Photo by CC user Fiontain on Wikimedia Commons

Imagine flying with two kids, a toddler and an infant – and for the first time! When boarding a plane with small children in tow, you’ll irreversibly be plunged to many painstaking hours of shushing and appeasing.

Oh the joy of traveling with children. With the family holidays fast approaching, you might already be planning your vacation. If your chosen destination requires a flight, and you have children with you, then it pays to do a lot of advanced planning.

Here’s some tips on how to travel safe with children:

Packing tips. Imagine the horror of forgetting your baby’s bottle in the taxi when you’re already mid-flight. Depending on the age of the kids, bring all necessary things with you to keep them occupied and pacified.

You can have your little ones carry a small bag that contains their toys and other goodies for the flight. If there’s space, and depending on their capacity, you can put other essentials in their bags, such as diapers, bottles and wipes. Plus, this makes the child feel like a “big” boy or girl.

Pack more diapers than you think you’ll need, and at least two packs of wipes. Have an extra bottle and formula in case you misplace or lose one. If you nurse, make sure to wear loose clothing and bring a light blanket or make sure to get one on the plane when you board.

Before you board. Check the seat arrangements and kosher meals when checking in. Make sure the bassinet is reserved if traveling with a baby. If you don’t have a bassinet row, then make sure to sit at the very back of the plane. If you’re bringing a stroller, you’ll be asked to wait before you can depart. However, you’ll have more space at the back of the plane.

While waiting to get boarded, let the kids walk around, let your baby crawl, use this time to exercise – it’s the time to use that energy. Also, make sure everyone uses the bathroom before boarding. Change your baby’s diapers, even if they seem clean.

Toys. Pack toys that don’t have pieces or do not need numerous things to be played with. You can bring books to read to your kids, just make sure it’s light and compact. Also, provide each child with a small pack of crayons as opposed to bringing a big pack to avoid fighting over colors.

Food considerations. Do not bring one of every snack when you are traveling with more than one child, as you don’t want to have to deal with them fighting over it. Don’t bring sticky, crumby, or messy food, and make sure juice boxes are small can be finished at one time.

For treats, purchase individual chewing candies that can be distributed and never end up in the hands but go directly to the mouth.

Take-off and landing. Make sure to give each child something to drink or a gum to chew. For babies, make sure to nurse while taking off. Explain what’s happening to your children. If they’re too small to see out of the window, play a game where you tell them when you’re finally in the air or when the plane finally touched the ground.

That’s most of it! You can learn more tips on travelling in the school holidays, babymoons and the best places to travel with kids for family holidays by going online. When everything else fails. Remember that flights end and when it does, hopefully you have better luck the next time.