Travel Mantra for a vacation with kids

Hola ! How many of us are in double minds when it comes to holidaying with our toddler/infants/kids ? I guess the majority would worry if it would be a vacation at all or just more hassles and added responsibilities ! Let me assure you if we do our planning meticulously we would have the best vacations possible with our lil ones .. Trust me on this..

Factors to consider for a healthy and fun-filled trip -

1. What's your destination ..

One of the major decision would ofcourse be where you are heading to.. I would always consider the flight duration , connectivity ( direct or not ) , road travel involved and most importantly the weather conditions at the time of travel as per my lil ones travel exposure and age.

Opting for shoulder seasons would give you the best of a pleasant stay , lesser crowd and cheaper rates.

I have always chosen a direct connectivity destination with relatively lesser duration to travel first and gradually increase the travel duration once the kid understands the concept of flight travel.

We stay in India and started with domestic trips and graduated to International ones within Asia ( Srilanka , Singapore , Malaysia ).

2.  Where would you Stay

Stays are the next important factor when we travel with toddlers and kids .. cooking kid specific food, giving them more space to run, sterlising their bottles,
boiling the milk during night hours ... all these and so many other tasks can be accomplished if we choose to stay at a home away from home kinda place . So splurge if required but choose the most comfortable place and a kitchen is a must ! We have stayed in resorts / hotels suites with kitchen / service apartments / Airbnb ... and all of these can serve your purpose if you have that tiny corner called the kitchenette alongwith a spacious room..

3. Itienary

Don't be over ambitious when it comes to planning your target points a day.. cover more in less is my mantra ... Spend more time to soak in all the beauty for a few shortlisted points a day rather than trying to cover everything in a day.. This way you enjoy the best spots as per your priorities and tire less ( both your baby and yourself ).

Additionally keep both the travelling days totally free and the travel itself would be quite taxing for the lil ones. Yeah go ahead apply for those extra days of leaves now :)

If there is a road trip involved - plan you arrival and departure timings well. Its also important to consider the journey duration so that it helps your kid take  atleast one nap in between.

4. Local transportation

Always opt for personal cabs / hired cars rather than opting for public transport. Make all arrangements prior to landing in your vacation spots. No last minute unwanted surprises needed . We have always pre booked our cabs be it full tour or to pick and drop us at our sightseeing spots.

5. Visiting spots 

Choose kid friendly spots that would interest them. No point in going to places where they are bored and become all cranky and finicky. Go ahead and become a kid yourself once again and enjoy what your kids would love.

6. Essentials

Always carry a bag of essentials wherever you go. It would include baby snacks, medicines, diapers and extra pair of clothes, fav toy/book. Trust me these would be you saviours for the day.

7. Vacation pact

Let there be no rules to ruin any fun  for your kids during your vacation days. Yes , I mean let them indulge and watch their fav videos , play their fav game, eat otherwise restricted not so healthy food ( wafers , french fries , chocolates ) intermittently. After all we do break our set of rules too .. isn't it .. so be cool and have fun. Ensure the kid also eats his proper course of lunch and dinner along with the  above.

8. Research well
Best piece of advice I can give is research well what kind of place your visiting , what's the local customs , what's the go to place to get the emergency refills of baby essentials, nearest doctor location, cultural beliefs and customs.. All of it would help you plan the trip better with your baby and avoid any kind of discomfort.

9. Flight travel tips

Last but not the least, most worrisome part of our plan is how would the kid react to the flight travel.

Few tips :
a. Always feed your lil one during take off and landing time if not already asleep.

b. Tire them out till then so that they fall asleep in the flight

c. If it's an overnight flight make arrangement so that they can sleep well. Carry a bedding or cushions to make them a mini bed like seat.

d. Try to give them their fav toys/articles/activities/songs if they are getting out of hands and once they calm down try and  divert them. Note - please keep a offline download of all their fav rhymes, songs and videos :)

That's pretty much it what I consider before planning my vacation with my mighty lil man :) Keep it simple and homely is all I can say.. Happy holidaying :)