As a Local Guide, my goal is to help families through my personal experiences to maximize their family stay at a particular destination or business so that they can have the best experience possible. My focus is on family travel as I have met numerous families traveling and not knowing about the best kid-friendly places to go and enjoy their journey.
Growing up in San Francisco, I knew about many family-friendly options that were available. But now that we have our own kids (10 and 5 years old) it was exciting to research and find new places that we have been able to enjoy as a family that was not available when I was growing up. It seems like there is always something new popping up every few years.
My inspiration came from a family we met at the San Francisco International Airport. We were both returning home and we got to talking as our children were playing in the kids play area. Throughout our conversation, we learned that they were very excited to visit the Bay Area, but didn’t know where to go that was kid friendly and have a good time. I immediately informed them about all the fun things they could do with their children that they didn’t know about. They wished they could have scheduled the activities into their itinerary.
One of our most favorite things to do while visiting San Francisco is to rent row boats/paddle boats at Stow Lake in Golden Gate Park. Like any big city, it is very easy to get lost in the hustle and bustle, but being on a boat, in the middle of the water, surrounded by ducks, will definitely take you to another world.
This got me thinking. There must be a ton of families out there with similar problems when traveling to a new city. That is why I decided to start my travel blog and be a Local Guide that focuses on things to do with children as families travel to new and exciting destinations. My goal is to help as many families as possible understand the pros and cons of any businesses we visit (restaurants, hotels, attractions, etc.) so they can make an informed decision to visit that business or not.
The process I have gone through as a Local Guide has helped me appreciate many more things. I appreciate the beauty and creativity that local businesses employ to help their business stand out, as well as the great customer service that makes their customers feel appreciated.