When travelling with kids, fasten your seat belts and be ready for some awesome surprises and unpredictable shocks as well. Sana Amjad Malik, a freelance graphic-designer with three toddlers shares her tried and tested out-of-the-box tips to help parents…
When Booking
Choose to explore one city within your entire vacation instead of hopping around multiple destinations. Avoid the burnout of excessive air travel and repeated hotel check-ins. Remember kids need time to adjust. Make sure you’re not uprooting them just when they’re beginning to get familiar and enjoy. Plan your itinerary, but stay flexible. Afterall, you aren’t a family out of a film, so don’t feel frustrated if the catalogue itinerary isn’t followed to the hilt.
When Packing
Travel light. Really light. Keep neutral lowers such as jeans and a few tops. This ensures easy packing and easier unpacking. Fewer things to take care of. No arguments over what you want your kids to wear and what they want to don. Lesser fights equals more fun.
Upon Arrival
When there, take it as an opportunity to reinforce human goodness in your offspring. Be a role model. Leave all your bitterness at home and pack all your laughter and sense of humor when you are out with your kids. These human touches will be their treasures when they grow up.Imbue respect and tolerance for the country and culture that you are visiting.
Research beforehand and talk to your kids about local customs and traditions. Make them understand and not ‘judge’ why things are done differently in various parts of the planet.
When Buying Gifts
It’s best to encourage kids to pick something for their friends. Allocate a certain budget and give them the liberty to pick. It’s an excellent way to boost their self-esteem and confidence.
When Eating
Adults tend to read the menu in detail to choose what they fancy. Without realizing, most kids get stuck with what their
parents pick for them. Agreed, moms know best what their kids will consume and what they will waste. But vacation is
a good time to break the norms and let the kids make their choices. There’s a big chance that your child ends up widening
the horizons of his palette just because he feels responsible for the choice.
And finally…
All said and done, travelling with kids is a chance no one should miss! It’s more rewarding than all the points you will ever collect in your credit card. It will teach you more about life than the complete Dale Carnegie series put together. And it will be more refreshing.
