What if this was the year you made the swap?

Same budget. Same week off. Just somewhere new — a little outside your comfort zone, but not as far as you might think.

This week I'm sitting down with my real-life friend (and one of the savviest travel minds I know) Marion Donat, a travel advisor with Fora Travel who has a way of making international family travel feel less scary and way more possible. She's a mom of two based in Texas, and Marion and I have known each other for nearly two decades — I've admired her adventures and her work for a long time.

In this episode, we dig into two destinations Marion keeps coming back to for families: Belize and Mexico City. Ready to be surprised? Both are closer, easier, and more affordable than you'd expect.

What You'll Learn in This Episode

• Ever since I started thinking about my own philosophy around family travel, one thing has gnawed at me: why do we keep going back to the same places? What are we missing?
• Why Belize might be an awesome gateway international destination for American families (think: English spoken everywhere, US dollars accepted, short direct flights, same time zone, and nurse sharks your kids will talk about forever)
• Why Mexico City is more manageable than it sounds for families, and how to find neighborhoods where you feel the city, not just see it
• How staying in a short-term apartment rental puts you right in the middle of local life — pool, soccer field, supermarket downstairs, and all
• The only Michelin-starred taco stand in the world—and why Marion's son still begs to go back
• How Marion balances building a packed itinerary with leaving room to actually breathe and wander
• What Marion hopes her kids carry with them from all of this travel when they grow up — this one will stay with you

About Marion Donat:

Marion Donat is a travel advisor with Fora Travel specializing in international trips for families with young kids. She has a background in hospitality and corporate meeting planning—which basically means she has spent her whole career figuring out how to make travel work, beautifully, for other people. Marion grew up in Newport, Arkansas (small world!) and traces her love of travel back to sitting around her grandmother's kitchen table as a little girl, hearing stories about Buenos Aires and African safaris, and thinking I want that.

These days, she's the person who helps families stop scrolling "someday" destinations and start actually booking them.

• Instagram: @mcd.travels
• Marion Donat — Fora Travel

Destinations Covered:

Belize:

• San Pedro / Ambergris Caye
• Barrier Reef snorkeling
• Swimming with nurse sharks
• Mayan ruins + howler monkeys + carpenter ants
• Fishing for your lunch
• Golf cart transportation (kids lose their minds over this)
  

Mexico City (CDMX):

• Roma Norte neighborhood
• The best children's museum Marion's family has ever visited
• Museo Nacional de Antropología (giant artifacts that made her kids feel tiny in the best way)
• Lucha libre wrestling at Arena México
• Frida Kahlo Museum
• The only Michelin-rated taco stand in the world
• Day trip option: Teotihuacán pyramids + hot air balloons

Thanks for listening to Untethered Childhood. We're raising explorers together. I'll see you next time.