From toddlers to tweens – having travelled with my two kids several times on long-haul flights, from the time when they were six months to when they turned double digits – I have experienced it all. I have walked through the airplane isles, mid-flight with kids, smiling sheepishly at strangers. Some smile back, others give a sympathetic look, some show understanding of been-there-done-that, and then there are always those, who seem vexed. I have also had some wonderful mums and grand-mums walk up to me to provide great advice. Rest assured, I have learnt some great tips and ways to keep kids entertained and busy on long-haul flights over the years.
I will not say it’s easy (which you knew anyway, else you wouldn’t be reading this article :)). But you can surely make it easier on yourself by being well-planned, well-prepared and well-stocked. Just don’t compare yourself to fellow passengers travelling childless, with their seats slightly inclined, enjoying a drink in their hand, and surfing inflight entertainment.
Below are my flight-survival tips and activities (real kid-tested and experienced several times) when travelling with kids. Here’s to creating beautiful memories.
Most important thing to remember is to keep an element of wonder, surprise and novelty alive for your kids during the trip. When choosing activities for them, remember to go for quiet things (if possible), compact, the ones that they can do independently (as much as possible), light-weight, mess-free, multiple use, and that do not rely much on batteries.
Snacks
- Snacks: this is first point on my list for a reason. I cannot stress this enough. Please pack your kid/s’ favourite snacks when going on travels. Snacks are super-helpful in a variety of situations and not just when your kids are hungry (and the air-hostesses are still 20 rows away with the meal service). They also come in handy to keep them occupied when they are bit bored, or when they are about to have a melt-down. It gives you a chance to breathe and think what to do, while they play with their snacks and munch some too. Think of in-flight food as bonus – don’t bank on it completely. Don’t forget to pack in lollipops (also useful during take-off and landing to keep them away from ear pain) or anything equivalent that they can suck on.
While I am a big advocate of healthy foods and minimal sweets for kids, I don’t follow these rules on long-haul flights or long road trips. Best to pack in treats that you don’t usually give them.
Related: You can see my yummy and easy snack and lunch box post here for ideas.
Back-packs
- Back-packs: both toddlers and tweens (as long as they have started walking) enjoy carrying their own back packs as it makes them feel in control and in-charge. Depending on the size of your kid and their back pack, they can carry their own disposable snack boxes, fidget toys, activity books and change of clothes in their bags. You will note that they seem much more responsible too. Backpack sizes will of course vary on the size of your little one. Needless to say, when they are tired, you might have to carry their bags, but it’s worth the weight!
Activity books
- Activity books: all-in-one variety activity books that have mazes, word puzzles, hidden pictures, or stickers were a huge success with my kids. Depending upon their age, you can pack books around sudoku, finding words, crossword puzzles, seek and find books, etc.
You may also consider grade-specific learning books on reading and comprehension, math, phonics, etc. In fact, these days you can find workbooks on any theme / character your child maybe interested in, such as Dora, Bluey, Paw Patrol. You could even carry a new stationery set to go along with these activity books and it’s a winner.
Kids cameras
- Kids cameras: these are absolutely amazing and worth every penny! Amazon sells some pretty reasonable ones starting from AUD 30. This will keep kids busy taking pictures and shooting videos all along the journey and at the destination too. You can all see them later as a fun family activity. The picture quality isn’t awesome and you would not want to print them out but they are wonderful for entertaining kids.
Colouring books
- Colouring books and crayons: choose their favourite character colouring books or sheets and keep it a surprise till you are on the plane. It never fails. Crayola has heaps of great, mess-free, invisible-ink, colour change pen/paper options and ‘magic’ pens that you may want to take along.
Movies, music and games
- Movies, music and games: iPad / tablet / smart phone / chrome book, whatever it is that you may have at home or carry with your kids, make sure to load it up with their favourite movies or the ones they haven’t watched yet, music and/or games in advance. Even if you are planning to have very less screen time – still do this. It is a god-send when you really need them to sit quietly for some time as you take a breather or a nap!
Good-old notepad and pen
- Good-old notepad and pen: no technology beats this. There are several things a notepad could be useful for. You and kids can play tic-tac or hang-man when you get bored. Other ideas include asking your child to write a story, creating an itinerary for your trip, or drawing pictures of what they think you’ll see or do on vacation. If nothing else, its great for you too. In my case, I remember so many to-do chores to get on to once I land or get back home; a notepad is very handy when that happens.
Travel journal and colourful pens
- Travel journal, washi tapes and colourful pens: work like a charm with my daughter. She loves taking pictures and writing about our travels through our journey. You can bundle it up with new washi tapes and colourful pens and present it mid-flight – it’s a winner! Travel journals work like a scrap book for both older and younger kids—older ones can write and decorate, and the younger ones can colour, draw and paste pics with your help.
Fidget toys or small new toys
- Fidget toys or small new toys: are also some other great options to keep them occupied. I recently came across all-in-one busy boards for sensory play on Amazon for younger kids and thought those would have been great for my son when he was little. I used to carry small fidget toys separately for my kids, which also worked great, but these all-in-one boards would have been awesome.
The toys don’t have to be expensive to be entertaining; just something you know they will enjoy. And carrying Lego on a flight is a bad idea! I have seen parents bending over backwards (literally) on flights scrambling under the seats to look for Lego pieces.
Headphones
- Headphones: investing in good quality headphones pays off in the long run. Not only do they block out the plane engine noise, they work like a charm when watching movies via in-flight entertainment, listening to audio books or enjoying music.
Magnetic games
- Magnetic games: work best when it comes to enjoying anything close to board games. The magnet keeps all the pieces stuck and intact on the game board so you don’t keep looking down for falling pieces. These are quite reasonably priced too. Check your local stores or Amazon and you may be able to find games such as ludo, shapes games, scrabble, chess, bingo, tic-tac, checkers for under $10 each.
Card games
- Card games: pack your child’s playing cards, UNO, etc – the whole family can enjoy playing cards. Alternatively, most airlines provide you with playing cards if you ask nicely. There are heaps of fun playing card games for all ages that can keep them kids going for hours. These days you can even find versions of playing cards that incorporate your favourite board games into card games, such as Monopoly and Yahtzee decks…
Books via kindle / audio books
- Books via kindle readers / audio books / audible: we have a rule of one book each, every time we travel. As we love to read, our bags will just be full of books if start packing them in. Instead, I ask my daughter to come up with a list of books or we download some e-books ahead of time on her tablet.
Most libraries these days (including our local one) offer a huge range of free e-books and audio books which you can easily load-up in advance on your iPad or tablet, and enjoy them while travelling. The challenge is to hold off from letting your child read them till it’s time for the flight. You can also find audio e-books for toddlers and younger kids.
Last but not the least:
Soak in the flight ambience
- Soak in the flight ambience: amidst our worries and trepidation about filling long hours with our kids, we forget to encourage them to experience the delight of just soaking in the whole in-flight experience. There is a certain aura and joy to flying, which even the most seasoned travellers enjoy each time. Encourage your kids to explore in-flight entertainment, meal options etc. For younger kids, help them switch their screens to see over which countries/states the plane is flying over in real time, walking down the aisles, and of course, looking out the window is always joy, esp. for kids. It can keep my son involved for full 20 minutes, each time, during take-off, landing and mid-flight too, if we are at a lower altitude.
Last one is for you–Me time
- Me-time: Don’t forget to squeeze in sometime for yourself to really enjoy the experience. You have prepped and planned well, and done everything you could! (I know that because you have reached to the end of this post.) So please take pockets of relaxation as and when they come (either when kids are napping, playing, eating, engrossed in anything) – do enjoy.
Hope you have a great trip!!
Are there any other ideas or activities you think should be included on this list? If you have had success with any other tips to keep your kids entertained during travelling, it would be great to hear from you.
Wow that was odd. I just wrote an incredibly long comment but after I clicked submit my comment didn’t show up. Grrrr… well I’m not writing all that over again. Anyhow, just wanted to say great blog!
Hi – sorry to hear you comment did not show up. Glad to know you are enjoying the posts! Thank you.
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