Surviving the Airport When Travelling With Children
When you're preparing to go on your holiday with your family, and that holiday involves a flight, make sure you are prepared for any delays which may occur.
Many people pack with their holiday in mind, but make sure you plan for the journey too.
There is always the possibility of a delayed flight, especially when flying in peak season.
If you cater for the children during any such airport delay, the wait won't be quite so painful.
There's nothing like a screaming 2 year-old to make 5 minutes seem more like 5 hours.
When packing the essentials to keep your child happy, make sure they are kept in your hand-luggage.
You don't want to have everything you need to keep the young family members happy, only to find it's stuck in the hold of the plane.
To start with, pack some water and snacks.
If you can keep the youngsters watered and fed, you're half way to a survivable delay.
We always find pre-packed food, like biscuits, is best to use for snacks, as you don't know how long you'll be delayed, or how hot it will get during the delay.
A hot, stale, ham sandwich will not do much to placate your child.
Once you've got the children fed and watered, the other thing to contend with is boredom.
Hopefully the grownups in your holiday party can cope with a few hours of nothing to do, but it's not easy to explain to a young child that they have to sit still for the next few hours.
So make sure you have something to keep the children interested.
Drawing books and pencils are always a good bet for the younger children; books are also a good source of entertainment.
If your children posses a hand held computer game, like the Nintendo DS, you may well want to bring that along.
In our experience the Nintendo DS is a life saver in a situation where you really would like the children to sit in one place.
We'd also recommend you stay clear of any games with small pieces, these can be very fiddly to set-up in the confined and crowded space of an airport; and pieces are prone to getting lost, causing you more problems! In conclusion, a little time preparing for the journey can save you lots of pain if your holiday flight is delayed.
Leaving you more relaxed to start your holiday.
Many people pack with their holiday in mind, but make sure you plan for the journey too.
There is always the possibility of a delayed flight, especially when flying in peak season.
If you cater for the children during any such airport delay, the wait won't be quite so painful.
There's nothing like a screaming 2 year-old to make 5 minutes seem more like 5 hours.
When packing the essentials to keep your child happy, make sure they are kept in your hand-luggage.
You don't want to have everything you need to keep the young family members happy, only to find it's stuck in the hold of the plane.
To start with, pack some water and snacks.
If you can keep the youngsters watered and fed, you're half way to a survivable delay.
We always find pre-packed food, like biscuits, is best to use for snacks, as you don't know how long you'll be delayed, or how hot it will get during the delay.
A hot, stale, ham sandwich will not do much to placate your child.
Once you've got the children fed and watered, the other thing to contend with is boredom.
Hopefully the grownups in your holiday party can cope with a few hours of nothing to do, but it's not easy to explain to a young child that they have to sit still for the next few hours.
So make sure you have something to keep the children interested.
Drawing books and pencils are always a good bet for the younger children; books are also a good source of entertainment.
If your children posses a hand held computer game, like the Nintendo DS, you may well want to bring that along.
In our experience the Nintendo DS is a life saver in a situation where you really would like the children to sit in one place.
We'd also recommend you stay clear of any games with small pieces, these can be very fiddly to set-up in the confined and crowded space of an airport; and pieces are prone to getting lost, causing you more problems! In conclusion, a little time preparing for the journey can save you lots of pain if your holiday flight is delayed.
Leaving you more relaxed to start your holiday.
