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Great
Airplane Travel Tips 4 Parents with Little
Kids
Parents,
or even grandparents, are you taking a trip
by plane with kids in the near future? If
so, here are ten tips.
1) Think of everything
the children might wear, including shoe
wear, in the weather you might encounter at
your destination. Make a check list of all
things you should bring. Things you might
need to bring: Goggles, sunscreen (remember
even at snowy places you can get a face
burn.) Last time I flew you could only have
tiny travel size bottles. Put these bottles
in plastic zip up baggies in case the
contents explode due to air pressure. Also,
all beverages and packages with liquidy
foods, yogurt, melted cheese, had to be
thrown away at the security point. Other
things to bring: hair brush, toothbrush
carrying cases, tooth brushes, toothpaste,
folding stroller, folding crib, your child's
special snuggly, special medicated skin
creams, etc. You should call your local
airport to find out rules for carrying
liquids and creams. If you're traveling to
another country find out the rules for
bringing in prescription drugs to their
country. Medicine might need to be in its
original container. Or you might have to
show officials the prescription box. Find
out. You don't want your child's medicine
taken away.
2) Pack early. Don't
be a last minute packer. When shopping at
the grocery store you might suddenly
remember something you forgot to pack and
need. Buy now rather at the airport where it
could be much more expensive.
To keep your children
occupied at the terminal and on the plane:
3) Have a
variety of activities for them. Each child
should have their own backpack with their
own activities. This is to prevent
squabbling. Think ahead. Just how many hours
will it take to get to your destination?
Lay-overs are hard on most children so try
to avoid them. Ask each child what they
would like to put in their backpack. If they
like to draw, put paper, coloring books and
crayons in their bag. Items you might want
to pack: Exciting new book(s) and magazine(s),
new book(s) on tape with tape recorder for
terminal use if other passengers don't mind
(if old enough, headsets), Ipod, Mad Libs,
dot-dot books, cross word puzzles,
mini-games, mini-puzzles, hand held
electronic games, little toys, and small
stuffed animals.
For late
departures and lay-overs:
4) For kids who
have trouble sitting still, walk with them
around the terminal. Bring books to read to
them, or have audio cassettes with a small
tape recorder and earphones. If you plan on
bringing your lap top, bring a couple of
movies your children have never seen. Once
at a terminal I saw four children quietly
seated in front of a laptop watching a
movie. I'm not sure how well they could hear
the movie. But I think with animation such
as cartoons the action might make up for
words so these type of shows might be worth
a try.
On the plane:
5) Buy special
treats before getting on the plane or buy
treats a week before trip starts. You can
let your child pick them out or surprise
them. Explain to them the trip will take X
amount of hours and that every half hour
they will get a jelly bean/healthy treat.
This will break up the trip in half hour
installments. The time might seem to go
faster because they will have something to
look forward to.
6) With young children
you should get aisle seats for easy access.
You don't want to bother other passengers by
frequently having to climb over them to walk
the aisle with your child. Walk the aisle,
if you're allowed, so your child will get
energy out.
7) Remember to
rotate activities while on the plane so your
child doesn't get bored.
8) With babies
and toddlers some parents like to take night
flights hoping their child will sleep. You
can try this. If you do, you can put them in
their PJ's before you board the plane. Then
when you get to your hotel you won't have to
wake them up to put them in their PJ's.
9) For hydration
purposes if your child is awake during the
flight they should drink water.
10) If your child's
ears hurt when the plane is ascending and
descending get them to swallow several
times. Older kids can chew gum. I've heard
sipping on water helps, or for babies,
sucking on a bottle works. Talk to your
doctor about ways to help. Lastly, you
really shouldn't fly if your child has a
cold because of ear problems which could
occur. If you plan to fly anyway, see your
doctor before hand. He/she can prescribe
medicine if they think it's necessary.
Like my tips? Find more
tips on other subjects at
parentingtipsandmore.blogspot.com
Have a child who is
argumentative, rude, out of control,
defiant, difficult then try the
Total
Transformation
program. You can read reviews on my site at
Harmony-in-the-Home.
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