How to Plan a Last-Minute Holiday Trip with Kids

NYC mama Dikla Goren shows us how it’s done.

*We’ve partnered with Bugaboo to inspire you to get out and explore this holiday season.

We’re all for holiday traditions, but if you ask us, the newer the tradition, the better. Now that you have your own family (or one on the way!), it’s time to do things your own way. And for lots of parents, that means hitting the road. The holiday season is the perfect time to travel, explore and discover with your kids, whether it’s on another continent or just around your block.

Of course, if you’re heading out on an adventure with your kids, you’re going to need the right gear. So we’ve partnered with global mobility brand, Bugaboo, to share how some modern parents make it work when they’re on the move during the holiday season…and how they’re creating some new holiday traditions along the way.

For Insta-mama Dikla Goren, the holidays are usually a quiet time, since both she and her husbands’ families live in Israel. This holiday season, she decided to grab her three kiddos and get away for a few days, with no advance planning or itinerary. We know, we know — a last-minute trip with kids? Impossible! Not necessarily.

Below, Dikla shares how a little strategic thinking, a big sense of adventure, and the comfortable, compact and customizable Bugaboo Bee5 made her recent trip to Miami totally holiday traditionworthy.

With your families so far away, what are holidays usually like for you?
Holidays are usually just us — Noam, me and the kids. We’re usually home or sometimes we celebrate with friends…because our Israeli friends are our family here in the States. But since we really don’t have family around, it’s really easy to travel during the holidays. I’m trying to see the positivity in that, and start a new tradition for our family to travel during the holiday season.

How did you decide on this last-minute trip?
We decided to go to Miami very last-minute. The kids had a few days off so the timing was perfect, and the flight to Miami was so cheap. It cost us less to fly to Miami than to spend the weekend here in New York! So we just decided to do it.

Miami is a really easy destination for us. It’s a little over 2 hours from New York, and we’ve been many times. The weather is perfect — the kids love it. We love to go to restaurants in South Beach, and to the beach itself. And the kids love the pool.

You do a lot of traveling. What are some of your tips to make it easier when you’re packing to go away with kids?
Even though I have three kids, I usually pack really light. We always take one bag with us on the plane and try to stick to just one suitcase. My Bugaboo Bee5 is perfect for traveling because it’s compact enough to take on trips and has an updated suspension for an unparalleled smooth ride once you reach your destination. It’s very light and easy for me to fold with one hand without having to remove the seat and canopy. And that’s really important when you have to keep an eye on three kids at the same time, especially if I am traveling by myself with the kids.

Another thing to consider is getting around when you’re there. When we’re traveling, I know we’re going to be taking taxis and going in and out of stores. I have a lot of gear at home, but I always want to bring only the smallest and lightest gear with me. The Bugaboo Bee5 is light and compact — it’s easy to fold, and doesn’t take a lot of space, which is convenient since you never know how big your taxi or Uber is going to be.

What’s an average day look like for your family in Miami?
We usually take the stroller with us on walks or to the pool so Romi can relax or nap. On this trip, we also spent some time riding around and exploring as a family on bicycles. My favorite restaurant in Miami is a mediterranean place called Restaurant 27. We always take the stroller there for a meal, then just stroll on South Beach and Collins Avenue.

I love the customization options Bugaboo offers for the Bee5. On this trip, we switched out our sun canopy to the limited-edition Bugaboo by We Are Handsome sun canopy. Every single person asked me about it while were in Miami! It’s very edgy and bold, and it definitely made us stand out! The Bugaboo Parasol really came in handy on this trip because it was so sunny. It’s nice to have the Parasol as an option so you don’t have to leave the canopy open the entire trip. It attached directly to the stroller through the Bee5’s new integrated attachment points, which also make it easy to connect other Bugaboo accessories like the Cup Holder and Comfort Wheeled Board without the need for adapters.

How can you fit in a little “parent-time” while you’re on a family trip?
We’re not the kind of parents that go back to the hotel so the kids go to bed at 7 p.m., especially on vacation. So our Bugaboo is with us all the time. Roma can literally sleep there, and then we can stay out a little later. We take it everywhere!

One night, Romi was so tired but my other kids were just awake. So we took the stroller with us with Romi sleeping in there and we sat inside a Bungalow on the beach. We put on Netflix and watched a movie all together, literally under the stars. It was so nice and definitely something the kids are always going to remember.

Photography by by Kristina in Miami for Flytographer.

*The Bugaboo Bee5 is the ultimate customizable stroller. There are more than 700 possible design combinations with the ability to select colors for the seat fabric, sun canopy, stroller chassis, wheel caps and faux leather handlebar grips, making it easy for parents to customize the look of their stroller.

Shop a few of our fave Bugaboo Bee5 combos and accessories below.

Bugaboo Bee5