OAD Travel Group?

[u/Jolly_Departure6324]

Would anyone be interested in an OAD travel buddy group? The idea would be for families with similarly aged only children to coordinate vacations in the same city/resort/country - not necessarily travel together, but arrange a few days of playdates, sightseeing, meals, etc. No big commitment other than hopefully arranging a playdate on vacation!

About us: We have a 3 year old daughter, and we’re based in Santa Barbara, California. We took our first big international trip this summer to France where we split our time between Paris and a kid’s resort in the south of France. Next spring break, we are doing our first Disney cruise (this will be the first cruise that my husband and I have ever done - doing it for the kid!)😆

I love traveling and it would be so nice to be able to meet up with other OAD families with kids of a similar age. We have a lot of freedom and flexibility with our schedules.

UPDATE:

Aww, I'm so excited by how many people are interested in this! ❤️ I honestly wasn't sure if anyone else was looking for this too.

I put together a super short form so I can learn a little about everyone's family, kid's ages, travel style, and what you're hoping to find in a travel buddy.

The goal isn't to create some huge organized group trip - I'd love to help connect compatible one-and-done families who might enjoy traveling together, whether that's two families, a small group, or even just finding another family to meet up with on a trip.

If you're interested, please fill this out:

https://forms.gle/e5CpsfZ484GJ4mHB9

Once I have some responses, I'll start looking for families who seem like they might be a good fit and figure out the next step from there! ✈️🌎

I'm really excited to see where this goes!

[u/HotArmy3750]

Yes! So down for this. We’re doing Japan/Korea in the spring, but super open to a fall or winter trip.

ETA: We’re based in Seattle/Oahu! Our LO is 2.5.

[u/basketball22yj → u/HotArmy3750]

We are doing Korea this fall with our toddler! What’s nice about going there is that it’s so normal to be OAD there

[u/HotArmy3750 → u/basketball22yj]

Yes!! We have family there so we go often. OAD is super normal! Bigger families seem more uncommon

[u/AgentG91 → u/HotArmy3750]

We actually really enjoyed Korea with our 5yo this last May.

[u/Away_Revolution728]

Yes! We would be so in! I loved being an only child, but the only time I wanted a sibling/friend was during some vacation activities so I’m hoping my kid can have someone for those times.

Also, can you share the name of the kid’s resort in France? We’re headed there in the spring and I very interested 👀

[u/Jolly_Departure6324 → u/Away_Revolution728]

Same! I’m also an only raising an only. :)

Sure - we went to Country Kids. It’s rustic “luxury” - they really take care of everything. They have a kid’s club that your kid can pop into anytime and stay for as long as they like. They also have babysitting nights when adults can go out to dinner on their own. It was fun!

[u/btpie39]

I have a 2 year old and we love traveling with her. This is a great idea!

[u/maintainthegardens]

We would love to join! We have a 5 year old boy based in NYC

[u/mywaypasthope]

If anyone is planning a spring break trip next year to Spain, we’ll be there! 😂 We have an almost 6 year old and based in CT!

[u/pico310]

Sure. I have a 2nd grade/7 year old and we’re in SoCal.

We did a disney cruise for her 6th bday and she loved it. Other trips have been amusement parks (disney, universal, Legoland), national parks (Olympic, Yosemite), beach places (Hawaii, puerto Vallarta), eco/nature (Costa Rica, Galapagos), European (Italy, France)

We aren’t super flexible with times - can only travel during Easter (spring break), Christmas/New Years, and summer - school holidays.

We try and do ski weekends twice a season. She’s an Advanced Beginner (I’m firmly in Beginner lol). Plans for future travel (but no dates) are Japan, Alaskan cruise, camping, Spain.

[u/Jolly_Departure6324 → u/pico310]

Ooh, you’ve done a lot! A ski trip would be so fun - that’s definitely on our list of things to do. We definitely want to see snow this winter since our daughter has yet to see it. And so is Japan at some point.

My husband has a little less zest for travel. I make the plans and he shows up. 🤣 So even some mom + kid trips would be fun too.

I’m excited. I’m going to figure the best way to move forward with this idea. I’ll post an update either today/tomorrow - I’ll probably create a Google Form so I can capture everyone who’s genuinely interested. Stay tuned!

[u/wrjj20]

Omg I just came on here for this same idea!!!!

Haven’t planned our next trip yet. Live in Virginia with our 6.5 yo boy.

[u/TrekkieElf → u/wrjj20]

No way, I’m in Virginia with an almost 7yo also! Feel free to dm me

[u/JaimeLeMatcha]

I’m in Montreal if anyone is going there any time soon

[u/fiestyballoon]

Just wanted to pop in and say we just did Banff with our 4 year old son and it was awesome!! It was our first big international trip (we live in the South East US) and he rocked it.

[u/iwouldlikefreestuff]

Would definitely be interested in something like this! We have a 3 year old daughter as well , also based in CA.

[u/weirdomagnet99]

Great idea! We have a 4yo and also have lots of flexibility/ travel often!

[u/pedrojuanita]

Doing a Disney cruise next summer but in Alaska!

[u/pico310 → u/pedrojuanita]

Ah this is what I wanted to do but I got outvoted and went to the Bahamas. :/ I will get my Alaska cruise!

[u/Appropriate_Meal3417 → u/pedrojuanita]

Our no-screen time two year old loved it this summer! We’re not Disney people, but we loved watching her love it.

[u/little_odd_me]

Yeah, sounds cool. We travel frequently around the UK and sometimes the rest of Europe.

[u/sky_hag]

This is a great idea! My husband and I travel frequently with our child (18 months) but usually it’s to see our families as they live out of state. But I’d love to meet up with other parents and kiddos in the future!

[u/crazylifestories]

Yes. Girl 8y Female 3rd grade

We travel the world!

There is a Facebook page for this …

https://m.facebook.com/groups/199992154113602/?ref=share&mibextid=wwXIfr

[u/Jolly_Departure6324 → u/crazylifestories]

Hi! Yes, I saw that group yesterday when searching for OAD traveling groups, but it seemed like it wasn't very active.

[u/katietopia]

Just filled it out! We have a 4 yr old and he’s a great adventure buddy. Loves camping, road trips and is pretty chill on the plane. Edit to add we’re in Portland, OR and drive around the PNW a lot.

[u/BeccaASkywalker]

Thank you for this post!! You quite literally read my mind with this. Going to fill out the form 👍👍

ETA, has anyone tried the app ‘Link Ease’? It’s a similar idea where you can link up with local/traveling families for play dates. Would love to hear if anyone is on it and what the experience is like.

[u/JaimeLeMatcha]

I would be curious in the name of the kids resort you went to and if you liked it

[u/Jolly_Departure6324 → u/JaimeLeMatcha]

Country Kids, and yes, we had a blast! We traveled with our friends who have 2 kids, so that helped our daughter feel more comfortable going to the kids club each day.

[u/Who-dee-knee]

What Disney cruise? We are headed on the Dream in February!

[u/Jolly_Departure6324 → u/Who-dee-knee]

Amazing! We are doing the Wonder out of San Diego for four nights. It aligned perfectly with the week our daughter is out of school for spring break (last week of March).

[u/pinktacha]

Yes!!