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There’s nothing like romantic weekend getaways to help a couple recharge their batteries and reconnect with each other.  When you have a family and other responsibilities you can’t always take a week or two just for yourselves, so planning for a weekend away may be more feasible and more affordable as well.  But before you pick up and take off, consider some tips for successful romantic weekend getaways and see if they might not apply to you.

For one thing, if you have more than one child remember that this might be a bit too much for one set of grandparents who probably aren’t used to all the grandkids being over at once.  Try to “farm out” your kids when planning for romantic weekend getaways; offer to have one of their friends spend the night at your house the next weekend if one of your can spend the night at a friend’s house this weekend.

Remember that your own brother or sister may be able to babysit as well if they’re old enough; usually kids love spending time with a favorite aunt or uncle.  You’ll probably be in a better frame of mind when approaching your romantic weekend getaways if you know that your own parents aren’t overwhelmed with all the kids.

There’s no way that romantic weekend getaways are enjoyable if you’re constantly distracted with work and business.  Be determined to ignore your email and switch off the cell phone, or at the very least set some limits for yourself - you get one check of email and of voice mail per day, and spend no more than five minutes returning messages for either.  Remember that romantic weekend getaways are about the two of you, not about one of you taking advantage of this time to catch up on paperwork or messages from coworkers.  So ignore messages as much as possible while away.

Since romantic weekend getaways are limited in time you might want to opt for a location near you and save those faraway places for a time when you can use up a day traveling.  Most people live with a few hours of some type of lake resort or city where they can rent a cabin or stay at a bed & breakfast.  Spending too many hours in a car driving or cooped up in a plane flying is not going to lead to anything but exhaustion!

You need to make the most of your time when it comes to romantic weekend getaways so don’t try to cram in all the activities you might enjoy during other vacations.  Think ahead of time of what activities there are at your resort - hiking, biking, swimming, fishing, etc. - and decide what you’re going to do and what you can do without.  If you try to fit in all the activities offered during your romantic weekend getaways you’re not only going to be disappointed but you might also find yourself more exhausted when you get home than when you left!