Staying Fit
Heritage trips are a top travel trend for 2019, according to Lonely Planet, and Airbnb reports a 500-percent increase in the number of guests visiting places connected with their ancestry in the past five years. If you're interested in traveling to explore your own family's roots, experts have some advice:
Research as much as you can before you go
Jackie Hogan, a sociology professor at Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois, and author of the new book Roots Quest, says it's a mistake to show up in your ancestors’ village with a vague plan to knock on doors, hoping to find people who knew your relatives. “To get the most out of the experience, you need to do most of your research before you step on a plane,” she advises. That includes identifying a local contact, such as a family member you've connected with through your research or a guide you could hire to help you when you arrive.
AARP Membership— $12 for your first year when you sign up for Automatic Renewal
Get instant access to members-only products and hundreds of discounts, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP the Magazine.
As part of your research, Jennifer Utley, director of research at Ancestry.com, recommends doing some reading about the place where you're going. “A work of nonfiction or historical fiction can give a sense of time and place when your ancestors were there,” Utley says. “This can help you better understand what they were going through and why they made the decisions they made."
Consider a group tour
Lots of tour companies have sprung up to meet the demand for help with ancestry travel, ranging from general group tours to customized, private experiences for families. Ancestry.com and Go Ahead Tours are a few that offer heritage trips led by genealogists.
