I’m pretty relaxed about travelling, generally leaving packing to the day before.
It’s not that I’m a super relaxed person, it’s more that I’m side-tracked in the lead-up with the usual hassles of leaving work for a while and day-to-day Mum stuff.
But a few weeks before, the enormity of long haul flights with kids starts to leak into my subconscious and I do start to prepare for how to keep them entertained.
So, how do I qualify for this blog post?
My ‘travel with kids’ resume…
1. One child aged 5 months (solo) Sydney to London via Singapore
I was by myself and it was long haul, but he was breastfed and I could get rest while he slept. The turbulence is a pain because they insist you take them out of the bassinet, but all-up I made sure I was hydrated and he still slept a fair amount at that age.
2. One child aged 12 months (solo) Sydney to Birmingham via Kuala Lumpur and Amsterdam
He was relatively easy but after 12 months of being a Mum and back at work, I was knackered, dehydrated and hadn’t looked after myself. I was so sick by Amsterdam that I had to go to First Aid and squeeze into a cubicle with a buggy to self-administer a suppository. The KLM airline staff were really good though and I had stewards escort me off the plane at Birmingham where I continued to barf all the way home.
3. One child aged 18 months (with hubby*) Sydney to Bali via Melbourne
I think because it was his third flight and not long haul we were a bit blasé. He didn’t sleep the whole way; it was a small plane and all he wanted to do was move around.
4. One child aged 3 years (solo) Sydney to London via Vietnam and Frankfurt
The absolute easiest was this trip. Even the 36-hour delay on the way back was manageable. At 3, all he was interested in was movies, toys and treats. He was in heaven.
5. Three children: One aged 3.5 years; Two aged 20 months (with hubby*) via Singapore
The twins were squeezed into bassinets whenever possible but were mostly on our knees, or annoying neighbours / business class by running through the dividing curtain. HOWEVER, I had planned well for this trip so despite young ones, there were times when I high-fived myself for being Mrs Organised.
6. Three children: One aged 5 years; Two aged 3 years (solo) via Singapore
My most recent, and bravest, was this journey. And by now I know what works (including looking after myself) so although airport staff exclaimed “Maam, are ALL these children with you?! Come straight through!” and I heard people whisper “She is like their own personal air hostess”, it was do-able, almost enjoyable really.
No matter which way you look at it, that long haul flight is challenging.
I always get a bit cocky on the first leg. Honestly the first eight hours have been a cinch each time. Thank god I never brag on facebook midway though because half way through the second leg it’s a different ball game.
By the end of it I’m frankly just dying to go to the loo in a space bigger than a fridge, without three children crammed in asking “Mummy, are you doing a WEE or a POO?!”
So here are my Top 19 Tips for ease of travel with children…
THE FLIGHT ROUTE
1) Don’t choose cheaper airlines to save money. Whilst my 36-hour delay with Air Vietnam was manageable with a 3-year old, I still cried at not being able to get home to my twin babies and it wasn’t exactly easy. Plus, the staff on cheaper airlines act like they’d like to stomp on your children instead of entertain them with tricks and birthday cake.
2) Choose direct routes. The flight to Bali via Melbourne caused more headaches. The extra stop in Amsterdam was a pain in the arse (quite literally, as it turned out) The stop in Frankfurt just added to the delays and the only time my 3-year old lost it as we were stuck on the runway for two hours.
3) I am a MASSIVE fan of a mini stopover en route if booking a hotel. Minimum of 8 hours. Singapore is a wonderful example of how this works. I book the Aerotel transit hotel in the airport, we go for a swim there, have some dinner, get some sleep and then tackle the 14-hours to London (ideally flying late at night so some of the next leg disappears with the sleep after dinner)
FOOD & DRINK
4) Pack individual water bottles for your kids. You really don’t need “Water. Water Mummy” on top of all the other demands like opening headphones, fixing headphones, picking up toys, opening cutlery, cutting food etc. etc. When I was bottle feeding I took a few pre-prepared with boiled water (they let you take on more than 100ml of liquid with infants) and then used sachets of formula.
5) Sweets / lollies. I divided these into small freezer bags with 10 in each and put them in a treat compartment of my bag. When I was preparing these I actually felt a little OCD – but it worked a treat. You do not want your kids to see big bags of sweets and pester you for more, or divvy them up on your knee.
6) A few crackers and crisps are worthwhile packing although I have lessened these over the years as the better airlines always have baskets full of things and the children like to walk around.
7) My major issue is dehydration and nausea when flying so I pack my favourite herbal tea (camomile and lemon) which is such a relief at times.
ENTERTAINMENT
8) Don’t rely on the screens in the seats as your sole entertainment! I have found that:
a. On smaller, older planes they don’t have touch screens and the kids struggle to operate the handheld controls (I had to help my five-year-old a lot and the three year olds couldn’t use them at all)
b. The kids are too low to see the screens properly – you have to get cushions to sit them higher.
c. There was a palaver with headphones…
i. I bought comfortable kids headphones from high street stores prior to the flights but only one ear works on the aeroplane (you need to pack a double jack)
ii. The children’s headphones provided by the airlines were annoying to assemble and still too big for my three year olds.
iii. The adult ones provided by the airline didn’t fit in their ears.
After MUCH stuffing around I used the airlines kids’ headphones with the free pair of socks wedged underneath; and the ones I bought were great with the iPad.
9) iPads. Yes, yes, yes! Fill them with games and movies. And don’t forget the chargers and any power adapters for mid trip. See note above re headphones – worth getting some decent-ish ones that fit well.
10) One of my favourite tips is to buy loads of 3D / puffy stickers and some notepads to stick them in. Young children can’t manage normal stickers themselves but they can do these unaided. They spend ages sticking them down, peeling them off, re-sticking them into the book, onto the tray table, onto my face – I didn’t care, they were happy! Be warned when buying late at night from various suppliers on eBay though. I ended up with 67 packs which even a 40-hour door-to-door trip couldn’t utilise!
11) Activity pads haven’t held my kids in fascination for long but some are better than others. I would recommend:
a. Story books with stickers when the children are stuck on your knee and you can easily help peel them off
b. Ones with magic markers so you don’t end up with felt tip pen everywhere
c. Even the painting ones where the colours appear with water and paint brushes are pretty good (use an empty cup in the seat’s cup holder for pens and brushes)
12) I bought lots of little presents for emergencies. The downside is that they can pester you for more, but you can counteract that by using them as bargaining power. I chose things like Zelves and Hot Wheel cars.
LUGGAGE
13) I’m not personally a fan of backpacks but after many years I have realised that a backpack and a wheelie bag for me is the best combination, as well as a handbag which I always stuff with various things along the way.
14) With one child, a little suitcase on wheels was fine and manageable, but with three, impossible. A fantastic solution for the kids were small backpacks from Little Life. They even have mini (toddler) versions with a ‘lead’ for younger children. The kids loved wearing them, they were the perfect size for little toys, and they looked so cute to boot.
15) Buggies, do you or don’t you? For my first trip a Baby Bjorn was all I needed. On my subsequent trips I was so happy to have taken a single Maclaren. For my most recent trip (with my 5-year-old and twin 3 year olds) I ummed and ahhhed and in the end didn’t take one, and was glad that I didn’t.
*THE HUSBAND
After much research, I have found that there isn’t much you can do about this one. It’s not just mine… I look around the aircraft and there are husbands everywhere, brazenly putting on their headphones to watch a movie. Watch a movie?!! I tried on my most recent trip with the three children. It lasted less than 2 minutes. One hopped on my knee so I had to switch to Cars and hold his headphones in place (it was before I discovered the sock trick); Another moved in next to me and stole my crisps.
So when my partner is with me, and has headphones on, I end up directing him to help with the children. “Dave… David… DAVID!!!!” It’s basically like having three little ones and a teenager.
When he was sitting the other side of the aisle with Anika, it was me who heard her say “I’m going to be sick” and I had to hurl a bottle of water at him to get his attention (which missed. And it was too late, unfortunately for him and the lady next to him)
In his defence, he thinks I over service them. And if I put my headphones on they’d just get on with it, or get it out of their system. Hmmmm… Comments below please.
OTHER
16) Medicines – Panadol, nurofen, migraine tablets, Phenergan, anti-nausea tablets, and also peppermint essence is amazing if you or the kids feel sick.
17) Band aids / plasters – kids always have an injury of some sort. Imagine NOT having these with you for that life threatening invisible splinter.
18) Torches. Inevitably kids cry when they drop stuff and having torches enables them to scurry around on the floor searching for their treasures (which in fact becomes a good game in itself) Also handy for when you’re knee deep in plastic bags, dry bread rolls and discarded aeroplane socks and need to clear some space for sanity half way through.
19) If you’re travelling with a partner, plan a strategy. A friend of mine recently had a shocker of a journey to Hong Kong with her husband and two toddlers. But from HK to London they took it in turns – 2 hours on, 2 hours off – so that at least they got a break.
I hope this helps in some way to plan your trip!
The main thing is, don’t let a long haul flight with kids put you off travelling. I’ve read ridiculous things in forums where people don’t take their kids anywhere until they are 6 years old. The absolute BEST thing about travelling with kids is witnessing them develop from their experience.
I have seen huge and amazing changes in my children in just a few weeks – from being seriously shy and not looking people in the eye, to high-fiving everyone in the aisle on the way home. It’s a wondrous thing so if you’re fortunate enough to do it, then do.
Much love and happy travels.
Catherine
