Flying long haul with kids

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More than 6 hours on a plane with children is some peoples’ idea of hell, some people see families board a plane and hope that they aren’t sitting near them. We’ve flown long haul a few times with our children and if you are well prepared, the children can enjoy the flight as much as anyone.

Here’s my top tips for flying long haul with the kiddos.

Think about flight times.

Most airlines will schedule flights to have the least amount of jetlag, but it’s worth checking the flight times and trying to choose one that best fits your children’s routine. When flying west (holidays to the USA or Mexico) we opt for morning flights. The time difference is usually 5 or 6 hours. We are about an hour away from the airport, we’ve found that if the kids are up early it doesn’t matter if they have an hour or two nap on the plane because it will only help with beating the jetlag. When flying east (usually coming home) we opt for night flights, the routine is usually that we leave the resort or accommodation after having lunch, which means the inflight meal is classed as the evening meal (we have lots of snacks too) but about two hours into the flight it’s then time for the children to sleep. We prep them before the flight, so they know they are going to bed on the plane, this works for us and the girls think it's exciting going to bed on the plane, you need to choose flights which work for you.

Entertainment.

I know how easily bored I am normally and how it multiplies when I’m on a plane, imagining how bored children will be when they are limited to a seat, entertainment is a huge part of the journey. As I’m a teacher, this is just second nature to me, I love to plan and be organised. Finding activities to entertain the kids and knowing what works, I find quite easy and enjoyable. I’m quite a creative person and this has inevitably rubbed off on my kids, we love anything arty and crafty, whilst cutting and sticking might be a problem due to not being able to take scissors onto a plane, there are loads of activities out there that do work. I make both of the kids an entertainment pack each, this is an A4 zippy wallet full of things to do, variety being the key. I opt for these zippy wallets because they are sturdy, roomy, waterproof and zip close https://amzn.to/3R5FGhL . I then fill these with colouring books, puzzle books, a kid’s magazine that has some sort of toy attached, felt pens, pencil crayons and fidget toys. I always opt for Crayola pipsqueaks for felt pens as they are small enough to pack, bright in colour and most importantly are washable! https://amzn.to/47YeY0v . My children love fidget toys and these work well on planes as they pack small, you can pick them up in loads of different places and Amazon has plenty to choose from, we usually pick up ones like this https://amzn.to/3sAdBFo the variety packs are great and I split the pack between the two kids and the two flights so that they have ‘new toys’ for the journey home. As I said earlier my children love to craft and there are loads, they can do safely on a flight. We love the GALT craft kits, I take them out of the boxes and put them into smaller zip wallets so they fit into each of the kids packs. I have found one or two kits does two flights and the entire holiday. Here are some of the ones we’ve used and loved. Just make sure you check with your airline that none of the parts are prohibited.

Foil badges https://amzn.to/3YZesLG

Foil art https://amzn.to/3Z7HTLS

Flower rings https://amzn.to/47VP1Pn

Mega Mosaics https://amzn.to/3P4wOql

Felt Jewellery https://amzn.to/3ElaBzh

If you’re not the creative type and the thought of attempting to make up an entertainment pack for your kids is enough to not want to book the flight then there are loads of companies out there that you can buy plane specific entertainment packs from for children. I particularly love https://www.keepemquiet.com as you can tailor the packs to your needs, long-haul, short-haul, large or small and each pack is different each time so it’s not repetitive on each flight. They also come in a drawstring bag which either fits easily into your hand-luggage or doubles up as your child’s carry on.

If you are on a long-haul flight there are usually screens for watching films and playing games which are great, but I always plan for these not working, because it happens. Both of my children have their own Amazon fire kids tablets, we pre-load them with games, books and videos that they like to play on without the need for Wi-Fi. My two have these https://amzn.to/3P2YOKD (don’t forget to pack headphones, not even I want to listen to the noises that come out of them, let alone anyone else). These are a life saver in the airport for being stuck in queues, and all the waiting round, although we try and let our kids walk/run round as much as possible in the airport as they don’t mind sitting in one seat as much if they have had chance to stretch their legs.

Snacks

It doesn’t matter how fantastic the flight food is or how entertained your children are, having a stash of snacks that your children like and being able to hand them out as often as needed is important. Remember that their routine is out of sorts anyway and they are going to need the energy to be able to stay awake and beat the jetlag so having a constant supply of snacks is only going to help. It doesn't have to be sugary sweets and chocolate either (although those are the ones that go down best with my two) I always pack things like tubes of pringles (they don’t end up like dust being squashed in a bag), small packs of chocolate and sweets, cereal bars (although try not to opt for nutty ones in case someone on your flight has an allergy), small boxes of raisins, individual bags of popcorn.

Comfort

I’m one of those people that likes to look smart when I travel but I do have to be comfortable, and the same goes for the kids. The girls are easy to dress for travelling. I usually opt for either a jumpsuit https://amzn.to/3qUn8GN or a simple pair of leggings and a nice cotton top or t-shirt, a zip up hoodie and shoes that are easy to slip on and off like converse https://amzn.to/3sBcs0j . I always opt for something with socks, because I don’t want them to have cold feet. For travelling home at night, I tend to put them in clothes that are similar to pyjamas but smart enough to wear in public like this https://amzn.to/45wS4fa . We also pack a small fleece blanket for each child as planes can get quite cold, especially when sat still for such a long time. We have ones similar to this https://amzn.to/3LuWdbN ours are from Primark.

We all take a neck pillow when travelling on planes or long car journeys. My children when asleep always turn into bobble heads and having a neck pillow gives them support. I have bought children’s neck pillows because we found that standard ones are far too big for their little necks. We have this penguin one and the same but a cat which are very cute https://amzn.to/3Z89oF6 the girls love the sleep masks too, I always slip these off when they have fallen asleep because I worry that it will slip down around their neck.

Sleeping

When on a night flight trying to get the girls to have a good night sleep is a challenge, it’s never comfy on a plane. I’ve not quite managed to perfect the art yet, but I’ve found that sitting in the middle of the kids means I can let them snuggle and lol all over me. I have seen a product called a plan pal which look like they could be a product to solve sleeping issues for the kids. It turns a normal seat into a bed with the use of an inflatable cushion. The company https://www.keepemquiet.com stock them but I’m unsure if all airlines accept them, you would need to check with your airline before you fly #1 Approved Comfort Aid For Planes | Airplane Seat Extender For Sleep - KeepEmQuiet I will definitely be looking into these before our next long haul flight. They are an expense but it’s worth the splurge if it helps the kids get a comfortable nights sleep.

Packing smart

I’ve tried all configurations and you can be as organised as you possibly can but it’s all useless if you can’t easily access anything whilst on board the plane. We’ve found that taking two small suitcases and two backpacks is best for us. One suitcase has spare changes of clothing for us all, in case there are any accidents with drinks or if our checked luggage goes missing, just the essentials to last us all a few days. The other suitcase we pack the blankets and entertainment packs in. Then in our rucksacks we have all our essentials plus the kids tablets and snacks for us all. When we board the plane, we take the blankets and entertainments packs out of the suitcase and put them under the seats in front until we need them. We also store our backpacks under the seat in front. This way we don’t need to start searching through overhead compartments for things mid-flight. We also never try to be first off, the plane, we take our time once landed to pack everything away. Nothing worse than feeling flustered, in a rush and trying to carry everything you’ve unpacked and stuffing it everywhere; I feel that leads to accidentally leaving things on planes. These are the bags we use: I have a stackers bag, I love all of the travel accessories that they do https://amzn.to/3Rd2D2y . My husband takes this as his carry on https://amzn.to/3qOQVAN and then we take two cabin size cases, ours are from the brand TRIPP but you can get them pretty much everywhere Tripp Black 'Holiday 7' Cabin 4 Wheel Suitcase - Hard | Tripp Ltd.

Seat choice

Choosing seats is an extra cost but it’s worth doing. My husband is quite tall and extra leg-room on a long-haul flight is a must for him, whilst myself and the kids have much littler legs and it isn’t necessary for us to have extra-legroom, it does help with the kids. When they are restless and wriggly having space in front of them to stretch is a big help. Depending on the seat configuration of the plane I always it in between the girls so that I can help both and my husband will sit next to us on an aisle so he can assist with the toilet runs. If it’s a bigger plane with four seats together then we put the children in the middle and we each take the aisle seats. Knowing where our seats are before flying releases the anxiety of the unknown and ensures that we will all be sat together. If money was no object, I would love to fly first class in one of those pods, what bliss that would be, the children would have a wonderful time with all that space to stretch and lie down, one day… maybe?

Medicine

In my carry-on I always pack a small pharmacy of medication. If you’ve ever had earache, you know how horrendous it can be, it’s even worse on a plane due to the cabin pressure. I always ensure I have paracetamol and ibuprofen for us all, just in case any of us end up in pain. I also pack anti- sickness medicine, diarrhoea tablets, allergy medicine and moisturiser and lip balm as planes can get very dry. If any of us fall unwell, I like to be prepared enough to get us to the end of the flight as comfortably as possible.

So long as everyone is comfortable, we usually have a good flight. My girls are still only little but their attitudes, behaviour and compassion for others has always made me so proud, and I think this always helps when flying long haul. They are conscientious to other passengers and do their best to not to moan too much. I think the most important thing as adults on flights is just to remember that they are children. They are made for open spaces and are curious, we must remember to also be patient with them, they are precious cargo after all.