Tips to Take the Stress Out of Flying with Children

We’ve all been there, juggling everything from overly stuffed suitcases, screaming children, and loved ones seemingly intent of making you late for the drive to the airport. Flying with your family can certainly be a stressful experience at the best of times, and that’s even before you board the plane. With a bit of planning, cooperation, and possibly a little luck, you can ensure that the whole experience is as stress-free as possible. In this article, we’ll take a look at a few ideas for making your trip not just stress free, but positively fun.

Tapping into airline-specific family support

This is important if you are a young family traveling with particularly young children such as babies and infants. Most airlines are sympathetic to the juggling and additional needs associated with taking baby on a plane, so it’s a good idea to call ahead and see how they can help. Services can include different baggage allowances to cater for strollers and travel cots, along with help with boarding and getting off the plane at the other end. You can often find that there are seats up front next to built-in bassinets and easy access to baby change facilities, so there’s no need to worry that you’ll be struggling to get to the resources you need.

Another reason to call your airline ahead of time is to be mindful of extra costs for family-specific services and benefits as they will often charge extra, and these costs can be different from airline to airline.

Alongside the airline, make sure you have your parking space booked well ahead of time. If you’re flying during peak times such as school breaks, then you may find competition for parking is high. Online airport parking services, such as ParkON MCO, for example, are the best way to make this process super easy.

More organization equals less stress

If you are driving to an airport, then you should make sure that all the various sections of your trip are planned for. It’s not just passports and boarding passes that you need to remember, but the survival essentials that cover everybody’s needs.

You’ll be hearing ‘I’m hungry’ roughly every five minutes, so make sure you have plenty of healthy snacks on hand to keep the rumbling tummies at bay. The other regular mantra will be ‘Are we there yet?’ which roughly translates as ‘I’m bored’ so make sure you have lots for them to do both in the car and on the plane. Electronic devices are an obvious solution, but don’t forget those spare battery chargers. Creative pastimes are best if you can come up with some fun travel games and art projects to take along with you.

Accidents happen, so remember to take all the wet wipes, changes of clothes, and smiles with you that you can. A huge tip is to use a rucksack as your carry-on luggage, as this means you have both hands free to take care of everyone and catch any mishaps before they land.

It’s equally important to look after yourself, too, so that you’re not burned out by the time you get to your destination. Stay calm, be prepared, and don’t take anything too seriously when you are flying with children. – Travel Feeder

About The Author

Cecil Lee

The author is an avid traveler and photography hobbyist who loves to share with others his travel and photo-taking experience in many popular tourist destinations around Europe, Asia and Australasia. Read the exciting stories with many photos captured on his journeys.