Travelling with toddler?! – Why NOT?! Parenting anywhere is just as hard, so you might as well do it while exploring some great foreign land. Most parents will agree that travelling with a toddler is more challenging than travelling with baby. But despite the tantrums, the theatrics, the teething and not quite yet toilet trained these toddlers are great to travel with.
Toddlers will still sit in a pram and you can still take advantage of their nap times. They will still be able to visit many places free of admission – good for saving money. Best of all this is the age when they will start remembering family travels! Our son can remember his trips from about 2 years old to: London, Nepal and Sri Lanka.
Here are 13 of the Best Tips for Travel with Toddlers:
1. Do a test run
If the thought of long haul flights with a toddler put you off, then try going on a shorter getaway closer to home. A long weekend road trip or an interstate getaway can be good options. Remember you don’t need to travel far to have a great holiday.
Road trips are especially good. The flexibility to stop when you want to stop, being able to slow down or speed up, or divert from your initial route, is priceless.
2. Bring lots and lots of snacks
Traveling with a hangry toddler is just a big no no. A hungry child can turn from a sweet angel into a little monster. Bring snacks from home that you know they will love and will happily munch on. This works really well on longer trips.
Be mindful with what kind of snacks you are giving them. NEVER give them sugary snacks. Travelling in a foreign land with a sugar high toddler will be a disaster. Go for simple snacks such as Marie biscuits, bananas, apples or Gerber puffs.
3. Handle tantrums like a pro
Stressed parents create stressed kids.
From the constant whining to full blown tantrums, this just seem to be a toddler’s daily must do routine – at home or abroad. There will be days that your limits will be tested. Just think if they chuck tantrums, it might as well happen in an awesome place rather than being stuck another day at home.
Handle their tantrums like you would back home. Strangers (who have children) will understand.
4. Don’t travel with extended family
Most Asian families prefer to travel in a large family group – the more the merrier. The simple reasoning is that there will be help from others in case the toddler is troublesome or parents get too tired. In most cases – believe it or not – this is a recipe to complicate things. Travelling alone is just so much easier.
5. “Call the airplane Police!”
Our son is ever obsessed with Police, if he starts misbehaving during flights we tell him: “If you’re naughty, airplane Police will catch you”. This usually works – a few times.
Toddlers generally get bored easily. So for the long haul flights, pack various weapons to keep them occupied. Bring colouring, activity books, toys, and stickers. Resorting to iPad should be the last resort.
6. If needed – Bring your choice of potty training gear
Potty training while travelling is not always ideal. Especially if you are visiting a place with no public toilet. Bring a familiar potty training gear you use at home.
If your toddler is still having little accidents then do bring nappy as backup
7. Stay longer in one place
One or two days are not enough to explore a city. You will be rushed when visiting attractions and will not have time to relax. You will have lots of photos but nothing to remember other than being exhausted from checking in and out of hotels, moving town to town every second day. Slow down and don’t be overly strict with the itinerary.
Consider having a day just to relax like by enjoying a culinary experience or go for a swim. This is a great way to recharge your battery when you are exhausted.
8. Pick a destination that caters the entire family
Pick a place that has a bit of something for everyone to enjoy. London for us is the perfect place for family holiday as it has a good mix of history, entertainment, culture, culinary and shopping.
Include your toddler’s interests. After a museum visit, balance it by finding a park or playground nearby for them to run around.
9. Put your phone away
Once you are out and about at the destination, leave the iPad in the hotel room. Let your toddler’s mind wander, explore and create. Why fly halfway around the world only to let them glued to their iPad watching videos or playing games?
The same goes for parents. Leave your mobile phone in the hotel or if you bring it to take photos, switch off the WiFi. Don’t turn your family holiday into one prolonged photo shoot only to be posted immediately on social media. Family holidays should be a time to detox from Emails, Whatsapp, Facebook and Instagram.
10. Pick a child friendly hotel location
Choose hotels located in a safe and central area that’s close to main attractions. Or if it’s too expensive, stay close to the train station for easy transportation. This will save you heaps of money when going out and about. AirBnB can be a great option, but consider what is your backup if the property is not as advertised?
11. Insurance
Never ever go on family travel without travel insurance. Should something happen during the trip, you wouldn’t want to be slapped with a massive bill.
12. Give them a toddlers camera
Consider giving your little ones their own (child friendly) camera. You might be surprised at the results they come up with. Most will probably come up blurry but it will also keep them occupied.
13. Last but not least – have some me time
Your toddlers and spouse are precious, but a holiday is not always about them. You too, need and deserve to have a little bit of “me time”. Schedule a bit of time apart; such as a spa session, or do a bit of shopping on your own.
For places we have visited, Checkout our website’s travel Destinations section. We buy of our travel essentials online via Ebay
Haha this is so cool… we use the police man trick too. Though for AirAsia flights we pretend it’s the fireman’s plane (because of the red livery) and the crying will distract him from his mission.