Planning a holiday is never an easy feat, and if you are a new parent planning your first vacation with your child, it can cause anxiety and panic. Many avoid travel unless their kids are a certain age – erratic schedules, lengthy packing lists, food preferences and irritable kids are just a few of the challenges. But travelling at an early age can be an enlightening and eye-opening experience for children, our parents sure did make it seem easy and that is because they always had a strategy, and of course, they had their strict glare down pat!
Here are few tips that may help travelling with kids make it to the good memory books. After all, you and your children deserve to enjoy every minute, every new experience and create a lifetime of memories along the way.
Newborns
Contrary to popular belief, it is possible to travel with infants and children till age two and not to mention they travel for free! You can take kids this age anywhere and keep them happy as long as they feel comfortable and are fed according to routine.
• When making your reservation, provide the ages of all of the passengers and ask if there are any limitations or regulations you should know about. Some airlines, for example, charge excess baggage fees for cars seats and strollers.
• Always ask for a seat close to the washroom and request a bassinet.
• Make sure your carry-on bag is not too heavy, remember you also have to hold your baby.
• Try to avoid booking your flight during your baby's usual sleep schedule, as air travel may sometimes keep babies awake and make them fussy.
• Change your baby's diaper immediately before boarding the airplane.
• It is often better to time their feeding according to your landing schedule.
• To help your baby adjust to changes in cabin pressure, encourage swallowing during take off and landing. You can do this by using a pacifier.
• If your infant is on a regular schedule, try to stay as close to that as possible and plan your day accordingly.
• Bring along their favourite toys, bottles and stuff that they are familiar with.
• Avoid keeping them strapped in a carrier or stroller all day.
• Interact with them, show them new colours and familiarise them with new sights and sounds.
• Give them the opportunity to move and get some exercise; if they are not walking or crawling yet, let them stretch on a mat or roll around.
• The most important thing – ASK FOR HELP.
Toddlers
They are an absolute delight to travel with because at this age they start to engage and explore on their own.
• Be prepared for changing temperatures when flying with a toddler. Dress them in comfortable layers, avoid buttons, zippers, or anything that gets in the way. The same principle applies to shoes: Avoid laces and opt for slip-ons.
• Bring distraction on the flight – something they haven’t seen before – a new toy, a new book, something to keep them busy and engaged.
• Carry their favourite snack.
• While planning your itinerary, make sure to spread out the activities to ensure downtime – this will help them get some rest and refuel their energy. This way they won’t get bored or cranky.
• Add some fun toddler-friendly activities to your plan – hit the local park, beach, pool or even a playground. Remember they are kids and walking around a city and visiting museums can get boring.
• Look for restaurants that have a kid-friendly menu, kids love their smoothies and nuggets, its familiar and away from the food that they eat at home
• Set expectations straight, talk to them about the destination you are visiting. Tell them stories about the place, keep them interested.
Middle-schoolers
They are the easiest to travel with – they want to try new things, they want to go to new places, have this sudden bout of energy and they are the least fussy about things!
• Involve them at the planning stage, let them decide on two-three of the places they would like to visit while travelling. This will make them look forward to the trip.
• Spoil them for choice. Let them chose between several activities – a day at the amusement park or a half-day snorkelling trip, trek to the nearest mountain top, or a trip to the historic sites. Draw a mental picture for them, tell them the history behind the place and let them pick the one which appeals to them the most.
• Do some research and book a kid-friendly guided tour. Kids this age love stories and if the story-teller is great, half your battle is won.
• Take them to explore new restaurants and introduce them to new flavours and world cuisine. They will thank you later.
Teenagers
Aah, the golden age… remember when you were a teenager? Travelling with them can either be a dream or a nightmare.
• Let them chose the destination or give them a choice… either way let them believe they chose the destination.
• Let them do research and take ownership in planning the sightseeing.
• You may want to consider giving older teens the option to explore on their own. As long you and your teen both feel safe.
• Be excited to have them around and never say no to try new things with them.