By Michelle Dow
As the holidays come to an end, and the new year rolls in, so do the 3-day weekends, ski weeks, and spring break. If you are like me, you are starting to get eager to plan your next family trip – maybe someplace warm after all of this cold (for the Bay Area!), winter weather? Undoubtedly, after the excitement of planning the next adventure passes, the anxiety of traveling with a toddler will set in. Through trial and error, my family has settled on the following strategies to help ease the pain of airplane travel with toddlers.
Boarding the Plane
My husband and I have had a lot of success with this strategy that gives the kids extra time to burn off energy and decreases the frenzy of settling in to our seats. I board the flight first (alone), get everything organized and make sure favorite toys and snacks are easily accessible. Meanwhile, my husband takes a few minutes to run around the gate area with the kids, expending as much energy as possible before boarding the plane with the last group.
Snacks
Most toddlers love food and snacks, so we take advantage of this as one way to pass the time. I pack snack boxes for each of the kids with a variety of healthy options (bento boxes work great). Our favorite go-tos include raisins, granola bites, carrots, banana & blueberries. Weekly pillboxes filled with mini snacks and treats are another fun surprise to mix things up. Toddlers will be entertained by opening and closing the lids to discover the snacks behind each “door.”
Activities
Coloring Books and Stickers
Buy a new coloring book and a pack of stickers for the trip (bonus points if you can find books/stickers of your child’s favorite Disney or cartoon character). After your toddler’s attention span has reached its limit with the coloring book, transition to the stickers. Get silly and make a game out of it – have your toddler place stickers on his body parts (“Simon says place a sticker on your nose!”), the snack box, or hand them out to Dad or siblings. Post-its also work wonders!
Cars and Figurines
Toddlers have vivid imaginations and can often stay entertained by playing and creating their own storylines for miniature toys. For example, we “drive” the cars over our laps, on our heads and “crash” into each other. The figurines can hitch a ride on the cars, or you can create a separate narrative. These types of toys are great for plane rides, as they take up little space and aren’t noisy or bothersome to your neighbors.
Books
You can never go wrong with books. Some of our favorites include Thomas the Train, 5-minute stories and the Look and Find Usbourne books. For younger kids, the indestructible books are great, as they are lightweight and easy to pack.
Tablet
When we’re traveling, we often have to dig deep and so we loosen the reins and permit tablet usage. We have Amazon Fire tablets for each kid, loaded with a few cartoons, games, and a drawing app. It’s our last resort on the flight, but if you’re in a pinch, this might entertain the little ones for at least twenty minutes before starting the cycle all over again.
Toddler Gear
Unless you plan to use the car seat on the flight, check it with your bags. It’s one less thing to carry around the airport. Also consider buying a car seat bag to protect your gear. Most airlines do not charge baggage fees for car seats or pack-n-plays, so make sure to ask the agent when checking your bags. Bring an umbrella stroller with you to use in the airport and have your toddler sit when you’re checking bags and going through the security line. You can gate-check the stroller – just don’t forget to get a tag from the gate agent. There are also many companies that rent baby gear – everything from cribs or pack-n-plays, to high chairs, strollers, books and toys. They will even deliver the items right to your rental home! Using these services can help reduce the the number of bags you need to bring with you, and thus make the airport experience a bit easier and more manageable.
Packing the Essentials
I am continuously amazed at how much stuff is required when packing for a trip, and I do whatever I can to help minimize what we take with us. For checked bags, don’t pack all of the diapers, buy them at your destination, as it will free up a lot of valuable space. And if your hotel or rental has a washer/dryer, pack laundry pods (or buy detergent at your destination), as this will help reduce the number of outfits you need to bring. For your carry-on bag, make sure to pack an extra set of clothes, diapers/pull-ups or underwear, wipes, an empty water bottle (fill up after security), hand sanitizer, extra chargers, and your child’s favorite stuffed animal or security blanket.
I hope you find these suggestions helpful on your next family adventure.
Good luck and happy travels!