Kids and Travel

Whether it's a trip to Grandma's or a voyage overseas, knowing fun and simple ways to entertain your kids during vacation travel will reduce the number of times you have to hear "Are we there yet?" Preparation is the key to freeing up time to actually enjoy the whole reason you are on this holiday from the everyday. Looking for destination inspiration? Use the tips below to assist you in your travels.

Before You Go

Anticipation is half the fun of any trip. Prepare a Countdown Calendar for your child to follow. Prepare foreign foods at home, teach them some of the local language.

In a perfect world, there would be no illness or injury, and both parents would always be traveling together with their children. But in this day and age, children have asthma, diabetes, and other types of challenges, and remembering to pack medicines and medical information is a must. If your child has any serious medical ailment, such as an allergic reaction to a certain food, write the information on a postcard and tuck it in your child's pocket. In an emergency, especially in a foreign place, panic can take over. It would also help if you had the information translated into the native language (Spanish, Portuguese, French, etc.) ahead of time. Keep all government documents in a safe place with you while you travel, and bring only photocopies if possible. Be sure to check your medical insurance coverage. It is worth the investment.

Check out www.bluecross.ca for information on purchasing medical plans.

If both parents will not be traveling with the child, signed notarized documentation is needed from both parents that states permission is granted to travel.

It is very difficult to keep a child from ever getting lost. Be prepared by putting information inside your child's fanny pack or pocket. Let the child know of the information. You can call it the "I'm Lost" ticket and tell them to take it to a policeman or adult working in a store or restaurant. This, too, would be helpful to have translated. Let your child know what police uniforms look like in different parts of the world. One trend at the Disney parks is families dressing in similar Hawaiian print shirts, etc. so that at a quick glance, it is easy to find your brood.

Packing

For tips on packing for travel, check out www.travelite.org. This site will help you with everything from luggage to electrical outlets. Many chat rooms mentioned packing a day's worth of baby supplies in large plastic bags, so that each day, you just grab a new plastic bag and put it in the diaper bag. For children who are old enough, pack disposable cameras in their carry on luggage, so that they can take pictures throughout the trip. They can create Memory Books at home upon their return.

Air Travel

There are three things to remember regarding air travel and children: delays, food, and inner ear pressure.

The saving graces of Crayola Watercolour pencils. They don't melt and they can be transformed into face paint with water. If you're at the airport with a long layover, you can paint your kids faces to keep them entertained.

Be sure to pack some food that children like, such as crackers with peanut butter, carrot sticks, granola bars, and jube-jubes. The latter will help combat inner ear pressure. Having a younger child drink from a "sippy" cup or using a pacifier can ease inner ear pressure.

Train

Pack non-toxic glow-sticks to entertain your children on overnight rail travel. The sticks will amuse them until they fall asleep. You can also bring their iPod or handheld games to keep the kids from getting bored on long rides.

Boat

Keep in mind that little tummies get upset very easily. Pack some Gravol, dry crackers and a larger sickness bag, as the ones provided can be quite small. If you are going on a cruise, take advantage of the child services offered. This will let you and your child enjoy a better vacation.

Car

Before you start out on your venture, be sure to put a blanket or towel down on the seats. There is a high probability that your child will spill something along the way. Baby wipes are also a good thing to have around to clean up spills and sticky hands.

Many web sites mention packing age appropriate bags to keep your children occupied. Fill the bags with colouring books, crayons, hand-held games, trivia cards, stickers and books. One great book to pack for the ride is Kids Travel: A Backseat Survival Kit. In it you'll find games for kids: crafts, puzzles, dot-to-dots, crosswords, mazes and more, all in a zippered case with the materials for each activity included.

There are several car games that the whole car can participate in (well, anyone who isn't currently driving the vehicle!). Here are a few you might remember:

• Highway Bingo: Make up a list of items before you go. When your child sees these items, they can check them off the list (Think of what you might see: sleeping cows, a VW beetle, a farm, a construction sign and so on.)
• License Plate Game: See how many different provinces or state plates you come across
• Alphabet Name Game: for children aged 7 and up. Choose a topic, like girl's names, and start at A, and take turns saying a name with the corresponding letter

It is inevitable that children will ask, "Are we there yet?" A great way to combat this is to pack a roll of nickels per child. Each time they ask, they owe you a nickel. They may ask, but make them use different words.

Written By: Tracey Lord

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