Families are heading to beaches, pools and lakes this holiday, so it’s a good time to remind everyone of essential water safety tips for families. According to AAA Travel, Florida is the top choice for a spring break destination, due to its warm weather, pools, beaches, outdoor adventures, and cruise ports.
Spring Breakers say “Take Me to the Water”
Findings agree with those of a recent Allianz Partners’ survey which analyzed more than 3.4 million flight itineraries insured by Allianz Travel Insurance. Allianz found that 76% of spring break itineraries are for domestic travel and 24% are for international trips. The top 10 destinations for the three-quarters of Americans traveling domestically include five in Florida.
Allianz also found that, other than London, the top 10 international destinations for the 2024 spring break are tropical or Caribbean islands. Whether you are planning a cruise with kids, a theme park adventure, or heading anywhere with myriad swimming opportunities, these water safety tips are timely, too.
Six Important Tips: Swimming Safety for Kids
“Spring break is a wonderful time for families to have fun and relax by the water,” Chris DeJong, a five-time U.S. National Champion swimmer, says.
Thanks to him and the Big Blue Swim School for providing guidance and essential swim safety tips for the whole family. Big Blue was founded in 2009 by DeJong, and now has 30 pools offering instruction, with more to come across the U.S.
They have lots of experience in keeping swimmers safe and share their six top water safety tips for families.
1. Lifeguards are not babysitters.
Even with this important safety system in place at pools or beaches, adult supervision of their own children around water is essential.
2. Make yourself familiar with your destination’s pool or beach.
Get to know the pool and beach area where you are staying. Understand what safety measures are in place such as locked gates, fences, and other barriers.
3. Assign a Water Watcher to monitor everyone in the pool.
One essential water safety tip for families is to make someone a Water Watcher. This is an adult in your group who keeps a close eye on swimmers. Big Blue recommends rotating the Water Watcher every 30 minutes to avoid supervision fatigue.
4. Wear a life jacket around water.
Don’t have children wear just any life jacket. A properly fitting life jacket fits snug, is approved by the U.S. Coast Guard, and stays under a child’s chin when they lift their arms overhead.
5. Implement the buddy system.
Even if your child is a proficient swimmer or wearing a life jacket, drowning can still happen. All children swimming in water should be assigned a buddy to swim with who can raise the alarm if something seems off.
6. Prepare young swimmers to enjoy the water.
In addition to following our children’s water safety tips for famililes, prepare by enrolling everyone in formal swim lessons. The CDC notes that formal swim lessons reduce drowning by 88%. That makes year-round, formal swim lessons the best way to help a child be ready around the water.
Encourage water safety and promote a lifelong love of swimming
“Drowning isn’t always obvious,” Dejong adds. “Someone struggling may not yell for help, wave their arms, or thrash around. Constant, careful supervision is critical while children are near the water.”
Why not check your area for local swim schools and get the kids started right? Proper schooling in the swimming arts is just the first step to ensuring water safety for families.
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Are you ready for a Road Trip? Explore these eleven incredible cross-country road trip routes across the U.S.!
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I love spending time in London. I think if you want to spend time out of the city, Brighton is also a great place to visit, especially as it’s close by. There are a number of family-friendly hotels, too, like The Brighton Hotel:
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It’s a steam excursion train, shorter ride, probably many kids on board. This would be better suited to younger children. Much better choice for the under-12 set.
Ralph
Originally created as a recreation area for employees of the Hershey Chocolate factory, today Hershey Park boasts plenty of chocolate paraphernalia, as well as roller coasters and a water park. Tickets include admission to the nearby ZOOAMERICA. Originally owned by the Knott’s jam producers, Knott’s Berry Farm amusement park is one of the older parks in the US, Knott’s Berry Farm is a classic for those looking for thrill rides, water rides and family fun.
Hi Ralph, thank you for your reply. I haven’t booked it yet as I had similar reservations that since it’s an 8-hr journey, it will not be wise to take the kids at this age but would love to take them on a shorter train tour, I’m currently looking at the Jacobite express (here in the UK).
Hello Zeb,
For children under 10, It would simply be too long a day in too confined a space for them, might get a little boring for them after the first 20 minutes; it’s an eight-hour journey.
If they are active, there isn’t a lot of room to run around on the train, which is smaller than the ones we are used to here in the U.S.
If you have already booked a space, and will have toddlers or young children, suggest you bring lots of things to keep the little ones entertained.
Ralph
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Deer Valley caters to families with kid-friendly skiing, child care programs and a limited child-to-instructor ratio. Because Deer Valley sells a limited number of daily lift tickets, tiny tots and pint-sized groms have plenty of room to work on their pizza wedge and French fries. Other amenities include a Children s Center, Adventure Camp and furry mascots on the Adventure Trails. I grew up skiing here and learned to love the mountains and snow at this resort. The amenities are top notch and the food is amazing. As a young kid, when the skiing got tough, I would always head inside and get delicious food and hot cocoa. See more Deer Valley reviews here .
Fall is very busy in the mountainous regions with the influx of leaf peepers from the New England area, around the United States and the world. In these extremely popular areas, you ll want to make lodging reservations at least several weeks ahead, especially on weekends. Columbus Day weekend (Oct 7-9, 2017) is another time in which advanced booking is advised throughout the region.
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Traveling to other cities with your kiddos? Don’t miss Curbed’s maps of the best family activities
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Minneapolis, Minnesota is a great pick for outdoor-loving families thanks to kid-friendly (and free) favorites like the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden, home to more than 40 outdoor works of art
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Jimmy Buffet s restaurant is a short walk from the Comfort Suites Paradise Island Hotel and Atlantis Resort on Paradise Island. What could be better than eating a literal Cheeseburger in Paradise? Pairing it with a yummy margarita, of course.
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Have you ever dreamed of creating your own ice sculpture? The Quebec Winter Carnival has just what you’re looking for! Bring your group to our Ice Sculpture Workshops under the guidance of a team led by none other than Marc Lepire, chief sculptor of Bonhomme’s Ice Palace! During this one-hour event, you will learn the workflow of master sculptors and enjoy the unique experience of carving your own solid ice block with your group of 2 to 4 people. Free all-you-can-drink hot chocolate will keep you warm throughout the frosty fun.
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