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How to Survive the Gift Shops at Child-friendly Vacation Attractions
By MudslideMama | January 23, 2008
I remember being a kid and racing through any museum my parents had the temerity to drag me to, mindless of whatever exhibit they thought would enrich my apparently blighted youth. What was I looking for?
Why, the gift shop, of course! What else could possibly have been the point of bringing such a distracted and recalcitrant child to The Most Boring Place on Earth? Imagine my complete jaw-dropping shock when I was informed, yet again, that no, the museum store was not my personal playspace and no, I was not getting anything. I’d collect myself (and my jaw), and commence the next stage of youthful swag-acquisition. Those of you who have kids, or remember your youth with unfortunate clarity, will recall that each stage grows progressively louder, sometimes escalating to the tossing of the head and the stomping of the feet. This process was repeated so often in my childhood that it’s surprising my parents ever took me anywhere, frankly.
They must have occasionally caved and bought me whatever doodad I saw as just reward for having suffered through my parents’ attempts to give me culture and class, or I’d have realized the temper tantrums were futile. Research by psychologists has proven that unpredictable, sporadic rewards have a stronger reinforcement for behavior than do no rewards, or predictably timed ones. I think of this fact often when gearing up my kids for their own life-enrichment-through-museum-exposure. What I have done from the get-go is try to stick to our “every 5 times” rule: Every five visits to a museum, aquarium or zoo gets each child one visit to the gift shop. No temper tantrums so far, and because they can predict when they are allowed and not allowed to get a treat at the end of a family outing, the pressure is off and they enjoy all the museums, zoos and aquariums that much more. Score one for the behavioral psychologists!
Topics: Family Travel, The Cookie Jar |
January 23rd, 2008 at
Brilliant rule!
January 23rd, 2008 at
That is a great idea! A+
January 23rd, 2008 at
What a fantastic idea. I can’t stand the whole “I want something from the gift shop or I will die” routine that my kids try to pull.
January 24th, 2008 at
We cheat…. I scour thrift shops and dollar stores for related “souvenirs” for any upcoming trips. We avoid the store completely, and the kids each get a special new book or toy that relates to the experience — generally for the grand total of $1/per kid.
Kelly
January 24th, 2008 at
Another alternative is to encourage kids to spend their own money–which requires some advance planning. Let them know the museum trip is coming up in X weeks, and that they can spend their own money, if they’d like. (They can even try to earn some $ in advance). Beware, though, you have to be willing to put up with yet another rubber snake, kite, model, pen, doodad or whatever else they choose. The choices are usually much more carefully considered if it’s not your money at stake
January 24th, 2008 at
Those dollar stores and “use your own money” suggestions are really great - thanks! I’ve got to say, our local 99 cent store has saved my rear many times, regarding birthday party doodads.
January 25th, 2008 at
I agree with Momofgrownupkids’s comment. If they’re old enough, give them a budget for the entire vacation. Make it a learning experience.
January 26th, 2008 at
I hear you, Dr. Mike, believe me. I’m always surprised by the sense of entitlement I see in kids (and adults) these days. That being said, my kids don’t have any money; they are broke! It’s an age appropriate issue, I suppose.
January 29th, 2008 at
[...] not to mention the tennis, the fitness room, and the seemingly always open (and always alluring) gift shop. A quick poll of an established sample group (my kids) showed 100% agreement about the two best [...]
January 31st, 2008 at
[...] from “the corner” is a Standing on the Corner/Route 66 themed gift shop. So be sure to pick up tee or shot [...]
February 25th, 2008 at
[...] without their children whining and complaining. Interesting travel can’t all be about the gift shops, after all! That being said, Rome with Kids: An Insider’s Guide helps makes a family vacation [...]
July 30th, 2008 at
I always thought my parents were so mean for not letting me visit the museum shops. My dad had no patience for shopping at all.
When I had a kid, we made a point to visit the shop, and I guess I got lucky- he is not a collector so he didn’t beg for every little thing. Maybe he takes after Grandpa!
I wonder what he’ll do with his kid one day.