As a mom of five kids, I have thrown my fair share of birthday parties. On one hand, I’ve always been grateful to have family and friends who were willing to celebrate my child’s birthday with us, and a birthday party can always make a kid feel special.
But on the other hand, birthday parties can be a ton of work, and hosting them at your house can mean hours of prep, cleaning, serving, and cleaning again. Plus, can we talk about that overstimulated, cranky, full-of-sugar kid you end up with at the end of the party?
Shudder.
Birthday parties will always have their place, but as my kids are getting older, I am trying hard to push for birthday experiences and birthday trips over gifts. For instance, I recently took my two oldest daughters — who happen to have birthdays two days apart and in the same month as me — on a beach resort trip for their birthdays.
I was thrilled with how teen-friendly the resort was, and it made the perfect birthday celebration, especially for two hard-to-please teenagers.
My girls also loved the nightlife — not only was the beach beautiful to stroll at night, but lively karaoke and music kept things hopping. And we enjoyed s’mores (they’re free!) and sitting by the campfire to round out our evening.
I loved taking a trip as a birthday gift because it felt like a way of creating memories for my kids together, instead of spending money on a lavish party.
Some of the simplest moments of our trip were the ones I cherished the most. For instance, the resort has an on-site gift shop/ice cream shop/pizza parlor/coffee shop that quickly became our favorite stop.
We were able to grab coffee and cinnamon rolls in the morning, then stroll on the beach with our breakfast. Later in the day, we would grab ice cream for a cool treat post-beach. Simple moments connecting with my teen girls were built right into the trip, thanks to how the resort is laid out, and I loved that we had that opportunity.
Teen-Friendly Vibes
I also appreciated how easy the resort made everything — it’s a 24-minute drive from Tampa airport, and the resort has a partnership with a local transportation company, so you can arrange for a driver if needed.
For me, simple is the name of the game, especially when I’m traveling with kids (teens are still kids — IYKYK).
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TradeWinds Resort
If at all possible, I would definitely recommend planning a trip to TradeWinds in mid-May and midweek, which is when we visited. During the weekdays, especially, we practically had the beach to ourselves and were able to truly relax.
I can’t tell you what a gift it was to just lounge by the water and read a book with my teens, knowing how fleeting our time together is as college and other adult life paths close in on them.
Everyone is different, of course, but if you’re looking for a unique birthday experience, consider checking out TradeWinds Resort as a teen-friendly beach vacation destination. They’ll definitely remember a beach trip with their parent over the newest iPhone. Right?
