If you have a plan to travel you will need a cheatsheet for travel with kids.

There are a number of things that go into planning to travel with children. If you do not have a cheatsheet for travel with kids you will end up missing essentials that could be problematic.

This past week I not only took my children on a trip but an international trip no less.

We went to visit their 90 year old grandmother in Belize. They have a relationship with her which has been super important to me.

My cheatsheet for travel with kids came in handy because of course you know I have four.

Without this cheatsheet I am always certain to leave out some of the important things.

Cheatsheet

ZIPLOC BAGS

  • Whenever I am traveling with my crew whether it be a road trip or flying I cannot go without Ziploc bags.
  • What do I use them for? I use the gallon bags to house each child’s underwear for the entire trip.
  • My rule is one pair of underwear per night away plus an extra for any mishaps.
  • These are packaged in zip loc bags so I don’t have to guess which one belongs to which child or go digging to find those tiny items.

OUTFIT PRE PLAN

  • Especially for the longer trips I try to go with a color palette and plan the outfits beforehand.
  • I fold the shirt into the pants for example. This way it can be easily picked up and ready for them to get dressed.
  • I also pack a couple loose extra alternatives. And when I say couple I mean just that, 2.
  • The trip itself for me is the main event so over packing, having too much luggage or being unorganized only leads to frustration.

ITINERARY (LOOSE)

  • What do you love to do? Where do you love to go? What must you eat? These are some of the questions I asked myself ahead of time to prepare our itinerary.
  • Because my children are younger and they ask me a million questions about every aspect of every experience, their entire lives is a surprise.
  • What this means is that I only tell them as we are about to do something what it is (I know I have to change that practice but don’t judge me).
  • This allows me to avoid major disappointment and to keep the itinerary loose.
  • This trip it was important for us to see a Maya Ruin (Altun Ha), visit a caye (Caye Caulker), have ice cream from mommy’s favorite spot Scoops to name a few things.

ELEMENT OF SURPRISE

  • As I previously mentioned this has been successful for me. Maybe it is something you can try and see if it works.
  • For example, If I tell my children we are going to the zoo and then its pouring rain, that changes things.
  • When I keep the itinerary an element of surprise I can make adjustments as needed.
  • See certain relatives on the rainy day and visit the zoo on an alternate day.
  • They were able to see all of our national animals at the zoo and were able to appreciate it more than if it was drippy.

CHECKLISTS

  • When traveling with kids I have found that not having a checklist is a disaster.
  • Therefore it has become a must on my cheat sheet for travel with kids.
  • I make lists of course before we travel to decide what needs to be packed and bought etc. But more importantly while we are away at night after I have settled them I make a checklist for the following day.
  • You will find it a lot less stressful when you remember the insect repellant, wipes and snacks.
  • Sometimes snacks at some of the attractions can be costly especially with 4 children. So when I remember beforehand not only do the children have what they like but I keep some money in my pocket for maybe something else on the adventure.

I do my best to keep things awfully simple. That means cheatsheets and ease. I hope this helps you in planning your next trip.

Remember, live life awfully simple. See you next time. Until then, comment and share!