Top 10 Tips for Traveling with Young Children
Do you think having children limits your travel options? Travelling Family’s story will make you think otherwise! These two brave parents spent the first half of 2007 on a multi-country trip with a newborn and a toddler in tow. Their itinerary took them from their hometown of London to Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, and the United States.
If you have children or are thinking about having them, you simply must check out their informative list, the Top 10 Tips for Traveling with Small Children.
Here is an excerpt:
10) Travel light
When we left the UK we had 3 large bags, 1 medium bag, 2 car seats and a stroller. When we returned we had 4 large bags, 1 medium bag, 2 car seats, a fishing rod, a child’s activity centre, a sun tent, and a stroller. The bags were also a lot fuller than when we started! So pack your gear. Then unpack and re-assess what you REALLY need. If it is a “nice to have” then you don’t need it. If your kids are growing rapidly (as Lloyd was), pack for the next sizes up, and be prepared to throw away clothes they have grown out of… (more…)
9) Slap on the sun protection, then slap on some more
Sun protection is essential, especially when you hit a new country and you have no idea about how strong the sun is initially…we tried aerosols, sprays, creams, and sticks. I would say the creams are the best, as they give the best coverage, and can be packed in the suitcase easily. The sun sticks were okay, but the kids didn’t really like using them, and were hard to apply. Try to get factor 50 if you can, and a kids version. (more…)
8) Find the parks!
You have to look at what your children enjoy doing. In our case Matthew liked going to the park. So we could be in the most beautiful spot in the world, but we had to forgo the scenic photographs temporarily to go find a park! We found if we did this he would be so much happier the rest of the day. (more…)
7) Dont plan too much
If you plan your day out meticulously you will fail. Trust me, I know. Kids are unpredictable. One day they might be all happy and co-operative, the next they turn into screaming nightmares….I had an overall plan. I knew which country we would be in each day, and where we were sleeping. I planned all this long before we set off on holiday. But I didnt know what we would be doing in each country, or necessarily where we would be… (more…)
6) Its not all about the kids - enjoy yourself
I’ve said about this in my blog on a few occasions. The holiday, it’s not for the kids, it’s for YOU! It so used to wind me up when people said things like “they won’t remember it you know”, or “they are too young to be traveling”. Sod them, of course they wont remember it, and WHO CARES!!!! Why should your life suddenly stop when you have children? Do you need to change and start taking holidays in Mallorca where there are kids clubs and beaches full of scorched bodies? Of course it’s going to be different, but you can still have a good holiday, just a different good holiday! We did lots of things that weren’t child-friendly activities. But then again we did lots of things that were… (more…)
5) Have a positive attitude to plane flying
I have met a lot of people both before and since our journey who have said things like “how did you cope with the children’s ears on take-off”, or “New Zealand is too far for me (an adult) to travel to”, or “were the kids an absolute nightmare on the plane”. Well, actually they were great. And I think a lot of the reason they were great was because I was confident they would be…the trick to traveling with a toddler is to not let them know they can get out of the seat…we also got a seat for little Lloyd, even though he was obviously too small to use it. This ensured we didn’t get people sitting next to us, but sometimes it was a little inconvenient as instead of a bank of 3 seats they would give us 2 banks for 2 seats. So make sure you talk about this at check-in… (more…)
4) Travel when the kids are tired, stop when they are not
We found that if we drove too much the kids got fed up. This is natural and to be expected. As a result we tried to only drive if they were tired, or if we had given them a few days of running around a lot. Otherwise there is no point, the kids will be fed up, and then you will be fed up…we found a good time to travel was between 12 and 3pm. We played with the kids in the morning, then they would go to sleep and we would get on the road… (more…)
3) Establish a routine
This is so essential. When we arrived somewhere the routine would be all up in the air. It was strange how we had to re-establish a new routine at each place we visited. We were affected by things like the time the sun went down, the availability of food, the activities we were trying to do. But a routine is essential, and not just for the kids… (more…)
2) Do an activity every day
If you sit around a hotel room, or are cooped up in a motorhome with small children it will drive you mad, very very mad. You have to get out. So in the morning have a routine whereby you get up, get dressed, get breakfast, then go do something. Now this activity might not be anything big, it could just be walking 200 yards away to the park, or visiting the local supermarket. But get out and do something. The kids will be easier to cope with, and you wont get cabin fever… (more…)
1) Chill and relax
This is so the most important tip if you have children when on holiday. You have to learn to count to 10, to chill out, to expect the unexpected, and just well relax and enjoy yourself. The kids will be kids. They will trash the hotel room, throw apple puree all over the floor of the motorhome, mess their nappies when you are 10000 feet up, and various other things besides. If you stress the children will stress. If you laugh they will laugh. Enjoy your children, they will be grown up in the blink of an eye. Enjoy your holiday and make the most of those special days. It’s surprising, you will remember that holiday for the rest of your life, yet it is just a brief period in your day-to-day life. Listen to you children, laugh with them, play with them, and make the most of them. Don’t stress over the small stuff. Enjoy! (more…)
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Be sure to read this family’s whole Top 10 tips list, and also check out their travel blog to read about their trip in its entirety. It’s filled with adorable pictures, realistic recountings, and even more travel tips, like in the entry Hints and Tips - New Zealand. You may find yourself inspired to plan a world-wide adventure of your own, no matter what age your children are. If this adventurous family can do it, so can you!
Useful links:
Family Travel
New Zealand Tourism
Oceania Travel Information
Round the World Travel
To share your own set of travel tips, visit this topic on our Forums or send an email to: carrie@realtravel.com.
