Today’s episode has a particular focus on family travel, and I’m joined today by Jessica Gee, the matriarch of one of the most well known travelling families in the world, The Bucket List Family, who I’m sure many of you follow on Youtube and social media.
The Bucket List Family’s story began back in 2015 when Jess and her husband Garrett decided to sell everything and leave home with their two children, for a journey around the world together. Eight years and another son later, they've visited more than 90 countries, have grown a following of 1.5 million YouTube subscribers and 3 million Instagram followers, and continue to find ways--big and small--to add to their lifelong travel bucket list.
As a family of five, they’ve swum with whales in Tonga, slept in castles in Ireland, lived on a houseboat in Amsterdam and eaten breakfast with giraffes in Kenya. Jess shares how having been raised “a traditional all-American girl” whose family favoured trips to Disneyworld over international travel, she never imagined she would end up seeing so much of the world. Now she’s partnered with National Geographic on her debut book, which provides all the know-how to fulfil your own family’s bucket list—including how-tos for picking a destination, packing, budgeting, and even surviving a 12-hour plane ride. And it’s these kind of practical questions as well as her Jess’s travel chapters, that now as a parent myself, I’m so excited to uncover today.
I’ve followed Jess and the family for years now, with a mixture of admiration and envy, and it’s so interesting to hear about life on the road with three little ones.
Destination Recap
Jess’s new book, National Geographic Bucket List Family Travel: Share the World with Your Kids on 50 Adventures of a Lifetime is out now and available wherever books are sold. You can follow Jess and her family’s travels on Instagram @thebucketlistfamily
With thanks to my sponsors today -
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