Mom and I at Bondi during my exchange at the University of Sydney. Photo / Sydney Baker
Mom and I at Bondi during my exchange at the University of Sydney. Photo / Sydney Baker
What happens when you become the ‘airport dad’ and your parents are simply along for the ride? A lot of joy, chaos and unexpected life lessons, writes Sydney Baker
Growing up, my family rarely travelled abroad. The only other country we visited was Canada and that was simply because we lived a few hours from the border in the era of passport-free crossings. My parents never travelled outside North America until well into their 50s, yet, at 15 years old, I hopped on a plane to Australia to spend a summer with my great-aunt and fell in love with travel.
I returned a few years later as an exchange student, prompting my mum to get her first passport and fly across the world for a visit. Thus began my parents’ international adventures and my career as the family travel planner, tour guide, and, when needed, interpreter.
We’ve now visited four countries together, and I’ve loved watching them experience new cultures, food, languages, and ways of life. It isn’t always smooth sailing and can feel like the opposite of a holiday, but we’ve always come away with valuable lessons from the road and once-in-a-lifetime memories.
Travel is often unglamorous. Hours spent at a station because of a train cancellation or hangry moments when you arrive late to a town where restaurants close at 10pm. Moods can dip quickly when the journey goes awry and the pressure increases immensely when parents trust you to run the show.
When we were once stranded in a French town for hours because of train delays, it was up to me to problem-solve and find us a nearby cafe that served quality coffee (not always the case outside large French cities) and we ended up enjoying a lovely second breakfast.
Lesson: Patience is a requirement, not just a virtue, but adjusted plans can often lead to delightful discoveries or funny anecdotes told for years to come. You’ll need to keep emotions in check, manage expectations, and when in doubt, make sure everyone has a snack and a coffee.
Your parents don’t know everything (sorry, Mum and Dad)
When it comes to travel, I mean. This is particularly true for parents like mine, who, before tagging along on my journeys, didn’t travel internationally very much. The first few trips you take might be their first time using their passport, taking a long-haul flight, or being somewhere they don’t know their way around. It can be jarring as well as funny to see them so out of context.
On a trip to Alaska, Dad and I confidently followed signs for “Whittier” because he’d “heard of it” and ended up in what appeared to be a ferry line. Only upon arrival at the toll booth did we discover the road continued through the mountain on a one-way, 3.2km tunnel.
Or when Mum kept panicking on a drive through New South Wales’ countryside, mostly because of the whole opposite-side-of-the-road situation, but also because she famously prefers the driver seat. I pulled over and offered her the wheel, only for her to see just how out of her comfort zone that was and give it back to me a few kilometres later.
Lesson: Be prepared for a parent-child role reversal. There will be moments when you really feel like the parent. Take it as an opportunity to remember how they’ve done the same for you for decades and the least you can do is make sure they get to Toulouse.
Mom, Dad, and I in Annecy, France, after my first marathon in April 2024. Photo / Sydney Baker
Compromise on both sides
Travelling with anyone means “your trip” becomes “our trip” and the same applies with parents. While you’ll probably compromise more than you would on other trips, remember, they’re excited and deserve to see whatever’s on their list, too.
Did I need to go on the Heineken factory tour in Amsterdam? No. Did I do so because my Dad wanted to? Of course!
Compromise can also mean trusting each other in uncharted scenarios. Cue me, age 20, using my French for the first time to confirm our train car number, with Dad nervously wanting to confirm himself, but unable due to a language barrier, and in the end, trusting my language skills.
Lesson: Everyone’s going to need to trust and occasionally take one for the team.
Sydney Baker was happy to visit the Heineken Experience Brewery in Amsterdam because her Dad wanted to go there. Photo / 123RF
You’ll see the world in a whole new light
I often hear that seeing the world through a child’s eyes is so rewarding because everything is so new and novel to them. That’s how it feels travelling with my parents, even after I’ve been to more than 25 countries. Trips with them remind me how special and privileged we are to have the chance to see the world, especially together.
Lesson: There’s beauty in the novel if you choose to see it.
If there’s anything I’ve learned in my short life, it’s how brief our time together can be, and we should take advantage while we can. That said, give yourself a break on those more stressful days, but remember to embrace the moment, take the photo, go to that obscure landmark they want to see, and you’ll have a lifetime of memories.
