Sometimes, no matter now much research and words of advice you’re given before becoming a mother (and even while you are a mother), there are always some things that you seem to learn along the way that make you slap yourself in the head (D’OH!). How obvious, right? Yeah, not neccessarily. We don’t have the mind width to research every single topic out there and so a lot of things are learned due to trial and error. There are some vacation and outing related things I’ve learned along the way, that I think are worthwhile sharing:
When traveling via plane:
Most airlines allow you to check children-related items free of charge. Before you decide to leave helpful items such as car seats and strollers at home in order to avoid a charge, know that there is no cost for this (I mean traveling is expensive already so shout out to the airlines for allowing this!). Let’s also remember that children under the age of 2 years old are able to fly for free.
When traveling via plane with an newborn or infant:
This one can be tricky. “Should I travel with a newborn? It’s such a long flight? What if they aren’t comfortable?” With this topic, I say to each their own. Each parent knows the temperament of their child, what their child cannot handle and things they can do to help them relax if they do in fact make the decision to take them on a plane. I took my child to Hawaii at 3 months old and I’m happy I didn’t chicken out and call the whole thing off. I could not let the opportunity pass and again, the fact that CHILDREN UNDER THE AGE OF 2 ARE FREE was an incentive for sure! Here are just a couple of tips I can provide to make your flight a bit more manageable with an infant:
- Using some sort of wrap in order to put your child in a kangaroo position, which will help them to sleep. I used the Boba Wrap to wrap my child in a way that made her comfortable during the flight. Amazingly, she slept for the entire plane rides…entire!
- There are some airlines which offer additional services that help parents who are traveling with newborns. Get this, airlines such as Virgin Atlantic provide bassinets for parents to rest their newborns in; that’s an incentive for parents to fly with them if I’ve ever saw one!
- Don’t immediately freak out if your child starts crying. I think parents immediately move towards trying to stop their babies from crying immediately and that gets both them and the baby flustered. Keep calm and do your thing; try your best to pacify them but stay in control of the situation. If anyone has a problem with the crying, who the heck cares (some people can really be miserable)!
When traveling to the beach or doing any water-related activity:
Swimmers are not absorbable. This was definitely my “D’oh!” moment when traveling to Sesame Place for the first time with my toddler. I got her dressed and put one of these on instead of putting on her diaper; IMMEDIATELY she used the bathroom and the car seat was wet. It took a while for me to realize that putting one on her so far ahead was not a good idea. Pack swimmers but put them on relatively close to your child going into the water. I always use Huggies Little Swimmers Disposable Swimpants.
When Getting on Rides, Parent Swaps are SO helpful
This is something else that I didn’t know although the info about this was probably right in front of my face. It wasn’t until my husband and I went on two rides that we realized that both of us did not need to wait approximately 15 minutes in order to get on a ride. A lot of places allow caregivers to do a swap in that both wait on the line, at the same time with their children and then take turns getting on the ride while the other parent waits with the child in a designated area. This accommodating feature made our trip to Universal Studios all the more fun. `
For all of you out there with babes under the age of 3, there are several places that allow your child to enter for free (which helps because some of these places are EX-PEN-SIVE!!!). Here is a helpful list with a few places (which will be updated frequently) for you which displays some kid-friendly places which will give you some relief from using your funds:
- Sesame Place – Children under the age of 2 are free
- Disney World – Children under the age of 3 are free.
- Universal Studios – Children under the age of 3 are free. We used the parent swap for the first time here.
- Legoland – Children under the age of 2 are free
- Royal Caribbean (honorable mention) – This cruise line has just made it their policy that children under the age of 12 sail for free. Cruises are TONS of fun and again, incentives like these are hard to pass up.
I know at this age some people may think that it makes no sense to take a child to these places since they won’t remember the adventure however I always think it’s a benefit to take advantage of free opportunities. We have to pay for so many things in this world, why not book something that gives the pockets a little bit of relief!
There are so many more things that can come up and each of you will have your own “D’OH” moment and can share helpful tips with someone else. Whatever you do, try not to be fearful in trying new adventures and activities with your kids. As long as you ensure that your child is safe, take everything in as new and exciting experiences, taking in family time and making new lasting memories 🙂
