Exploring the World Together: A Deep Dive into National Geographic Bucket List Family Travel by Jessica Gee
In an era where experiences often outweigh possessions, few narratives capture the imagination and aspirations of modern families quite like National Geographic Bucket List Family Travel: Share the World With Your Kids on 50 Adventures of a Lifetime by Jessica Gee. A stunning travel guide infused with personal anecdotes and inspiring photography, this book is more than just a travel planner — it is an invitation to embrace a lifestyle where learning, connection, and exploration go hand-in-hand. Authored by Jessica Gee, one-half of the beloved Bucket List Family duo, the book draws on the family’s extensive travels across more than 90 countries to offer a roadmap for meaningful and unforgettable adventures.
This Bucket List Family Travel book sits at the intersection of memoir, guidebook, and motivational manual, blending the personal with the practical. For families with wanderlust, Jessica’s storytelling offers a beacon of inspiration, demonstrating how the world can be both a playground and a classroom. The tone is warm, honest, and deeply rooted in a philosophy that prioritizes intentionality, cultural appreciation, and shared growth.
A Family on a Mission
To appreciate the full scope of this book, it’s important to understand the origin story of the Gee family. Jessica, along with her husband Garrett and their three children — Dorothy, Manilla, and Calihan — became internet sensations as The Bucket List Family. After selling everything they owned in 2015, the family embarked on a journey around the world with the goal of experiencing life through travel and community service. What began as a temporary trip quickly turned into a lifestyle, documented on YouTube and Instagram to an enthusiastic following.
In Bucket List Family Travel, Jessica weaves this personal background throughout the chapters, allowing readers to not only witness the beauty of global destinations but also to understand the values that underpin their journeys. It’s not about ticking destinations off a list — it’s about making each trip count, both for the traveler and for the communities visited.
Structure and Style
The Bucket List Family Travel book is divided into 50 distinct family-friendly adventures, each located in a different part of the world. From swimming with humpback whales in Tonga to exploring the temples of Cambodia, every chapter highlights a destination that offers unique experiences tailored to families. Each adventure is accompanied by a “Why We Love It” section, practical tips, and striking National Geographic photography, which adds both credibility and visual allure.
Jessica’s writing is accessible and grounded. She doesn’t shy away from discussing the challenges of traveling with young children — the jet lag, the tantrums, the logistics. But she also emphasizes the transformative power of stepping outside one’s comfort zone and learning together as a family. The balance between idyllic travel moments and raw parenting reality makes the book feel authentic and relatable.
Educational Philosophy
One of the most striking aspects of Bucket List Family Travel is its emphasis on experiential learning. Jessica and Garrett chose to homeschool their children, integrating real-world experiences into their education. In each destination, the kids are not only observers but participants. They learn marine biology by swimming with sea creatures, world history by visiting ancient ruins, and compassion by engaging with local communities.
Jessica encourages readers to view the world as a classroom — one where learning isn’t confined to books and screens, but found in nature, culture, and human connection. Each chapter includes educational takeaways and conversation starters that make it easier for parents to turn travel into a learning opportunity. This approach reflects a growing movement toward unschooling and alternative education methods that prioritize curiosity, adaptability, and global citizenship.
Destinations and Cultural Appreciation
The 50 adventures are carefully selected to offer a mix of nature, culture, and adventure. Locations span every continent, with a conscious effort to showcase lesser-known gems alongside bucket-list staples. There’s a clear focus on cultural respect and environmental stewardship — two pillars of responsible travel. The book highlights local customs, traditional foods, festivals, and ways to support indigenous communities.
For instance, in the chapter on Kenya, Jessica describes their experience with a Maasai community, not as a voyeuristic tourist encounter, but as an opportunity for mutual learning and relationship-building. In Iceland, the family explores sustainability and geothermal energy, engaging the kids in conversations about environmental protection. Each adventure is presented with a mindfulness that goes beyond Instagram-worthy moments, encouraging readers to leave a positive impact.
Practical Guidance for Parents
While inspirational at its core, the Bucket List Family Travel book also excels as a practical guide for family travel. Jessica offers tips on everything from packing and budgeting to dealing with motion sickness and picky eaters. Each chapter concludes with suggestions for “Bucket List Upgrades” — additional experiences or destinations that pair well with the featured trip. There are also age-appropriate activity suggestions, helping families with younger children tailor the adventure to their needs.
Traveling with kids often feels daunting, especially for first-time globetrotting families. Jessica demystifies the process by emphasizing flexibility, patience, and the value of shared experiences over perfection. The tone is empowering rather than prescriptive, making it feel like advice from a trusted friend who has already walked the path.
The Emotional and Relational Impact
Beyond the logistics and destinations, what makes Bucket List Family Travel so compelling is its emphasis on family bonding. In a world where modern life often pulls families in different directions — work, school, screens, and schedules — the Gees have chosen a path of deep presence. Travel becomes a context for creating lifelong memories, building resilience, and fostering open-mindedness.
Jessica writes candidly about how travel has brought her family closer, allowed her to see her children’s strengths in new light, and helped her grow as a parent. These reflections are deeply moving and highlight the emotional richness of shared adventure. They also subtly challenge societal norms about what childhood and family life should look like, offering an alternative that is rich in spontaneity, empathy, and wonder.
Visual Storytelling
Being published by National Geographic, the book is expectedly rich in visuals — and it does not disappoint. The photography is both aspirational and authentic, featuring stunning landscapes, vibrant local scenes, and candid family moments. These images do more than decorate the pages; they serve as visual testimonies to the transformative power of travel. They remind readers that the world is vast, beautiful, and worth exploring — especially with children in tow.
The images also reinforce the book’s message: that travel is not about luxury or status, but about connection, growth, and perspective. Whether it’s a sunset over the Serengeti or a street market in Morocco, each photo invites the reader into the experience and stirs a sense of longing — not just to see new places, but to see them with fresh eyes.
A New Model of Family Life
At its heart, National Geographic Bucket List Family Travel is about more than just travel — it’s about redefining what family life can be. The Gees model a life that prioritizes time over money, relationships over routines, and experiences over things. It’s a radical shift in values that resonates with a growing audience of parents who seek meaning, not just milestones.
Jessica doesn’t advocate for everyone to sell their belongings and travel full-time. Rather, she encourages families to be intentional with their time and choices — to say yes to adventure, however that looks. Whether it’s a weekend road trip or a sabbatical abroad, the book invites readers to embrace curiosity, courage, and connection.
Critique and Reflection
While overwhelmingly positive and motivational, the book does come with certain limitations. For some readers, the Gees’ ability to travel full-time may feel financially inaccessible or logistically out of reach. Jessica acknowledges their privilege and the unique circumstances that allowed them to pursue this lifestyle, but the contrast can still be jarring for families living paycheck to paycheck.
Additionally, the Bucket List Family Travel book’s format — glossy, idealistic, and highly curated — might not fully capture the darker or more difficult sides of global travel. Issues like political instability, illness, or climate concerns are touched on lightly but could benefit from deeper exploration in future editions.
However, these critiques do not undermine the core value of the book: its ability to ignite a sense of possibility. The real success of Bucket List Family Travel lies in its power to awaken dreams and offer a blueprint — not for replication, but for inspiration.
Conclusion
National Geographic Bucket List Family Travel: Share the World With Your Kids on 50 Adventures of a Lifetime by Jessica Gee is an uplifting, visually stunning, and deeply heartfelt guide to what it means to explore the world as a family. It invites parents to imagine a life rich in discovery, empathy, and shared wonder. Through carefully chosen adventures and poignant personal reflections, Jessica makes a compelling case that travel is not just a luxury — it’s a vital part of raising compassionate, curious, and open-minded children.
Whether you’re an avid traveler or simply dreaming of your next family vacation, the Bucket List Family Travel book offers both the tools and the inspiration to make it meaningful. More than anything, it reminds us that the world is full of stories — and the most powerful ones are those we live together.
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Sounds great!