Our Top 6 Tips For Travelling With Multiple Children
Whether this is your first time travelling with more than one child or your tenth, the idea of travelling with children & babies can be stressful. We have put together our top 6 tips and hacks to help you plan a stress free journey so you can enjoy more time together with your family and avoid any additional and unnecessary stress.
1. Pack for unplanned delays
Whether it’s a flight or a train, it’s always better to be over prepared than under prepared. Unfortunately sometimes delays are inevitable so you need to make sure you have extra of everything to keep your little ones entertained whilst waiting and have enough essentials incase of any accidents or changes needed for your baby. Make sure to have plenty of toys, nappies, snacks, bottles/formula, wipes, books and changing of clothes.
2. Have an organised travel bag
Packing blocks and cubes are a lifesaver when travelling with little ones. They help keep you organised and make unpacking quick and easy. Buy sets in different colours (one colour for each member of the family) so you instantly know where to look for a spare babygrow or jumper. Having a well packed travel bag will also help you stay organised on the go. We have a range of weekend/travel bags with integrated organisers to help you keep everything in one place.
3. Keep them entertained
Avoiding boredom and having a distraction ready for every instance is key especially with toddlers. We all know how easily a tantrum can progress so having something ready to stop or prevent this is absolutely essential and one favourite toy is not going to hack a long journey on its own. Make sure to pack a range of toys from favourite ‘bring everywhere’ cuddlys, to books and games they can play on their own and games you can play together. You can never have too many toys (trust us!)
4. Stay safe
A good tip when travelling is to dress your toddler/child in something brightly coloured so they are easy to spot. Avoid colours that blend into the background, so if someone decides to wander off they are easy to spot. Another good tip is to take a photo of them on your phone before you travel in the outfit they are travelling in so if in an instance of panic (we have all been there) you can show a photo others to help you look for them. No-one likes to think about their child getting lost but also writing a contact number on a wristband whilst travelling might help ease your mind so you are easily contactable should you find yourselves in this situation.
5. Plan your travel times
Although it can’t always be helped, planning travel times that are more ‘children friendly’ will help you ease stress whilst travelling. Avoiding rush hour on train and bus times will mean less busy crowds and more available seats. This also helps if you are taking a stroller, so you are not having to fight through crowds of people whilst navigating your way and managing multiple children.
6. Vacuum pack a pillow
Vacuum pack a pillow for the flight or train journey so your little one can comfortably rest on your lap - you should easily be able to do this for the way back too, just ask the staff where you are staying. If you are off somewhere remote then vacuum packing nappies can save a lot of space, or if you’re off to a city or town just take nappies and wipes for the first day as you’ll easily be able to pick these up when you’re there so will save a tonne of space in your packing.
The most important thing when travelling with children is to remember to stay calm and don’t panic. Sometimes plans change last minute and no amount of planning will change this but taking small steps to prevent added stress will help you to control the situation and spend more time with your family.
