How do people travel with young kids?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We lived in Europe from the time our kids were 1, 4, and 7, and traveled a ton with them for 4 years. It wasn't always easy, but it was totally worth it!

The key is to have really low expectations - you can't do more than one scheduled stop/museum/event per day, and you have to build in a lot of time to chill. We would always find a playground or park, try to stay in a hotel with an indoor pool, have lots of ice cream breaks, just so the trip would feel fun for them too.

Also - don't stress about packing; you can buy anything you need (this was a key thing for me to realize).

Kids are more resilient than you think. We were slaves to a schedule for our first, but realized that kids learn to sleep almost anywhere. Our baby learned to nap in his stroller and to this day (he's 7 now) can sleep anywhere.

The worst trips for us have always involved staying at someone else's house for a visit - inevitably my kids get sick/scream all night, and the stress involved with that is much worse.

You can drive and enter another country in Europe easier than you can certain states in this country. It’s just a different dynamic when you are going from say, France to Spain compared with DC to Spain (flights, time change). I don’t think OP is asking about driving to the beach for a vacation but rather flying to far off places for instagram worthy pictures.

And no kids aren’t “resilient” - some are more adaptable to change to routine than others are, and you have to meet your child where he is. For example, a young child coping with ADHD or anxiety isn’t going to magically adjust to your family’s travel preferences, and with young children you may have glimpses of these patterns without a diagnosis yet. Some children really do struggle to sleep other places than a crib or dark bedroom and won’t adjust to a nap on the go just because you keep trying.

[Anonymous]

We do it by only having one child. He is generally very laid back and go with the flow. I also think traveling has helped to encourage that trait even more.
He is 3.5 and we have taken him to France, Spain, Peru, and Colombia. Many domestic flights, as well. Probably 25 flights since he was 3 months old.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We do it by only having one child. He is generally very laid back and go with the flow. I also think traveling has helped to encourage that trait even more.
He is 3.5 and we have taken him to France, Spain, Peru, and Colombia. Many domestic flights, as well. Probably 25 flights since he was 3 months old.

I’m surprised you were able to fly so much during covid!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We lived in Europe from the time our kids were 1, 4, and 7, and traveled a ton with them for 4 years. It wasn't always easy, but it was totally worth it!

The key is to have really low expectations - you can't do more than one scheduled stop/museum/event per day, and you have to build in a lot of time to chill. We would always find a playground or park, try to stay in a hotel with an indoor pool, have lots of ice cream breaks, just so the trip would feel fun for them too.

Also - don't stress about packing; you can buy anything you need (this was a key thing for me to realize).

Kids are more resilient than you think. We were slaves to a schedule for our first, but realized that kids learn to sleep almost anywhere. Our baby learned to nap in his stroller and to this day (he's 7 now) can sleep anywhere.

The worst trips for us have always involved staying at someone else's house for a visit - inevitably my kids get sick/scream all night, and the stress involved with that is much worse.

You can drive and enter another country in Europe easier than you can certain states in this country. It’s just a different dynamic when you are going from say, France to Spain compared with DC to Spain (flights, time change). I don’t think OP is asking about driving to the beach for a vacation but rather flying to far off places for instagram worthy pictures.

And no kids aren’t “resilient” - some are more adaptable to change to routine than others are, and you have to meet your child where he is. For example, a young child coping with ADHD or anxiety isn’t going to magically adjust to your family’s travel preferences, and with young children you may have glimpses of these patterns without a diagnosis yet. Some children really do struggle to sleep other places than a crib or dark bedroom and won’t adjust to a nap on the go just because you keep trying.

Fine, but that's pretty stupid. There are plenty of places to travel around here (though, yes, true that a flight to Europe isn't the same as a drive). We are back in the US now, and do similar driving trips all the time - plenty of instagrammable spots in Pennsylvania, Tennessee, West Virginia, New York (all similar drive-times that we did in Europe).

The question is whether you want to let your child's routine be the driver of your family's routine. For us, this was simply impossible once we had three kids. Setting aside the travel, our youngest simply had to be more flexible because our older kids had sports and school events. Most kids probably sleep better in a darkened room in a bed, but it's just not possible all the time. And guess what, they'll most likely adapt.

[Anonymous]

We have 2yo and 6yo DDs Beach vacations with no set itinerary are the easiest with the little one. We rent a house or condo. Short weekend trips that are within a 3 or 4 hour drive also work well. 2yo DD will nap a bit in a stroller or car, so that helps. Our biggest hoop to jump through with travel is that she has multiple food allergies, 2 of which are anaphylactic, so dining out is a huge challenge. I’ve gotten very used to toting along a ton of food everywhere we go.
We are attempting Disney in a few months, and that will include our first air travel since pre-Covid (and before DD2 was born). I’m hoping it isn’t a disaster. Low expectations!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We do it by only having one child. He is generally very laid back and go with the flow. I also think traveling has helped to encourage that trait even more.
He is 3.5 and we have taken him to France, Spain, Peru, and Colombia. Many domestic flights, as well. Probably 25 flights since he was 3 months old.

I’m surprised you were able to fly so much during covid!

We did not travel from April-Sept 2020. Did a few flights related to a move between Sept 2020 and Jan 2021. Back to normal domestic and international travel since April 2021.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We have 2yo and 6yo DDs Beach vacations with no set itinerary are the easiest with the little one. We rent a house or condo. Short weekend trips that are within a 3 or 4 hour drive also work well. 2yo DD will nap a bit in a stroller or car, so that helps. Our biggest hoop to jump through with travel is that she has multiple food allergies, 2 of which are anaphylactic, so dining out is a huge challenge. I’ve gotten very used to toting along a ton of food everywhere we go.
We are attempting Disney in a few months, and that will include our first air travel since pre-Covid (and before DD2 was born). I’m hoping it isn’t a disaster. Low expectations!

PP here. Interestingly, I find beach vacations/things with no set itinerary focused around being in a rental....the MOST stressful for my child and myself. Doing a big family weekend in a rental either at the beach or random locale have been the most unpleasant experiences. Sitting around an unfamiliar house without "your stuff" is tough for us. DS (and all of us) thrive on more adventurous trips (so far). We have adopted a rough schedule for our trips- DS still naps. Pre nap, the goal is 1 activity for him (playground, something active, a museum we know DS will enjoy etc) and after nap, 1 activity for us. That has worked well for us, so far. I had to change my perspective from pre-kid travel. I will also say that I have created lovely memories and seen things I never would have seen, and met some interesting people at random playgrounds in different countries!

[Anonymous]

for the 2 year old, there's a new product called the slumbered, it's basically a blackout tent that can go over pack and play. this helped a ton with getting ours to nap well on trips.

[Anonymous]

sorry, SLUMBERPOD I meant

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have 2yo and 6yo DDs Beach vacations with no set itinerary are the easiest with the little one. We rent a house or condo. Short weekend trips that are within a 3 or 4 hour drive also work well. 2yo DD will nap a bit in a stroller or car, so that helps. Our biggest hoop to jump through with travel is that she has multiple food allergies, 2 of which are anaphylactic, so dining out is a huge challenge. I’ve gotten very used to toting along a ton of food everywhere we go.
We are attempting Disney in a few months, and that will include our first air travel since pre-Covid (and before DD2 was born). I’m hoping it isn’t a disaster. Low expectations!

PP here. Interestingly, I find beach vacations/things with no set itinerary focused around being in a rental....the MOST stressful for my child and myself. Doing a big family weekend in a rental either at the beach or random locale have been the most unpleasant experiences. Sitting around an unfamiliar house without "your stuff" is tough for us. DS (and all of us) thrive on more adventurous trips (so far). We have adopted a rough schedule for our trips- DS still naps. Pre nap, the goal is 1 activity for him (playground, something active, a museum we know DS will enjoy etc) and after nap, 1 activity for us. That has worked well for us, so far. I had to change my perspective from pre-kid travel. I will also say that I have created lovely memories and seen things I never would have seen, and met some interesting people at random playgrounds in different countries!

Same. My god I hate beach vacations. It's just my kids screaming in a new location.

[Anonymous]

We have traveled overseas with our young ones. What helped was keeping them on this timezone. They could stay up later and enjoy family dinners that way, and the transition back wasn't bad. The flights were horrendous though. In general I would say not worth it unless there is a family reason to travel.

Our kids are 8 and 5 now but we've traveled a lot with them domestically in the past few years. Usually about three weeks in the summer, a week in the spring, and random long weekends throughout the year. What works for us:

1) Rent a house that is on the beach or near where we want to spend most of our time. Location is key because all transitions take time.
2) Bring blackout sheets and sound machines.
3) Keep the same routine for the most part -- when your youngest gets to be about 5 maybe you can stretch bedtime later, but for us personally having everyone well rested made for a much more fun trip.
4) Pack and plan food such that we don't have to worry about shopping or cooking elaborate meals.
5) Research things like playgrounds and rainy day activities ahead of time.
6) This is a big one -- once we find a place we like, repeat! It builds meaningful memories for the kids to go back to the same tidepools each year, or visit the same farm.

Once your youngest is 3 it's probably going to be a lot easier, and it gets exponentially easier each time. When ours was below that age we'd have to rent cribs or drive with a lot of equipment. Packing lists had to be long and detailed. Now it's just basically their clothes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We have 2yo and 6yo DDs Beach vacations with no set itinerary are the easiest with the little one. We rent a house or condo. Short weekend trips that are within a 3 or 4 hour drive also work well. 2yo DD will nap a bit in a stroller or car, so that helps. Our biggest hoop to jump through with travel is that she has multiple food allergies, 2 of which are anaphylactic, so dining out is a huge challenge. I’ve gotten very used to toting along a ton of food everywhere we go.
We are attempting Disney in a few months, and that will include our first air travel since pre-Covid (and before DD2 was born). I’m hoping it isn’t a disaster. Low expectations!

PP here. Interestingly, I find beach vacations/things with no set itinerary focused around being in a rental....the MOST stressful for my child and myself. Doing a big family weekend in a rental either at the beach or random locale have been the most unpleasant experiences. Sitting around an unfamiliar house without "your stuff" is tough for us. DS (and all of us) thrive on more adventurous trips (so far). We have adopted a rough schedule for our trips- DS still naps. Pre nap, the goal is 1 activity for him (playground, something active, a museum we know DS will enjoy etc) and after nap, 1 activity for us. That has worked well for us, so far. I had to change my perspective from pre-kid travel. I will also say that I have created lovely memories and seen things I never would have seen, and met some interesting people at random playgrounds in different countries!

Same. My god I hate beach vacations. It's just my kids screaming in a new location.

Also same. I can’t stand renting beach houses. Cooking/cleaning/making sure no one drowns/sand in everything. No thanks.