*This is a collaborative post
Remember those good old days when travelling was a laid back adventure without any dependents? Fast forward a few years, we’ve all got sprogs and quite frankly….travelling with children can be a bit of a nightmare on occasion. But it doesn’t have to be that way.
With the summer holidays now on the horizon, and many of us planning on travelling with the children, I’ve teamed up with Rescue Remedy – a combination of five individual flower essences for emotional wellbeing and care for everyday life available in sprays, droppers and pastilles – to share these power tips from fab fellow parenting bloggers – to make travelling with children less stressful this summer.
Be prepared
Take a small bag of surprises, from puzzle books to a notebook and pencil or even a yoyo or blind bag toy. Things that they don’t know about that you can bring out part way through a journey as a new treat without having to spend a fortune at stations or airports! – My Mummy’s Pennies
Tell them what to expect
Show them YouTube videos of boarding planes and what it’s like on a plane and then it won’t be so overwhelming! Also snacks and lots of them! – Scrapbookblog.co.uk
Work the tech
We always make sure we have games loaded on our phones and tablets. They can be useful to calm them down and occupy them. – You Baby Me Mummy
And keep it charged
Invest in individual power packs so their iPads never run out of battery (which usually results in a meltdown). – North East Family Fun
Audio books are your best friend
Play audio books in the car. We love listening to any Roald Dahl boxsets on long car journeys. – The Helpful Mum
Board last
Families usually rush to board but it just means that children are restrained in limited space for longer. Make use of the airport soft play (if there is one) and stretch their legs. If you are worried about securing space in an overhead locker- then one parent can always board a bit earlier with all the gear. – Flying with baby
Have some back up
Travelling with children can be seriously stressful and it’s at times like these that a couple of spritzes of Rescue Remedy or popping a Rescue Remedy lozenge in my mouth can really help to get you through the crazy. Always keep a handy supply in your bag when travelling! –Motherhood: The Real Deal
Enforce the toilet rule!
Make sure they go to the toilet before they get on a plane in a hope they won’t want to go during take off. – A Strong Coffee To Go
Curate a family play list
Get the kids involved in designing a family play list with everyone’s favourite songs. Nothing lifts everyone’s spirits (especially if you’re in a traffic jam/delayed) than a good sing song. – Big Stevie Cool
Be mindful
Be mindful that it could be a strange and stressful experience for your child (new things, entering the unknown in terms of environment and even just the mode of transport) so give them time, don’t express your stress on them as it just makes things worse. – Living With a Jude
Co-ordinate with sleeps
Try and time it around nap times or bed time as much as possible. I find if we time any long journey around bedtime and get dinner in first, you can almost guarantee a nice sleep filled journey – far less stressful for ALL involved! – Devon Mama
Teach older children to navigate. Learning to follow a map and work out where they are and where they’re going is a really good challenge and something they can enjoy solving themselves. Even better, don’t tell them where you are going and see how long it takes them to work it out! – The Parent Game
The full Rescue Remedy range is available to buy in-store at Boots or online at Boots.com
***Did you find this post useful? If so, please do give it a Tweet on Twitter, a share on Facebook and for more from me please like my Facebook page here.***
Cover picture credit: Designed by Freepik
Great tips – totally agree not to rush onto the plane otherwise you are just stuck on there even longer!!
I have also written a blog post on this subject titled how to avoid are we there yet?
I never realised that airports had soft play until a couple of years ago. I remember travelling with my older ones years ago and there was nothing for them to do in the airport…….so much better these days
Fantastic practical tips here – love the idea of teaching older kids to navigate. I remember doing this as a child and I think it’s a bit of a lost art now due to sat navs x
Thanks for including my tip. I’ve not heard of Rescue Remedy before so off to check it out now thanks
Oh i love all of these – on a side note i use to live on Rescue Remedy when i was learning to drive! lol
Some great advice, I’ve never tried rescue remedy but my mum swears by it. Think it might have to join the essential travel kit as our son grows older! Thanks for including me x
Some fab tips – I must make sure I remember my own! God they always need the toilet when it’s inconvient x
Great tips here. My kids are at an age now that once they have been to the toilet, they are OK for a while. Makes it a lot easier 🙂
Aww I can’t wait for the age when my daughter can make sense of how long it will take to get to our destination. At the moment long trips are pretty tough! Some great tips here to make travelling easier x
Great list of tips, we are travelling aboard with the kids for the first time this summer.
These are great tips. Being prepared is always a good idea and having a charged tablet with their favourite programmes predownloaded has always worked well for us on longer road trips. The only difficulty with that is if they decide their favourite programmes have changed mid-trip – thank goodness for hotel wifi! We can’t fly because of Jessica’s heart condition so our travel is limited to trains, boats and cars but I’ve learned that as long as I can keep the children occupied with something, they cope well with longer journeys. #coolmumclub
Love the navigating tip!! xo
Some great tips, yet still dreading the long car journeys this summer #coolmumclub
Some fabulous tips there, it will be really helpful to other parents of little children. Even with an 11 year old and 14 year old it can be a bit of a challenge at times, so keeping everything fully charged is a must #coolmumclub x
Love the family playlist. We have great fun with music in the car. #coolmumclub
Great tips thanks! Definitely agree that when timed with naps life is easier #coolmumclub
I flipping love rescue remedy liquid form, takes the edge of my anxiety X #coolmumclub
Hoping to go abroad again next year so will definitely look for the soft play area at the airport…to wear out Daddy!
Also love the idea about teaching kids to map read…I could do with learning that myself 😉
Sending all the #coolmumclub love x
I swear by boarding last. I travelled with friends recently who wanted to be at the front of every queue and it just meant more standing and hanging around. The plane didn’t take off any earlier and the baggage carousel didn’t start quicker
Okay, you have obviously done this before, and well I might add. Boarding the plane last is brilliant. We are always rushing to be first, then have to sit for what feels like days! <3 Thank you for these great tips. We have a 10 hour car ride coming up — we know it well, but I need to mentally prep for it and find a way to coordinate bladders! Hah! #coolmumclub
Great tips. We spent hours and hours driving round France last year and that was tough but our toddler is now two and waaaaay more demanding!
Always enforce toilet visits at every opportunity. It always amazes me how the kids say they don’t need to go but as soon as you insist they try, lo and behold a result!
Great travelling tips – like the idea of older ones navigating and we love audio books too! Have t tried rescue lozenges before, may just check them out!
Some really good idea here. My kids don’t use technology yet but they always have fun with their colouring in books. #coolmumclub
I’m all about rescue remedy – my mother use to give it to me more than 20yrs ago when we travelled and I use it for my children, certainly helps keep them a little bit more calm and free or anxiety
Laura x
Such great tips just pinned
Love these tips. I’ve been putting off taking the boys on holiday just because I know I will get super stressed about things. This is quite reassuring and I think we might just book a holiday next year! x
Really handy tips! Taking my little one away towards the end of the year and loving the tips about boarding last and distraction techniques – think they’ll come in handy! #coolmumclub
Great tips. Lots of snacks and new iPad games they don’t know about are our biggest successes, and make sure the snacks are held back until needed to avoid a meltdown, then ration them out, you don’t want to run out with half the journey still left to go!
#Coolmumclub
Anytime we travel, I make sure I’m fully stocked up on water, healthy treats and fully charged iPad.
These are great suggestions. I particularly love the compilation of favourite music pieces. #CoolMumClub
Great ideas. Preparation and planning can really divert many travelling with kids disasters. But not all I’m afraid.
#coolmumclub
Great tips! I definitely think games on phones and tablets is a must! Or just good old fashioned sticker and colouring-in books for the little ones. Basically, just make sure you have a variety of activities/toys/games to hand so that you can keep them entertained, whatever mood they’re in! x #coolmumclub
We so work the tech!!! And we pack extra battery chargers for the iPad. Fab tips Talya #coolmumclub
I definitely agree with telling them what to expect – managing expectations can really help! #coolmumclub
We’ve found that short breaks every hour and a half seem to work. It gets him to stretch his legs, a change of scenery and then we get to not listen to little mix for a few minutes! #coolmumclub
What a great list! Love it! You can never have too many ideas for how to make a trip easier with the kids. We travel a lot with the kids and I’m always appreciative of finding new tips!