Is taking kids abroad a good idea? Eight key points summed up in one line

Probably since Nini was about one year old, I’ve always had a certain feeling when traveling with them. It’s a feeling of being unappreciated but still incredibly wonderful. Later, during my pregnancy, and until the boy was about one year old, we paused our overseas trips. It wasn’t until after he turned one that he started to become more mobile.
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Earlier this year, we went to Macau, and also took the opportunity to visit Okinawa again before the boy turned two — a place where both Nini and I share memories. This time it was the whole family of four, so the experience and memories were completely different. To be honest, even now, many friends around us still think that traveling abroad is meant for vacation and relaxation, and bringing kids along is a waste of money. But that really comes down to a difference in values, which is why what Xiao Jie often says is still the most apt: “You believe what you believe, and do what you want to do!” The ones who spend the money get to decide.

At least, for both my husband and me, traveling abroad with our two kids is a shared belief — once again, as the saying goes: Kids don’t necessarily have to have memories, but we do.
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Is traveling abroad with kids tiring? It’s honestly exhausting.
Is traveling abroad with kids fun? Traveling abroad with kids means facing lots of unexpected situations.
What do you have to sacrifice when you take your kids abroad?
I think the biggest sacrifice is…

1. You might not get to visit as many attractions.
2. Your shopping stamina might not be at its peak.
3. You might find yourself wondering internally countless times: “Why did I even bring them along?”
4. You’ll encounter a lot of uncontrollable “situations.”

But there are rewards too:
1. You’ll get lots of laughter from your kids (priceless).
2. You’ll discover that your kids’ world becomes much wider.
3. You’ll see that your children improve with each trip.
4. You’ll realize that because of your kids, you’ve learned to “take it slow.”

To be honest, this trip to Okinawa was half impulse. We didn’t manage to join the Macau trip with Mr. Zhuang, who had been looking forward to our family trip this year. But due to some issues with the family tour group, the plan fell through, and Xiao Jie has been thinking about where to go. Originally, we considered Fukuoka, but it’s easiest to lose your mind when you’re busy.

Lately, friends kept raving about their trips to Okinawa, and I’d also been wanting to explore some new routes I hadn’t taken before (group tours rarely cover resort beach routes). Then I found out that EVA Air had late departures and early returns, and the flights for the whole family of four cost less than 20,000 NTD — so I swiped the card right away (impulsive, right?). I wanted to try out a different departure and return point and see what kind of spark it would bring. In the past, with earlier flights, the kids didn’t behave well on the plane during our last trip to Macau, and given price considerations, we decided to just go with the flow.

But even so, I was busy with banquets, work, and a packed schedule all the way up to the day before departure. I didn’t even have time to prepare. At that point, I was really glad I’d chosen Okinawa. Even the night before we left, I ended up falling asleep with the kids and sleeping in until the next morning, only jumping up at 5am to pack. That made me grateful we had an afternoon flight. I even bought two books intending to bring them abroad, but forgot to take them when we left. So this time, our trip was almost entirely spontaneous.
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We visited four playground parks with slides, an outlet mall, and American Village. For food, apart from two meals guided by a senior who was working and vacationing in Okinawa, for the rest we just casually “found something and ate it,” but everything turned out to be a pleasant surprise. Looking back, it was actually pretty nice this way.

Xiao Jie still managed to organize things a bit. This time, what I think is especially worth sharing is the hotel — I did the most research on the accommodation choice. We stayed at such a friendly place, so I definitely had to share it.