The Rise of Skip-Gen Travel

Some of my kids\u2019 best summer memories were made without me.

Every summer in Kelowna, my very active father-in-law would collect the kids and disappear up the side of a small mountain. These grandpa hikes lasted hours. The kids would come home exhausted, filthy, and lit up from the inside. They came back with stories about interesting sightings, inside jokes I was not part of, and the kind of shared memories that only get made when it is just you and Grandpa on a trail.

And the parents? We were elated. A few hours of true downtime. A book, a quiet patio, an uninterrupted cup of coffee. Everyone won.

It turns out the travel industry has taken this exact idea and put it on steroids.

\u2726 What Is Skip-Gen Travel?

Skip-gen travel (short for skip-generation) is exactly what it sounds like: grandparents and grandchildren travelling together, with the middle generation left happily at home. Think of it as the grandpa hike, scaled up to a safari in Kenya, a rail journey through Europe, or a night in a luxury tent on the edge of the Sahara.

It even has a nickname now. Some in the industry call it \u201cgramping.\u201d

And it is not a niche idea anymore. The numbers are remarkable.

\u2726 The Numbers Behind the Trend

This trend has real momentum behind it:

• Hilton\u2019s 2026 Trends Report found that nearly 30 percent of travellers who vacation with children are now embracing skip-gen trips, sending the kids off with just the grandparents.
• An AARP travel survey found that roughly a third of grandparents have already taken at least one grandchild on a trip without the parents.
• Among boomer grandparents, more than three quarters do most of the trip planning themselves, and about the same share pay for the trip too.
• Road Scholar, a nonprofit educational travel organization, now runs more than 150 specialized grandparent-grandchild travel programs. That is an entire catalogue built around this one idea.
• The trend is global. In parts of Asia Pacific, six in ten families have taken or are planning a skip-gen holiday.

Tour operators, cruise lines and hotels have noticed. Itineraries are now being designed specifically for two generations travelling together, with pacing, activities and accommodations that work for a 70-year-old and a 12-year-old at the same time.

\u2726 Why Everyone Wins

The magic of skip-gen travel is that every single person in the family gets something out of it.

The grandkids get a grandparent\u2019s undivided attention, which is rarer than we like to admit. No parents managing the schedule, no siblings competing for airtime. Just adventure, stories, and a front-row seat to who Grandma and Grandpa really are.

The grandparents get time. Real, unhurried, memory-making time with the people they love most, often at a stage of life when they have the freedom and the means to travel well. Many grandparents live far from their grandchildren now, and a trip like this closes that distance in the most meaningful way possible.

The parents get a break. Let us not pretend this is a minor benefit. A week without your little darlings, knowing they are safe, loved, and having the time of their lives? That is a gift to the whole household.

\u2726 Where Are They Going?

Anywhere, truly. The world is your oyster. But a few styles of trip work especially well for two generations:

African safaris. Game drives are naturally paced for all ages, lodges handle the logistics, and watching a child see an elephant in the wild for the first time is worth the airfare alone.

European rail and city adventures. Walkable cities, history that makes the textbooks come alive, and gelato negotiations at every corner. France, Italy and Iceland are consistently popular picks.

Expedition and river cruises. Unpack once, wake up somewhere new, and let the ship do the heavy lifting. Ideal when mobility or energy levels vary.

Desert and wilderness experiences. Yes, you really can stay in a beautifully appointed tent on the edge of the Sahara with your grandkids. These are the trips that become family legend.

\u2726 What Age Works Best?

Most skip-gen itineraries welcome children from about age five and up, but in my experience the sweet spot is tweens and teens. They are old enough to carry their own bags, remember everything, and hold up their end of a conversation over dinner. They are also at exactly the age when one-on-one time with a grandparent becomes rare at home, which makes it all the more precious on the road.

\u2726 A Few Things to Get Right

Skip-gen trips do require a little more planning than a standard family holiday. Travel consent letters, medical information, insurance, pacing for two very different energy levels, and accommodations that suit both generations all matter. This is precisely where a travel advisor earns their keep. The best skip-gen trips look effortless because someone thought through every detail before departure.

\u2726 The Grandpa Hike, All Grown Up

When I think back on those Kelowna summers, the hikes themselves were never really the point. The point was the relationship. The inside jokes. The stories my kids still tell.

Skip-gen travel is that same idea with a passport. The memories are irreplaceable, the bonds are deeper for it, and yes, the parents get to finish their books.

If you have been thinking about taking your grandkids somewhere extraordinary, or gently suggesting the idea to a grandparent in your life, I would love to help you plan it. From the first conversation to the welcome-home hug, we handle every detail so the two of you can focus on the adventure.