social media.

We have all had at the moment in our travels where one of our teens turned to us and actually stated that they were grateful for the break from the noisy world of social media.

Sometimes phones need to be removed for our teens to see the value of life without screens, to remind them to be present where they are and that not every thing has to be shared in real time.

Making memories in real life can have a lasting impact on them but like with most things with teens, us just saying that means nothing but then experiencing it through their own eyes is what makes a difference.

three teenage girls sitting on curb looking at their phones — I think every parent can relate to this scene, amiright?
Photo credit: @elsbethcat via Unsplash

About the fifth and final post in this series

Our final topic in this live was about another common need for teens: personal space. We go from having little ones on our laps and in our arms all the time and then it feels like in one blink of the eyes, they are doing everything they can to create distance between us.

Teens are always exploring their independence from their parents, especially once they start driving, so often time traveling can be an adjustment for everyone but especially the teens who are use to their own personal space.

We are all passionate about taking advantage of traveling with our teens while we have them at home and always come back feeling a little more connected and grounded in our family values. Remember a weekend getaway or a quick beach trip is just as refreshing and uplifting an experience as any other. We all know the best conversations often happen in a car. Right?!