Adam and Justine Rigby have always loved travelling with their two daughters, but when the girls became teenagers they valued their trips together even more.
“Time goes so quickly when you have kids,” says Adam. “Anabelle and Olivia are great to travel with, and we want to fill our bucket with quality time together.”
“We’ve moved away from buying things to buying experiences, like great family holidays. Memories last longer than things.”
This travel-loving family make these cherished trips fit to their schedule. Adam's a big fan of short breaks to holiday hot spots like the Gold Coast. If you're looking for ways to add a dash of adventure to your family schedule, a quick weekend away could be just the ticket.
“On a short trip, you can do everything you want to do without ending up getting stuck in a routine. It’s a power trip, like a power nap – you can fit a lot in.”
The Wellington family had one of their best-ever holidays in Sydney last year, seeing a gig by Canadian singer Shawn Mendes and experiencing the Australian city through a new lens. Adam and Justine flew to Sydney for a wedding, and they made it a family affair by shouting Olivia on the trip with them to celebrate her 14th birthday.
By day Justine's a fitness instructor while Adam is a business development manager and fitness instructor too, by night, they're on the hunt for travel bargains. They say they're able to prioritise their spending into travel by keeping an eye out for good deals on airfares and using unique accommodation providers like Airbnb. That doesn't mean they go wild with the budget for the trip though, they've started pre-loading their money onto a travel card before they jet off.
“Travel cards are truly amazing. We wouldn’t travel without one now. We can reload it if we exceed our budget, but we decide exactly how much extra we’re going to spend – we don’t just go nuts,” says Adam.
“I also like the security of travel cards, especially since I once had a credit card skimmed.”
Travel cards are also great because you can check out exchange rates before travelling and buy the foreign currency in advance, and then keep track of your spending overseas, either online or with the mobile app.
The ability to keep track of your spending can really come in handy, especially as when it comes to spending, Adam says there’s no competition – Justine is the shopper in the family.
He laughs. “I just can’t keep up with Justine in malls. I’m fit, but I’m not that fit” . “In those big shopping malls in Bondi, we always reach a point where I give in and say, ‘Love, you’re on your own. Go for your life, but I’m going to get a muffin.”
The fact that Loaded for Travel cards come in pairs means that Adam can happily settle in a cafe with his muffin and a newspaper, while Justine checks out the shops - no card arguments in the Rigby family!
