Travel with family is a step up from the days of enjoying vacation as a couple. There’s a lot more in the way of logistics to manage and to ensure everything is booked, packed and prepared ahead of time.
If you’re looking to hack your family travel this year, here’s a helpful guide to family-friendly travel this year.
- Plan ahead
When it comes to family travel, always look to plan ahead. This is perhaps the most important part of the process and the best way to make the most out of your family travels.
Look at what you can do ahead of time, from purchasing clothes, to booking travel and accommodation. The more you can get ahead with when it comes to your travels, the better.
When you plan ahead, you also are likely saving some money, as well as spreading the cost of the balance you’ll be paying off when it comes to booking a family vacation to somewhere – wherever that somewhere may be.
- Pack smart
Packing smart is a part of the process and something you want to get right when it comes to doing it for numerous household members. It was certainly a lot easier when it was just packing for yourself but now you probably have numerous members to pack for.
Try to pack early on where you can and use packing cubes that can help maximize the space you have available. Try to keep things compact and don’t try and repack otherwise that will only add more stress to the situation. You should also pack your clothes across a number of suitcases, just in case a suitcase were to go missing at any point.
- Have activities and snacks for your kids entertainment
To keep your kids entertained, especially the little ones and particularly on long-haul flights, look for activities and snacks to bring.
Activities such as interactive toys and tablets can be great for keeping your children entertained whilst they’re in their seats.
Snacks are great to keep them well fed and to help with any challenges when traveling, such as flying and avoiding any ear pain from taking off or landing. Make sure that you’ve got everything in their sacs d’école.
- Be strategic with seating
When it comes to seating, be strategic with your seat allocation. Ideally, it’s good to have command of a section or row depending on many are traveling.
Look at window seats and try to sit adults in between kids so that you’ve both got access to your children, rather than it being just one adult looking after the rabble.
- Manage expectations and be flexible with yourself
Finally, remember that family travel can come with a lot more stress and management. So it’s good to manage those expectations and be flexible with yourself and your travel party. Stress can often come from making a tight itinerary or a travel plan that might not always go strictly to plan.
These tips will hopefully give you everything you need to hack your family travel this year.