After our trip to Boston, someone asked if I could share my best tips on how to travel with kids.
We’ve traveled with our four kids when they were little (we really stepped things up when our oldest was 4 and our second daughter was 18 months old and we completed a semester abroad in London and traveled around Europe while we were there!).
Traveling has become one of our favorite things to do as a family and I’m excited to share some of the things that have worked for us!
Here are some questions about how to travel with incoming children:
How do you set your children up to be successful and flexible in handling unexpected changes in plans?
Several things! First, we talked a lot before leaving and also every day during the trip about dealing with hiccups.
Second, we role-play if something goes wrong (you walk into a restaurant and it’s closed – what’s a good way to react and what’s a bad way to react?) and talk about one of the reasons we travel is to practice being flexible.
We’ve also had great success with our Good Traveler budget system!
In addition, you can also be a role model in adapting to change without panicking or losing your cool.
Do you combine toiletry bags or does each person have their own?
Everyone has their own so they can easily access their toothbrush, hairbrush, etc.
I also have a full post about my favorite travel products for gear recommendations!
What do you take on a plane for a long-haul flight?
Honestly, my kids love flying – the novelty of unlimited screen time and to-go soda means they’re pretty happy on flights! Usually they bring a Kindle reader, a Yoto player, and some small games and activities, but once they’re about 5, I don’t worry too much about entertaining them at all on flights.
I also let them pack their own backpacks so they have ownership over what they bring (check out this blog post if you need a screen-free activity).
Tips and equipment for sleeping on the plane?
Bart and I both love this travel pillow (and our older teens use it too), but for our younger kids, they usually just curl up and sleep. I don’t think travel pillows do much for them and just take up space, so we skipped them. My kids really love blankets, so they often bring blankets that I don’t like (I find it kind of gross to drag them around when we left ours on the plane) but if they want one and are willing to take it, I won’t say no.
How to deal with picky eaters?
We’ve traveled the world and have never had trouble finding food that even the pickiest of people can eat. It’s easy to get yogurt, bread, or fruit almost anywhere, so no one goes hungry even if they’re not interested in trying local food. I have an entire post filled with advice for dealing with picky eaters when you travel!
Tips for overcoming jet lag?
I swear by melatonin (for adults and kids!) and a good travel sound machine. If we land early, we try to check into our Airbnb or hotel early for a quick nap so we don’t have to work long hours. We also try to do a lot of walking and being outside to help tire everyone out enough to get a good night’s sleep and adjust to local time.
How to help children grow up to be good travelers when you rarely travel?
There are so many great ways to practice! You can take a day trip in your own city, practice getting out for a while, stopping at lots of places, and walking a lot. Try new foods at home, go on walks and hikes, and show when you do things like you might when traveling (visit museums, sleep out of bed, eat out, etc).
How do you deal with a toddler’s whining and discomfort due to routine changes such as food and sleep?
The phrase I’ve said to myself a million times is, “I’m an adult and I can handle the whining.” I expect it will be difficult for the kids to disrupt their routine. We stopped for snacks and visited theme parks around the world. One of the greatest things about traveling for me is spending uninterrupted time with my family, not seeing every possible tourist destination.
How did you choose your destination and how far along did you prepare?
We have a list of places we’re interested in and times of year when we want to travel (spring break, winter break, etc) then we wait for the deals to pop up on Going.
How to set sleep settings?
This can be tricky! When my kids were little, I cared SO MUCH about having a hotel room with a closet big enough to pack up and play in (something I never think about now). We’ve done all kinds – Airbnb where everyone gets their own room and 6 of us in a hotel room with 2 queen beds and a pull out sofa bed. Basically we are always trying to balance cost and convenience and there is no right answer.
How do you navigate transportation in another country? How do you know when to take the bus, train, or rental car?
Generally if we’re in a big city, we don’t rent a car – in New York or Paris or London, a car would be more of a hassle than a help because parking is tricky and public transport is great. If we’re going to multiple cities in one trip, we’ll usually rent a car to get to them (like our trip to Croatia, we rented a car because we were taking day trips to different countries almost every day!). Sometimes we’ll do both – in Boston, we don’t have a car for the first half of our trip as we stay in town and then when we leave for Vermont, we get a rental car and keep it for the rest of the trip until we get back to Boston.
My biggest tip is to figure out what you want to see and do on your trip first, then figure out the best way to get there (Google Maps is very helpful because you can look up directions from one place to another and it will show you the options and often the costs).
What to do if your child isn’t interested in exploring on foot (but that’s what I love to do!)?
Our kids know that a lot of walking is part of the show when we travel. Our first big walking trip was London in 2021 and the first few days our kids DIED from walking. But by day 3, they don’t even notice it anymore and now they just expect it and are really good at it.
We often stopped for snacks and snacks, visited many playgrounds, and often found ourselves Ubering home at the end of the day when everyone was tired. My kids also love seeing how many steps we take in a day now (we just check it on our phones every night).
How do you manage/prevent children from fighting while traveling? This hindered our journey.
I think the first day or two of a trip is almost always a little difficult as everyone gets used to being together 24/7 (I thought homeschooling would change this as they were together more, but it still happens!).
Setting clear expectations and using a Good Traveler budget helps a lot as well as being willing to look the other way a little instead of being tough every time they piss each other off.
How do you plan your itinerary (activities for different ages and interests, how many things to do each day, etc)?
I lean towards over-planning and then being willing to cross anything off the list if necessary. When our kids were little, we used to plan a morning trip and an evening trip, but now that our kids are older and have experience traveling, we can pack more. And I tend to like to stay out a little late in the city – it’s amazing at night! I have a whole post about trip planning here!
We also try to involve our kids in the planning – we watch YouTube videos or look at blog posts and everyone can weigh in on what they want to do. Then we try to be good sports in making sure everyone gets at least some of the things on their list!
Have other questions or tips about how to travel with kids? I want to hear it!
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