“To travel is to go to a different place, sometimes far from home. To get there, we board a plane, a train or dad's car. Sometimes the road is very long. »
“That’s why mom says we have to go slide down the slide before we go. She says that afterwards, I will be able to fall asleep more easily. But I don't want to sleep." These are the words of Antoine, 9 years old, little traveler.
How to make a long and sometimes difficult route more enjoyable for children?
Here are our tips and tricks.
Seat choice
The location of child and parent seats can greatly influence the mood of a trip. On board a plane, a seat overlooking a "biblot" (window according to Arnaud, 5 years old) is a good starting point. By affixing a pillow or a blanket, the wall and the porthole will support the weight of the child if it escapes in a sleep. If he is having fun or getting restless, the porthole is one less neighbor to apologize to or to hold back the child's impulses.
Furthermore, with his nose glued to a porthole at an altitude of 33,000 feet (10,155 m), the child will finally interact with the clouds of his dreams… At thissubject, a very interesting exercise is for the child to draw the landscape he sees. Turn their drawing into a postcard that they can send to a friend!
To make sure you get that prime seat with a view of the outside, it is advisable to take advantage of the pre-selection service, often offered by transport companies. This service is sometimes paid, sometimes free, especially for parents traveling with children. Find out. If an additional sum is required, it can be a good investment, especially for trips lasting several hours.
Take off and landing
During takeoff and landing, give your baby a bottle (water or plain fruit juice, if the time for milk has not arrived) so that he swallows and thus avoids nausea. ears, possibly caused by the pressure on his eardrums caused by the change in altitude.
Tip: prefer the bottle to the glass. The first encourages more constancy of movement of the internal muscles, movement which will keep the ears unclogged. Also prefer the bottle filled with water or juice (or the breast filled with milk!) to the pacifier or biscuit. Although the pacifier and biscuit can be just as effective for swallowing, clearing the ears and thus preserving your child's eardrums, the bottle and its contents also avoid another problem encountered during the flight: dehydration.
For older children, go aheaddistribution of sweets (they won't say no!) and/or a bottle of water.
Feel good on board
For better blood circulation and to avoid “stiff necks in the legs” (dixit Simon, 5 years old), have your child walk down the aisle a few times. And prohibition to tell you that you will disturb the other passengers! You will not disturb anyone and your child's well-being is at stake. In addition, a walk will make him expend energy. If he is too young to walk, a body massage will also help.
Another tip: the ambient pressurized air of the cabin being dry and dehydrating, make your child drink regularly in small doses.
Travel Games
No matter how old a child is, every game they play has a limited duration of interest. Promote silent games, easy to transport, unbreakable, small formats, autonomous (i.e. not requiring the use of water, electricity or other), creative, universal, easy to maintain, removable, multifunctional (several games in one).
Top 10 Best Toys
- Magnetic puzzle (size 25 pieces and less)
- Book (for coloring, reading, riddles and riddles)
- Card Game
- Chess and Checkers (pocket size)
- The "Solitaire" (multiple and pocket)
- Magnifying glass or thread counter
- Audio CD and/or DVD (world music, nursery rhymes, films, cartoons)
- Portable CD and/or DVD player
- Multisensory plush (both soft and stuffed here with paper, here with wadding, bells, music box, etc.; for toddlers)
- Scrabble (for older kids and teens)
Excerpt from the Ulysse guide Travelling with childrenby Isabelle Chagnon, Lio Kiefer and Julie Brodeur, available in paper versionanddigital at www.guidesulysse.com. Browse an excerpt.
