It’s summertime, and you know what that means— vacations! Yet with the kids out of school, that means vacations with little travelers. Depending on the age of your children, certain challenges may arise. After all, travel itself can be a complicated process, and when you throw in little travel companions to the mix, things can get even more complicated.
As much as we want to keep our children safe and love every ounce of them, sometimes they can be a real pain in the neck. To help ensure your family trip is filled with more joy than tantrums, here are 3 essential tips for traveling with your kids this summer.
Practice Some Patience Techniques
First thing is first —you’re going to need to learn how to practice patience! Learn a few deep breathing techniques, and build up your arsenal of tools for how to stay calm under pressure.
Traveling with kids is almost always full of unexpected detours, pit stops to go to the bathroom, and poolside interruptions for naps. Remember, the more you can stay patient, the more your child will follow the lead, and the more enjoyable your trip will be overall. Practice patience and you can’t go wrong.
Pack Wisely
You want to make sure that you have everything you need during your trip. From the flight, to the taxi ride to the hotel, you want to have everything you need during a moment of panic or discomfort. Make sure that you pack all of your child’s favorite toys and snacks, as well as plenty of activities to keep them entertained during downtime.
If you are going on an especially long flight, you want to make sure that you have plenty of activities to stand the test of time. Even though you might like to believe that a few crayons and a coloring book will be enough for a nine hour flight, this is hardly realistic for most kids.
Pack a few different activities, and try to wait as long as possible between switching them up. The more you can stretch out each activity, the more excited your child will be when you pull out something new to do.
Keep it Fun for Everyone
Remember, the point of a family vacation isn’t just to keep the kids entertained, nor is it just to keep the adults entertained too! You need to find a happy medium between kid friendly activities as well as adult ones. Give yourself a little permission to add adult centered activities to the itinerary, like restaurants, or museums, but don’t forget to add in a few kid friendly ones as well. By finding a balance between happy parents and happy kids, you’ll make your journey exciting and memorable for everyone.
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