Experienced parents, what was the hardest age for traveling? When did it permanently improve?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:12 was the hardest age. Kid thinks they know everything, won't help wtih anything, only wats to do what they want to do.

Kid is 15 now, and ven they will tell you they ruined the Hawaii vacation.

Teens can be threatened and bribed. Toddlers hands down. Teens you can also leave. Don’t want to go to Haleakala, fine stay here we’ll go without you.

Yeah, I agree with this. I was a horrible drama queen teen but nothing compared to my toddler at her worst. -OP

LOL. Ok, check back in 12 years.

Condescending teen parents are one of the worst parts of this forum. I came here asking for advice and I get snark. Can we not?

If you're op, you didn't come here asking advice. You posted a question about when the meltdowns end. If you're not getting the answers you need, ask a direct question

[Anonymous]

The worst trip I ever took was with a 2 yo who had just learned to open doors. She bolted every time her feet hit the floor, opened doors instantly, and kept running. We're lucky she wasn't flattened like a pancake on the streets of San Francisco. Of course that was couples with awful jet lag so she was up for the day every morning at 3 AM and crashed by 4 PM. Trip from hell.

It got better for us once my kids dropped naps. That opens up a lot more of your day.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thanks all for the feedback, and again, apologies for snapping at the parents of teens. I should've been clear that I was looking for reassurance more than anything! (And I'm sure teens are very tough in their own way.)

[Anonymous]

When my kids were 18 months to 4 years, it wasn't necessarily the long flights that were the worst. The worst one was a two hour jump from Houston to Mexico. My husband had my son and some guy was yelling "give him to his mother", even though the kid preferrd to be with dad.

[Anonymous]

Just came here to say that the whole terrible teen thing is not a given. Not every teen is a mopey, miserable human who hates their parents. Lots, in fact most that I know are generally interesting and a lot of fun to be around. My kids help me engage with the world in a different way.

[Anonymous]

I agree with age 3.5/4. But it’s also so personality dependent. Our 5 year old is harder than our 3 year old.

[Anonymous]

For us it was between 9 - 24 months. They are more mobile, they are less entertained by screens, and require a lot of stuff to be taken with them. Physically it's exhausting. I think we are in a good spot now at 4 and 6.

[Anonymous]

For us it’s been the teen years. Lots of mood swings, high need for sleep.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:“Permanently improve?” Trust me, teens can be sulky and obnoxious.

Just plan vacations that meet their developmental needs, abilities and interests; you should be fine.

Well this gets to the other issue - when you have other kids and are trying to juggle the developmental needs, abilities and interests of all of them. Traveling with elementary, middle and high schoolers is like putting together a challenging puzzle and hoping it looks good in the end.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Teens have meltdowns too.

Try to find the source of the meltdowns instead of thinking of it as frustrating or defiant behavior. A meltdown means a limit has been hit; a need is not met. Add humor.

Non-responsive. The answer is 9 months to 3 years. Travel/vacations at that age are very difficult.

There are no vacations with children. There are only trips.

I hear this a lot on this board and completely disagree. We’ve had fantastic and yes relaxing vacations with our three kids.

[Anonymous]

6-12 are the golden years of travel. Do as much as possible then. You can even miss some school.
13+ they start getting busy with sports practice/summer school/mandatory conditioning OR don’t want to leave friends!

That said we travelled abroad when my kids are 3 & 6, and they were great. Just depends on how the kids travel.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just came here to say that the whole terrible teen thing is not a given. Not every teen is a mopey, miserable human who hates their parents. Lots, in fact most that I know are generally interesting and a lot of fun to be around. My kids help me engage with the world in a different way.

Our teens are moody at home with school/social pressures, but usually much more pleasant on vacation. We allow for a lot of sleeping and independent exploring. They help pick destinations and activities.

Adjust travel style for the family you have at that time.

I’m just happy not to be lugging around a lot of gear, worrying about pee accidents, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:About 9-18 months is the worst time to travel. We've enjoyed traveling with our kid ever since then.

This was the worst for us but I don’t have experience parenting teens!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The worst trip I ever took was with a 2 yo who had just learned to open doors. She bolted every time her feet hit the floor, opened doors instantly, and kept running. We're lucky she wasn't flattened like a pancake on the streets of San Francisco. Of course that was couples with awful jet lag so she was up for the day every morning at 3 AM and crashed by 4 PM. Trip from hell.

It got better for us once my kids dropped naps. That opens up a lot more of your day.

Ugh, what a nightmare!

[Anonymous]

I have found the people who expect their teens to be a-holes tend to have teens who are a-holes.