Traveling With Young Kids

Travelling with children can be somewhat like shooting a herd of wild goats on vacation. Whether they're your own or somebody else's, factoring a child's needs to your travels involves a lot more than adhering on a CD full of pop music and making toilet stops. Here two Rough Guides writers discuss their hard-won wisdom. First up, mum of 2 Hayley Spurway offers guidance on traveling with toddlers, then Ross McGovern reveals how he handles to travel with older children. Hayley Spurway's hints for traveling with toddlers

Keep the actions coming

In case you're heading out on a lengthy journey have a collection of toys to be handed out once an hour. Handheld puzzles, tiny colouring books, stickers, wordsearches and even tiny packs of Plasticine will pass time on a long flight or car journey.

Keep bugs at bay

If you're travelling to Paignton or Peru, antibacterial wipes and hand sanitizer are handbag essentials. A wipe of the cutlery in restaurants where you're unsure of hygiene, or a squirt of hand sanitizer if there's no washing facilities, can zap a few germs and prevent toddlers grabbing some common bugs.

Encourage them to keep a travel journal

Get your kids drawing and record things they've seen and intriguing foods they've tried. Who knowsthis may also encourage them to try different foods. Collecting postcards from places that you visit and asking them to compose themselves a message on the back means that they could attain adulthood with a library of memories all their own.

Bear in Mind the baby wipes

Even if all of your kids are long out of nappies, don't forget the baby wipes. They're useful for washing hands, cleaning toilet chairs, and wiping down restaurant tables. At the same spirit, little bottles of hand cleanser may be a lifesaver in a few nations, but check the journey regulations for fluids well in advance.

Have quite a few family games prepared in the event of delay.

Punch-buggy and padiddle are popular, if violent, favourites for car travels, whereas more cerebral ones like the Alphabet match are far safer for air travel.

Ross McGovern's travel tips for older children

Don't allow the kids pack their own rucksacks We once went to a excursion with our eight-year-old, who whined incessantly that her backpack was too heavy. The main reason why? She'd brought along her entire collection of fossils "just in case". Do let the children have input but remember to edit that before death.