Friday, October 13, 2006

Travel Necessities When Traveling With Kids!

As a mother of two who loves traveling, I have dragged my kids many places in the world.  Now, at the ages of five and three, they are becoming seasoned travelers and enjoy the adventures as much as my husband and me!

After many trips, I have finally compiled a list of some of the necessities required when traveling with kids.  Having these items on hand will make your life on the road (or in the air) much easier!

Keep these on hand when traveling:

  • Antiseptic hand gel
  • Small tissue package
  • Band-Aids
  • Important phone #s (doctor, emergency contact, where you’re staying, etc.)
  • Acetaminophen for children and adults
  • Nightlight
  • Sunscreen and sunglasses
  • Paper, pencils, crayons
  • Deck of cards
  • Plastic and zip lock bags (perfect for dirty laundry, wet bathing suits, collecting shells and other treasures)
  • Sun hats
  • Umbrella
  • Photo of your child (in case they get lost)
  • Light waterproof jackets
  • Photocopies of birth certificate, passport, driver’s license etc. (can be invaluable if your identification is lost or stolen…I happened to lose all my identification on a trip to Australia!)

Items For Road Trips
If you’re planning a road trip, or will be doing a lot of driving when you reach your destination, consider these items that can help make the long drives more enjoyable.

  • Bottles of water
  • Small blankets for each child
  • Paper towels
  • Toilet paper (in case you can make the rest stop!)
  • Snacks (and lots of them!)
  • Compass
  • Travel games
  • Favorite books
  • Frisbee (for those rest breaks!)

Other Great Ideas

  • Visit the dollar store and pick up some inexpensive activity books or small toys.  Pull them out as a surprise when the kids are getting bored and need new stimulation.
  • Another idea is two to three months before the trip, collect some small toys/books/games etc. that the children haven’t been playing with and pack them away.  When you pull them out during trip time, they will seem like new and the kids will enjoy rediscovering old favorites.
  • Allow each child to bring a small bag or games, toys, stuffed animals or other personal items to make them feel comfortable.  Be sure to stipulate how many items they can bring (or what bag they should use) otherwise, you could end up with a suitcase filled with toys!
  • Search the Internet to find different road games.  If your child has a favorite TV show or character, see if you can find activity sheets involving that character.  Also, print off new card games to try when you have some downtime in your hotel room or waiting for your plane.
  • Snacks are one of the most important elements of traveling with children.  Since you’re not likely to get food on airplanes these days, I pack quite a bit of food, because you never know when they are going to be hungry.  Individual applesauce and fruit cups (bring spoons!) work great.  So do snack pack sizes of crackers or rice cakes.  My kids love it when I bring those small individual cereal boxes that they eat straight out of the box.  For a sweet treat, Pop Tarts or Wagon Wheels travel well.

    So that’s my quick and easy list of travel necessities.  I found that planning ahead can mean a far more enjoyable journey for both the kids and adults!

    Posted by VV Blogger on 10/13 at 12:03 PM
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