no. 1 Unicorn Activity Book | no. 2 Rockland Carry On Luggage | no. 3 Colorforms Funpack Peppa Pig | no. 4 Uno Card Game | no. 5 BMOUO iPad Kids Case Cover | no. 6 Bendon 73581 Disney Moana Imagine Ink Magic Pictures | no. 7 Kumon Math Workbooks – Grade 1 Addition | no. 8 Travel Scavenger Hunt Card Game | no. 9 Elecder i37 Kids Headphones | no. 10 Bento-Box with Insulated Lunch Bag Set
Given how much we travel I always get asked for tips on traveling with kids. My most important goal when traveling is to try and make it as stress-free as possible. Today I am rounding up all my tips, tricks and the gear we have to make life a little easier when traveling with kids.
The kids are home from school for summer break and we have a TON of family travel planned! Later this week we are heading down south on our first family trip to Charleston, South Carolina!! We have done quite a bit of airplane travel with kids in the last six months and that was our intention when Brian and I made the decision for him to leave his job to help grow and run Pure Joy Home.
We both really value and enjoy traveling together as a family and we are hoping it will give our kids life long memories of new places and experiences. Although taking kids and toddlers on airplane travel isn’t always the easiest, I’ve recently read a few articles about the amazing benefits of traveling with kids and family travel in general, and it can be a lot of work upfront the payoff is so great! I’ve seen Brian and Grace grow more independent through travel, aware and curious about the world outside of their day to day and I love watching them take it all in.
REALITY
That said, traveling with toddlers isn’t all magical and beautiful pictures. Family travel can be tough! You usually are thrown off schedules, there’s always a chance of delays or long waits when you have airplane travel with kids, it really can be a bit unpredictable at times. Thankfully, as the kids have grown older it has become more manageable and we have nailed down a few important must-haves to ensure smooth travel for all of us. I thought I would share some of my traveling with kids tips with you today!
KIDS TRAVEL GEAR
This year we got both Brian & Grace kids luggage and that was a game changer! They actually enjoyed helping me pack each of their pre-folded items into their own suitcases and I could tell felt special that they had their own bag when we were walking through the airport together. I also pack a backpack for each kid so they have special activities and surprise snacks in store. The key is to not give all the goodies away at the beginning of the trip, space things out so they remain engaged and interested in each thing they have to entertain them.
They also each have their own kids headphones and iPad’s with these kids iPad covers. Our kids screen time does go up when we travel but I make sure to pre-load content with things I approve of or know are their favorites. It’s a great way for them to just chill out and relax especially on airplanes.
CAN’T FORGET….SNACKS!!
I LOVE these Bent-Box lunch boxes for packing food while we travel and they are great for school lunches too! It’s important to think about how to pack snack for the airplane with kids. I try to think about what our travel day will entail and what types of food they will most likely crave or want, and add-in a few fun surprise snacks that they may otherwise not have so it’s another fun and exciting thing to keep them occupied. Try to pack mostly healthy treats though as you don’t want to overload them on sugar and make them cray!
KIDS TRAVEL GAMES
We love to bring a lot of different travel games with us on the plane. Brian and Grace are at such a fun age where they can usually play nicely together or we can all participate in a game. Uno is a great kids travel game that can be for the whole family or just the two of them. Even if your kids are too young to understand how to play it’s a great learning game for matching colors and numbers. We also love a good scavenger hunt and this one is perfect for a family road trip.
Summer time travel with kids can be a great time to reinforce learning and prep for the next school year. Brian is really into math so we got him this workbook to keep him practicing addition. Then we will have a bunch of independent activities like coloring books, sticker books with characters or themes each of them love.
TRAVEL REMINDERS FOR PARENTS
Keep the rules the same as much as possible. Kids thrive off routine and structure so while you want them to enjoy and have fun, they still have to play by the rules (i.e. if you do time out, reinforce manners to those helping you like flight attendants, etc.). But most importantly try to relax and have fun as much as possible! Remember you worked hard to afford a trip whether it be somewhere far away or just a few hour drive.
These memories will last forever and their meltdowns in public will not. Breathe, be present and most importantly remain flexible as there can be lots of fun and memories made in the unexpected times! If all else fails, one parent can tag out, take a walk and come back when you have decompressed.
