Preparing for Travel with Children: What Really Helps
Guest Blog by Lola Brett
Listen — you’re not doing it wrong. That whole “everyone’s smiling at the airport with matching backpacks” thing? Not real. Real is hauling a car seat through security while someone’s shoeless and crying about the juice they weren’t even drinking. That’s fine. That’s normal. And honestly, once you stop trying to control every piece, it gets easier. Not easy. Just…less like you’re failing. Which is something. The goal here isn’t perfection. It’s movement. Together.
Start Involving Children During Planning
It’s weird, right? You plan this big thing for them, but they don’t know what’s happening until you’re already yelling about sunscreen in the parking lot. Try looping them in sooner. Doesn’t have to be big — “Hey, what snacks should we take?” or “Wanna help pick a place with a pool?” They say something goofy? Great. That’s a clue. You’re not managing a robot, you’re raising a person. And if they helped pick the snack, maybe they’ll eat it instead of throwing it. (No promises.)
Digitize Important Travel Documents Before Leaving
Quick one. Take pictures of your passports. Boarding passes, too. Health stuff if you’ve got it. Store it where you can get to it even without Wi‑Fi. Also: make PDFs with a secure PDF file converter. They’re cleaner, hold formatting, and work on basically anything. If your kid chucks your paper tickets into a fountain, this is how you don’t melt down. It takes five minutes. Do it. Then breathe.
Maintain Flexibility in the Travel Schedule
Ever tried to get a toddler to “stay on track”? Exactly. Set your plan, then immediately let go of it. You’ll need that space when someone spots a pigeon and wants to follow it for twenty minutes. Or when the line for food is an hour and everyone’s already hangry. Buffer room — not just time-wise, but brain-wise. Give yourself permission to flex. And if the museum doesn’t happen because the parking lot puddle was too good to skip? Fine. That’s the trip.
Prepare a Variety of Entertainment Options
One toy and a phone? Good luck. Kids burn through boredom faster than data plans. Load up — crayons, headphones, weird little fidget things, downloaded shows they’ve already seen ten times. Don’t reveal all your stuff at once. Think of it like snacks on a long hike — you ration joy. And yeah, talk to them. Don’t just hand off a screen and zone out.
Include Familiar Items When Packing
Look, you’ll forget something. That’s fine. But don’t forget the stuff that makes them feel safe. The lumpy stuffed thing. The ratty pajamas. That book with the ripped cover they ask for every night. Pack functionally, yes, but emotionally, too. Your goal isn’t minimalism — it’s comfort. Which often weighs more. So what. You’ll thank yourself at 2am in a hotel room when that old blanket is the only thing keeping the crying from turning operatic.
Preserve Key Daily Routines While Traveling
Everything’s new. Sounds, smells, beds, toilets. It’s a lot. Try to keep one thing constant. Doesn’t need to be big. Maybe it’s storytime, same as at home. Maybe it’s the morning banana. Routines ground kids. When their system’s spinning, that one fixed point — “Oh, this is familiar” — can pull them back from the brink. It won’t prevent all chaos. But it can lower the volume.
Plan Ahead for Unexpected Situations
The plan will fall apart. You’ll get lost, someone will spill applesauce on the backup clothes, and that thing you were sure was in the bag isn’t. Good. Now that we’ve named it, you can stop fighting it. Carry snacks like gold. Always bring wipes. Make peace with being a little gross. You’re not building a vacation Instagram wants. You’re surviving together, and some of those messes? They’re the stories you’ll keep.
You won’t do it perfectly. Nobody does. But maybe — just maybe — you stop chasing the version where nothing goes wrong. And start chasing the version where you adapt. Laugh sometimes. Cry a little. Then keep going. And weirdly, those are the trips you remember. Not the flawless ones. The human ones.
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Lola Brett is a health advocate who inspires people to have a healthy and happy life. Lola’s philosophy on life is that if you don’t take care of your body, you can’t take care of your mind or soul. That’s why she is so passionate about helping people lead healthier lives.