Welcome to another adventure with the Winkler Party of Three — where the snacks are plenty, the playlists are questionable, and yes… we actually have a few family travel traditions that keep us sane.

Before we hit the road, hop on a plane, or spend 20 minutes digging for a missing charger, we go over a few ground rules. Not to kill the fun — but to keep things from going totally off the rails.

These aren’t strict schedules or boring checklists. They’re our quirky, memorable family travel traditions that help us focus on the fun.

1. Vacations Are for Trying New Things

This is the Winkler Family Mantra. We say it before meals, before hikes, and especially before stepping foot inside any building that looks even remotely like a museum.

Mostly, it’s for Coen — my 8-year-old, picky-eating, height-avoiding, “Nope, not doing that” son. The kid who thinks hot dogs and McDonald’s are the two major food groups. But on vacation? He’s tried beignets in New Orleans, held an alligator in a swamp, and once looked at the USS Alabama and said, “I’m not going up there.” But once he heard the mantra and got on the ship? We could barely keep up as he scaled the mast toward the bridge.

This rule isn’t about pushing past limits for the sake of it. It’s about recognizing your own courage. When Coen later walked up to the captain and asked to hold the baby alligator again — that was the bravest thing I had ever seen him do. (I may or may not have teared up at that moment.)

It also means skipping anything we could eat back home in Texas. If the restaurant has a dozen locations in Dallas, we’re out. Instead, we ask locals: “What’s the state food here?” or “What dish represents you the best?” That one question has led to some of our best food finds — like the fried meat pies Cate tried in Alexandria, Louisiana, or the beignets Coen now dreams about from New Orleans.

2. Gas Stop = Full Family Deployment

Nobody stays in the car. Everyone out. Stretch your legs, breathe some fresh air. It saves us from an emergency U-turn later.

Every stop is also a mini trash-clearing mission. You brought it in? You toss it out. This routine keeps our road trip from turning into a rolling landfill — and it gives us all a quick mental reset.

3. Convenience Store & Snack Rules

These snack-centered stops have become one of our favorite family travel traditions — part pit stop, part cultural scavenger hunt.

• We don’t buy food unless it’s tied to local cuisine — something we couldn’t get back home. Local snacks, regional treats, or something totally new? Yes, please.
  • For example, we always stop for meat pies and pastries at the French Market Express in Alexandria, Louisiana — a gas station that somehow serves up homemade meat pies, pastries, and their famous Louisiana Yam Cake.
• Otherwise, we shop at the grocery store. It’s cheaper, better for stocking up, and honestly? The kids love exploring new stores and discovering what local snacks or treats they carry. Whether we’re starting from home or landing somewhere new, the grocery store is always our first stop.
• If someone picks something weird or regional, they have to share. Navajo fry bread is a good example — no hoarding the good stuff.
• Choose something you actually plan to eat or drink, not just something you want to stare at and forget under the seat.

No one complains about each other’s choices. Unless it smells like feet. Then we vote.

4. No Screens at Scenic Stops

Photos? Sure. Posting to Instagram? Maybe later. But if we’re staring at the Grand Canyon, you better not be watching a YouTube video of someone else staring at the Grand Canyon.

This rule gets negotiated. Often. Sometimes we’re researching something cool we just saw. Other times the kids want to FaceTime with Mom to tell her about what they’re experiencing. And that’s okay — as long as we’re still present in the moment and not disappearing into a screen.

We keep bringing this rule back because we believe in being where your feet are — especially if those feet are hanging over a lava tube or a lookout point.

5. It’s Okay to Bail

These little moments of honesty and detours are just as much a part of our family travel traditions as the planned stops.Tired? Need a break? That’s not failure — that’s self-awareness.

We’ve bailed on hikes, museums, ghost tours, and even entire towns because the vibe was off. Some of our best detours happened right after calling it quits.

6. Talk to Strangers (Within Reason)

One of our favorite family travel traditions is striking up random conversations — you never know where they’ll lead. Whether it’s the gas station clerk, the motel owner with a ghost story, or the restaurant server who knows where the locals actually go — we ask questions.

This rule has led us to hidden hot springs, wildlife sightings, secret menu items, and once… a back-alley Elvis impersonator concert. Worth it.

More importantly, it’s how we discover hidden gems we’d never find online — like Howe Caverns in upstate New York, which we heard about from a table full of women at an outdoor bar and grill who befriended Cate and took an interest in our adventure. Or Pinecrest Lake and Kennedy Meadows Pack Station and Resort — both suggested by a kind bartender after I shared how disappointed Cate was that our original plans had fallen through. When in doubt? Ask a local. They always know the good stuff.

One time, it was a title agent who told us about the Burger King in Kayenta, Arizona — near Monument Valley. It’s owned by Richard Mike, the son of Navajo Code Talker King Mike. He opened the franchise in 1986 and even built a small museum inside the restaurant, filled with Code Talker artifacts and memorabilia. You just can’t Google that kind of detail. You have to live it.

7. The Granola Bar Rule (Our Crumbiest Travel Tradition)

This one’s just for us: crunchy granola bars can only be eaten outside the car. It’s not up for debate. Those things explode into a thousand crumbs on contact and turn the floorboards into a snack graveyard.

This rule was born out of necessity — and credit where credit is due, it was actually the kids who came up with it. After a few dramatic crumb-related meltdowns they pitched the idea themselves: crunchy granola bars are outside food only. We all agreed, and the rule stuck.

8. The Souvenir Rule

Each kid gets a $60 budget for souvenirs — and no, it doesn’t roll over to next trip. But there are some guidelines:

• You can’t buy anything on the first day. Look around. Explore. You might find something better tomorrow.
• No stuffed animals from a grocery store or airport kiosk. If it looks like we could’ve bought it in Dallas, it’s not special enough.
• Souvenirs need to have meaning. Something that reminds you of a place we saw, a thing you did, or a memory we made together. That’s the whole point.

We also have one shared tradition: at some point during the trip, we pick out a T-shirt that represents where we’ve been — one that we’ll all wear together on a future day to remember the adventure. I pay for that shirt. It doesn’t come out of anyone’s budget. It’s just something we do to stay connected to the memory.

9. The State Pie Challenge

Wherever we go, we must attempt to find and try the official state pie — or at least the closest thing to it. This delicious tradition started on our Oregon trip when a waitress casually mentioned marionberry pie — the official state pie of Oregon, recognized in 2017.

Turns out, marionberries were developed at Oregon State University in the 1940s — a hybrid of the Chehalem and Olallieberry. It tastes like a cross between a blueberry and a blackberry, with just the right mix of tart and sweet. Heaven on a fork.

Cate took one bite and declared we were only eating at places that served marionberry pie for the rest of the trip. I didn’t argue.

Now, we hunt for state pies the way some families hunt for license plates. It’s educational. It’s tasty. And it almost always leads to a small-town diner with great stories and even better desserts.

* I’ve included a table of official state pies below — for anyone who’s curious, hungry, or both.

🥧 State Pies of the USA

From iconic fruit-filled classics to savory regional specialties, here’s a quick look at the most beloved (or official!) pie for each state.

Pies listed include official state pies and iconic regional favorites based on food culture and local history.

Final Thoughts: Rules That Make Room for Magic

The point of these rules isn’t to control the trip. It’s to set us up to enjoy the ride, even when things go sideways. (Spoiler: they always do.)

They help us focus on trying, listening, laughing, bailing when we need to, and remembering the whole reason we hit the road in the first place: to be together in a way real life doesn’t always allow. These quirky family travel traditions aren’t about control — they’re about connection

If you’re a parent planning your own adventure — solo or not — feel free to borrow a rule or two. Or better yet, make your own. Just don’t forget the pie.