Travelling with older kids can be a real pleasure – the trip becomes a group effort. Older children can sometimes become bored quite easily, but it is always an interesting experience as they form their own impressions and tell you what they are experiencing. Children at this age are clearer about what they enjoy and what they don’t, which makes it fun to plan for the journey.
Remember to make a checklist and take it with you. Children can take their own daypacks with a book, colouring books, paper and pencils. Pack a few toys but don’t overdo it. Take food, snacks and water. You can take anything from bananas, apples, rice cakes, raisins, dried fruit and sandwiches.
You could also take along your young child’s blanket or pillowcase to make the journey and the places you visit more familiar.
Plan for travel sickness and have plastic bags, medication and a clean set of clothes handy. Also pack medication, such as child paracetamol, rehydration fluid and anything you might need for travel sickness, especially if you are unfamiliar with the local medicines. It can also help to think of the journey as an adventure in itself, and not just the means to get to your destination. To this end there are many fun ways that children can keep themselves busy on the journey – they can:
-
Collect things (stamps, postcards, shells, souvenirs) along the way and glue them into a journal.
-
Draw maps and pictures of what they see and maybe even write down the things they liked best.
-
Take photographs – a disposable camera is a fun cheap alternative.
-
Record sounds they hear or talk into a tape recorder if they are too tired to write.
Remember that every journey is different. There are, however, quite a few things that overlap whether you travel by air, car or train and every journey completed is practice and experience gained for your next journey. Spread the days out, i.e. don’t give them all their toys at once! Otherwise you might run out of ideas within the first hour. It is also wise not to pack any special blankets and toys in your main suitcase – rather take them with you on your journey, so that they are available.
