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The Three P’s of L.D.S. Family Travels
by Becky Cardon Smith
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I love to travel, especially with my family! We have had some great experiences, many teaching moments, and lots of family memories. Traveling as a family has many rewards: learning to interact as a team, spending quality time together, discovering each others’ likes and dislikes, and appreciating our many blessings are just a few.

Those who have read our guidebooks will recognize the importance of advanced preparation to insure a successful travel experience. Just as building a home without a set of plans is unwise, a trip without advance thought and discussion could also be on shaky footings. Though I can’t promise you a trip without some unplanned and now laughable near-catastrophes (we count on a few of these), I can promise you a more productive, informative, and less stressful travel experience if you follow our “ 3 P’s ”.

PLANNING
PREPARATION
POSITIVE TRAVEL ATTITUDE (PTA)

PLANNING

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Just as I would never take a trip with a tour guide who hadn’t made any advance decisions, I would never leave on a family trip without some advance planning. While I am not suggesting you make an itinerary that leaves little room for spontaneity, I have found that the more thought and planning we do before we leave, the more I can relax and enjoy the trip. Time spent answering the following questions will allow you to make better informed decisions now and leave you with fewer unpleasant surprises later. (Each of these questions will be discussed in more detail in next week’s article.)

How many days do we need for this trip?
How are we going to get there?
Where should we stay?
What is our budget for this trip?
What should we see and do?

PREPARATION

This is the second step to a successful trip. Once you have made the basic planning decisions, you can focus on preparation. Understanding more about the sites you will be seeing before leaving helps to enhance the learning experience. There are several Church videos that will help you to better understand the history behind the sites you will be seeing. (All are available through Church Distribution.) They include:

• Legacy – Though many have seen this video before, it is well worth seeing again. This video provides a very moving synopsis of the trials of the Saints during the early years of the Church.

• A Voice From The Dust – Included on this video are: How Rare a Possession: The Book of Mormon, A Marvelous Work Begins, The Three Witnesses, and For Us!

• Moments From Church History – The video includes: The First Vision, Restoration of the Priesthood, Last Day at Carthage, and Joseph Smith: The Man.

• Doctrine and Covenants and Church History – Included on this video: Organization of the Church and Parley P. Pratt Finds the Book of Mormon.

• Fourth Witness, The Mary Whitmer Story – This video was produced by the BYU Department of Theater and Media Arts. I purchased it at the BYU Bookstore.

The Gospel Art Picture Kit has many pictures of pioneer events and early Church leaders (also available through Church Distribution). The historical summaries on the back are brief and concise and make for great discussions. Discussing ahead of time sections from the Doctrine and Covenants, which were received at the various sites you will be visiting, can also enhance your trip.

In addition to the reading preparation, there are several things we suggest you include in your packing. Though the secret is to travel light, the following may come in handy:

• Scriptures – You will find many moments when you will want to sit at the sites and read from them.

• Additional resources such as articles, stories, etc. – Several specific stories and articles to include are suggested in our guidebooks.

• Free tourism packets – Many of the local chambers of commerce offer free packets that include maps, brochures on sites in their area, and other helpful information. Call them at least a month ahead of your trip to ensure the packets arrival before your departure. (Most phone numbers can be found either by Internet or in our books.)

• Family records with names, birth dates, or burial sites – Check before leaving to see if you had any relatives who once lived in the areas you will be visiting. If so, you may want to stop in these areas to copy genealogical information at the local town recorder’s office, visit burial sites, or take pictures of specific churches, buildings, etc. for your history records.

• Maps of your driving route – We have found it very helpful to purchase a map in advance and plan our driving route.

• A roll of quarters & your National Parks Pass – The first item comes in handy for toll roads back east and the second will get you in free to several specific sites (example: Harry Truman Home in Independence).

• Basic first aid supplies including travel-size tissues (sometimes needed in bathrooms).

• Good walking shoes, fanny pack, umbrella, etc.

• Snacking items such as granola bars, dried fruit, etc.

• Plenty of film, sunscreen, sunglasses, and other heat and high-humidity related needs. I also recommend you always have water on hand.

• Travel games, crayons, etc. for entertaining younger children while on the road.

POSITIVE TRAVEL ATTITUDE (PTA)

This is the third requirement for a successful family travel experience. Simply put, this means – “Go with the flow”. Traveling is exciting but it isn’t always just what you expected. You may get hot, become tired, sleep in a bed not as comfortable as your own, or walk a few miles more than you are accustomed to. My advice is to put it into perspective and deal with it. You and your family have a great opportunity that many others would love to have. Putting up with a few inconveniences is worth it. Make the most of your trip and ignore the minor things. If everyone travels with this PTA attitude, you will laugh more, whine less, and return home with a heart full of memories, a mind filled with facts, and a suitcase crammed with well-used clothes. Have a great trip!