A little bit of preparation and knowledge can make your family vacation much easier and much more fun.
Air Travel
Airport security can be painful for people without children. With children, it gets even worse. Knowing and preparing for what is going to happen at the airport can make things a lot easier.
First and foremost, you have to be prepared for a series of long lines and a good deal of waiting around for something to happen. This means that you should be prepared with a series of simple and portable activities for the little ones. Little toys like the Zoolio Travel Cases, pictured at the right, are good for occupying young minds, and slightly older kids can spend their time on coloring books. Having a new package of matchbox cars handy can come as a welcome surprise when other toys start to lose their luster and can save you an expensive trip to the airport gift store.
The sit-n-stroll combination car seat and stroller is great for air travel as well Having a stroller while running around the airport can be a life saver, and you won't have to pay extra for a questionable quality (and questionably clean) car seat from the rental agency.
The selection of food available on airplanes is getting progressively worse by the day. This is especially problematic for long trips with picky eaters. TSA has a set of strict and ridiculous food and drink rules as well, so you have to plan carefully how much food you bring with you to eat on the airplane, and eat it only on the airplane. Take advantage of the concession stands beyond the security checkpoints to stock up on snack items and plan on at least having a snack at one of those snazzy five star food joints available at the airport.
Find out ahead of time which terminal your flight is flying from and what you can do as far as pre-check-in activities. Some airlines allow you to handle check-in online from home. Automated check-in terminals are available by most airlines now as well at the airport, but depending on the airport those lines can get long too.
Rental Cars
Rental Car check in counters are just about as slow as you can get. Most rental car agencies offer a free membership that allows you to bypass the check-in counter and go directly to a kiosk to pick up your keys. Get the membership - it can save you anywhere between 15 minutes and an hour depending on how busy the rental agency is.Bringing your own car seat is a good idea - the sit-n-stroll option mentioned above is great. People who manage the rental car seats have different standards of cleanliness and are not as careful as you are when handling car seats. You don't know how old the rental car seats are, nor what sort of stress they've received.
Hotels
Hotels can be a lot of fun for kids. There are usually wide open areas to run around, elevator buttons to push, and all sorts of furniture to play on and around. Like rental car agencies, many hotels offer free memberships with a quick-check-in option and some even offer free upgrades for members.Cribs and pak-n-plays are often available for an additional fee, but if they aren't you can sometimes find a local rental company that will deliver to the hotel. Alternatively, try craigslist or e-bay for something for sale from somebody local to your destination.
Don't be afraid to ask for a late checkout. Most hotels will provide you with a late checkout at no charge if they can manage it on the day you are departing.
Tourist destinations can get expensive, so map out a course to the nearest Babies-R-Us, Toys-R-Us, Costco, and other big, regularly priced stores where you can pick up supplies.
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