'Gramping' Is the Latest Travel Trend Grandparents Need to Know About (Video)

You’ve heard about solomoons and glamping, but get ready for the next travel trend: gramping.

The concept is pretty much like it sounds. According to Boomer Magazine, “gramping” is a way for grandparents to bond with their grandchildren by taking them on a “skip-gen” (skip-a-generation) trip.

Of course, many travelers take family vacations that involve multiple generations, but gramping is all about leaving the parents at home and letting just grandma and grandpa take the kids for a while.

“It’s a win-win situation for everyone,” Sarah Gilliland, one mom whose parents took her twins on a vacation to a state park, told Boomer Magazine.

It’s true that parents win by getting some rest and relaxation time together, and grandparents win by improving their relationships with their grandchildren and finding the perfect excuse to travel. And travel, according to a survey by AARP in 2017, is the top bucket list item for 83 percent of Baby Boomers out there.

Plus, it’s a great way to mark big milestones for your grandkids, like graduations, major birthdays, or other special occasions, according to TravelPulse.

Of course, there are some tips for making your skip-gen trip rewarding for both you and the grandkids. After all, this is their vacation as much as yours, so it’s important to get to know their likes and dislikes too.

One good way to keep the kids active is to give them some small responsibilities like holding maps or deciding on where to go some days. However, it’s also important to remember that this is your chance to spoil them a little.

“Grandparents need to be willing to play basketball, ping pong or whatever to connect with the kids,” Jill Bondy, a grandmother who took her two oldest grandkids on a cruise, told Boomer Magazine.

TravelPulse also recommends interesting cities with lots of points of interest for a good gramping experience, like New York City, Boston, Atlanta, Seattle, Washington D.C., or Vancouver.

Of course, don’t feel confined to North America, there are tons more amazing trip ideas to take with your grandkids all over the world as well.