My kids have been to 24 countries. I break these 5 rules for stress-free travel.

"When it comes to traveling with kids, conventional wisdom says you should have a home base and take day trips from there. I can see how this approach can help kids adjust more easily by giving them a familiar place to return to each night. It also means less packing and unpacking. However, moving around makes my trips better. By changing hotels, my family covers more ground."

"For example, on a trip through Europe, we changed locations every few nights. This allowed us to see far more of the continent, moving from Rome in Western Europe to Warsaw in the east. Our trip would have been much more limited if we had stayed in Rome the entire time, even if we had taken several day trips. Additionally, on a recent trip to Japan, I took a tour that ended in Kyoto."

Many parents follow conventional travel advice but find most rules ineffective. The family traveled to 24 countries and road-tripped across the United States before abandoning strict guidelines. Frequently changing hotels enabled covering more ground, seeing distant regions efficiently, and minimizing commuting time. For example, the family moved across Europe from Rome to Warsaw instead of using a single home base. On a trip to Japan the family chose Osaka over Kyoto to avoid lengthy daily commutes. The approach sacrifices less packing convenience in exchange for broader exploration and more efficient time use while traveling with children.

Read at Business Insider