Travelling can be a stressful experience in and of itself, so it goes without saying that travelling with your family has the potential for at least double the stress.
Imagine everything you have to take care of and attend to for yourself, but now you also have to make sure that everyone else in your family doesn’t fall foul of those potential pitfalls.
Needless to say, it’s important to dot your Is and cross your Ts when it comes to holidaying alongside those you love. Here are 10 of our best tips for travelling with your family for the very first time.
1. Have enough money on hand
Travelling can be expensive at the best of times, but the cost increases exponentially when you’re travelling alongside your family. That’s why you need to make sure that you budget for the trip properly. Try to leave no stone unturned; think about everything you might need to pay for, and make contingency plans in case your initial payment options fall through. If you’re struggling to make up the shortfall, then taking out personal loans and quick loans alike can help you to reach your goal.
2. Bring entertainment for the journey
Assuming your family contains at least one young person, it’s not easy to entertain them on the trip. If your flight is especially long, then there’s only so far that in-flight movies will take them. After a while, they’re probably going to start complaining of boredom, and that’s why you need to make sure you bring entertainment for the journey. If they’ve got a tablet – an iPad or a Kindle Fire, for instance – make sure to bring that with you so they’ve got plenty to do.
3. Pack everyone’s documents ahead of time
This one is more of a general travel tip than a specific family pointer, but it does also apply to family travel. You should definitely pack everyone’s documents – passports, visas, et cetera – far ahead of time. This minimises the risk that someone will forget their documents on the day, forcing you to turn back and waste time while you search for it. You might be the least forgetful person in the world, but if just one person in your family has a memory lapse, your trip could suffer.
4. Set out long before you think you need to
What’s worse – sitting around at the airport for an hour or two or making a mad dash for the plane? It’s important to leave plenty of time before you board your transport so that you can account for potential mishaps or mistakes. Believe it or not, many travel companies say that you should arrive at the airport at least 3 hours before your flight is due to depart. This gives you plenty of time to account for delays and other complications, and it means you’ve got virtually no chance of missing your flight.
5. Pack light
Make a list of absolute essentials the day before you’re set to fly, and keep to that list. You might want to allow just a couple of extras per person, but if you’re travelling with your family, then you’re probably going to have a lot of luggage. With that in mind, ask yourself – and your family members – what you’re really going to need when you travel. If something isn’t absolutely necessary for the trip or the holiday itself, then it’s probably safe to leave it at home.
6. Keep your kids with you at all times
We know this one probably sounds redundant and obvious, but it’s very important to keep your kids with you at all times when you’re travelling. If you lose sight of your kids for a moment, then the potential for them wandering off becomes much greater. It’s easy to get complacent if you’ve never travelled with kids before, but the risk of losing them for a moment is much greater when there are so many more distractions (as there usually are in an airport!).
7. Don’t do everything at once
Younger people will likely need to rest a little more than you might while you’re on holiday. While you and your partner might be eager to see everything that’s out there, your kids won’t necessarily understand that drive, and they might also be struggling to sleep when they’re in an unfamiliar environment. With that in mind, you should keep activities to a reasonable level; don’t try to pack everything into a day or two. Spread activities out and leave lots of time for rest.
8. Make sure to try new things
A holiday with your family is the perfect opportunity to broaden some horizons. Your kids should get the opportunity to try as many different kinds of food as they can; having an expanded and broad palate will help them tremendously in later life. Go out to restaurants (provided they’re well-liked by the locals, of course) and try to encourage your kids to try new food. They might be reluctant at first, but give them a little of yours and they’ll soon be clamouring for more.
9. Be democratic
Everyone in your family might have a slightly different idea of what they want to do when you travel. It’s important to make sure you listen to a range of voices and keep everyone’s preferences in mind. Don’t assume that everyone will always want to do the thing you want to do; everyone in your group should be allowed a say in what activities you do while you’re away. Hold democratic votes on what to do on each day, and everyone will be happier with the result.
10. Allow for mistakes
The potential for mistakes is essentially doubled for each new person in the group, so if there are four of you, then you can assume at least a fourfold increase in the likelihood things will go wrong. Accept that this is probably going to happen at some stage and find ways of dealing with it rather than raging against fate. Talk to your family regularly and check in with them to see how they’re feeling, and make sure they know you don’t hold it against them if they mess up – we’re all only human!