Sally Grimes-Chesak, Director of Marketing & Family Programs at Journeys International, experienced her first Journeys for Families trip in the summer of 2014, before she joined the Journeys staff. Here, she reminisces about her family’s vacation (and back at the office, she’s knee-deep in planning her next adventure, during spring break 2015).

Before I had children of my own, my brother-in-law once said: There is no such thing as a family vacation; there is only the family trip. I laughed, but didn’t quite understand what he meant.

A few years later, I attempted to take my 9-month and 2-year old daughters on a family vacation. Suddenly, his words made sense. At one point during the “vacation” I remember begging my husband, “Can we please go home now?” I missed our routines, our childcare, and all our possessions that make life with children easier, because that ‘trip’ was anything but.

After that experience, I resigned myself to a life of family trips (not vacations), and fantasized about vacations that might come 18 years down the road. So last year, when my husband suggested we take a family adventure with Journeys International, I was skeptical. I imagined being stuck in a van or a hotel room for hours with my 7 and 9-year-old daughters fighting, tired and hungry, and complaining about a litany of things; I’m bored. I don’t like this food. Don’t look at me…she did it. Why aren’t these shows in English?

But in the back of my mind was the idea that surely, somewhere out there, a true family vacation existed. So, I agreed to the trip.

Lillian and Sylvia enjoyed reading up on their vacation destination — and learned a lot along the way! And now, having experienced Journeys’ Costa Rica Rainforest Adventure for Families trip, I’m a convert. (And SUCH a convert that I even joined the Journeys staff in September!) I’ll skip the itinerary, and jump straight to the good stuff, the stuff that really matters when you are traveling with kids. Bottom line, Journeys understands what a family—not just the kids, but the parents also—needs in accommodations, activities, food, transportation, down time, and playtime. Journeys understands that a family vacation isn’t only about where you go and what you see, but it’s just as much about the family actually enjoying spending time with each other.

Journeys selected a family-owned hacienda with a welcoming atmosphere that immediately set the whole family at ease. Unlike many high-end resorts or hotels, where you feel like your loud, exuberant, excited kids aren’t really welcome, at La Quinta the staff seemed truly excited to engage with and share their country with the kids.

On the first night, co-owner (of the husband-wife owners) Beatrice sat us down and walked through our week and our options. While she did this, her daughter took the kids to a nearby table and gave them craft kits and scavenger hunts labeled with their names. Beatrice told us that dinner was served at 7pm every night, but when we said our kids would be starving by 6pm, she gladly moved the buffet start time to accommodate them.

During dinner one night, co-owner and husband Leo rushed over to our table, looked at the kids, and said, “Who wants to see a hummingbird sleeping in a tree? Come with me!” Another day, staff member Anna led the kids through a craft and piñata event, working on the craft with each child individually and laughing as loud (or louder!) than the kids during the bashing of the piñata.

Journeys also orchestrated a fantastic yet flexible agenda that kept parents and kids engaged while maintaining the oft-ignored-but-key-to-a-good-vacation ‘down time’. Every day at La Quinta involved a morning field trip, with a drive no more than 30 minutes away. Afternoons varied, with some days seeing an action-packed ziplining tour and others focused on exploring La Quinta grounds or swimming in the pool. One day, we cut a hike short because it was pouring down rain and the kids were miserable. With no judgment, the guide turned around and took us back to the lodge.

Other than ziplining (which evoked the most awesome, high-pitched squeal of delight from our daughters we’ve ever heard) the most memorable field trip was to a nearby elementary school, filled with the children of local pineapple plantation workers. Our daughters immediately related to this experience and took it all in with fascination. Two girls at the school performed a dance, and all the children had a chance to ask each other questions. Shy at first, by the end our 9-year-old had a new friend, Yvonne, whom she hugged on our way out and gave her a prized Girl Scout necklace she brought with her on the trip.

But the best part of the trip… is that it was actually a vacation.

Because of the amazing itinerary, the intimate lodging, and the wonderful guides and staff, we all, parents and kids both, were at the perfect level of engagement the entire time. There wasn’t any complaining from the girls, they rarely fought (a minor miracle), and we really connected like we haven’t in a long time. We left feeling relaxed and rejuvenated, knowing we had learned new things, explored new places, read new books, and met new friends.

And at the very end, just before leaving for the airport, our 7-year-old handed Beatrice a craft she made, gave her a hug, and thanked her for a wonderful week. We all could have done the same.