On Family Vacations, Amenities Matter!
When your vacation includes family members of all ages, choosing a destination with a diverse set of amenities is a key factor that can produce magical results.
Blog Article Topic: Planning for a multigenerational family vacation for parents, children and grandparents
The Benefits of Family Travel
(There are many!)
Traveling with family is an enriching experience that creates lasting memories and strong bonds. It means stepping outside of the daily grind of routine and into an experience of fun and exploration of the unknown. It can have valuable benefits to each member of the family, both young and old. The following lists a few well-known benefits:
- Help establish a healthy family lifestyle of curiosity and discovery
- Help strengthen confidence in children for navigating new or unique experiences
- Help foster an appreciation of diversity in children for different cultures, foods and people
- Provide families with energizing alternatives to their everyday entertainment
- Deepen relationships and provide memories with grandparents or relatives that may not live in the home
- Provide families an opportunity for fun physical activities together!
- Establish a valuable family tradition of having FUN together!
Planning the "Perfect" Vacation?
The travel industry notes an increasing rise in multigenerational travel. In 2023, a survey of 3,300 parents conducted by the Family Travel Association (FTA), 54 percent responded that they plan to include grandparents in their next vacation. In a nutshell, in today’s busy world, the family vacation has become an effective way to reconnect with extended family.
Planning a multigenerational vacation presents a unique challenge of meeting the preferences and physical needs of family members of different ages. For vacations that include grandparents for instance, it’s best if a location and the activities can be chosen so that no one is left on the sidelines.
On a side note, managing age diversity within your immediate family can also be a challenge that requires good planning. As your children grow, the requirements for a “perfect vacation” can change quickly. For example, you may find that the age gap between your children becomes much more important when one child reaches their early teens. TRUTH: while many parents declare this milestone as the official end to fun family vacations, it’s simply not true. Because with the right planning, meaningful and fun vacations can be enjoyed for a lifetime.
When Amenities Matter Most
Whether managing your travel group’s age diversity involves extended family or just your immediate family, the importance of hotel or resort amenities comes into play in a huge way. To meet the needs of your group’s age diversity, access to a wide array of amenities can make a significant difference. It’s very possible to find a place that would facilitate both a fun and relaxing day for everyone without ever leaving the property.
Helpful Planning Tips
There’s a mountain of helpful information on the internet for planning a vacation. All of it aimed at the same goal of keeping kids, parents and grandparents happy, energized and more importantly, engaged in activities. Below, we chose 5 tips to share.
- Choose the right accommodations: This is the most frequent tip given in most travel blogs, travel journals and articles. The perfect place will act as a HUB for coming together throughout the day. Make sure there are amenities are diverse enough to where there is something for all. It should be a place where time together can be fun and relaxing without ever leaving the property!
- Choose the right area: Make sure there are interesting places to explore within a 30-minute drive. That way, certain family members can spend a morning or afternoon on an excursion but be back to the “HUB” for a family gathering at the end of the day.
- When possible, include all family in the planning.
- Spend time looking at online reviews: This is the number one way that people choose a final destination!
- Don’t be afraid to Divide and Conquer! With enough adults in your group, multiple side excursions can easily be managed. For instance – on some days, younger adults can take younger children to an attraction that requires physical activity while an older adult can take others to a science or art museum.
Fun & Frivolous Facts
(Found on the Internet)
- 80 percent of all family travel is influenced by MOM!
- The pilot and his assistant must eat different food in order not to upset their stomachs (or be poisoned!) at the same time.
- In 1987, American Airlines saved $40,000 by removing one olive from each salad served in first class.
- 70% of parents take their children on vacation where they went when they were young.
- Money spent on a journey makes people happier than money spent on tangible goods
- In Italy, workers receive an average of 42 paid vacation days from their employers each year. Most workers in the US receive less than 10 paid vacation days per year.
- The longest commercial airline flight is 18 hours and 50 minutes from New York to Singapore. 9,537 miles
- Percentage of people who attend a family reunion at least once every other year: 60 percent
- The longest journey on a lawnmower is 23,487.5 km (14,594.5 miles) in 260 consecutive days by Gary Hatter (USA). His average speed was a whopping 9 mph. (Guinness world record)
At Fisherman's Cove,
you’ll find a little something for EVERYONE in your group whether young or old. Below, you’ll find a generous variety of amenities that can be enjoyed from sunup to sundown!
Guest Amenities
- Expansive waterfront pool (climate controlled)
- Jetted hot spa
- Spacious 2-story clubhouse; full kitchen, large TV lounge area, vending machine area
- Well-stocked game room
- Private boat ramp
- 375 ft private fishing pier (24 hours) with fish cleaning station and night lighting
- Resort kayaks & paddleboards*
- Bayside putting green
- Full fitness center
- Outdoor Tiki hut with BBQ kitchen
- Pickle ball court
- Large outdoor pavilion for group dinners or gatherings
- Community dog run with nighttime lighting
- Centralized comfort station with modern restrooms, hot showers, and laundry facility.
- Walking paths beneath towering oaks
- Beautiful sunsets over the Terra Ceia Bay. Hint: Dolphin’s swim close to shore most often during sunrise and sunset.
*Resort kayaks and paddleboards are available on a first come, first serve basis.
Vacation Villas
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Recent Google Reviews
The amenities are top notch! The fishing pier was a big hit for my hubby! I will say that the $1k deposit was a huge turn off and almost a deal breaker for us, we’ve never been asked for such a huge deposit, hence the 4 stars.
We stayed at Fisherman’s Cove RV Resort for about a week, and while there are some definite positives… it’s a bit of a mixed bag depending on what you’re looking for.
The location is solid, especially if you want to be close to Sarasota without being right in the middle of everything. The pool deck was a highlight… well done, relaxing, and clearly one of the better features of the campground.
That said, the campground has a very quiet, sleepy feel and seems to cater more toward an older crowd. During our entire stay, we didn’t see a single kid. For some people, that’s exactly what they want… but for others, it’s worth knowing upfront.
Amenities were fairly limited and there really weren’t any organized activities. There were a couple of food trucks, which was nice to see… but communication around when they’d be there was minimal, so it felt a bit random.
One area that could use improvement is staff interaction. We didn’t see many employees around and the few we did encounter weren’t particularly friendly. I even tried saying hello to the groundskeeper a couple of times and didn’t get much of a response… which stood out.
Overall, Fisherman’s Cove is a decent option if you’re looking for a quiet, low-key stay with a nice pool and good location. Just know going in that it’s more subdued, with limited amenities and very little activity. For the right traveler, it may be perfect… but it’s definitely preference-based.
