Things to Ask Yourself When Planning Your Roots Travel

Roots travel takes planning.  You need to at least know where your relatives lived, of course. You might also want details of what church they were christened or married in, what street they lived on, or any number of other interesting tidbits.

So if you are planning an ancestral trip, you'll want to ask yourself a few things:

1. Do you plan on researching on the trip?

Roots travel can be for research purposes or it can be just to get a feel for the area your ancestor lived.

2. Will your roots travel be the main focus of your trip, or will it be a side trip during your vacation?

Be realistic when planning your vacation --do you have enough information to keep yourself busy for the whole trip? If not, can you plan it as a side trip (i.e. vacation to London, but with a side trip to Steeple Ashton).

3. Will you be specific or general?

Do you want to get an overview of the country, county, city and culture? Do you want to visit specific places connected with your relatives or ancestors, such as a specific house, street or church. You need to decide before you leave on your vacation what you want to see so you can plan ahead. For example, if you want to visit a specific church, you might want to find out when it is open.

4. What are your expectations?

You may find that the street your family lived on is now a factory. Will you still feel fulfilled? Do you have more general places you can visit if the specific places are not available.

5. Are you ready to immerse yourself in the culture?

Some people travel without ever immersing themselves in the culture. As a roots traveler, you don't want that to happen. You want to immerse yourself in the culture, warts and all.  You want to take the opportunity to eat with the locals, etc. Whether it is the Southern U.S., England, Germany, or Japan, remember that your ancestors came from the place you are visiting. You have a heritage in that culture. Make it part of your own inner cultural self.

Family Reunions as Roots Travel

It's been a while since I last posted. Time just got away from me.

Recently, I put together a family reunion for a large family. They are going on a Disney Cruise. It's perfect for both the adults and the kids because there is something for everyone to do.

Many of the readers of this blog might not consider a Disney Cruise roots travel, but I do. I tend to define roots travel as anything that strengthens the roots and branches of the family tree. A family reunion is a great way to strengthen those roots. No matter where the family reunion is held, it helps generations connect.That is what roots travel is all about.

According to this article, 34 percent of U.S. adults have traveled to a family reunion in the past three years. Check out the article; it even talks about ancestral travel as a family reunion idea. Ancestral travel is a great travel idea for family reunion travel because as a family you share a common heritage. Traveling to Italy to see your great-grandfather's vineyard, for example, would be an amazing family reunion travel experience.

If you are planning family reunion travel, check out this article for some helpful tips. Whether you are planning to visit an ancestral home or do a cruise, it takes a lot of planning for a great family reunion. Consider a travel agent to help you plan the travel portions of the trip.

Merry Christmas

I am going to be taking a break from writing over Christmas. Wishing you and your family (and its roots) a very merry Christmas.

Thoughts About Tiny Villages and Ancestors

Lately I have been trying to put together a potential escorted tour to Ireland for people with Irish ancestry. One of the difficulties that I run into is that an escorted tour will not be able to hit all the different cities and towns that those ancestors actually came from. Instead, it has to be more of a general overview.

One way of resolving that problem is to have the escorted tour followed by personal time to explore Ireland. That way people can visit their ancestors' villages but also get a good overview of the country they lived in.

While I've been doing this, I have also been thinking about the way it seems that everyone's ancestors came from tiny villages instead of large cities. Why is that? You would think more people would have ancestors from London, for example, instead of some little village way out in the English countryside.

Maybe it is just a perception I have because people enjoy visiting those villages and trying to find their ancestral church or cemetary. It would be interesting, though, to run into someone who's ancestry comes primarily from large cities like Boston, New York, London, Berlin, Dublin, et cetera. I'm not saying I don't like working with small villages. Actually, I like it quite a bit. I'm just making a general observation.

No matter where ancestors hail from, though, their homes are worth visiting. Whether it is a small village or a large metropolis, roots travel is the way to go.

P.S. Don't forget to vote for Roots Traveler in the Family Tree 40!  http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/ft40-2011voting

Vote For Roots Traveler In The Family Tree 40

Each year, Family Tree Magazine holds a vote for the 40 best genealogy blogs. The blogs are divided up into eight categories, and you vote for five blogs in each category. You can find the announcement here.

I was surprised to find out that this blog was nominated in the NEW BLOGS category! I don't know who nominated me, but I'm delighted to be among this list of so many great genealogy bloggers.

So now I need your help. Voting has already started and continues until 11:59 p.m. on Monday, December 20. You can vote as often as you want to, so use the old phrase "Vote early and vote often" as your motto.

There are a lot of great blogs in every category. DearMYRTLE has a sample ballot and links to each blog so you can check them out yourself and vote for your top 40!  Now is a great time to discover some really great genealogy blogs. Just make sure you vote for Roots Traveler in the NEW BLOGS category! Tell your genealogy-loving friends and family to vote too.

Here's the link to vote: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/ft40-2011voting

Collaborative Roots Travel Map

Have you done roots travel? Share it with all of the readers of this blog. I just put up a page with a map of the world on which I will document the roots travels of readers of this blog.

Genealogy is very much a collaborative effort. This map is as well.  Just advise Roots Traveler of where you have been and your travels will be put on the map. Then, if you are planning roots travel to a particular area and want some advice, you'll know who to contact!

By giving your username and travel locations, you are consenting to have your information placed on the map for everyone to see. But isn't that what genealogy is all about?! Let's see if we can blanket the map with roots travel!

There are two ways to share your information: leave it in the comments below, or email me at info [at] familyrootstravel [dot] com.

EDIT: The map can be found on here permanently so it is easy to find, but I am adding it to this post as well.




View Roots Travel in a larger map

The Ulster-Scots and Roots Travel in Northern Ireland

As a travel agent, I am always interested in learning more about different places and cultures. This coincides well with my interest in roots travel.

This week I found out more about a group of people called the Ulster Scots. These people were from the lowlands of Scotland but moved to Ulster (the settlements were called the Plantation of Ulster) in Northern Ireland. Eventually most of them moved to America. It's a fascinating story, one that highlights the history between Ireland and Great Britain.

I recommend learning more, especially if you think you might have Ulster-Scot heritage. You can find out more about the Ulster-Scots from the great article I read. Or you can go to the website for the Ulster-Scots Society of America or the very informative Ulster-Scots Agency website. The BBC even has a website devoted to the Ulster Scots at http://www.bbc.co.uk/ulsterscots/. Finally, there's a great and informative website put together by the Ulster-Scots Agency on the Plantation of Ulster.

Naturally, this got me wondering whether there was a museum in Northern Ireland dedicated to these Ulster-Scots. Such a museum would be a great place to start one's roots travel. Turns out there is one: the Monreagh Ulster-Scots Irish Heritage and Education Centre in County Donegal. This museum would be a must-stop visit on anyone with Ulster-Scot heritage visiting Northern Ireland.

For a more general look at emigration from Ulster, one could also visit the Ulster American Folk Park. While this living history museum does not focus on the Ulster-Scots, it does talk about the experience of emigration from Ulster to America, so it is definitely a helpful place to get closer to your ancestor's experiences.

It never ceases to amaze me how much history there is around the world. The Ulster-Scots are a part of history I had never heard of, but I am now thinking of including it on an Irish heritage tour I am planning. Not only because I think that Northern Ireland would be a great place to travel, but also because I think it would be a great place to do roots travel for anyone with Irish or Ulster-Scot ancestry. Only by learning about all the different aspects of a country's history can one truly understand their ancestors.