business travel with family

Business Travel With Family

Okay, the title may seem a little contradictory, but stay with me and

it will all make sense.

I travel a lot for my job. About 99% of my travel involves taking

trips where I can drive where I need to go within a day. In fact,

because I live too far from a large airport, it makes as much if not

more sense to drive places than to fly. Mileage reimbursement is not

bad and helps the budget. But the best part of being able to do most

of my business travel by car is that my wife and daughters tag along

with me on my trips. It should be noted that we homeschool our kids

which makes the family travel possible.

Now, there are some obvious disadvantages to trying to travel

together. But for the most part, the advantages far outweigh the

disadvantages. Frankly, I like having my family with me when I have to

go somewhere. It's much nicer coming back to a hotel with my family

waiting for me than to a hotel room that is empty. It's depressing

having to travel alone away from family. I've known many people that

have had to travel 4-5 days a week and see their families on weekends

if at all. I admire folks that can do that and still maintain a

healthy family life. I just don't know how you do it.

Another advantage of travelling together is that we try to tie in

educational ventures into our trips. For example, we were in

Washington, D.C. earlier in the summer which of course opens up ample

opportunities for educational trips. My kids have had the opportunity

to not only read about history in books but to experience it by

visiting museums and historic homes.

Our girls have learned how to behave like proper young women, in part,

from having to travel and behave in restaurants. They've also become

closer through being forced to amuse each other at the hotels (when

they're not working on schoolwork).

It's not always easy for us to travel together but it is preferable.

When you have to travel for work, could you take your family if you

wanted to? It's not only possible, it's very rewarding. Next time you

have to travel for your job, consider whether it could also be an

opportunity for your family to go with you and experience things your