Going on vacation with family is a great escape from your everyday world.
Vacationing with family is fun but can have its challenges.
The big key to making a family vacation a success and not a horrible mess is planning ahead and packing travel items for kids.
Planning out your vacation with family ahead of time can really relieve some stress and anxiety.
Read my blog How To Avoid or Lessen Motion Sickness and Elevation pressure to be prepared for those cases too.
Make your itinerary ahead of time. If you have older kids let them help you plan out the vacation. You can give them a few choices to pick from. Consequently it might even be more meaningful to them if they feel like they had a part in planning it all out too.
- Plan out each day of your trip. Realize that things can happen and you might have to be flexible and adjust some of your activities.
- look for a place/places to stay near a park or area where you can let the kids run and play.
- House or condo rentals with a kitchen can be helpful with kids.
- If you have picky eaters or kids with allergies that may be a big plus or must need.
- Having a kitchen can save you money instead of eating every meal out.
- If there is a backyard you can let them run around and play
- Pack games or activities for a rainy day or if you just need a day at your rental or hotel to rest.
- If going to museums or places that the kids won’t enjoy as much, plan to do that after a park or outing where they can get their energy out first. As a result, you can wear them out so little ones will be tired and nap in a stroller.
- Pack a stroller and let them nap through the museum or place your kid isn’t interested in.
- If you have older kids make a scavenger hunt for them where they can mark off items found on their lists. Or have a list of items to find and they have to take a picture of it. You can look at the museum online before you go and get some ideas on what to put on their scavenger hunt list.
- Have a prize for them after the museum (could just be a sweet treat) or money to buy an item in the gift shop.
- Start at the part of the museum you really want to see in case you aren’t able to go through it all.
- Take little snack breaks throughout if needed.
- Bring some little toys or something that kids in strollers can do or play with.
- Make sure the next outing is something fun the kids can look forward to or out for an ice cream treat after.
- Schedule your day around nap time if needed. Not to mention you definitely don’t want a grumpy child if they can’t nap in a stroller.
- Plan car trips where it is broken down in time frames for breaks or in days for travel.
- If Flying, get to the airport extra early and find places (play areas) to hang out or play at before the flight. This will help prevent you from being late, rushed and stressed. Additionally this will also help the kids get some energy out before the flight.
- Bring clothing appropriate for the weather and places you will go. It might be very warm where you start out but may end up needing a coat or jacket on a stop or at the destination.
- Pack a small medical kit. Having band aids, simple ointments and medicines can help you from searching for a store.
- Have items on hand to help with nausea and elevation pressure.
- Always have plenty of snacks when traveling with kids. Also make sure you pack some special favorites that can be an added treat for the kids.
- Pack a sack lunch if trying to save money or needing special food.
- If flying check with TSA online to see what is okay to bring in airport and on the plane.
- When traveling by car you can plan ahead to stop at a picnic/rest stop. Then the kids can run around and get out energy there as well.
Travel by train, plane, automobile or even boat, pack items to keep kids busy.
What to pack for kids in a car? Or What to pack for kids on an airplane? Those are usually the big questions.
15 Items you might want to pack to keep kids entertained on a road trip or plane ride
- Books – depending on age pack small flip books to age appropriate books your child is interested in and can read.
- Tablet or some device to watch movies or play games in the car or on the plane.
- Don’t forget headphones or ear buds appropriate for your kid.
- When my kids were younger we used a portable DVD player for road trips.
- Movies that can calm your child and help them take a nap can be a big plus.
- Twist-able crayons or colored pencils with coloring books. Buy new coloring books for the trip so the kids can be excited.
- Color wonder books and markers are great to travel with. No need to worry about crayons melting in a hot car or kids coloring on car seat or airplane seats.
- Wooden ornaments or figures for kids to color are fun and a different take than a coloring book.
- Card games – ones they can play by themselves or with a parent or sibling.
- Small toys or Action figures
- Fidget toys
- Flash cards if you have kids learning to read or needing to learn math skills. For some younger kids you can have color or number flash cards to learn.
- Paper games – tic tac toe, mazes, word search, word scramble or any other paper game.
- Scavenger hunt – Road trip or plane oriented or whatever your mode of transportation is.
- Print one off online or make your own.
- If you make your own come up with items they may see out the window. Some can be a little challenging to keep them hunting even though they may not have the chance of finding it.
- Paper for Older kids to make origami figures.
- Have a video downloaded on a phone or tablet for them to follow.
- Stickers and Sticker books – Bring a book they can place their stickers in.
- Maybe have a travel sticker book that they can create to tell a story of their trip.
- Small Lego kit they could easily build on a lap table or airplane table.
- A laminated map with dry erase marker for older kids to mark off and follow.
- My kids always loved this idea as they could see how many more towns/cities we had to drive through to reach our destination. This really helps cut down “how many more hours?” “How much longer?” “Are we there yet?” Following the map can give the child a since of time and space of where they currently are and how much longer it will take to get there.
- Pillow, blanket and stuffed animal. All depending on what your child needs or wants.
- I know when my kids were younger it helped them sleep in the car, hotel or place we stayed at to have their own personal snuggly that they were used to.
Vacation with family might include your fur babies. If traveling with your fur babies make sure you have planned accordingly for them.
What to pack for fur babies on a car trip? How to be prepared for a car ride with your dog?
- Potty Breaks – Plan to make scheduled potty breaks or times for them to run/walk around.
- Water/Food and dishes – Pack water, collapsible water dish, collapsible food dish and food.
- Chew toys – Have a dog bone and toys for them to chew on and play with during the car ride.
- Dog Treats – I always pack a hearty dog bone treat that they can eat while we are eating our food in the car or at a rest stop.
- Calming medicine – My dog would get a little anxious on car trips at first but now he’s gotten accustomed to it now. Ask your veterinarian or local pet shop for some herbal medicine to help your fur baby.
- Dog collar with tags and leash – These are a given but it’s good for the added reminder because no one wants to loose their beloved fur baby.
- Dog bed/blanket and snuggly – Bringing their own bed, blanket or stuffed animal may help them fall asleep easier in the car and wherever your destination will be.
Most important, some of the best advice I can offer is to be patient and happy with your family. If parents are being nice to one another and the kids, ultimately that mood will transfer to the rest of the family. But if parents are arguing and in a bad mood then yes you guessed it, the kids will then be grumpy and fussy too.
Furthermore, if you are in a rush and scrambling about you will make yourself stressed along with the kids. So allow plenty of time to drive to your destination with as many stops as needed. Same goes with getting to the airport, just arrive extra early and enjoy the experience with your family.
Last but not least, have a prepared, fun, and enjoyable time with your family on whatever family vacation you have.
If you have some fun stories to share from your vacations please do. I’d love to hear them.