Traveling as a family with young children requires a bit of organization and involves some sometimes cumbersome extras. These extras that seem essential to us in our everyday life:stroller, car seat, travel cot, nappies. But do you REALLY have to take all that? In fact, it all depends on your destination (paved roads, sand, slopes or hotel-clubs, etc.), your way of traveling, your needs, the forecast weather, the age of the children or the time spent there.
There is the "I take everything, you never know it can be useful" team. And there are us, who take the bare minimum without ever missing anything.
We try as much as possible to pack light when we travel. In concrete terms, everything must fit into 2 backpacks of 60 and 50 liters. In these bags we slip tote-bags which will sometimes serve as cabin bags, sometimes as beach bags or dirty laundry bags. There are also our belongings, those of the children, photo equipment and a little space to bring back some souvenirs. I'll try to make you a list as complete as possible, it's up to you to put or not in your suitcase what you need.
The identity card is essential for a minor to be able to travel within the European Union or within the Schengen area, registration in the family record book is not sufficient. The application for an identity card is free.
Passport is mandatory for travel outside the European Union. The cost of a passport for a minor under the age of 15 is €17 for a validity of 5 years. Remember to regularly check the validity dates, as with vaccines, time flies!
Visa is mandatory in addition to the passport to be able to travel to certain countries. The cost of a Visa varies from country to country. For the United States, it is 14 $ while it will cost you at least 44 € for India. To know precisely the administrative formalities of the country of destination, you can consult the foreign affairs website.
Remember to keep a copy of your administrative documents on your phone, computer as well as in your emails or on an online storage space.
The health book not essential when travelling. However, remember to check the dates of the last vaccinations. You can take a picture of the pages of the last consultations. Remember to bring the latest prescriptions if you want to take specific medications into the cabin.
We are looking for comfortable clothes that dry easily. Choose light materials such as cotton rather than jeans, it's always a few grams saved on the total weight of the suitcase. Bring clothes that "match" all together rather than a t-shirt that will only go with one outfit. Also avoid white, which gets dirty faster than darker colors. We realize during our travels that 2 or 3 outfits per person are more than enough.
It is often all of these clothes that we put on to leave, comfortable on the plane, they are then used for cooler mornings or to protect ourselves from mosquitoes in the evening.
We use our soap to do the laundry by hand on site or by using the washing machines of our Airbnb rentals. It is clearly easier to do your laundry on a campsite or in a rental than in a hotel where drying your laundry is almost impossible because of the air conditioning.
The first aid kit is essential for traveling peacefully with children. But the idea is not to travel with a mobile hospital but rather to have the essentials to treat the little sores of everyday life. For the rest, in case of emergency, you will always find a doctor or a nearby hospital.
We are lucky to have very few children, if ever sick, so we take the bare minimum. But if your children are prone to certain pathologies (asthma, ear infections, allergies, etc.), do not hesitate to check with your doctor or your pediatrician on the essential medicines to take with you on your trip. Also remember to check their mandatory vaccinations (and yours). Discuss with your doctor specific vaccines depending on the country of destination such as typhoid or hepatitis A and the interest of preventive treatment for malaria.
Note that you can take your medication with you on the plane. However, you will need to be able to present the prescriptions or certificates related to taking these medications in order to be able to take them with you in the cabin.
To make your medication take up less space, you can take the blister packs out of the boxes, tape the lids to prevent them from opening and wrap them with an elastic band with the instructions.
In addition to the children's medicine kit, let's not forget their toiletry bag to take on a trip.
Stroller or baby carrier? In fact, it all depends on how you travel. If you stay in town, the stroller can be useful. Depending on your type of accommodation, find out about the amenities offered on site, such as the loan of a stroller. If, on the other hand, you plan to alternate days at the beach and walks in the jungle, opt for the baby carrier instead. We used the Ergobaby up to the age of 3 girls with no problem.
The car seat is essential if you rent a vehicle to go on a road trip with your children. You can of course rent the car seat from the rental company or take your car seat with you. There are also group 3 inflatable boosters like the Bubble Bum that slip easily into a bag.
A water bottle that you will fill with water, either from the tap or from bottled water. When traveling, I advise you to find out about the health conditions of the country visited. We do not use tablets to disinfect the water. There is a system to filter 99.99% of bacteria:the Lifestraw. It is a straw capable of filtering and making the muddiest water drinkable, without aftertaste. This straw is ideal for hiking and is used in humanitarian missions to allow people to drink contaminated water.
A cot, a bathtub, a high chair? Sincerely for having traveled with our daughters since they were babies, these are essentials that are not! Either we had the possibility of having a cot in the hotels or rentals we had, or as babies they slept between the 2 of us or on a mattress on the floor. The real adventure! For the bathtub, a sink or basin will do the trick. And for the high chair we also do without.
We are planning a few games to keep the children busy during the train or plane journey:stickers, a book, a few figurines or the tablet on board the planes clearly do the trick.
And then there are "universal" games to play with each other, with the family but also with the children they may meet on the trip.
Felt pens :we use the 68 tips from Stabilo. Apart from their professional quality, the huge advantage of these markers is that it is possible to buy them individually. No more boxes of markers that accumulate because yellow wears out faster than brown, we only buy what we need.
In addition to markers, girls who love to paint take their brush with water reserve and their mini watercolor palette. Very practical on the plane or when traveling, the brush with water reserve allows children to paint without getting it everywhere!
Universal card games type Uno, Dobble (except for brands, what a horror!). When travelling, Zanimatch is our favorite for children. This card game brought the girls lots of laughs on a beach in Madeira with little Portuguese children of whom we did not understand a word. You can also bring a memory, a lotto or a game of dominoes.
Board games handheld type Smartgames. We love "Hares and Foxes".
Figures like Sylvanians, Playmobils or Schleich. They are small in size and slip easily into their travel bag.
A small pair of binoculars or a magnifying glass , always nice to make the hikes fun. Do not hesitate to read my article on our tips for walking with young children.
A Universal Discussion Guide , to be able to exchange without speaking a word of Hindi or Icelandic. Apart from the practical side when you do not master a language, this little guide allows children to learn a few simple words by talking with their playmates. There are several, in the form of pictograms, small drawings or photos.
Here you go! Your children's suitcase is ready! But before you leave, don't forget little Kevin being punished in the attic!
