Summer is here and it is time to take the family off on holidays. Depending on what you want to do, this is still the time for families to bond together through travel and tour. More often than not, taking a road trip within your country is a great activity to do with everyone doing their bit.

Here are some things that the family can help out before taking that summer vacation:

- Plan with the family where you want to go. Have a family meeting a few months before the holiday season starts and brainstorm on what you all would want to do as a family. Especially if you have teenagers with you, get them involved with the preparation. That way you let them know that you value their opinion and input on this trip. Make it known to them that they will have responsibilities as well in this trip. If you have a son or daughter that does drive, plan to share the driving duties with them. If you have pre teens, then ask them what kind of vacation do they want to have? Do they want to go to the seaside or the mountains or do both? Doing this will also teach them how to negotiate and compromise. It is a good life lesson for them to learn when they are involved in the planning process.

- Make sure that the vehicle is road worthy. If you plan to go to a particular place, go online and search for auto repair shops and air con repair centres in that place or better yet, assign one of your children this task. Make sure that your child does write it down just in case something happens. More often than not, there may be a need to add HCFC gas to your compressor. HCFC is the environmentally gas that has replaced Freon, which is used to make the air conditioned cool. This can be done in an air con repair shop and should not be too expensive. Also check the tires to see if they are roadworthy for travel. If they are too worn, replace them right away. Check your odometer to see if you need to replace motor oil. A good rule of thumb is to replace motor oil every 5000 kilometres. Check to see if the level of brake fluid is enough for the journey. Also check if you need to replace the transmission fluid. If it has lost its viscosity, then there will be some difficulty in the gear shifting which you will notice, especially with automatic cars. Have the automatic transmission fluid changed. Lastly check to see if your car registration and insurance is up to date. Getting your vehicle prepared leads to a vacation less filled with car break downs.

Recently, a number of passport laws have changed, and if you are not prepared with the proper documentation, you might not be able to board your flight. Before you head to the airport, or even book your flight, make sure you talk to an airline representative about your flight’s rules and regulations regarding passports. Passports are important for travelers because this document allows you to enter a foreign country or even reenter your own. Passport laws have changed recently and below are important laws you should know regarding passports.

Passport laws changed drastically in recent years. Although passport laws were always strict, today, they are even more restraining. That does not mean that you should let these laws hold you back from traveling internationally. That just means you need to be fully aware of these laws and other passport regulations so that you are not stuck at the gate before you can even board your flight.

One of the most commonly misunderstood laws is where you need a passport. You do not need a passport to travel within the United States, including islands like Hawaii and Puerto Rico. However, starting in 2008, all travelers to Canada and Mexico need to be carrying passports. You do not always need these passports to travel out of the country, but without proper documentation, you will not be able to get back into the country. This law helps control who enters and exits the country.

If you are planning to travel outside the country, but do not currently have a passport, the law requires that you apply for this passport at least six weeks before your travel date. However, the recent heightened demand for passports has made getting this documentation a lot more difficult than it was in the past. Some travelers are finding that it takes ten weeks or more to receive their passport, and unfortunately, may people have had to cancel their travel plans because of late passports. If you need a passport, it is important to apply for one at least 12 weeks in advance, giving yourself plenty of time to receive it. If you do not have that kind of time, you can apply for expedited services, but this is much more expensive and it still takes at least four weeks to get your passport in most cases.

Passport laws require that you carry this documentation even if you are traveling by land or sea. Until recently, certain countries, like Canada and Aruba, only required United States citizens to carry passports if they were flying into the country, and even then, rules were lax. However, since this time, you now need a passport, even if you are driving or taking a boat to any foreign country in North America. Passports are usually checked when you enter the other country, and they are always checked when you re-enter the United States. Do not risk being stuck in a foreign country because you did not take your passport! If you are unsure about the law, talk to your airline or a travel agent, and they can help you learn more about passport requirements in the United States and around the world.