Remember your family vacation for years by keeping a travel journal.

A family travel journal is a fun way to document your trip, while getting the whole family involved. Pictures, travel mementos and a bit of narration are usually all that are required to keep a family travel journal, yet this easy process will create a keepsake that is likely to be treasured for years to come.

Keeping a family travel journal not only documents your vacation, it provides a place to store all of your trip mementos. Ticket stubs, brochures and other keepsakes often get lost when the family returns home. However, placing them in a travel journal, along with photos, will keep them safe and allow them to remain a part of your travel memories. Once you know how to keep a family travel journal, you’ll likely never vacation without one.

First, pick a family travel journal that is durable and will suit the environmental aspects of your destination. If visiting a humid climate or one that rains a lot, choose a journal that will hold up under those conditions, such as one that has a cover or tougher exterior. If you and your family are planning on hiking or taking long excursions, consider choosing a journal that is light-weight, so as not to drag you down on your journey.

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Get your family involved. Almost nothing can ruin a family vacation like unenthusiastic children, especially teenagers. By allowing your clan to help you create this one-of-kind keepsake, you are giving them something to do, while being part of a family activity. Allow your children to write down their thoughts in the journal, take pictures and give their input on how to design a page. Not only will they enjoy being part of the process, but their work is sure to be treasured down the road.
Take time to write down your thoughts. We all know how fleeting a thought can be, which is why it is essential to capture your memories as they come. Trying to remember what was so special about a particular place you visited a week ago may result in lost memories. If possible, write your insights down as they come, or at least that same day.

Keep any traveling mementos you may encounter. This could include receipts, reading material and even a leaf or flower from a favorite location. Use them to create art in your travel journal or place them inside simply for sentimental purposes.

Try not to get too bogged down in creating a “perfect” journal. Sometimes, the fun of creating a family travel journal can be lost when trying to follow a rigid structure. Getting too caught up in the process of designing a journal can often make you, and especially your children, disinterested. Therefore, decide that “anything goes” in the creation process and you and your family will likely have a better time creating a journal than if you spend too much time and energy making the journal “perfect.”

Experiment with different topics. While you can create one journal that documents your entire trip, you could also create a few different travel journals that are based on one topic. For instance, if you are traveling to a few countries abroad, create journals for each different country you visit. If you are visiting different parks or other outdoor destinations, make a journal for each stop you make. One of the great things about family travel journals is that you make your own rules. Choose whatever works best for you and your family and just go with it.

Family travel journals work well for any type of family vacation, whether just a state over, or a few countries away. You don’t have to go on an expensive, full-blown adventure to create a top-notch journal–a trip to grandma’s can seem like a travel extravaganza with creativity and an open mind. There is no set way on how to keep a family travel journal, which is one of the best things about creating one. The design, the layout and the content all depend on you and your family, which truly makes it a one-of-a-kind keepsake that can remind you of your family adventure for years to come.

References:
Venere Travel Blog: How to Keep a Travel Journal
LucyTravels.com: Travel Journal Kid Style