American Airlines just gave AAdvantage members a big upgrade, and it doesn't even involve the flying experience.
29.01.2025 - 12:53 / insider.com
Every summer during the week of the fourth of July, we take an incredible, multigenerational family vacation . It's unanimously considered the best week of the year.
In the old days, our crew of four would squish into my mom's lake house in New Hampshire. But that's a thing of the past — our family manifest now tops out at 21, including my mom, her husband, her three biological and one bonus kid, our spouses, and 11 opinionated, rambunctious cousins, ranging in age from 6 to 18. We have long outgrown the beds and couches at my mom's house and now look forward to taking our party on the road.
Our destinations vary — last summer, we took the crew to the Azores in Portugal — and it wasn't always easy to figure out the logistics of it all. We love each other immensely but are all very different, not-shy humans, and we needed to learn how to plan and vacation together in a way that made everyone want to do it all over again the next year.
The first step was creating a group chat with the decision-makers only. This is where all plans get inked. No offense to the kids or anyone else, but it's important to filter out the noise and distraction so you can get down to planning business. In some groups, this means deputizing one representative per family to speak for all.I suggest calling it something fun, so no one ignores it.
We all have different ideal vacation budgets , which may or may not align with how much money we each make. (Some of us have college bills these days!) Make sure everyone understands the budget assumptions when they give their number (does it include airfare? meals? activities?) and is super comfortable with what they'll be spending on the trip.
Always go with the lowest number and make it work — nothing ruins vibes faster than someone feeling pressure to stretch financially.
An important question: What does everyone need to have the best trip ever? There should be no judgment, just honesty. If your sis-in-law can't really relax unless there's a hot tub wherever you stay, it's best to know that up front.
Some musts to consider: the length of the flight, ensuite bathrooms for couples, individual beds for every kid (or not), beach access, a private place to escape (introverts, you feel me?), kids club, babysitters on-call, etc. Flexibility is important, and though you may not be able to fit in everyone's wants, at least trying to fit in everyone's absolute must-haves to the best of your ability is important.
Organizing your trip by putting a few things on an itinerary is a good idea. You know your crew best, but one thing a day usually works perfectly for us. Outings can be anything from a full-day excursion to a special dinner plan.
However, some of the best parts of our
American Airlines just gave AAdvantage members a big upgrade, and it doesn't even involve the flying experience.
Air Canada plans to add 10 to 15 new destinations in the U.S. over the next three years as it works to bring more American travelers through its hubs on their way to Europe and Asia.
This past July I went to Sabi Sand Game Reserve and Kruger National Park for the first time. My boyfriend, Sam [Rockwell], was shooting a movie in South Africa, so I joined him and we spent five days on safari. The whole trip was magical, seeing zebras, giraffes—animals I'd dreamed of seeing since I first picked up National Geographic as a kid. I mean, on the first day, I immediately got to see lions. The male lion, with that huge mane, was awesome, but what was even more incredible was the lioness. She was feeding on a Cape buffalo that had died naturally, and she had these three adorable cubs with her. One of them seemed as if it was tattling on its siblings to their mom because they wouldn't let it feed on the buffalo too. And the mom was, like, huffing, almost talking back, telling her kid to grow up or keep up. It was insane how close we got to them. One of our guides—named Kruger, funnily enough—said the only reason that the lioness let us get so near was because her cubs were feeding and she was full. She was so relaxed, just chilling with her babies. It was a majestic moment; the sun was setting and I felt so...I'm starting to cry just remembering it. That was the first of many mother-and-child moments I saw on the trip: a mama hyena roaming with her pups, an elephant with a two-month-old calf playing around and learning how to use its trunk. I saw the circle of life, how these mothers were teaching their kids, letting them learn to fend for themselves. It all reminded me of my mom. My father died when I was a small child, so my mother raised me and my sisters. She always listened, but she never mollycoddled us. She would be like, ‘You've got to figure this out. You will.’ She passed away in 2018, so coming to South Africa six years later, finding the mother-child bond everywhere I looked, and feeling connected to the bush and the land made that little girl in me who grew up in the Virginia countryside very happy. I was very happy.”
This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Bethany Stevens . It has been edited for length and clarity.
This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Vitus Stenhøj Schiøtz, 23, a Danish traveler who got a working holiday visa to live in Japan. He moved to Japan in late 2024 and works as a chef in a restaurant in Nozawaonsen, a small town northwest of Tokyo . It's been edited for length and clarity.
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