Important Tips You Need to Know Before Traveling With Kids

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Inside: Holiday travel with kids can be stressful if you are not well-prepared. These tips and travel essentials for kids are sure to take the stress out of your next holiday travel with kids!

Are you in the midst of planning a family vacation with your infant, toddler, or child? Family holidays are perfect for making unforgettable memories, squeezing in some much-needed R&R, and bonding as a family unit.

Whether you’re taking your infant, toddler or child on a much-needed family getaway, the most challenging part about any family holiday is

the travel…

You spend days, weeks, months planning the perfect family vacation. But in the run-up to this much-anticipated vacation, many parents neglect to consider HOW you get to your vacation destination.

Whether you’re traveling by car or plane, traveling with kids has its own unique challenges. Mama, I have been there!

Eliminate the stress of traveling with kids, and you’ll be well on your way to an easy and stress-free family holiday!

This post may contain affiliate links. We may earn money or products from the companies mentioned in this post. You can see my full disclosure policy here. 

Holiday Travel With Kids Of All Ages

If you’re a larger family mom like me, you might be traveling with kids of all ages. What’s the best way to travel with a 17-month-old, 11-year-old, 13-year-old and an 18-year-old? I’ve been trying to solve this puzzle myself!

Our preferred holiday travel method revolves around road trips. Having a large family typically means the cost of airfare for the entire family is out of budget.

To make sure we don’t lose our minds or patience when traveling with kids, especially for long distances in a cramped vehicle during our holiday travel, I make sure to plan for activities to entertain the kids while traveling!

Another one of my preferred ways to travel with kids of all ages is to stay in short-term rental vacation homes such as Airbnb

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Airbnb vacation home rates are usually comparable or cheaper than a hotel. Plus, I love that you typically have more room, and there is a full kitchen as well. 

RELATED: Wondering How to Save Money On Your Disney World Vacation Stay? (Airbnb)

Traveling with An Infant

Going on a family holiday with your infant child can be such a magical experience and a fantastic opportunity for bonding. But traveling with an infant can also be a unique experience if you’re not prepared!

Personally, I wouldn’t recommend flying with an infant. Having flown with an infant several times and the sheer amount of things you have to pack and carry on the plane, I prefer my holiday travel to be less chaotic.

But nothing is stopping you from driving to secluded weekend getaways where you can have some quiet family time and bond with your child.

Traveling with an infant, toddler, and child, happy family at airport

Traveling With Toddlers

Traveling with a toddler is where it gets a bit more ‘exciting.’ They’re opinionated, fully mobile, and at times, incapable of reason or logic! Until your child is two, they’re eligible to fly on your lap for FREE. 

If you’re a budget-conscious family and up for the challenge, be sure to test this confined way of traveling with a short flight first.

If you choose to fly with a toddler, make sure to bring plenty of snacks, electronic (and non-electronic) entertainment. These busy bags are perfect for girls or boys.

And Mama, try not to stress too much about things like squeezing in their nap if it doesn’t work with your travel plans. Once you reach your destination, you can make sure you get back on schedule.

Traveling with Children

Depending on your family holiday plans, you might find yourself driving long distances or flying with kids. However, the same rules apply, regardless of the mode of transportation when traveling with children.

When I travel with my kids, they each have their own backpacks for their electronics, snacks, books, and other forms of entertainment. It makes it easier for them and me.

If your kids are old enough, you could even give them a disposable camera or a travel journal.  It is a great way to provide them with something different and exciting to do on your holiday travels.

Holiday travel with children, Girl painting and drawing in airplane

As with any family travel, take it slow and give yourself plenty of time. Nothing will stress you out more than tight deadlines and time constraints. Everything will take longer than expected when you’re traveling with kids.

Travel Essentials

One of the toughest things about traveling with kids is getting everything packed (and making it fit into your suitcases!). Shackle Pak is an absolute life-saver because I can easily separate the kid’s clothes AND pack everything in nicely organized cubes! Plus I can assign colors to each kid and keep their items organized!

Luggage can make or break your family vacation. Choose a suitcase like this one that’s made from extremely lightweight and durable material, so it protects the contents of your luggage.

I also love that it has four multi-directional spinner wheels which make it super easy to move around. This type of luggage allows you to pack more while avoiding excess weight surcharges imposed by most airlines.

Traveling with children on road trip family looking at map

Baby Travel Essentials

If you’re on the go with an infant, there’s A LOT to consider, not least of all how you’re going to sterilize feeding equipment.

When you’re traveling with a baby, using these microwave sterilizer bags are a convenient and easy way to sterilize baby items. Anyplace, anytime. 

Another baby travel essential favorite of mine is the Hiccapop Omniboost Travel Booster Seat – a portable travel high chair. Not only is it versatile and able to fit on just about any ordinary chair.  But it also means that you don’t have to hunt for high chairs or visit restaurants only to discover germ-infested surfaces and broken clips! 

Toddler Travel Essentials

On top of my list of toddler travel essentials is a Zuzuro Diaper Bag Backpack. This backpack is where fashion meets function in the ultimate waterproof, large capacity, multi-pocket nappy travel bag. Better still, it comes with two stroller hocks included! 

Another surprisingly handy toddler travel essential is a white noise machine like the SoundBub white noise and Bluetooth speaker. A sound machine will help your kids drift off into a peaceful night’s sleep in even the most unfamiliar places. 

Travel Essentials For Kids

For kids old enough to take responsibility for their own carry-on and have their own backpack, I recommend choosing a lightweight backpack like the ZOMAKE Ultra Lightweight backpack.

I think it’s incredibly important for my kids to stay hydrated when we travel. Being hydrated helps to prevent jetlag and general moodiness induced by traveling teens.

And since teens can be naturally moody without any travel involved, I do my best to minimize anything that might add to their discord.

My favorite travel water bottle for kids is the Llevargo Collapsible Water Bottle. It’s small, lightweight, portable and waterproof. Not to mention it’s also BPA free and FDA approved!

Travel essentials for kids on a road trip, electronics, stuffed animal

Final Thoughts On Holiday Travel With Kids

No matter whether you have an infant, toddler, child, or a mixture of age ranges, nothing should get in the way of a perfect family holiday. Not even holiday travel! Traveling with kids and keeping things organized is a non-negotiable part of any family vacation, so you need to become a pro at it!

I love nothing more than going on holiday with my kids. It’s taken some time, but I think we’re pretty close to making holiday travel with kids easy and stress-free. Use these tips and travel essentials for kids to take the stress out of your next holiday travel with kids.

Do you travel often with your kids? I would love if you share your tips below!

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Holiday travel with kids

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