16 Ways to Turn Your Vacation into an Educational Experience

What better way to learn about other cultures than by traveling to visit them? Seeing the world is one of the best educations out there. But it’s not just about seeing new places – it’s also about learning from them.

Here are 16 ways to turn your vacation into an educational experience. So whether you’re visiting ancient ruins, trying local cuisine, or learning about the history and culture of a new place, you’ll be sure to come away with a wealth of knowledge.

So pack your bags and get ready for some learning!

Research the Areas You’ll be Visiting

Learning on vacation starts with researching where to go and what to do. If the goal is to maximize your educational experience, you’ll want to visit different places each time you travel, as opposed to vacationing in the same location each time you travel.

Researching itself is an educational experience. It involves time management, finding deals that fit within the budget, scheduling, making travel arrangements, studying maps to find the perfect location, route planning, checking reviews before booking accommodations, and so much more!

If your goal is to help your children learn, let them help with the process! Get out the Atlas and let them help you plan your routes if you’ll be driving. Watch documentaries, decide which attractions you want to see, and read books together about the areas you’ll be visiting prior to leaving. Gain as much information before you get there.

Just by studying maps together, you and your children will soak up so much knowledge about the area. Here’s an article about learning about geography through travel.

Play Audio Books while Traveling in the Car

Listening to books is an excellent way to pass the time while traveling, plus it can be educational, depending on which book you choose.

Reading aloud to children has so many educational benefits, but books on tape can accomplish many of the same things.

And it isn’t only children who benefit from listening to audio books! When we travel, my husband listens to several books about business and entrepreneurship. (I’m old-fashioned and prefer to hold a book and read.) Pick a topic that interests you and your family and listen to an audio book. You may pick up a new hobby, but if nothing else, I bet you’ll learn something.

Play Educational Games in the Car

As a roadschooling family, we are always looking for ways to accomplish learning while having fun. Games can be so educational! Kids can learn math, colors, trivia

Some of our favorites games to play while traveling are:

If you’re looking for more travel game ideas, read this.

Be sure to grab the travel versions of any games you can. The game boards and pieces are usually magnetic, condensed in size, and have sturdier cases than the original options.

Take Walking Tours

Many cities offer walking tours, both guided and self-guided. Walking tours usually discuss the history of the area, the development of the architecture, and wildlife. Some even incorporate scavenger hunts, making them even more entertaining.

The guides are typically extremely knowledgeable and entertaining, telling the best stories about the area.

Don’t limit yourself to regular walking tours either. In addition to general walking tours, you can also take walking tours geared towards ghosts and paranormal activities, art, food, literature, bars, and historical sites.

Talk to Locals

Talk to locals! Not only will you learn a lot about the area, but you may even get some inside information on the best restaurants, things to do, and places to visit. We recently talked to a local on the trip we’re currently on and he told us about a private, uninhabited island near where we are visiting. We will definitely be visiting the island, but had we not talked to him, we would never known about it.

If you’re traveling internationally, talking to locals is especially important. If there’s a language barrier, pick up a translating dictionary.

Here are some common translation dictionaries for English speakers:

Visit Nature Preserves and National Parks

Every new area we travel to, we visit a nature preserve. You can learn so much through nature. Read the signs while you’re walking the nature paths. They contain so much information about wildlife, plants, and the history of the area.

National Parks have excellent programs for learning. Kids can even become Junior Rangers. If you’ll be planning a national park tour in America, be sure to pick up this Atlas. It saved me so much time planning our road trip and activities on our national park tour.

Learn about Currency and Exchange Rates

If you’ll be visiting an area with a different currency, it’s an excellent opportunity to learn the names and values of the coins and bills.

Let’s say you’re traveling to Mexico from America. You’ll exchange your American dollars for pesos. One American dollar is equal to 19.83 Mexican pesos. So $500 is equal to 9917.43 Mexican pesos.

If you’re truly trying to gain an educational experience from your vacation, try to convert your money on paper first. Then Google to check your work.

Learning the exchange rates and manually converting the money can also be a great math lesson for travel homeschoolers and parents alike!

Go to Zoos, Farms, and Museums

Zoos, farms, and museums provide an endless amount of learning opportunities. Even if you’re traveling without kids, adults can learn a ton.

From U-pick farms to shell factories, to science and history museums, you’re sure to learn a lot.

Recently, we visited a museum (Shell Factory in Fort Myers, Florida) that had a dinosaur exhibit, seashell museum, petting zoo, alligator pit, aquarium, and aviary all in 1! That field trip checked off our science lessons for the week!

Visit Historical Landmarks and Sites

Travelers in America, be sure to visit the Statue of Liberty, the site of 911 attack, Alcatraz, the Golden Gate bridge, the Alamo, and Mount Rushmore. There are also lots of historical monuments to visit in Washington D.C.

If you’ll be in Europe, be sure to stop at the Eiffel Tower, Big Ben, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, the Colosseum, and Stonehenge.

Travelers in Asia, be sure to visit the Great Wall of China, the Taj Mahal, the Forbidden City, Petronas Twin Towers, and Angkor Wat.

Add them to your itinerary!

Play Games in the Evening

When you get back to your camper, vacation rental, or hotel, play games! Most games incorporate some level of learning such as math, trivia, color-sorting, hand-eye coordination, and more. Plus, it’s a great family bonding opportunity.

Try Snakes & Ladders, Uno, or Trekking the National Parks.

Send Postcards to Family and Friends

Sending postcards to family and friends at home is an excellent way for kids to practice their handwriting, grammar, spelling, and punctuation. Plus, narrating what they’ve done on vacation will help them remember the experiences.

Keep a Travel Journal

I cannot say enough great things about keeping a travel journal. Writing is a great educational experience for adults and kids.

Some great benefits of keeping a travel journal are as follows:

it serves as a record-keeping of your travel destinations and adventures
it holds some of your most dear memories
it gathers all the information about your trip in case you want to repeat your trip
it helps you meditate and slow down
you can reflect back on it throughout the years
it is a creative outlet
it is a handmade souvenir
it is a place to hold all the details of your travels that you may forget otherwise

Looking for a great travel journal? Here are my top picks:

Learn a New Hobby or Skill

Traveling is a great time to learn a new hobby or skill. You have tons of free time on your hands so you might as well put your time to good use!

Here are some ideas for hobbies and skills that are easy to learn and do on vacation:

photography
flying drones
collecting coins
calligraphy
adult coloring
hiking
rock climbing
golfing
boating
crocheting
sewing
scrapbooking
building model airplanes and cars
playing guitar
learn a new language
dancing
painting
reading
bullet journaling
build a robot
cooking
drawing
research topics of interests
meditate
photo editing
blogging
gardening
car repair
budgeting
investing

Who knows? Maybe you’ll decide to travel full-time and your new hobby can become a side hustle or even generate a full-time income?! (Here’s a list of ways to make money on the road.)

Read Lots of Books

Reading is one of the best ways to learn about something new and vacations provide lots of free time to enjoy reading. Reading isn’t limited to books. You can read comic books, magazines, newspapers, listen to audio books, and more.

Search for books on topics that interest you and your family. You can read in the car, on the plane, at the airport, before bed, while sitting on the beach – anywhere!

Eat Local Cuisine

Don’t eat at chain restaurants while traveling if you truly want to soak up the adventure and turn it into an educational experience. Eat the same foods that the locals eat. Gain an appreciation for their cuisine and culture.

No more chicken fingers and McDonald’s.

Try the sushi in Japan, eat baguettes in France, tacos al pastor in Mexico, hamburger in American, pizza in Italy, gyros in Greece, and massaman curry in Thailand.

Go to Visitor Centers

Travelers often overlook visitor centers, but you shouldn’t! Visitor centers provide an excellent opportunity for tourists to learn about the area they’re visiting and fun things to do. They often provide brochures and offer coupons and discounts.

Conclusion

Vacations are a time to rest and relax, but they can also be a time to learn and explore. By doing some research before you leave and planning out your activities, you can turn your vacation into an educational experience.

From visiting nature preserves and national parks to learning about currency exchange rates, there are plenty of ways to make your next trip more educational. So pack your bags and get ready for some learning!