Mom and Amazing Race 31 Winner Christie Woods shares her family travel insights

Amazing Race 31 Winner Christie Woods is a mom and avid traveler. She believes that journeying as a family “brings us closer together and allows us to know each other in a deeper way.” Who better to ask for favorite family vacation spots and travel advice?

The Amazing Race is by far our family’s favorite show and has been since the day the first episode aired in 2001. Nick and I even tried out for it early on (Seriously, cannot figure out why we have not been selected. I mean, our audition video was done in a corn maze!). Alex watches old seasons daily. We love seeing places we’ve visited and are constantly adding new destinations to our travel bucket list as a result of their epic stops. We have done an Amazing Race-themed birthday party and I created our very own Amazing Race in Northern Indiana last year. And, at times, some of our vacations feel a bit like the Amazing Race, like when we did three European cities in nine days last summer.

The most recent season saw some of our most beloved veteran AR teams: Tyler Oakley and Korey Kuhl; Team Fun’s Becca Droz and Floyd Pierce, and married couple Christie Woods and Colin Guinn, who were originally on season 5. Now 15 years since racing around the world for the first time, Christie and Colin have two young boys. As a relationship coach and reiki master healer, meditation, harnessing and giving out positive energy, and self-discovery are central to Christie and her family’s lives. I recently caught up with Christie, and she graciously shared her thoughts on traveling with her kids and her family’s favorite travel spots.

1.Do you think traveling with your kids is important? If so, why?

Yes! Most importantly, traveling with our kids removes us from the daily routine which in turn allows us to get to know each other in a deeper way. We can have so many confirmatory bias about those closest to us, so travel can help us gain a broader perspective of our lives and each other. We feel super tight with our kids after a family vacation and try to bake at least three to four of these throughout the year.  Bonus: travel allows our kids to see the world and experience other cultures and social norms which in turn expands their capacity to relate to others and connect dots to the people and places they learn about in the classroom.

2.What is your best/favorite tip for traveling with your kids?

Travel LIGHT! Only bring the necessities and remember you can wear the same thing more than once (even in a row) lol! Give them each a backpack that is their responsibility to keep up with which includes any books, electronics, stuffed animal, etc. they need/want to make themselves “at home” wherever you go! Creates accountability and helps them learn what’s important to bring and what’s better left at home.

3. What is your favorite type of vacation with kids?

We love to go on adventures with our kids so this may include camping, backpacking, hiking, the beach…typically we like to travel light and plan at least one to two adventures each day; however, at night we prefer things as luxurious as possible (given the circumstances and availability of the trip) in order to rest and rejuvenate for the next day of fun!!

4. What is your favorite place you’ve been with your kids?

We go to Jackson Hole every spring break for snowboarding; Sayulita Mexico every winter to chase the sun; and Lake Santeetlah North Carolina every May to hike, camp, and white water raft in the mountains…then we throw in one more “surprise” trip during the summer to discover some place new! Jamaica, Bahamas, Dubai, Dominican Republic, Costa Rica just to name a few.

Africa Safari would be my dream vacay with the kids…just waiting until Cruz (age 7) is a little older!!

5. How did traveling the world on the Amazing Race prepare you for having kids?

It didn’t, haha! Nothing can prepare you for having kids!!!  However, season 5 did show us our blind spots and lack of resilience inside a very stressful container…which in turn inspired our own self-development, healing and growth as individuals and within our relationship…my assumption is that it makes us far better parents than we would be otherwise.  

6. What was your favorite place you traveled to on the Amazing Race? 

Season 5 was definitely New Zealand, Africa, and the Palawan Islands off the coast of India. Season 31 was Laos and Switzerland.

7. What destination from the Amazing Race would you like to take your kids to?

We plan to go back to Laos traveling with just one backpack each and sort of backpacking around that whole area, including Vietnam, Cambodia and other countries nearby…immersing into the culture as much as possible. However, we will be staying in more luxurious hotels, as again, this kind of travel can be hard on the body so it’s always good to rest and rejuvenate when you can!!

Backpacks and 5-star hotels…my kind of vacay!!

We also want to take them to Switzerland…truly one of the most beautiful countries I’ve ever seen…no filter needed!!  #nofilter

8. How do you maintain a positive attitude when you’re traveling with kids? We’ve traveled all over the world with our boys and know it can be the most rewarding experiences, but also stressful and trying.

We do the same practices that are part of our daily routine, even when we travel: mediation, yoga, green juice (and/or supplements) for super food nutrients, and some type of mental nourishment (i.e. high conscious book, podcast, etc) incorporated into the day for at least 10 to 15 mins per day. We also find that free-time/down-time/alone-time to recharge helps a LOT…this is the “integration” period that is so needed (even for the kids) and often left out during the vacay!

Watching Amazing Race 31 Winner Christie Woods and her husband Colin Guinn’s positive transformation on the last season of the Amazing Race was inspiring, and ultimately led to their first place finish. They embodied light, love, compassion and gratitude with each other and the other teams. I was constantly pointing out their positive attitudes to the boys, and my husband would watch each episode and say, “I want to channel Colin’s zen.”  They have a beautiful family and outlook on life. Thank you, Christie, for sharing your family travel advice and favorite spots, and for such a positive and light-filled outlook on life!