Vacation Hints:
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Don't plan to take your toddler or preschooler to historic
Conversely, don't plan to take your teens or even preteens
An ideal family vacation spot should have a varying aspects
Day trips are a good way to get your child used to traveling.
A child who can read can be given a map and allowed
As well as packing any prescription medicine which your child takes,
Always carry the telephone numbers for your doctor and dentist back home
It's a good idea if anyone in the family wears glasses
When going to an amusement park, one parent should wear a
Substitute a backpack for a diaper bag for the same reasons.
Try to dress everyone in similarly styled shirts of the same color.
Let your child pack a bag or backpack of small toys, books, coloring books,
If you will be traveling by car and staying in hotels along the way,
Most of you have seen the new space-saver bags for vacuum packing luggage.
I always pack an extra duffel bag into my suitcase to use as a
laundry bag.
ALWAYS take along baby wipes
Take along any coupons for restaurant chains and fast-food chains
Take along a black or blue Sharpie permanent marker.
Take along a small nightlight to use in the hotel room.
Let a small child pack a bag or backpack of small toys, books, coloring books,
Travel-sized versions of drawing toys such as MagnaDoodle, GhostWriter,
If you have more than one child - or an adult can sit with the child -
These will also be lifesavers if the weather turns nasty and your plans
Planning Your Family Vacation.
The most important suggestion that I can give to you
as a parent is to consider your child's age and interests
when planning a family vacation.
sites where the main attractions are tours, lectures,
battlefields, log homes, and plaques which must be read.
Your child will appreciate such places much more once
he has had a chance to learn in school about the sites
or the historical figures who lived or worked there.
to sites designed for much younger children, such as
Berenstain Bear Country or Nursery Rhyme Land.
in order to appeal to family members of all ages.
Amusements parks are quite often good choices for families,
because they offer entertainment at a variety of age levels.
And a good way for you to get an idea of the type of traveler
your child is going to be on longer trips.
Start small . . . don't travel more than an hour's drive
away for the first few trips.
Then, if your child has done well, try a 2 or 3 hour drive.
Good luck and safe traveling!
Preparing your child mentally.
If you are planning to travel by car or airplane with your child,
prepare the child beforehand for the trip. Talk to the child
about where you will be going, how long the trip will take, and
what you will see, or whom you will visit.
to trace your intended path for himself.
A prepared child is a better traveller.
After all, kids are people, and most people don't like
dealing with totally unknown situations.
Preparing your child physically.
Be sure that your child is well when you set off on your vacation.
Better to hassle with changing reservations, tickets, and plans
than to try to find a pediatrician in a strange place, take your child
to an emergency room, or stay in the hotel with a sick little one
while everyone else is off having fun.
Sometimes a child, or adult, might get sick after you arrive at your destination.
That simply can't be helped, but don't set out with a sick child.
You are guaranteeing yourself a ruined vacation if you do.
Being Prepared: Medically
If you know your child becomes carsick or airsick, see your pediatrician or
family physician about preventative medicine for the child.
it is a good idea to pack children's over-the-counter medications which
your child takes for fever, allergy, headaches, etc.
The corner grocery may not be open all night at your vacation spot,
or it might be difficult to locate a store which carries the brand
you have always given your child. If you are traveling out of the U.S.,
children's medications may not be as readily available as they are here.
It's always better to be prepared.
You could also take along coupons for over-the-counter medicines
that you don't want to weigh yourselves down with.
in case something happens and more information is needed.
to carry a copy of the prescription with you on vacation.
Going to the Amusement Park
Even in the summertime, pack a jacket for your child.
Small children get cold in air-conditioned theaters,
restaurants, and auditoriums more quickly than adults do.
backpack for jackets, baby wipes, and other necessities.
It's also a great place for those souvenirs and prizes,
and it leaves your hands free to hold onto your child's hand;
to help the child around obstacles, onto or into rides;
or to hold snacks or sodas.
If you become separated, it will be easier to remember what
your child is wearing.
In fact, I always dressed my young sons in jean shorts and identical
shirts,
so if necessary I could point to the child still with me and say,
"He's dressed just like this one."
Thankfully, I've never had to do that,
but I'd rather be ready than be sorry,
and I'm afraid I'd panic and not remember how he's dressed otherwise.
Packing
Even in the summertime, pack a jacket for your child.
Small children get cold in air-conditioned theaters,
restaurants, and auditoriums more quickly than adults do.
and colored pencils to entertain the child on the trip.
Remember DO NOT pack crayons because they will melt.
Colored pencils will not melt and are just as easy to use as crayons.
These days there are inexpensive sets available with as many color
variations as a large box of crayons.
There are several good travel-sized versions of popular
children's games such as Crocodile Dentist, Monopoly Jr.,
and Don't Wake Daddy and drawing toys such as MagnaDoodle,
GhostWriter, and Etch-A-Sketch.
consider investing in wheeled luggage for everyone.
Even when small, my sons had pilot cases small enough for them to handle by themselves,
yet large enough for a week's worth of children's clothes
and a stuffed animal or doll to sleep with.
They loved wheeling the cases around themselves,
and I didn't have to deal with all 3 suitcases and 2 small boys.
I've been doing the same thing with Zip-lock bags for years.
You can pack a day's worth of clothing in a 2-gallon size Zip-lock bag,
(or gallon size for a toddler).
A shirt, shorts, underwear, and socks will fit in the bag.
If you squeeze the air out of the bag as you seal it,
the clothes won't get as wrinkled in the suitcase
and you can actually get more into the suitcase
because the clothes are taking up as little space as possible.
This system eliminates arguments about what matches
and digging through the suitcase for socks and underwear.
Even if they dump the suitcase, it's easier to pick up the bags
than loose clothing.
This also makes taking carry-on luggage through airport checks easier.
And at the end of the day, the dirty clothes can go back into the bag
or into a laundry bag.
Dirty clothes go into the duffel bag at the end of each day.
This keeps the dirty clothes away from the clean ones
and keeps my boys from accidentally wearing their favorite
outfit
again until it's clean.
A small sachet in the bag will keep the smell of dirty clothes from overwhelming
whoever is carrying it or opening it for the first time that day.
Quick Tips
ALWAYS carry along a stain-treating stick,
especially the one that you can put on up to
seven days before doing laundry.
-- no matter how old your youngest child is now
because they're great for cleaning hands and faces
when the nearest restroom is far away (you just passed the exit)
or going to the restroom would mean giving up your place
in line at the amusement park or historic site.
to save yourself money as well as time.
You can use it for marking everything from cups
to clothing.
Label the children's belongings/souvenirs as they are
acquired.
It's great for stopping those sibling arguments before they begin.
No more, "But that one's mine! HIS got smashed!"
(The kind that plug into a wall socket are fairly inexpensive.)
That way you won't have to leave the room completely dark
or leave the bathroom light on all night.
(It's usually either too bright or shines into someone's face.)
Entertaining Children in the Car
One of the best toys my children owned was a small, children's tape player.
We always took it along on car trips because our car had no tape player.
When the boys were smaller, they played children's book tapes and looked at the books.
Later they usually played "Adventures in Odyssey" tapes.
For those times when they couldn't seem to agree on anything,
each had an individual tape player with headphones.
A younger child can still look at a book and listen to a book tape,
without disturbing an older brother/sister who thinks those are for babies.
Or older children can each listen to a different book tape.
As my sons got older, they discovered adult books on tape and CD's.
They have listened to The Hobbit and Tolkien's Ring trilogy.
Then they had their own CD players, which cost about $20 at Wal-Mart,
and loads of music, book, and "Adventures in Odyssey" CD's.
For my now teenaged sons, their ipods are a "must have" item for trips.
The ipods fit in a pocket and hold all their favorite music with no need
for CD cases or big headphones.
Be certain your child/teen is responsible enough not to lose an ipod, though,
because they're still fairly expensive, in my opinion.
and colored pencils to entertain himself/herself on the trip.
Remember DO NOT pack crayons because they will melt.
Colored pencils will not melt and are just as easy to use as crayons.
These days there are inexpensive sets available with as many color
variations as a large box of crayons.
and Etch-A-Sketch are available now and much easier
for a small child than pencils and paper.
there are good travel-sized versions of popular and traditional
children's games such as Crocodile Dentist, Monopoly Jr.,
checkers, and Don't Wake Daddy.
Older children will love a deck of playing cards to play
Solitaire or War.
for non-stop fun and activities turn into hours in the hotel room.