My family of five traveled often as I was growing up, usually with all of us piled into a single hotel room. My two siblings and I would argue over who slept where and who had to suffer through a night on the floor or on the lumpy pull-out couch. The three of us have had our ups and downs as we grew up and our personalities developed in different ways.
But now that we’re (almost) all in our 30s, things have shifted, especially as the pandemic separated us on opposite coasts. When the world opened back up, my siblings and I saw it as a chance to take our relationship further with a “sibscation,” the first vacation we’ve taken without our parents. We chose our destination and itinerary based on what we have in common as adults.
It gave us a chance to travel without the expectations of a “perfect family vacation” and make decisions based on our relationships now. But we did have to go snag a photo on the beach for the family Christmas card at the insistence of our mother. If you’re looking to plan your own adult siblings trip, here are some things to keep in mind.
With one of us on the West Coast and the other two on the East Coast, we decided that we’d have to compromise in terms of destination. After some discussion, we decided to take a trip to Santa Barbara, California, which turned out to be the perfect place to indulge in our shared love of antique stores and tiki bars. Plus it was an easy train ride from Los Angeles, where my youngest sibling, Rae, lives.
.