This is the fourth in a series of video diaries I’m doing while spending time in Morocco for family commitments. I’m experimenting with this video diary format to share my thoughts about the travel industry throughout my stay here.
The first is about maintaining authenticity in the digital age, the second is about the new importance of travel to visit friends and relatives in a globally mobile world, and the third is about maintaining authenticity in the digital age. , is about the rise of the individual versus the individual. What it means for brands and travel leadership.
The fourth one is below. If you can’t see the video properly here, check it out directly on my LinkedIn post.
The joy of traveling with kids in a family-centered culture
This is another in my video diary series about the travel industry and my long stay in Morocco. I’ve been here for three weeks and have a few more weeks to go. I wrote on Twitter about how traveling to family-friendly countries can have a huge impact on Western minds, and I wanted to elaborate on that.
I’m a parent of three, and traveling here with my wife and kids expands and frees my mind. You may think that being kind to your family is an act, but this is the true state of society.
Morocco is just one example, but India, where I was born and raised, is another. This is not a show. It is woven into the everyday fabric of society.
Western society is not the norm and it influences the way we live and travel. Let me give you a few examples to illustrate how liberating it is to travel here and not have to worry about how to interact with children.
You can see it at the airport, where families get special preferences. It’s more than just the lip service given at U.S. airports, for example. For example, Royal Air Maroc is not a great airline in many ways, but they treat children very well and if they see a parent feeling overwhelmed, they volunteer to take care of the child. Sometimes even.
The restaurants here are constructed with children in mind. Two days ago, as soon as my kids sat down at a restaurant in Casablanca, the staff brought out coloring books to keep them busy. Here and in many places in India, especially large restaurants, play areas are built into the restaurant. Children can play with other children for a small fee. In the West, and of course in my family, it is normal for parents to give their children a phone so they can eat in peace. However, I noticed that there were very few children on their phones at the restaurant here.
People treat their children very kindly. Strangers come up to kiss my daughter, and my daughter does it too, and that’s completely normal. In America and Western societies, maybe a little more in Europe, but very little in America – it’s a complete taboo.
Collectivism and high trust society
One of the big ideas that I connect with this is the difference between individualistic and collectivist societies. In collectivist societies, there is a belief that “it takes a village to raise a child.” It is very widespread and deeply rooted in places like Morocco. You can see that when you travel.
Similar concepts include a high trust society and a low trust society. Traveling with children in a high-trust society is much easier and more fun. Children are not seen as imposing on others’ daily lives and personal space. If you’re sitting in a restaurant and your child is playing with someone else’s child, that’s completely normal and okay.
true luxury
What is luxury travel? For parents of three kids like us, true luxury is spending time in a family-friendly country. It’s about finding peace of mind in the small things.
We are in a shopping mall now, and there is a playground where we left the kids. In America, you would never be able to do that because you want your parents to be within sight. It’s only natural that we live in a high-trust society here.
The more you travel, the more you see how other parts of the world, the majority of the world’s population, live. Even the UK is more family friendly than the US.
Traveling with families is more considerate, including not only children but also the elderly. In many parts of the world, people travel across generations, and in the Global South, most people do so. There are just as many considerations for the elderly as there are for children.
One of the parts of the travel industry that needs to be completely restructured, especially in the Western world, is the way people treat their families. Family needs to be factored into all considerations. If the travel industry gets better and moves beyond lip service and imposed structures to a true spirit of hospitality, people will travel more and reward the travel industry.
There are so many things here, so many threads. I wish we could have a full conference about family travel and how it is completely ignored, or at least how structure is completely ignored on how to make family travel easier. There is a lot that Western culture and Western hospitality can learn as part of true hospitality in these cultures.
