I took a 12-night cruise across Asia with my 64-year-old parents. I was exhausted, but I’d do it again in a heartbeat.

• I took a 12-night cruise across Asia with my parents. It was nice, but more tiring than I expected.
• I find myself taking on more responsibility before and during our trips as my parents get older.
• A cruise was ideal for our family, offering convenience and a relaxing way to travel together.

This spring, I embarked on a 12-night Royal Caribbean cruise from Singapore to Tokyo with my 64-year-old parents and sister.

It was a bucket-list trip for our family, but I wasn’t prepared for just how tiring the cruise would be.

Our port-intensive itinerary included stops in Vietnam, Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan — and every day ashore was packed with culturally rich experiences.

When visiting less familiar countries, I make it a priority to research and plan ahead so our family is well-prepared. As my parents get older, I also find myself taking on more responsibility to ensure their journey is less stressful.

From sorting through visa requirements to planning full-day excursions, this cruise wasn’t exactly relaxing.

Despite the exhaustion, I don’t regret spending two weeks cruising with my parents — and I’ve already booked more trips with them.

I did a lot of the planning and research so I could help my family.

My parents are in their mid-60s, and they’re both still relatively active and healthy. Even still, I’ve learned that a little bit of extra preparation can go a long way to make our cruise more enjoyable.

For example, I applied for my Vietnam visa weeks before my parents so I could walk them through the process. In addition, I researched each port on our itinerary, reading countless reviews to find the best experiences for each destination.

It was a lot of work on my end, but I feel it paid off for our family.

Booking cruise excursions helped make the trip less stressful.

In the end, we decided to book all of our excursions through the cruise line to give my parents peace of mind.

With the cruise line handling all the logistics, all we had to do was show up and enjoy the tour.

My mom can become easily flustered in unfamiliar or stressful situations, so having the structure of group tours helped her feel more at ease.

Excursions also removed the pressure of navigating unfamiliar cities on our own, which might’ve been challenging — especially with my parents’ pace and comfort in mind.

I hadn’t fully considered how lengthy tours and local weather could impact my parents.

Though cruising is often associated with carefree days relaxing on the beach, this itinerary was the complete opposite.

From wandering the bustling markets in Vietnam to riding a sampan across the scenic bay in Hong Kong, our full-day tours were fast-paced.

On top of tiring days, I also hadn’t fully considered how my parents would cope with the weather.

In particular, the stifling heat and poor air quality made things more challenging for my dad. Between his asthma and a lingering cold that developed into a bad cough, he needed to slow down halfway through our trip.

In Taiwan, my parents opted for a shorter half-day excursion after deciding the full-day option would be too demanding for my dad.

This gave him time to rest and take it easy while my sister and I spent hours touring Taipei. We were especially thankful for the sea days that followed, which allowed my dad to catch up on sleep and recover from his cold.

Throughout the trip, the parent-child role reversal surprised me.

As my parents get older, I find myself taking on more responsibility when we travel, which can be mentally tiring. It’s surprising how quickly you go from being the kid to managing logistics and making decisions for the family.

Still, I was happy to step up when things didn’t go as planned during our trip to make sure my parents were taken care of.

For example, when the cruise line unexpectedly canceled our excursion in Tokyo, I took the lead in figuring out the local train system and guiding us into the city.

The language barrier and ticketing process made it more challenging than I anticipated. At one point, we boarded the wrong train and miscalculated how much money to load onto our passes.

Between the vastly different language and crowded train stations, my parents admitted they would’ve been overwhelmed trying to navigate Tokyo on their own.

We eventually made it into the city, and the stress was worth it so they could experience the famous Shibuya Crossing. My parents loved it so much, they crossed the square nearly 10 times.

Still, a cruise was the best choice for traveling with my parents.

Cruising has always been our family’s favorite way to travel, and this is especially true as my parents have gotten older.

On this cruise, my parents could visit multiple countries in Asia without the stress of constant travel.

Instead of spending hours in the airport or shuffling between hotels, we ended each day on board with happy hour, a relaxing dinner, and Broadway-style entertainment.

I was especially grateful to be on a ship when my dad needed medical help.

The convenience of being on a cruise became even more important when my dad’s cold worsened mid-trip.

Having access to the onboard medical facility was a huge relief, as he was able to receive medication, X-rays, and a diagnosis without leaving the ship.

I wasn’t emotionally prepared for my dad’s health scare, but I was thankful for easy access to medical care and English-speaking providers.

All in all, I love traveling with my family — even if it’s stressful sometimes.

Someone told my parents during our cruise, “It’s so nice your adult children still want to travel with you,” and it reminded me how special our bond is.

Not everyone in their 30s wants to sail with their parents for two weeks, but even as an adult, I genuinely enjoy their company.

My mom and dad both like to have fun, whether playing a competitive game of cards after dinner or dancing at the late-night headphone disco. In fact, most evenings they stayed up later than I did.

This trip reminded me why cruising works well for multigenerational travel. You can’t beat the convenience and comfort of traveling by cruise ship, and there’s something for everyone to enjoy on board.

And since I live across the country from my family, I always appreciate the opportunity for quality time together.

Though our trip felt a bit too fast-paced and I handled much of the planning, I wouldn’t hesitate to do it again. I love to travel, but doing so with my parents made the whole experience more memorable.

Read the original article on Business Insider

The post I took a 12-night cruise across Asia with my 64-year-old parents. I was exhausted, but I’d do it again in a heartbeat. appeared first on Business Insider.