Summer Traveling With Kiddos… How Do You Survive?!
It’s that time again….summer time means lots of sunshine filled days splashing in the water, running after the ice cream truck, walking around barefoot, smelling the scent of freshly cut grass. 🙂 It also means traveling by car and plane with the kiddos 🙁 for those wonderful summer vacations. My family is heading over to the West Coast by plane to visit my sisters and mom next week, and I am already starting to dread the plane ride. Although my kids are getting older (ages 3, 5, and 8), it is still stressful knowing you are going to be cooped up for 5 hours with no escape. I have received emails from other readers who are dreading this same sort of situation. Check out the email below from reader, Michelle:
Hi Collin! I need help in one particular area, travel. We are taking a trip to Hawaii in August and have a 6 hour long plane flight with 2 young ones. My daughter will be 4, and I have stuff planned for her (including those awesome interactive storybooks you posted a couple days ago 🙂 ) and my son will be 18 months. I worry about attempting to keep him busy for the few hours he will be awake on the plane. I wanted to know if you (or possibly the readers) had any advice for activities he could do. I have lots of “noisy toys” that would keep him busy, but I don’t think that other people on the plane would appreciate that ;).
So I am asking all of you moms and dads, grandmas and grandpas…What do you do to entertain your kiddos while traveling? Please share your best tips, tricks and suggestions for keeping your kids AND the passengers around you happy while traveling. Thanks and safe travels!
On a side note, here are a few affordable products that may be worth investing in before the big trip:
(As always, make sure to check the reviews. They are usually really helpful!)
* Crayola Color Wonder Travel Tote
* Lauri Toys Toddler Tote
* Sticker Fun! ‘At the Airport’ Reusable Sticker Tote
* Melissa & Doug Travel Memory Game
* Melissa & Doug Travel Bear Hunt
*Melissa & Doug Travel Hangman
my son is three and I brought little containers of playdough ..the kind you can buy for favors or halloween give aways…he had a blast and was quiet for a long time …building stuff.
good idea
Great idea, but don’t recommend for plane travel. Most security systems won’t allow it thru!
Sure they will – why wouldn’t security let play dough through? I’ve flown 175,000 miles with my two year old and we take it in his bag every time. I don’t even take it out before the back pack gets screened.
we traveled to Paris, France this past December when my son was 13 months old and lucky for us & the other passengers he slept most of the way! i did pack 2 or 3 picture books for him and a rubber race car or 2. (so if it went flying, literally, it wouldn’t do much damage!) our plan also had a bassinet that the lovely flight attendants set up for us in the bulk head. not sure the weight on it but a good option… also request the bulkhead if you can.
vwhat is the bulk head and bassinet. never heard of it?
The bulkhead seats are the front row of coach (usually). They aren’t always the best seats, so use seatguru.com to look up the details about your plane first. I sit in them all the time as I need a wheelchair to make it through airports.
A bassinette is a small baby bed. Neat that the plane actually had one on board (huge plane, I’d guess!).
the bulkhead is the front row of seats on the airplane… you get more leg room. see photo below…
https://www.poorbuthappy.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2008/05/trip-079.jpg
I have 3 children ages 8, 6,and 4 but we have only ever travelled by van w/ them! It’s an hour and a half to get to Lake Michigan so they instantly are bored a half hour into it. I try to pack a lite snack for the mid-way point and we try to play games (verbal games). One of their favorite, since they all know the alphabet, is to find something that starts w/ an A that they see out the window. Once someone finds something that starts w/ an A then we find something that starts w/ a B and etc. They can’t skip ahead no matter how interesting of an item they see out the window. It usually takes a long while to finish this and i usually end up helping them out on the hard letters. I know this won’t help Michelle on her plane ride w/ the lil one but it may save some other readers for car rides to the beach,zoo, etc this summer!
I would love to know too. We are flying to Paris, France in December and my daughter will be almost 5. It wouldn’t be such a concern for me, but first we have to make an 8 1/2 car ride to Miami to catch the flight. To say that my daughter is active is an understatement. My plan is to take books, activity books and music to entertain her.
at almost 5 i would invest in something more brain catching like a nintendo ds. i couldn’t travel that long with my children without their handheld game systems and their tag reader
I hadn’t even thought of that! Thanks for the suggestion. That could be a life saver!
When my son was 5, we went to the mountains ( an 8 hour drive) We took a DVD player and he watched movies all the way. He was so quiet I had to keep checking on him to make sure he was ok. lol. Now he is 8 and I think the Nintendo DS may work better. I guess it depends on the age. I don’t usually advocate lots of tv of video games but in this situation it was a life-saver. Hope this helps.
at five a leapster might be more age relavant.. plust there are lots of fun learning games.. my 6 year old played his while we moved from Colorado to washington (a 24 hour drive) that and the portable dvd player also.
Try and find out if the plane will have the interactive video screens (i.e. you can pick what to watch) – if not take a portable DVD player or something that can play movies etc. I’ve traveled to England with my son (about to turn 3) 4 times. Also new little toys, coloring books are good. Also take plenty of their favorite snacks and I was able to take extra cups on juice with me, even through security.
My favorite travel tips:
-Board the plane last. You may find it easier to board early when the plane is emptier, but your kids will be more manageable if you let them run around every possible moment that they can prior to being cooped up.
-Snacks, snacks, snacks! A friend once told me to bring a can of Gerber puffs for every hour in the air. She was only half joking!
-Fill a small, empty purse with dollar store toys and/or old items from your purse and let them play and explore (also a great one for car trips!)
-Worry less about mess. You can pick up toys and food after people disembark. Keeping your kids entertained and quiet is more important than killing yourself to pick up everything they drop!
-Pack light, paperback books and/or portable DVD player or iPod loaded with favorite shows and movies.
-If you’re little one starts crying, ask the flight attendant if there is an empty row or area of the plane where you can walk them around until they cool off.
-Relax and enjoy the time you have together! When else do your kids have your undivided attention?
I’m my experience bring a few things that your kis has not seen before and do not introduce it all at the same time. Let them enjoy the trip with out toys movies or anything else for as long as possible and then give them one small something. If you have a set that can be seperated then space out when handing over all the parts. The kids will spend longer on each toy if it is the only new option than if they are all given in the beginning. Give kids anti naucia medicine right before taking of or getting in the car, I have 2 of my 4 that will vomit if we forget. Audio books are great for school aged kids plus you can get them from the library, and usually you can renew them online if you are not going to be home in time.
Anti nausea medicine for sure! My four year old daughter threw up on the plane luckily in the air sickness bag they provide but just know the medicine makes them sleepy:) I took new movies and our dvd player, new books, a tinkerbell drawing kit with stickers, crayons… I also have two boys 7 and 1 years old. The seven year old was fine. He liked the little build a toy paper eagle which came in a kit I bought on the plane… Maybe a few puzzles would have been fun, or oragami. Our one year old needed to walk up and down the isle every once in a while. He doesn’t sit still but he does love his bottle so we made sure to load up on liquids. I like everyones ideas especially the psp, dvd, gameboy, anything like that but NEW toys or games to keep their interest!
Lots of advise to give!!! We travel to Japan quite a bit with our twin toddlers in tow. This is a 14 hour flight and they actually do quite well (we also made the trip to Hawaii when they were exactly 1 year old). In anticipation of many long trips and during their 1st year, I invested in two quality portable DVD players with headsets and a travel case that both fit into (each plays for around 6 hours so I set one up between the both in case I need the 2nd later on). On a sidenote, if you do decide to invest, read the reviews on the DVD players, not all of the DVD charges will keep for the entire advertised amount of time). Oh, and I only pull these out during the latter half of the trip as needed (and of course, some flights, particularly international, have their own TV and show selections in each seat!!). For the first couple of hours, we color (crayons, color wonder, etc), we do playdough (yep I schlepp it all the way to Japan), we do stickerbooks and reading books. Meals are usually good for about an hour, I always pack snacks and bathroom breaks are great distractions. The last trip, we didn’t even need to walk the aisles, but it’s good for their little legs, to make a couple trips up and down. Great tip: Also, even though, they are 3 1/2 now, we still travel with their carseats. We have 2 little luggage pull carts that we strap their car seats into and we throw our carry ons around the pull out handle and simply, roll them, in their seats, around the airport (it works great and very speedy). My kids now expect that they must stay in their seats (strapped in) for the flight (this prevents crawling around all over the place during flight and is a safer way to travel, just make sure your carseat is airline approved). While my kids are really good on flights, they don’t tend to nap very well anywhere but in a bed, so I always come extra prepared!
I totally agree with the carseat suggestion! Our boys, now 8, 6, & 6 have earned enough miles for free trips each year for the past 5 years. Needless to say, we travel ALOT! Any way, we started very young & kept them in their carseats….they only get out for bathroom. Yes, it is a total hassel to bring carseats on the plane but it is sooo worth it! There were at least 2 years where I had to take care of all 3 boys while my husband boarded early to place all 3 carseats!! Also, bring new things for them….I always pack a separate carry on for them of new entertainment. I LOVE Crayola Color wonders!!! Also, the twistable crayons by Crayola are awesome. The play doh is also a good idea. New interactive books (lift a flap, seek & find, pull flaps, etc). New matchbox cars. I also found the Kumon series of activity books very engaging. I scavenge through clearance toys at TJ Maxx &/or Marshalls for items, too. What ever I brought, the rule was this….only 1 item out per child, per time….no matter what. This allows you to drag out & make the entertainment last longer. AND, do not bring very special, important stuffed animals, toys, etc……if it can’t be replaced, DON”T BRING IT! Because that will be the ONLY thing that gets left behind on the plane! Any way, this past year was the first year that we invested in a portable DVD player….just one, for the 3 of them to share. BUt, most importantly, you need to stay calm…the minute you get stressed out, the little ones will pick-up on it & they will get stressed too. So, have fun! Make travel exciting & enjoy!
We travel by car. My son is six and well traveled (we’ve taken 2-4 vacations a year since he was born). We have two Ds’s so I will play against him or he has tons of games. We also had a laptop with a airtime card; won’t be the case next month on our trip to Chicago. We dumped the air card. I will download games on my iPhone for him to play with. We also make sure to stop so often to eat/stretch/use washrooms/etc to break up those long hauls.
DVD player!! We took my then 2 1/2 year old to Hawaii and it was a 10 hour flight for us! I brought a couple new movies she had not seen, a few favorites and head phones. I also brought suckers to help with pressure and keep her mouth busy : ) I also kept her busy with snack foods too and drinks. But bring extra diapers/pull ups bc I thought I had plenty for her but with all she was drinking I almost ran out. I also went to the $ store and got some small things and pulled out surprises along the way. I also walked the aisles with her. She did great and got lots of praise from staff and other passengers.
Make sure everything you buy (or as much as possible!) will be a SURPRISE to the kids when they see it pulled out of your bag – whether it be snacks or toys or books, it really helps. Use the things they expect to see first, then keep the surprises for the end of the flight/drive when they’re getting antsy.
Be sure to have a variety of snacks and things to do. Especially if you are on a plane and can’t MOVE or stop somewhere, this is essential. Creative outlets (drawing or crafts with various media) will use up the most time.
Be sure to have gum for ears for older kids, and bottles with formula (or breast feed) for younger kids – both going up and coming down. I still NEVER fly without taking a Sudafed before each flight – changed my life after many sobbing moments from the ear pain (and I don’t normally cry in public!). Might also want to consider Benadryl as a sleep aid.
Teach your kids how to plug their noses and blow to help with ear pressure – BEFORE your trip. Tell them about the safety briefing. Tell them about the trays and the air vents. MAKE IT FUN!
Tell your new flyers what the plane will be like – they can NOT get out of their seat, and the seat belt must ALWAYS stay on. If you’re a briber/rewarder, make promises and keep them. (Think of this ahead of time.) Also, PLEASE be considerate and tell your child as often as necessary not to kick the seat in front of them.
DVD player is a must for us. Coloring books, crayons and construction paper, Wikki sticks (I’ve seen these at Walmart) are fun for kids and they can design whatever they want. I purchased a travel size Connect 4 for my last trip and my 6 year old and I played it for some time while my 4 year old slept on the plane. Card games are great for older kids (my 6 year old also enjoys these). Video games (Nintendo DS, Leapster). Etch-a-sketch. Pop beads. My kids have one small rolling suitcase that they are allowed to pack toys into for the plane ride. Worked out great last trip and they had plenty to keep them occupied. It also provided a way for me to limit what they brought along. If it didn’t fit in the suitcase then it didn’t make the trip.
I would suggest a DVD player, but you need to make sure that your battery lasts as long as the flight. I didn’t know how long our battery lasted for, it ended up being only an hour! It wasn’t so bad because we were on a 2.5 hour flight to Florida. Snacks are great. Plus new small toys. If he likes Thomas the Train or dinosaurs, maybe buy him 1 or 2 new ones and hide them in the diaper bag or your purse. Plus, be sure to change his diaper just before you get onto the plane. You do NOT want to have to deal with that on the flight. The changing table is there in the restroom, but it is tiny!
We are bad we plan on giving our 19 month old Benadryl so he will sleep hopefully during our 2 hour and 45 minute flight to FL from Kansas City. Our other kids we are not too worried about they are 7,8, and 12 they can play their DS’s, and read books and such. But our youngest will not be a good flyer and just sit on our lap.
You better try it at home a week ahead first! Some children react the OPPOSITE way and get very hyper when using Benedryl. Be warned!!!
A friend of mine told me this also. I never heard that before. So we did a test run on Saturday night he was out like a light but didn’t sleep any longer than normal. But as long as it makes him drowsy we are good. He isn’t a crier when he doesn’t get his way he gets attitude and yells. So I’m hoping he will do good on the plane ride. Thanks for the heads up though! 🙂
my 12 year old gets extremely hyper with benedryl. please be careful to only follow the dosing labels as well. do not overmedicate:) my dr often recommends benedryl when the children are having a hard time sleeping, so I don’t think it’s bad or a danger as long as you follow the dosing instructions and know that your child will not have an adverse reaction
it makes my heart race and makes me antsy. .if your kiddo reacted that way it could be a nightmare. 🙁
I had to give my young child benedryl on a flight, due to allergies. (It was prescribed). It definately made her tired, but not in a good way. She was CRANKY, yet wasn’t able to get comfortable enough to sleep. Not recommended!
Personally, I am not a fan of medicating a child for travel. I would do that to my cat, not my kid. But thats my opinion.
Benadryl should never be given to children of that age unless specifically advised by a Dr. It even says that on the bottle!
Self prescription can be dangerous especially for toddlers because all drugs have side effects.
I really hope no one takes this dangerous suggestion.
My daughter has had to take it twice (from needing it) and has had two different reactions. So be careful just because you tried it once and it made your kid drowsy doesn’t mean it will do the same the next time.
One toy/book that has kept my very active preschooler entertained time and time again is an Aquadoodle book. I love it because it only takes water in the little pen and he can wet the pages, then they dry and he can do it over and over again…with no worry of a mess!
We go to Europe every other year (8 hour flight) and for my 2 girls ages 2 and 4, the portble dvd works great to pass time, things to munch on, and a bunch of ‘surprise’ toys from the dollar store that dont make noise. 🙂
We did a Hawaii trip when my oldest was just under a year. That was a 12 hour flight for us. haha Actually, the flight was OK. Remember that unless you fly a lot, it’s a new experience for your kids. There are lots of things to see and talk about. The staff is usually really great about interacting and making sure you have everything you need. 🙂
As far as driving, we are doing an 11 hour drive this summer with my 3, a 3 yo, a 1.5 yo, and a 9 mo. Sooo…we’re driving at night. 😉 It’s just now worth it otherwise.
Good luck to everybody!
we drive 10 hrs to Ohio a few weeks ago with 3 kids, left at 3:00 a.m., this way the kids were drowsy and went back to sleep for a few hours. Luckily on the way back, my girls age 7 and 12 got fun filled backpacks at the wedding they attended and that kept them busy for a few hours
It sounds like the older child will probably be well occupied, but you might consider Leapster games or Tag books. My son can be absorbed with these for hours! You might also consider a DVD player (or two!). Movies for the older child, and Sesame Street episodes or DVDs for the younger. Also, crayons or markers and coloring and activity books. Check with your pediatrician about anti-nausea medications if you aren’t sure how well your child travels. The upside is that they usually cause drowsiness so maybe you won’t have to fill that six hours with activities. 😉
Here’s a blog post from a pilot’s perspective…gives some good info about flying with children, getting through security with them, etc.:
https://jethead.wordpress.com/2010/05/29/air-travel-how-to-fly-with-children/
Our kids (8, 6, and 4) each have an MP3 player. I load them with songs and books on CD. We check out new books on CD from the library a few days before we leave and load each kid with new stories! It lasts them for hours of entertainment. . .and plus they get to hear some great classics!!! Our library also has some MP3s that you can download without the CD! Great entertainment!
for the 2 and a half hours you are waiting at the airport have them run around like lunatics. make it a race from here to there then back. anything to keep them moving so when you get on the plane they are exhausted and pass out. we do that everytime we fly. and people look at you a bit strange but when you tell them what you are doing, they look at you like you are a genius!
A+ tip! 🙂
We do this also – works like a gem!
When our boys were 6, 3, & 3 we found ourselves with a 10 hour delay in Dallas. To pass the time, we rode the tram to every terminal and went on a scavenger hunt looking for change. We found over $1.70!!!! Then, once back in our terminal, we went to a desserted area, my husband took off his socks, balled them up & we played ‘soccer’ in the waiting area….all 5 of us! Walk/run them as much as possible prior to boarding!
If you have a layover in Phoenix look for the play areas for children. My kids loved playing on it while waiting for our flight.
We have taken a small blow-up beach ball to let the children play with in a quiet corner of the airport terminal. It was amazing how many other kids suddenly showed up to play also!
Pipe cleaners! Lightweight, no mess and we can make all kinds of things – bracelets, flowers, silly hair etc. Stickers are also great and I save the DVD player for the last leg of the trip when my daughter is tired but refuses to take a nap.
Here’s an idea for toddlers that looks fantastic (and no, it’s not mine)!
https://quirkymomma.com/2010/clip-toy-for-toddlers/
It does require a little sewing, but if it keeps the youngest busy, it’s worth trying (or asking grandma to make). =)
We drag our kids all over – by plane, train and automobile. I swear by the DVD player, but only after we’ve played and done other things. Its great at night in the car if its dark, works as a night light so they don’t get scared. I love playdough, but TSA is pretty inconsistant about confiscating it as a liquid, so pack the small containers (under 3 oz). I go to the dollar store, wrap the toys and then they get to unwrap one every hour. I got a paddleball once and it was great on layovers, my toddler could throw the ball to his heart content and I didn’t have to run all over finding it.
I have flown several times alone with my kids. The best entertainment has been Tic Tacs (my 18 month old will play with the container forever then eat one or two), color wonder marker products and stickers. My older son (4) enjoys his Tag only works w/ headphones on the plane otherwise its hard to hear w/ the plane noises.
My kids are a little older now so their DS’ keep them occupied on trips, but when they were younger they each had a travel size Magna Doodle and that would keep them occupied for hours! I would also bring lots of books. Even when they were too little to read they would look at the pictures and “read” out loud to me.
Don’t worry too much about “noisy” toys. The noise of the engine in the cabin is actually pretty loud and will usually drown out your toys noises enough that it shouldn’t bother other passengers (too much at least)!
fyi…Amazon is having a promotion…buy 2 Melissa & Doug travel toys, you get 25% off at checkout…I just bought 3 to get the total over $25 and free shipping too. The toys have very good reviews.
I have one 5 year old girl and this is what works best for us. We have the portable DVD player and couple of her favorite movies, Nintendo DS with a new game and fave older ones. We also carry the color wonder sets on, I keep them in a pencil case and she has her books in her own back pack. I have learned my lesson to not carry colored pencils (which you have to sharpen, Crayons, which melt in a hot car and regular markers which get everywhere, since it is hard to remember to put the lids back on before they roll off the tray and land on your childs clothes.) We also carry a couple new books for me to read to her throughout the trip. Snacks and dollar tree finds are also a must.
If you are doing a long car ride we have also found purchasing a lap tray that fit on/over their car seats is really helpful for the dvd player to sit on or coloring pages. I have also used double stick velcro on the top of her tray to hold on pens and other items that we didn’t want to have all over the floorboards of the car.
We took our daughter to both CA and FL in her first year and for us the best thing was snacks! She did sleep but she just liked having special snacks to eat. We also take the kids in the car 6 hrs twice a year and surprisingly both our kids did well! Just remember not to get too worked up about it your baby will feel it!
I took my 4 young children 10mos-11 yrs alone from Alaska to MT – 8 hrs flying- 3 hrs driving and 3 hrs in airports. I took snacks, suckers, coloring./ activity books, cd players with a few story cds, DVD player and video games, books, picture books, mini etch a sketch, some new infant toys.
Money saving idea’s- call me cheap if you must 🙂 but it’s expensive flying out of Alaska with 4 kids! My 3 boys 4,5 and 11 at the time had to have their own suiitcase to carryon – (roll aboards) and 1 backpack with their own items in it. I used a baby carrier that doubled as a backpack for my daughters clothes and toys (Kelty transit carrier 2.0), That saved us $120 in shipping fee’s. I printed off my own coloring pages, which allowed me to specialize each childs acitivity book for their age and interest – free except ink and paper. Snacks help cut down on snack prices in the airport. Library books if your not going too long and if your kids are responsible to not lose them (easier to lose things while you are traveling!) but this allows you to have all new books, even board-books for the little ones.
I was really stressed before hand about making this trip without help from my husband but it went really well. There were times it was challenging but traveling always is and the end results are worth it! We will be taking all of them to Hawaii in the near future and I am not at all concerned this time since I did it on my own when they were even younger.
Just remember there will be stressful times but allow others to help if needed and however long the flight may feel- it will end 🙂
My boys LOVE Matchbox Pop-up playsets. They are wonderful for traveling as they fold up into their own case and at least one car can be stored inside. Some of them do make noise so for air travel, we would turn one of the batteries the wrong way so it was quiet. After landing and in the car, we would flip the battery around so it would work and was almost like a new toy again!
Last year I traveled solo with my then 16-month-old to LA (from Chicago) where my husband was having a conference for work. He went out a week before us. Some things I took with us to keep her entertained:
– A few new snacks for her to eat: yummy, healthy snacks that she’d never eaten before.
– Pop-up books. She was really into those at the time, so I bought 2 for our plane ride.
– Stickers.
– Color wonder crayons and w/ color wonder paper. That way I wouldn’t have to worry about her getting marks on the seats, her clothes, my clothes, etc.
She was so well-behaved on the way there and back. We even got a compliment from the person in front of us that she was the most well-behaved toddler that she had ever traveled with. =)
My Ipod came in handy big time on our trip across country with my at the time almost 2 year old. Just loaded it up with my daughters faves…Dora, Kai-lan, Diego and Elmo. Bought some toddler sized headphones and she LOVED it. I used that as a last resort. She had books, Color Wonders, and crayons and plain paper to keep her busy also. I like the Play-do idea and will use that next time. Travel puzzles would be good too. I wish her Tag Jr. worked with headphones though. That would occupy her for awhile too!
I didn’t read every suggestion so I apologize if this is a repeat. I realize that so many little kids have electronic games to play with but they all get restless and bored with these at some point on a long trip. So, whenever we took our young kids (younger than 6 or 7) on long trips I would go to the dollar store and spend $10-$12 (total) buying small gifts for the two of them. I would wrap them and keep them in my carry-on and then when they got bored or restless I would pulled a gift out for each of them. They had fun opening them and then playing with them for 20-30 minutes. This would usually work for most 3-4 hour flights. The other suggestion that may require your participation but is worth the time on long trips is purchase or borrow some good “Finding Books” like “Where’s Waldo” or “I Spy” books. I started my kids on these books very young (they have preschool versions) and my children developed a very keen attention to detail which, I believe, helped them to establish good reading and study skills in their later years. They definately help pass the time at the airport or on a plane!
I travel a lot with my kids, both by van and by plane. I have 4 girls 8,7,5,3 and they have all been traveling since they were just a couple weeks old.
First, if they are young make sure you have a pacifier. The take off and landings are hard on the ears and either a pacifier or a bottle will help so their ears don’t hurt. I sometimes even give the older ones a pacifier and it helps them as well. I also give the older ones gum, it helps them pop their ears easier.
Second, SNACKS SNACKS SNACKS. My kids love to eat. Don’t bring anything sticky though. I like the cheese and crackers, the gerber snacks, jerky, teddy grahams, things that won’t be too messy on the plane or car.
Third, SURPRISE ITEMS. Some other comments said this as well, but we have a few items we keep only for traveling and this includes a magna-doodle. This is a great way to let them color without worrying about the crayons spilling and getting everywhere. I usually make a WORKBOOK for my older ones that they can use on the plane/van. I will print off free word searches, dot to dots and math fact sheets, and maybe a coloring page (these can be found anywhere on the internet for free). I make each work book about 10 pages or so long so they have plenty to work on. This also helps their minds keep engaged.
Fourth, lots of bathroom breaks. A trip to the bathroom on the plane is great fun to kids, and it gets you up and moving as well.
Fifth, Sippy cups and bottles with lids. Even my older ones I make have cups with lids and/or straws in the car and plane to help prevent spills.
Sixth, like others have said, a DVD player with headphones. I usually just take my lap top and it works great.
Avoid noisy toys on planes, the other passengers get crabby and don’t understand the cuteness in them.
Seventh, I always let each of my kids take a comfort item with them. The youngest usually takes her blanket, the others take a doll or stuffed animal. This helps them feel more at home and comfortable.
Okay, I have written way to much, but I thought I would give as much help as possible. HTH
I have a 2 year old daughter who flies very frequently. Lucky for us, she is great on a plane, but I am always well prepared. Spare clothes are important, especially if you’re taking a red eye back from Hawaii. My daughter slept the whole way, except for a small bout of vomiting (probably air sickness).
Like most of the others have mentioned, a wide variety of snacks and something to drink is important. Pacifiers, bottles, nursing or gum are helpful for take off and landing. I also give her a small dose of pain reliever about 1 hour before take off to avert any pain in her ears.
I always start collecting interesting, inexpensive gifts in advance. I wrap each one and put several in a ziploc bag. Then we just work out way through the bags as we go. If something gets lost, it doesn’t matter. Anything you think your child may find interesting will work. I once took a mini cocktail drink shaker and she played with it for quite a while. The dollar section at Target usually has some fun things.
Good luck and remember: You will never see these people again. 😉
Don’t forget spare clothes for yourself. My cousin’s daughter got sick all over her and now she owns a whole (expensive) outfit of Dallas themed clothing from having to buy clothes at the Dallas airport.
I go to the dollar store and buy a bunch of different toys that my kids have never seen before. I introduce them one at a time. It occupies them for hours. Also, I don’t feel so bad when they get broken or lost on vacation since they only cost $1.
I concur on the Nintendo DS, one for each kid. Also a glass of wine for mom. LOL.
I’m not sure if you said but I WOULD buy a seat for the little one if you can financially swing it. Bring along the car seat; we have the pacback which turns our Britax into a backpack for easy travel thru the airport. If your little one will sleep in the car they will usually sleep on the plane but the car seat is a must. Sometimes airlines will discount those airfares but you have to call them direct for that deal. Also, have you tried the Leapster. If not, its education and keeps the attention of the toddlers. I’d surprise them with that and a new game or if you have it a new game. We also bring our netbook or DVD player BUT practice at home with wearing the headphones. Our daughter found that to be very frustrating when they didn’t fit just right so play around with them before you travel. Good luck.
My son is definitely getting his own seat! I thought about putting him on our laps and realized that wouldn’t work for 6 hours, he likes to go to sleep with nobody touching him, lol. We looked into renting the CARES system, but found it to be cheaper to take his own car seat for land travel so we weren’t blowing tons of money on renting one. And AAA is giving us a free rental on one for our daughter, otherwise we would probably purchase one for $40 in Hawaii instead of paying $160 a week to rent one, thats nuts!
We use the CARES restraint instead of carseats on the plane. Our last flight was on Southwest, so we had the free baggage allowance to check my son’s carseat (and they had nice big plastic bags to contain the carseat). Although my daughter uses either an up-to-65-lb carseat or a highback booster at home, we hooked a backless booster seat to her rolling backpack and just put that in the above head storage on the plane. The kids are used to being in 5-pt harnesses so the CARES proves to be safer for them and very familiar feeling — and my sanity is helped greatly by the anti-wiggly factor of it! You can rent the CARES on eBay – https://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=320496842536
I recently flew for 5 hours with a two year old toddler. I brought with me small suckers (dum dums) with lots of wipes. I was able to contain the stickiness without too much problem. (Multiple kids might be an issue, though.) Toward the end of the flight, she began to have a meltdown. The sucker kept her quiet, literally shut her mouth, for a few precious moments. Airplane flights call for desperate means! 🙂
I had some of those small lollipops with me for my kids on our last flight — but ended up giving them to another mother whose twins were both having a meltdown. The lollipops helped get them over that hurdle and she was then able to distract them with something else.
When my kids were small, we would travel back to Illinois to see relatives. I would start collecting small inexpensive things all year long to keep them occupied on the plane. I would wrap each “present” in tissue paper–each child has their own color, so I could keep them straight. One gift was always a pez dispenser, the kids like filling these and it took a while to eat them. There were also coloring books with twist crayons and all kinds of travel toys and games. They would get to open one about every 30 min to an hour, depending on how long the last one kept them occupied. I would always put the presents in a big mickey mouse tote bag, they looked forward to the ‘mickey bag’ every trip. My kids are now grown, but they still talk about my mickey bag. One trip I realized right before we got to the airport, that I had forgotten my mickey bag at home(I was traveling by myself with my 3 girls). My husband just said go without it, and I told him he didn’t understand, that I couldn’t. He turned around and sped back home and then back to the airport with my trusty Mickey Bag!! Good thing there were no police cars that day!!
When my kids were young we had a toy from Discovery Toys, I think Target sells something similar. It’s just a board with the body of a boy or a girl and fabric, when you lay the fabric down and close the cover, it makes it appear you have dressed them in clothing. Don’t ask me why but my daughter could place with this for hours and it was so small and easy to bring along. I used to also brings loads of stickers along and let them pages with stickers. Of course the portable dvd player was also very convenient.
We will be traveling by plane this summer for 6 hours also. I have a 6 yr old, almost 7, and a 20 month old that ill be almost 22 months when we fly. For my 6 yr old, dvds, laptop paint program, books, nintendo ds and a work book work well. I made her a book with a 3 ring binder, inserted clear sleeves, then printed off various worksheets, games, mazes, ect. off the web, stuck them in clear sleeves then I bought 2 dry erase markers from the dollar store and she has a book she can use over and over again. Just take some paper towels along or baby wipes and wipe clean and she can start over. Also i saw some travel games at target in the travel section. Magnitised hangman, checkers, and bingo.
I dont know what i am going to do with my 1 yr old! Snacks, toys. Maybe one of the ideas off here. We’ll see.
Thank you so much for all of your suggestions!! This is extremely helpful! I do plan on getting my kids some motion sickness medicine, just to be sure. I hate cleaning up puke, yuck! I’ll have to call their ped to see what she recommends. I am going to see how long my DVD player lasts, since I wasn’t expecting to use it on a plane, but if it doesn’t last long enough, I can bring a regular bag as a carry on and then use the money I saved from that to rent one from the airline, lol. Collin, thank you so much for posting this!!! And the travel games too, I will probably get one and a very small puzzle set using my swagbucks 😀 . I am looking into the Tagbooks I REALLY appreciate everyone’s help! One more question, what kind of snacks do they allow through security? I want to be sure to have a good stash for my kids, but I don’t want it taken away (and don’t feel like loading up on junk food from the terminal right before a 6 hour flight, ick..)… Thanks again everyone!!!
Michelle last time we flew. We had no problem taking on our snacks. They did go through it and tested my babies sippy cup of milk, but was fine and let us take it. I had chex mix, granola bars, cheese-its, and capri-suns.
I have taken full sippy cups through security without problem. I have also taken empty cups and then bought a bottle of apple juice or milk after going through security. I take an empty water bottle for me and fill it at a water fountain once through security.
As far as snacks, take LOTS. There is nothing worse than hungry, bored children (or adults) – especially if there are any delays on the flights. We take granola bars, protein bars, string cheese, raisins, snack bags of favorite dried cereal (Fruit Loops, etc). I also like something salty as a deviation from the sweet (like chips, etc.)
We also take “slow” food – food that takes some time to assemble so that it kills time. We cut flour tortillas into quarters and then have them rip open a string cheese and roll up a bit of the string cheese into the piece of tortilla.
Finally, I absolutely swear by APPLES! I have found nothing else that works as well for clearing my ears during the change of pressure. I cut an apple into quarters or eighths and keep the baggie of apples in my hands during take-off. Chewing something crisp and solid (and moist) and then swallowing it works so much better than just chewing on gum. And, this has totally worked for my kids too. I have learned to take some extra ziplocks and one of those apple slicer kitchen tools in my checked baggage so that I can easily cut up an apple in my hotel room for the return flight.
I’m concerned with the large amount of parents who are drugging their children with sleepy meds! Please don’t be so selfish about your “quiet times.” Benedryl is a drug – please treat it as such for ailments, not recreational use.
Yeah i agree, but they are not our kids, if they choose to that its up to them. I wont be drugging my baby (22 months) on our 6 hour flight that she will be sitting on my lap, but man the idea is kind of appealing. lol
We are going to Disney World in a few weeks & I bought 2 portable dvd players at Target for $25 clearance (1 for each child). They have several movies plus I plan to rent some from the library. Each child also has their own Nintendo DS (several games for that also), we will also take along books. Even though we’re on the road we still have to have 45 minutes of reading each day, crayons and coloring books are also in the stash box.
I flew to India in Nov09 with my brother, his wife and their 6 yr old son. Flying there, besides sleeping, my nephew watched some of the shows on the TV in the seat, but otherwise, he had an iPod Touch with videos that my brother had gotten specifically for this trip. He’s an awesome traveler anyway, but he was a rock star through the flight, and all the long car rides once we go there.