10 Tips for Traveling with Kids

Jennifer Chung, co-founder of Kinsights, a parenting community and online health record, shares 10 tips for traveling with kids, including flying with kids, information to bring on trips, and easy flight activities for kids.

Are you excited about the holidays, but dreading those hours on the plane with your kids? Parent travel pros at Kinsights share their advice—unique tips beyond the usual “check your stroller at the gate” and “bring lots of snacks”—about what really kept them sane in the air. 

Here are some great tips that parents shared:

1. Book a direct flight. Factor in sleep times whenever possible. Pack special lovies or blankets that will make it easier for your children to fall asleep.
2. Use the TSA Pre-Check. This rapidly expanding program costs $85 and allows you to speed through domestic security lines without taking off your shoes, belts, etc.  Kids younger than 12 can go with parents who are part of the program.
3. Pack some new toys along with some tried-and-loved ones. Choose favorite books, an iPad or portable DVD player if they’re old enough to sit still and watch TV or a movie, and crafts such as sticker collages (sheets of stickers are easy to pack and provide a lot of entertainment, especially for toddlers), edible crafts (bring fruit loops and make edible necklaces), or body art (tattoo pens are a safe, easy, and washable creative outlet).
4. Must-haves in your carry on. A hungry toddler is an unhappy one so bring plenty of snacks and empty sippy cups to fill on the plane. Pack more diapers than usual and a change of clothes in case of a particularly tragic potty accident.
5. Make friends with your fellow passengers. Upon finding your seats, pass out a little goody bag filled with chocolates and earplugs to everyone in your immediate vicinity, apologizing in advance for anything that might happen.
6. Bring a cheap lightweight stroller. Umbrella strollers are great for gate-check and to easily wheel around the airport. They also hold diaper bags and other items you’re carrying when your child isn’t riding.
7. Choose a seat in the back row. Forget about airline status and head to where the other families are. It’s much easier to have understanding people around you if your kid cries.    
8. Hit the aisles to stretch legs. Get up and walk up and down the aisles a couple of times with your child during the flight when possible.  Better as a preventative measure when things are calm than trying to escape with a screaming child during drink service.
9. Cut out the kicking. Does your child love to torture the passenger in front of them with constant kicking? Sitting in a car seat makes this worse, since it leaves even less legroom. If you want to forego the car seat, but still prefer a more secure restraint, try a CARES restraint system.
10. Bring rewards. Buy small toys and snacks and keep them hidden in a carry-on bag. When your child is well behaved, they get a prize from the bag every 15-20 minutes. The ultimate prize is a giant ring pop, which might keep your child occupied for up to 30 minutes.

And while you’re busy packing toys, iPads, snacks, and books to keep your kids occupied on the plane, don’t forget to bring something much more important—your child’s basic health information. If your child gets sick or has an accident when you’re away from home, there are some basics that you should always have on hand (for you, and anyone—family member or sitter—watching your child):