Back to towns in A Guide to Travel Advice and Tips
Traveling with Kids
A little preparation will make a big difference in how
enjoyable traveling with your kids can be. Use some of our tips
and ideas below, whether you and your children are traveling by
car or plane. After all, this is the time of the year when we
are ready to relax and rejuvenate, not stress about how to get
to our favorite vacation spot while listening to “Are we there
yet?” every 10 minutes. Outlined below are some ways for you to
make sure both you and your kids are comfortable while
traveling.
Dress everyone in comfortable loose clothing and pack a spare
outfit for everyone where you can easily reach it during your
trip. Pack a small pillow and a light blanket for each of the
kids, as well as their favorite stuffed toy or doll to snuggle
up with at night or during naptime. These not only work great
on the plane or in the car, but will also make your kids more
comfortable once you arrive at your destination.
Whether you travel by car or by plane, pack some drinks and
snacks for the kids, so you don’t have to rely on rest stops,
kiosks at the airport or the meals that are served on the
plane. We usually give our daughter only water in the car. It’s
not nearly as messy as some of the fruit juice or sports drinks
if it gets spilled. To make plain water a little more
interesting and to keep it cool, fix an insulated zippy cup or
sports bottle with ice water. And believe me, they will spill
it sooner or later, even if the cup claims to be spill proof.
Some good choices for not-so-messy snacks are trail mix,
pretzels, teddy grahams, dried fruit, fresh apple slices
(drizzle them with a little lemon or lime juice to keep them
from turning brown), mini marshmallows, and baby carrots. Come
up with some snacks that your kids love and put them in
individual zip-lock bags.
The zip-lock bags also come in handy to pack up some crafts
supplies like crayons, stickers, blunt scissors and glue
sticks, for the artists in your family.
To keep your little one’s entertained, you may also want to
pack some coloring books, picture books, or pack a child
friendly novel, like the Harry Potter books to read aloud in
the car. Audio books and music CDs or tapes also come in handy.
For some great travel games you and your family can play, take
a look at Car Travel Activities for Kids at
http://www.kinderinfo.com/articles/car-travel-activities.htm.
If you are traveling by car, plan in frequent stops and let the
kids run around. You may want to pack a jump robe, ball or
Frisbee to make moving around more fun. If you are driving
through the night, plan a longer stop an hour or two before
bedtime so the kids can wear themselves out and release all
this build up energy before going to sleep.
Instead of eating lunch at a fast food place or restaurant off
of the interstate, try bringing a picnic. You can cater to your
family members tastes and it is bound to be cheaper, better and
more healthy than what you would be able to find fast food
place. Your kids will appreciate not having to sit still again
and the sunshine and fresh air will do wonders for all of you.
If you are traveling by plane, bring some small toys, picture
books, coloring books etc, to entertain your child in the seat.
Depending on your child’s age, bring some gum, hard candy, zippy
cup, bottle or pacifier to have them suck or chew on something
during take-off and landing to equalize the pressure in their
ears. You may also want to pack a sweater for your child, since
the air temperature in the plane can be quite chilly.
To keep your kids excited on longer trips, make up some small
goodie bags for them. Collect some Kids Meal Toys for a few
weeks, or purchase some inexpensive toys at the Dollar Store
and put them individually in some small brown paper bags, or
even wrap them. Tell your kids that as long as they are being
good, they will get a new goodie bag every 2 hours or so.
You’ll be amazed how well behaved they will be, and you will
keep them from being too bored on a long trip by giving them
something new to play with.
About The Author: Susanne Myers is the founder of
http://www.kinderinfo.com , the one-stop online children's
resource center. Here you will find all kinds of answers to
help you with your family, including information on child care
options and locations, educational resources, sports and
recreation, home-based activities, party and event planning,
even quick and easy recipes. Signed up for our newsletter at
http://www.kinderinfo.com for even more great tips and ideas to
have fun with your kids this summer.
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