Tips When Traveling With Kids

With summer almost here, many families are planning a family getaway. Traveling with kids can be a lot of fun, but it can also be a bit trying for parents, particularly when the kids are small. Small children often have very short attention spans, and they’re not able to become absorbed in reading a book for instance, to while away several hours of a trip. Trips are hard on kids of all ages, because most kids want to move around and do fun things. Smaller kids have the most difficult time with traveling though, because on short hour can seem like a whole day to them. So keeping them occupied while traveling can be a challenge.

There are many things you can do to help make traveling with kids a more enjoyable experience though. Some things work well for smaller children, while others are usually best for kids a little older. Most of the techniques we cover here are for traveling with kids in a car, but some of the tips can be used for air travel, trains or buses too.

Regardless of how you’re traveling with kids though, one very important part of any trip is the pit stops. These are even more important for young children, particularly those who are recently potty broken. You need to make every effort to stop at least once each hour when traveling, and let the kids go to the bathroom.

This one hour pit stop is also an excellent time to let them stretch their legs and run out a bit of the pent up energy too though. If possible, try to let the kids run around and play at rest areas for instance, for at least fifteen minutes or so.

If you’re [tag-tec]traveling[/tag-tec] by plane of course, you won’t have the luxury of rest areas. And this can be difficult particularly for smaller children, because there is no where for the [tag-ice]kids[/tag-ice] to stretch their legs and have fun.

It can be quit helpful to travel with kids at night time actually, because you’re often able to drive or fly for many hours at a time while the kids are sleeping. This makes traveling easier on both the children and the parents, because by the time the kids wake up, you may already be at your destination.

If you’re traveling with kids on a airplane though, unfortunately you’ll have to stick to the airline’s schedule, and that may not allow for nighttime travel.

Whether you’re traveling with kids by car, plane or train however, there are things you can take along which will help make the time more bearable for both of you. Pack small toys, games and coloring books to help keep the kids occupied with activities for instance. Also be sure to take plenty of extra liquids for the kids to drink, plus easy finger food snacks too.

If your children are old enough to read and write, pack some books that are appropriate for their ages, and encourage them to start a vacation journal too. The vacation journal is where the kids can draw pictures and write down information they notice along the way. This journal will become a family keepsake in later years.

If your kids like to watch movies, you can sometimes make traveling with them easier by bringing along a portable dvd player and a favorite movie or two as well.

Don’t forget to take extra clothes when you’re travelling with kids too, especially if your children are still quite small. They spill foods and drinks on themselves, and if they’re young enough they may have an accdent if a bathroom isn’t close at hand too.

Finally, pack wet disposable wipes or a moist washcloth into a sealable plastic bag too, and cleaning faces and hands will be much easier while traveling.

Hopefuly these tips will help make your next framily trip an enjoyable. We would love to hear from our readers, please enter go to the bottom of this page and click here and leave a comment. Let us know what you do when traveling with your kids to make it a fun and memorable experience. 

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