Family Travel by Unpaved Parenting
Comfortable anywhere.On $41 a day.
We take our three boys to the uncomfortable places on purpose: chicken buses, volcano summits, border crossings gone wrong. So they grow up at home anywhere in the world. Here's exactly how we do it on a real family budget.
Why unpaved
The bubble is real. Leave it.
At 19 I spent two years in Paraguay on a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: ants in the bed, a hole in the ground for a toilet, and neighbors with almost nothing who gave us everything. It taught me you don't need much to be happy. I want my boys to learn that much sooner than I did.
We're not chasing hardship. We're building a skill: be uncomfortable on purpose, in small doses, so you're comfortable anywhere. The budget just makes it possible, and it makes the kids part of the trip instead of cargo.
Read our story →
Vietnam, 2023
What we believe
- 1
Discomfort is practice, not punishment.
A 3-hour bus today makes the 20-hour travel day easier.
- 2
A budget is a teacher.
Constraints turn kids into participants.
- 3
Real beats staged.
We eat where locals eat and sleep where we can afford to.
- 4
Comfortable is the goal.
Kids who feel at home anywhere.
Proof, not promises
Central America in 57 days
We tracked every dollar for El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras with a family of five.
$12,913.43
total, all-in
~$227 a day
for the whole family
~$45 per person
per day, or ~$41 without our one $1,200 splurge day
- • Overnight on Acatenango while Fuego erupted
- • PADI certifications on Utila
- • Four blackfin tuna on the last day
- • We went $1,580 over our base budget (plus one $1,200 splurge day), mostly on transport, and we show you exactly why
Coming soon
Central America 57-Day Budget Playbook
The route, the real budget vs. actual by category, cost per stop, and what we'd do differently, so you can plan your own trip and skip our expensive mistakes.
- • Day-by-day route with costs
- • Budget vs. actual table
- • What we'd change
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Family Trip Budget Template
Plan your own trip in a spreadsheet: lodging, food, transport, activities, extras. The same one we use.
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From The Blog
Real family travel experiences, budget breakdowns, and practical tips from the road.
How to Travel With Kids on a Budget (Real Numbers)
We took three boys through Central America for 57 days on about $41 a person a day. Here's the budget, what we got wrong, and how to copy it.
Read Full Story →
Honduras 10: The Splurge Day
Booked a private boat and captain for the day in Roatán. We knew this island was going to be expensive going in, and figured this was as good a spot as any for our last hoorah of the trip.
Read Full Story →Free budget template
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