advice
Y
ou know the score: travelling
with a kid or two in tow seems to
quadruple your baggage. How
is it possible that such tiny people
require so much kit to cart? If there’s no
more space in your case and you’re fed
up of the knots in your spine that appear
after every “relaxing” family break, then
here are a few travel hacks that can help
you pack smarter when travelling with
little people.
If your little one is still at the age where
breast pumps, bottles and dummies
need sterilising, then cold-water sterilising
tablets are the travelling mum’s friend.
Rather than drag a steam steriliser and
adaptor plug on your holidays, cold-
water sterilising is quick, simple and works
anywhere you have access to water.
Milton Tablets come in packs of 28 and
can be safely reused for up to 24 hours,
meaning that you’ve always got clean
items to hand. Your author has used this
method to safely sterilise in hotel rooms,
on planes and even on a Sri Lankan
beach!
Muslins are already on every mum’s
essentials list, but they really come into
their own when you’re on the road.
Buy the largest size available, then
use on-board the plane as a cosy-yet-
lightweight blanket, or to swaddle restless
sleepers. Pack two to three clothes pegs
and pin your muslin to the headrest
covers in front and behind to shade small
eyes when the overhead lights ping on.
(Sadly, I’ve not yet found a good solution
to a poorly timed announcement from
Mum hacks:
Travel with tots
There’s no way to make that long-haul flight shorter, but
Kate Farr
offers these tips to make it more comfortable.
waking a newly sleeping bub!) This
humble cloth is also a makeshift stroller
sunshade, a comfortable stroller liner, a
knot-able bag for sticky or sandy clothes,
an emergency outfit… Basically, don’t
leave home without one.
Even if you’re usually a screen-free
family, don’t be shy about deploying
the good old tablet option, especially
if your flight is long-haul. But rather than
simply relying on cartoons and films, turn
your gizmo into a one-stop classroom
by downloading picture books,
puzzles, audio books (and please use
headphones or face the wrath of your
fellow passengers!), photo slideshows
and even virtual colouring-in pages to
keep small passengers entertained and
– crucially – quiet. Once you’re at your
destination, kids can utilise cloud storage
to collate a virtual scrapbook of their
holiday. Just check those Wi-Fi charges
before letting them loose!
The final say comes from family travel
expert, Nicola Burke, of Jetlag and
Mayhem
),
who suggests a couple of common sense
luggage tips: “Always use packing cubes,
available from any local market or online,
and don’t pack blind! Use a packing
list (Jetlag and Mayhem have a handy
printable version) and check things off as
you go along.” Nicola also recommends
getting older children involved with the
process from start to finish. “Let them
be part of the action and involved in as
much of the planning as possible, from
packing their own bag to researching
what they’d like to do when they arrive at
their destination.”
So, bags packed and family travel
hacked, it's time to enjoy your trip!
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