As of now, I’m going to say 14 and yes I remember the baby and toddler years. I had two different women come up to me at separate times in an airport last summer to tell me they remember the teen years with their kids and it gets better. I’m hopeful it does.

They know it all, are loud, condescending, rude and think they are smarter than everyone. All why being stupid awkward clueless teens.

The worst time was when I had to bring the heavy carseat on the plane. It was PITA, especially as a single parent. I only did it once or twice when I had to (my dad was dying in FL so we flew down to see him).

Anonymous wrote:I think it gets dramatically better when you don’t have to travel with big pieces of gear like car seats. Our kids are 11 and 13 and it has also been fun as they’ve gotten older to get them more involved in plans - we usually each pick one “must do” thing each trip so everyone has something they are looking forward to.

THIS. I was going to say the same thing. I have a 4 and 7 year old and we’ve traveled internationally a lot, domestically a fair bit too. The sheer amount of crap you have to bring for the under 3 set is mind boggling and I hated it. Now, we rent car seats with the agency (never had a problem), the kids sleep in a normal bed and share, and we don’t really need anything aside from iPads and a huge amount of snacks.

5-6 years. The 5-12 year olds are beautiful for traveling. They are curious and soak up experiences. They like to spend time with you. You get to watch them grow and develop in real time. It’s magical.

Teen years are a bit more iffy but they are also good to travel with.

Preschoolers are a nightmare.

Anonymous wrote:25-30

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

I think this goes to show that it is different for every family. I’be always said 12-20 months was the sweet spot where, as long as we let our son sleep, we could go anywhere. I have friends who’ve agreed. Ages 2-5 was a nightmare to go anywhere.

1-2 years old

Anonymous wrote:Mine are 9-11-13 and we just flew to my parents for the holidays tonight, and I was very grateful to not be travelling with little kids. Way less stuff to haul, they can entertain themselves, they didn't meltdown with the delays, they didn't miss their bedtimes.


Unfortunately we missed out on probably the "easiest" years to travel during covid - we are starting to get into the attitude years. I would say the youngest turning four was the turning point for things to get easier.

Same. We had one year of great travel with a 9 and 11 year old and then Covid hit. That year, they were old enough to walk a lot, were interested in the sights, would eat a variety of food, but could still enjoy running around in a park.
Now we’re in teenage snark territory and while it’s much easier physically than traveling with a 2 year old, it’s still exhausting.

OP, travel a lot in those years. It’s wonderful.

Mine are 9-11-13 and we just flew to my parents for the holidays tonight, and I was very grateful to not be travelling with little kids. Way less stuff to haul, they can entertain themselves, they didn't meltdown with the delays, they didn't miss their bedtimes.


Unfortunately we missed out on probably the "easiest" years to travel during covid - we are starting to get into the attitude years. I would say the youngest turning four was the turning point for things to get easier.

I just read this and thought it was an interesting perspective. We didn't travel much when DS was small, though, so I don't know what might have been:

https://sive.rs/tk

5-9 ages great. Depending on the kid 10. Post 11 sucks until maybe 16. Depending on kid gets better 16+

Hated traveling prior to age 5 based on all the travel gear and naps. Tweens are hard. Very much suggest adventure vacations where you have to move. Keep them moving and exhausted lol!

Well, OP, you're almost there. Just dont have another kid For us, once out of diapers, strollers, it got much easier, since you need less stuff. We also shaped trips to our kids capacities--did a lot of fairly chill beach and family trips when they were little and made sure we built in lots of down time when we went to places like NYC, Paris, etc--one or two things a day was good, rather than packing it all in.

Our experience was also dependent on the child. DS was highly mobile and had trouble changing routines as a baby/toddler but once screens were on the table (age 4) he was fine on any long flight. DD was a pretty easy baby and toddler (she often just slept on planes, cars, anything moving) for hours, but developed a shyness and stubborness around 4 and was far less interested once we got to a place and wanted her routine. They are still kind of like that at 10 and 12 in certain ways--DD is less adventurous and misses her friends, her room, the dog, her pillows, etc, while DS gets into new experiences quickly.

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

I think it gets dramatically better when you don’t have to travel with big pieces of gear like car seats. Our kids are 11 and 13 and it has also been fun as they’ve gotten older to get them more involved in plans - we usually each pick one “must do” thing each trip so everyone has something they are looking forward to.

25-30