Family Travel: Tips for Flying with Small Children
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Travel by air can be a very stressful part of any vacation - traveling with small children on those flights can only add to your stress level. Here are some basic tips on making air travel easier when traveling with children.
Bring food and drinks - most airlines do not provide food (other than light snacks) on flights so you will need to bring your child’s favorite snacks and even meals for longer flights. It is also smart to purchase a water bottle or juice drink in the airport before boarding (No liquids are currently allowed through security so you will be unable to bring drinks from home). Airlines gladly allow passengers to carry on any food or snacks - don’t be afraid to board with a backpack full of treats for your child - especially if your child tends to look for snacks often.
Choose airlines with television viewing - although traveling on an airplane is exciting to most children - the excitement does tend to wear off after about 30 minutes in the air. Unless you want hours of “Are we there YET?” you will want to be prepared with things for your child to do. If you are able to travel on an airline with televisions at each seat, you will find they carry a few children’s channels. This allows your child to happily view Dora the Explorer or any Nickelodeon show to their hearts content, while Mom can watch her own shows on Lifetime TV. More and more carriers are adding televisions to their flights - they are especially helpful on longer flights.
When no televisions are available - you can bring your portable DVD player on board. Your child or children can view their favorite movie/s.
Bring a few books, small toys, favorite stuffed animal - anything you can do to make your child more comfortable on a flight, will only help you when traveling. If you child is over 5, allow them to pack and bring a small bag or backpack aboard the plane. Good things for them to pack include crayons, coloring books, pad of paper and a pen, doll or stuffed toy. Airlines like for all passengers to stay in their seats as much as possible when flying, which is usually the exact opposite of what your child would like to do. It helps to keep them occupied with activities - games or puzzles that you can do at their seats.
Lastly, bring gum and lollipops for your child to help with take off and landing. This will help with the pressure they may feel in their ears when traveling. If you child suffers from bad ear pressure when flying, you can find child sized earplugs for plane travel at any drugstore chain.
The best advice for traveling with children is to be prepared before you go. When planning a trip that involves air travel for your family, when you are creating a list of things to bring on the trip, include a separate list of what needs to be taken on board the plane - it will be well worth the time and effort.
Tags: travel, air+travel, airlines