Looking for more from life, Jolene and Andrzej from Wanderlust Storytellers decided to head out on the road with their young girls in tow. Now they share their fantastic travel stories and tips for seeing the world with the whole family.
We got in touch with Jolene and Andrzej from Wanderlust Storytellers to learn more about their family travel blog and some of the amazing experiences they’ve had on the road. Check out their responses below:
Tell us a little about yourself and your blog.
We are a family of five. We are two super stubborn adults that drive the train of excitement and wanderlust adventure forward, together with our three beautiful daughters, Katie-Lee, Lily and Avalee-Rose. Wanderlust Storytellers, our blog, is a living proof that even though you are a normal family with normal, everyday lives, you can travel and pursue your wanderlust dreams. Our blog is a compilation of our travel stories, together with tonnes of information written in order to make your travel with kids easier, affordable and better. – Andrzej.
How long have you been travel blogging? What got you started?
We have been blogging for around 2.5 years now and never looked back. We started our blogging adventures because of the constant crave for something new, more meaningful and more exciting for our family.
In short, I believe that we just got sick of the monotone everyday life, filled with chores and things that you “should” do as a parent, adult and a ‘normal’ citizen in our society. We simply decided to take a chance and instead of building more stuff around the four walls that we lived in, we decided to follow our dreams to travel. A travel blog was the only way to combine travelling to our bucket-list destinations with creating an income-providing business that we could work on from anywhere in the world.
If you want to have a life you want, you need to find a way to make it happen, and to make your dream produce money for you along the way! – Andrzej.
What is your favourite thing about travelling as a family of five?
There are so many benefits of travelling with your kids, but, most of all, I really love that we get to spend some quality time together. If you use your travel-time wisely, you can use the time to learn more about your kids, you can use it to strengthen relationships and you can use it to truly deepen your bond with both your partner and your kids.
It is amazing how much my kids open up when they are relaxed and happy. I often find that conversations are just so much more meaningful when you step away from the routine of everyday life. Travel also gives you the opportunity to spend one on one time with your kids, something that I think all kids crave. – Jolene.
What makes seeing the world with your family different to travelling solo?
I think that both styles of travel are so incredibly rewarding in their own way. What gives me a kick every single time when I travel with my family is to simply see the excitement on their faces when they see or learn something new. I’m the planner in the family and I always try to find sights, activities or attractions that each person in the family will truly enjoy.
I loved seeing Andrzej’s face light up when we headed out to see something that meant a lot to him! In Paris we visited James Morrison’s grave, and I truly enjoyed watching his face and his eyes as he was taking it all in. We always try to find some exciting learning experiences for the kids to enjoy as well and I will always remember how much fun they had in Cambodia with a local family who taught them how to make brooms out of natural material.
We often reminiscence over these experiences and share memories of our own individual ‘favourites’ of a trip. I adore that we can all share these memories together as a family unit. – Jolene.
If you could give advice to someone looking to travel with their family, what would your top tip be?
How about, when you visit a destination or a country, make sure to find an authentic and cultural activity or tour to experience with your kids. That way you can truly explore the native or local way of life, learn how people live in different countries and take away some valuable lessons for yourself and your kids. – Andrzej.
You’ve visited quite a few countries during your travels. What has been the most interesting food you’ve sampled on the road?
Okay, this one I will give to my wife. Jolene, has tried deep-fried bees whilst visiting China. Yup, bees! I wish I could beat her with something like deep-fried scorpions or a crunchy cockroach, but nope. Sorry. Jolene wins here! – Andrzej.
And the most memorable experience?
I always loved Italy, and Rome is one of my memorable destinations. To be able to touch the walls of the Colosseum and imagine what must have been going on there in the glory days. However, I have an even better experience to share with you.
The MOST memorable experience that I have had was when we went underground at the Roman Basilica San Clemente (the lasagne church). This church had been built over the top of a 4th century church. However, if you went even deeper underground, that church was built over the top of 1st century Roman streets. Yes, we walked on the cobblestone narrow alleys of the 1st century Romans. This experience was amazing!! – Andrzej.
If you could travel anywhere in the world as a family, with all expenses covered, where would you head?
I would love to go to Antarctica! I think that it would be an extraordinary experience to explore this remote destination. Not many people have a chance to visit that continent, so why not be one of the few? – Andrzej.
Where are you travelling next?
We are tossing up between Vietnam and Fiji. However, I am excited about our upcoming road trip in Europe. We are heading there for summer and we will visit Poland, Slovakia, Austria and Germany! Yay!! We will have heaps of new stories to share with you and plenty of awesome photos and video footage to show you as well! Hope you like it! – Andrzej
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Feature Image Credit: Wanderlust Storytellers.
