Family Travel with Teens

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Family Holiday Ideas with Teenagers

Teenagers are famously hard to impress, but here at Black Tomato, we rise to the challenge. Our Travel Experts have navigated the adolescent era more times than they care to count and have spent years scoping out the best holiday spots for teens. The result? A definitive list of the very best places to travel with teenagers – one that’s crammed with bragging rights (for them) and bonding moments (for you).

These are holidays where your grown-up kids are liberated from the shackles of the morning school alarm and hours of homework. Where they can relax and revel in this extraordinary world – maybe even offering up a smile or two while they’re at it. It may mean screaming yourselves silly on a zipline through the jungle in Costa Rica, coming face-to-face with gorillas in the wild in Rwanda, or standing at the foot of thundering waterfalls in Iceland. It could mean taking part in a Field Trip of incomparable educational encounters, or a See You In the Moment experience, for truly unforgettable moments with your inner circle.

On our carefully curated trips, one thing’s for sure: holidaying with the folks is something teens will enjoy, not endure.

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Best Holiday Spots for Teens

Rwanda

Welcome to the Gorilla capital of the world, a nation of raw natural beauty and unbeatable wildlife. This is a country that’s full of bucket list bonding moments, which you’ll experience as you stand side by side, witnessing gorillas in their natural habitat, and trekking to seek out Rwanda’s last intact chimp population. Time your trip just right and you’ll have the chance to participate in Umuganda, a community initiative where you’ll spend the day in a small village, helping the locals plant trees and build schools. Teenagers will leave with a whole new level of appreciation for wildlife, and a new perspective on their place in the world.
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Stepped terraces in Colca Canyon in Peru
Stepped terraces in Colca Canyon in Peru
Stepped terraces in Colca Canyon in Peru

Peru

Peru packs a punch. It’s a country where even the hardest to please teens will hold up their hands and admit they’re having a good time. Maybe even a very good time. Our trips here will see you riding on horseback through the hills and villages surrounding the ancient Incan capital of Cusco, before sleeping beneath the stars in the Sacred Valley. There’s plenty of time to explore the ancient citadel of Machu Picchu, with an archaeologist on hand to bring every sacred stone to life, and evenings in Lima, tasting ceviche and pisco sours. Craving even more adventure? Mingle with the iguanas of the Galápagos Islands, the birthplace of modern evolutionary theory.
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Arenal National Park in Costa Rica
Arenal National Park in Costa Rica
Arenal National Park in Costa Rica

Costa Rica

Some visit for the 500,000 wildlife species that call this Central American nation home, others for the endless thrill-seeking opportunities, from speeding along jungle zip lines to taking on grade IV rapids while white-water rafting along the Pacuare River (cue: some screaming, plenty of swearing). This is a land of pure adventure, where you and your kids can unplug in lodges surrounded by lush rainforest and sleepy sloths, before hitting the beach, learning to ride Pacific Ocean waves with a surfing pro. When it comes to seeking out the best family holiday ideas for teenagers – particularly the ones chasing an adrenaline hit – Costa Rica tops the list.
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Yellowstone falls, USA
Yellowstone falls, USA
Yellowstone falls, USA

US

From thrift stores in Austin to the beaches of Miami, America is a fail-safe go-to for teen-approved trips. But for a real showstopper, full of head-clearing scenery and adrenaline-fuelled activities, we love a summertime adventure in Wyoming. Together you’ll experience the thrill of spotting wildlife – bison, bears, buffalo, wolves, and more – and even the most seemingly unimpressed teenagers will be struck by the jagged peaks of the legendary Rocky Mountains. Join your teens from morning ‘til night, or give them the freedom to explore solo or with a guide, before hanging out for barbecues and board games in the evening.
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ishigaki island in okinawa in japan
ishigaki island in okinawa in japan
ishigaki island in okinawa in japan

Japan

Japan is a country that quite literally dazzles – the neon lights of Tokyo will do that to you – and it’s easily one of Asia’s best holiday spots for teens. There are islands, some 3,000 of them, in fact, so you could go diving off the beaches of Okinawa, a ‘Blue Zone’ that’s famous for its high rate of centenarians, or trek Mount Fuji, Japan’s tallest peak. Then there are the tiny hole-in-the-wall sushi spots and backstreet bars of Osaka, where the city slogan is ‘eat til you drop’, the sumo stables and izakaya (small Japanese-style pubs) of Tokyo, and the temples and teahouses of Kyoto, for when you’re all craving a little more chill time.
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Tanzania

It may be tempting to defer to busy cities when mulling over family holiday ideas with teenagers in tow. We say bypass them (on this occasion) in favour of the Tanzanian bush, where prides of lions saunter across sun-scorched savannahs, and where elephants, hippos, and giraffes become almost hourly sightings, thanks to the expertise of your Maasai guides. Witnessing the circle of life is humbling stuff – and makes up just one part of a trip to Tanzania. Next, it’s on to the Indian Ocean, to swim with fluorescent fish and giant turtles off the shimmering white beaches of a private island paradise.
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Þjórsárdalur
Þjórsárdalur
Þjórsárdalur

Iceland

Getting outside into nature is good for us – coaxing teens into this can often be trickier. The answer? Iceland, an otherworldly island cast adrift in the North Atlantic Ocean. We’ll take you and your kids on a super jeep drive from the retro burger joints and micro bars in the capital of Reykjavik to the gorges and glaciers of the Thórsmörk valley. On the south coast, you’ll stand beneath icy waterfalls, stroll across black-sand beaches, and traverse the Sólheimajökull glacier in crampons. In the mountainous Troll Peninsula, you’ll feel well and truly off-grid, and with options of snowmobiling, whale watching, kayaking, and surfing day in, day out, you’ll never hear the soul-sapping statement “I’m bored”.
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Morocco skyline with mountains in background
Morocco skyline with mountains in background
Morocco skyline with mountains in background

Morocco

Gateway to Africa, Morocco is the diverse backdrop for a bonding holiday with your teenagers. Our culture-rich, action-packed expeditions wrap deserts, dunes, mountains, and medinas into one extraordinary family holiday. There’ll be belly laughter as you take on the streets of Marrakech in a moped and sidecar, and moments of connection as you trek the land of the Berber people, the Atlas Mountains, before summiting Morocco’s highest peak, Mount Toubkal, at sunrise. Magical memories? Morocco is full of them.
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Where to go in September: luxury France holiday
Where to go in September: luxury France holiday
Where to go in September: luxury France holiday

France

Surf-lashed beaches. World-renowned vineyards. Brasserie-filled cities. Happily, parent-pleasing France is always a hit with teenagers, too. We can create trips that are bespoke to your teens’ wishlists, or you may prefer our tried-and-tested route through the country – from the vibrant lights of the Moulin Rouge in the capital, to bike rides and beaches in idyllic Île de Ré plus châteaux stays and hot air balloon rides in the Loire Valley. It’s a restorative break that’s designed to relax – because teenagers need a rest, too.
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