Gathering some tips and tricks as well as a few special family destinations
Family travel tips that actually work
The Points guy has some interesting ideas to sift through…
Family travel is a whole other ballgame. The strategy, gear, planning, expectations and number of times you may answer “Are we there yet?” make it an entirely different sport than solo or adults-only trips.
While traveling with kids is arguably quite different than taking a trip without a child (notice we didn’t call it a “vacation” with kids), it doesn’t have to be intimidating.
To make the journey a little easier, we’ve compiled our 43 favorite family travel tips. Whether you’re traveling with infants, teens or some of both, these tried-and-true tips are bound to ease travel headaches and ensure your family travels are as fun and carefree as possible.
Travel tips for infants and toddlers
Use the right travel stroller
If you plan on traveling with a stroller, you want one that is lightweight and easy to maneuver through the airport or rough terrain, if necessary, once you reach your destination.
Related: These are the 13 best travel strollers for your next trip
If you choose to gate-check your stroller, foldability isn’t as important. Instead, prioritize protecting your stroller from dirt and damage by investing in a stroller with a bag. For long layovers, you can request to have your gate-checked stroller delivered to you between flights so that your baby has a safe and comfortable place to rest while you navigate the airport. Just ask the gate agent when you check your stroller.
Baby-wear
To keep your hands free and your baby snuggled, you may choose to baby-wear through the airport or on a flight (though most airlines don’t allow it during takeoff and landing).
The Transportation Security Administration rules state that infants may be carried in a sling or carrier while going through the walk-through metal detector, so you shouldn’t have to remove them for security — at least, according to the rules.
Bring mess-free toys
When choosing toys to pack for a flight or road trip, keep in mind that you don’t want anything that will create a mess or get lost easily, such as Legos or slime.
For mess-free coloring, we love Crayola Color Wonder Markers and coloring pages. If you’re taking a long flight or road trip, consider suction toys that can stick to a car or airplane window.
Related: 14 mistakes parents make when traveling with kids
Pack hidden toys to reveal during your trip
A surefire way to keep your child content for extended periods of time is to hide some toys until your travel day arrives so they feel new and exciting. You can even wrap them up or dole them out periodically throughout your trip — we recommend packing one toy for each hour of a flight — to add an element of surprise.
Try visiting a dollar store or dollar aisle in a store to dial up the surprise factor. Trust us, the $5 investment will pay off in spades.
Related: Your guide to flying with kids of every age
Consider an inflatable booster seat
If your child has graduated to a booster seat (congrats!), there are inflatable and fold-flat booster seats available that are easier to haul when traveling by car.
While there are several options currently on the market, the BubbleBum inflatable booster seat is a TPG reader favorite.
Preschedule car service from the airport
If you need car seats or want to be sure you have a ride waiting for you when you land, Uber and Lyft now both have options for prescheduling a ride if you need one.
While the best service depends on where you are going, one option to try is Blacklane. Consider having your driver meet you inside at baggage claim if you’re traveling with a lot of gear.
Pack a night light
For kids who are afraid of the dark, night lights may come in handy. This affordable nightlight is small, sleek and easy to pack.
If you are going on a cruise and don’t have access to traditional power outlets, TPG senior travel editor Erica Silverstein suggests bringing along battery-operated tea lights instead.
Use packing cubes for the family
This tip applies to all age groups but can be especially helpful when your child starts taking more of an interest in choosing their own clothes. By relying on packing cubes, you can keep clothing for every member of your family organized while saving space.
If you decide to use packing cubes, there are a couple of good methods to choose from.
You can have a packing cube for each day of your trip and put your family’s clothing for each day in one cube. This works well if you will be making multiple stops and don’t want to pack and unpack everything.
You could also pack each family member’s clothing in a separate packing cube, which is helpful when you are encouraging kids to get dressed on their own and choose their own outfits.
Leave 1 day free in the schedule
We’ve already covered the importance of leaving some flex time in the afternoons, but if you are traveling for more than a long weekend, we highly recommend leaving an entire day unscheduled. That way, the kids can either rest and chill or you have the ability to say yes to something they spot along the way.
Depending on your child’s interests, you may want to use your free day for activities like splashing around at a water park, checking out some animals at a zoo, enjoying an epic ice cream-tasting adventure or spending more time at the kids club.
The key is to leave this day flexible so you can cater some activities to what your kid is enjoying the most.
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Samantha Brown’s experiences as the Travel Channels host on essentials when on your family vacations
7 FAMILY ESSENTIALS FOR TRAVEL
Oh, the joys of family travel.
Traveling with children, especially young children, can be so challenging, so exhausting that it will make you question why you thought this was a good idea in the first place. There are, of course wonderful moments on the road where it all feels totally worth it, like when they finally fall asleep. But we parents of toddlers know that those moments do not come at the amazing Aquarium you paid over 150 dollars for the whole family to enjoy, but usually in its parking lot where the kids have stumbled upon an empty can and are now having the time of their lives merrily kicking it.
After three years of traveling with two toddlers on planes, trains and one very dirty mini-van here are my go-tos for keeping the peace so I live to travel another day.
1. Bubbles. God bless them
Blowing bubbles allows children to jump up and down while essentially staying in one place. This way I can wear my kids out before we board a flight without a lot of running around-which only wears me out and annoys other waiting passengers. Note that you need the size of the container to be under 100ml (like this) in order to get it through TSA…
2. Lollipops
A handy treat to have for take-off and landing to acclimate the ears. Not appropriate for babies but totally awesome for toddlers. I buy dum-dums by the case (I’m not kidding) it’s a small hit of sugar but enough to make them really happy they are getting a treat.
3. A Bag of Balloons
I have a handful of these in every purse, travel bag and diaper bag I own. I get the large size balloons since the smaller can be a choking hazard. It’s an instant toy to be inflated at the first signs of your kids getting antsy but with little chance of destruction the way a ball would bring on. It utilizes a tremendous amount of energy and focus in a small child and yet the balloon itself moves in super slow motion. Finally something I can catch! I love them. Especially in hotels as I don’t believe anything has ever been knocked down or broken by a floating balloon.
4. Crayola Twistable Crayons
They don’t break, need to be sharpened or melt in a hot car. You will also receive a year supply of normal crayons, one small 4 pack at a time, at every restaurant you sit down to eat at so no need to bring the run-of-the-mill variety.
5. Inflatable bed rails
At night children move their bodies wildly about in a dance that would impress Martha Graham. Make any queen or double bed more child safe with these extremely easy rails (pump included). Compared to the big job they do they take up very little room in your luggage.
6. Colorful duct tape
I mean you could bring the big grey roll you have out in the garage but that’s the color most criminals are found in possession with so I just want to keep it fun and vacation-y. This is definitely one miracle product that people use for everything except, it seems, taping ducts. It’s a one stop child proofing tool; tape over electrical outlets, tape up dangling chords on lamps and shades, mold into nice corner guards as well as tape drawers shut. But there’s something about its super sticky texture that kids love and until Ellis duct tapes Elizabeth to a hotel door I’m bringing it.
7. Soft cover books
The I Can Read Books usually displayed in a tall metal turnstile at bookstores are the best. My kids are nowhere near reading but these books are thin, lightweight and perfect for travel. 10 I Can Read Books don’t even equal the weight of ONE Knuffle Bunny Book.
Items that only make things worse
Disposable table toppers
Imagine a sheet of plastic wrap with four sides of adhesive tape that once you peel off now clings and sticks all over you. Mind you, you are attempting to unfold and peel off infuriatingly thin plastic with a fussy/flailing/hungry child who once you have finally secured the table topper rips off easily in one fell swoop. Just keep a packet of handi-wipes to clean the table.
A favorite toy or blanket
It makes perfect sense to travel with a beloved toy or blanket that a child will take comfort in and help them adjust to their new environment. Until you leave it at a rest stop that you drove away from 3 hours ago.
I just couldn’t risk that and so I when I told my daughter that her blanket “Greenie” needed to stay home while we went away I was shocked (cuz it’s never happened before) when she understood and accepted it. I told her this a few days before we were to leave and kept reinforcing that each day so she wasn’t caught off guard.
When my husband and I travel we like to bring toys they forgot they had and so are happy to see as well as super cheap fun things at a dollar store that I actually pray will be left behind.
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