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‘Grandtravel’ popular bonding experience for Grandparents
Newswise — Seniors who like to “spoil the grandchild” without interference from the parents have discovered that the safest bets are long trips to theme parks, historical sites and even on safaris, a new University of Florida study finds. “Grandtravel,” the practice of kids vacationing with grandma and grandpa and no parents, received a thumbs up from nearly 80 percent of grandparents surveyed, said Catherine Palmieri, a UF graduate student who did the research for her master’s thesis in tourism, recreation and sports management. “The key to the popularity of grandtravel may be that it offers something for everyone, even the parents who are not involved,” Palmieri said. “Grandparents and grandchildren are able to spend quality time without interference from the parents, and the parents are able to relax, knowing their children are with someone they know and trust.” The phenomenon of grandtravel has increased 60 percent since 1996, and now accounts for at least one-fifth of all trips taken with children, Palmieri said. There is even a company called Grandtravel, which operates tours in the United States, Europe, Africa and Australia, while Walt Disney World and Elderhostel offer their own travel packages for grandparents and grandchildren, she said. Grandparents are democratic with the kids. Although they are most likely to decide when and where to travel, how much money to spend and where to stay, they shared the decision with their grandchildren about what to do once they arrived at their destination, as well as what foods to eat, the study found.
“Perhaps because baby boomers were the first generation where large numbers of mothers went into the work force and might not have been around as much as they wanted to be for their own children, they now see this is a way to be involved with their children’s children,” Pennington-Gray said. Palmieri did her research at The Villages, an active retirement community near Lady Lake, Fla., which has more than 40,000 residents. In the summer of 2005, she surveyed 166 female and 78 male residents about their attitudes toward grandtravel with a “favorite grandchild.” The vast majority of grandparents surveyed endorsed the idea, with 43 percent strongly supporting it and 38 percent supporting it. Forty-two percent said they had experienced it. The most popular destinations were theme parks, such as Walt Disney World, and cultural centers, including New York City and Washington, D.C., Palmieri said. Safaris were a hit with those who wanted more extensive travel, she said. Palmieri said some grandparents traveled with a different grandchild every year or arranged to take each child on a trip once they reached age 12 or 13. “For the child, it was something they really looked forward to, and for grandma and grandpa, it was an opportunity to see something new while having a special experience with their grandchild,” she said. Some grandparents liked the idea of grandtravel but were unable to do it because they had to care for an ailing spouse, the children were busy with school activities or the parents were divorced and one parent would not agree to the arrangement, Palmieri said.
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