At this point, we’ve taken eight international trips with kids since becoming parents, seven of which were with two young children. Mr 3 is turning four in a few months, while Ms 1 will be two around the same time. Travelling with young children turned out to be much easier than we expected. That said, we’ve made mistakes that have made our lives much harder.
If you’re thinking about travelling with little ones and are wondering how to make things easier on all of you, here are five travel with kids tips for you.
1. Prepare them by sharing what to expect
It is important to let our children know what to expect, especially if the experience is new and foreign. Kids thrive in familiarity, and a holiday may be completely destabilising to the sense of security they derive from the familiarity of everyday life. Hype them up by sharing about what they can look forward to on the trip. If they are toddlers and/or if it’s their first overseas trip, err on the side of oversharing and talk through the details. For example, airports are a place of great stress and it can be bewildering to a child to experience the long queues, unfriendly staff, and the need to keep following instructions.
Depending on you and your child, you may wish to put together some photos in hard copy or soft copy, to run through with them a few times before the actual trip.
Travel plans do change, and you know how well your child can deal with change. If plans aren’t concrete, there may be no need to speak of them as if they are – “We will go to the zoo” versus “we might go to the zoo or somewhere else, depending on the weather”. Sometimes, it’s more important to talk through the practical details (e.g. we will rent a car, and you will sit in a car seat that’s a bit different from your own) rather than the actual “fun stuff” of the destinations and things you’ll be doing there.
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2. Stick to familiar rhythms
While the physical environment may be new, your presence and family rhythms are familiar and bring a sense of security with them. Don’t ditch the family rhythms even though you’re not at home!
For us, this means little things like saying grace together before meals, winding down with a book before bedtime, singing the same songs while brushing teeth, and praying the same setting-off prayer before we start each day.
These rhythms show our children that family is family, regardless of where in the world we may be.
3. An itinerary with less is more
Especially when children are very young, there is a natural limit to how much they can do in a day. Pushing this limit will backfire, and not only will it be hard for the child, but also for the adult caregivers. Thus, it’s not in anyone’s interests to pack an itinerary full of activity. It’s a recipe for overstimulation and meltdowns.
For us, we tend to plan our days with one major activity for each day. We also have a list of secondary activities for that area, which we can get to if we have more time while we are staying there. Since our kids still nap in the afternoon, we plan the bulk of our day before their naps. If we have time to do more after they wake, it’s a bonus. (Check out itineraries from our trips: Kyushu, Japan, Jeju, South Korea and more coming soon!)
We also plan to stay at each accommodation for a minimum of two nights, although three or longer is ideal. This allows the children to feel a sense of connection with the place we are staying at, and also allows us to explore at a comfortable pace, without the stress of having to “complete” everything we want to do in one day.
White space gives buffer for life to happen, whether it be someone feeling unwell, bad weather, or simply needing to spend quiet time together at “home” before we set out into the world again.
4. Snacks (almost) always help
Pack what you think you’d need, and then pack some more. Snacks will help you to tide through unexpected waiting times at the airport, at restaurants, or even in a traffic jam. I like to pack snacks that are small and don’t crumble too easily, as they take more time to consume (need to be picked up one by one) and are less messy.
Snacks are also helpful if your child does not take well to the local food, and you need something to occupy them while you have your own meal. You can never have enough snacks in your arsenal!
5. Let go of expectations, have fun!
Ultimately, being a good traveller requires flexibility and adaptability, and this applies even to your expectations of your own children! Don’t allow yourself to get too frustrated or caught up with “why are they like that here, but so different at home?”. Remember that you’re all on the same team, and that you want to have fun together as a family. Don’t let bad moments become bad days. Roll with the punches, and have a blast together!
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Family trips with our children have been such a joy and we hope that others will get to experience this too. Read about our past trips for inspiration, and subscribe to our newsletter to receive updates on our latest travel plans, home life, and more!
