Seat 33F: The Travel Edit from The Workspace for Children
I watched a family crush it on a plane. Here's everything they did right..
I am writing this from seat 33F on a Delta flight from Boston to San Juan. My 16-year-old and I are on a last-minute mother-daughter trip, booked after I panicked about the passage of time, cancelled a work conference, and used the flight credit to take my middle daughter to Puerto Rico during spring break instead.
She is a few rows behind me, scrolling or sleeping. I am here, getting some work done, and completely unable to stop watching the family seated one row ahead.
Dad is across the aisle with baby Jack, maybe six months old. Mom is in front of me with her two girls, I’d guess two and a half and four. They are giggling about Wild Kratts on their own TVs, two sets of wide, sparkly, matching green eyes going very serious when mom tells them they can order their own juice from the approaching flight attendant.
When we landed, the middle one turned to her mom and said, “Now, Mommy, don’t forget the ocean in Puerto Rico is verrrrrry wild. We never go near it alone.”
I smiled to myself. That kid had been prepared. Someone had done the work.
As they deboarded, both girls rolled their own little suitcases down the tight aisle with complete seriousness. The older sister was checking over her shoulder to see if her little sister was following right behind her.
Full pride. Total ownership. These parents knew what they were doing. Almost everything that worked on that plane happened before they boarded.
This post is for them and for every parent about to pack up and go somewhere with little ones in tow
My three kids on a trip to Aruba in 2018
What You’ll Find In This Post:
How to prepare your kids for arrival before you ever leave home, and why it makes everything easier once you’re there
What belongs in your carry-on (and what’s just dead weight)
How to handle big feelings on the road without skipping a beat
The five-minute hotel room move that helps everyone settle in fast
Rest isn’t the backup plan, it’s the anchor
All our travel favorites in one place
Prep Your Kids Before You Go
A suitcase isn’t the only thing that needs packing before a trip. Your child’s sense of place and predictability does, too.
Kids can have a hard time on trips partly because they’re trying to figure out the unknown. You can fix a lot of that before you ever leave home, making a lot feel easier when you’re there.
Show them where you’re going. Pull up photos and let them imagine what they might see. “Do you think there will be a pool? What do you think the room will look like?”
Give them a virtual tour of the hotel or Airbnb. Use the website photos to point out where they’ll sleep, where breakfast might happen, and what the view looks like. A child who has already “seen” the room in pictures feels less disoriented when they walk into it.
Preview the food. Look at a restaurant menu together and let them pick something they look forward to. Even circling mac and cheese on a screen can ease food anxiety for a picky eater. Tell them, “You can order all by yourself when we get there because you already know what you might pick!”
Make a countdown calendar. A visual, picture-based calendar helps them understand when you’re leaving and when you’re coming home. That second part matters more than most parents realize. Do not overcomplicate this. It can be as simple as hand-drawn boxes with symbols.
If you’re flying with a toddler or preschooler, prep with books. Read simple stories about airports and airplanes. Talk through the process: bags go here, we walk through there, we buckle up, and listen for the ding. A child who knows what’s coming handles it with more ease and a sense of ownership
Forget the Instagram-perfect travel kits
They stress me out. Too much stuff, so heavy, and too many choices!! Every time I see an influencer promoting those giant cosmetic flip-down bags stuffed to the brim with toys, I wince. While it may work for some, most kids will be making a big mess, while their parents drown in overwhelm.
Here’s what earned space in my bag and kept everyone playing and comfy from door to door- for years.
A comfort item. The lovey or stuffed animal, that weird thing they call “Mr Poo.” It’s their emotional anchor, especially during transitions or naptime on the go. Don’t pack it at the bottom of the suitcase. Don’t decide it’s babyish. Bring it. And keep it in YOUR carry-on, not theirs. You want to know when it comes out of the bag so that you can make sure it goes back in and doesn’t get left behind at the airport Starbucks.
Snacks. More than you think you need. Then double it. You’ll never catch me with a snackle box for little kids. One false move and the whole thing is on the floor. No thanks. Instead, choose individually wrapped snacks, or a smaller tray with compartments that open one at a time (see below)
One entertainment surprise. Something small, new to them, and open-ended. The novelty does half the work.
A change of clothes. For them and for you. On my last flight, I sat in front of a mom traveling with her 18-month-old. She came prepared. Snacks, toys, blankets, baby clothes. And then the baby threw up- a lot. All over her. And guess what she didn’t have? I later exchanged commiserating looks with her in the airport bathroom, where she stood over the sink in her bra, scrubbing her top under the faucet.
Sensory support if your child needs it. Noise-canceling headphones for loud terminals, a cozy blanket, a simple visual schedule of the day: “Wake up → Airport → Airplane → Hotel → Dinner.”
One more thing: Let them be in charge of something important. Yes, even your toddler. A few days before the trip, hand your child their backpack and tell them they’re in charge of it. Let them pack a few things, take a test walk around the block, and feel the weight. It might seem a bit “extra” but I am telling you, the child who packed their own bag is invested in their own bag.
Front-loading in parenthood can be the biggest game-changer of all. And when you apply that to travel with kids, everything gets easier.
When It Falls Apart (Because It Will)
If big feelings are part of your everyday life, they’re coming with you on vacation. You need a plan that includes emotional messiness, not one that tries to prevent it.
Before you go: Walk through what’s coming in simple terms. “First, we pack the car. Then we drive to the airport. We’ll go through a machine that looks inside our bags.” You can draw it, use books, or just talk it through. This kind of prep doesn’t eliminate overwhelm or big feelings, but it makes them more manageable. It gives kids something to expect, and that feels good.
During travel: Validate the feeling, set limits on the behavior. “It’s hard to wait in this long line. I won’t let you push your brother, but I will play a game with you. How many blue things can you find?” Offer small choices to give a sense of control. “Do you want to listen to music or look at your book right now?”
When the meltdown happens.. because it will: Find a quieter corner. Take a breath. Remind yourself that this feels way worse to you than it does to everyone around you. Most travelers get it. And the ones who don’t? That’s their problem.
Screens Are a Tool, Use Them
For my family, screens are a legitimate travel tool. Not a last resort, not a parenting failure, a tool. My goal was to use them intentionally, which meant planning content before I left, instead of handing over a device in desperation at the gate.
Download a few shows that you know your child already loves. Familiarity is a good thing. Don’t reinvent the wheel.
Download a few podcasts. Audio is underused in travel parenting. Bring your Toni Box or Yoto player and let them be in charge.
Screens don’t ruin a trip. Overwhelm and chaos do. Thoughtful screen time can help your child stay calm and give you a moment to breathe- it is your vacation too.
When You Arrive
Before you unpack six bags or rush to the first activity, set up a home base for your child. It’s a five-minute move that makes the rest of your trip smoother.
Grab a basket; there’s almost always one in the bathroom holding towels. Empty it. Lay a towel on the floor in a corner of the room. Put the basket on top and fill it with a few of your child’s favorite toys from the carry-on, their Toni Box or Yoto Player. Add the hotel notepad and pencil, a snack, a water bottle.
That’s their space.
You’re creating a sense of ownership in a totally unfamiliar room. A corner that belongs to them. Kids settle faster when they have somewhere comfy and familiar to land.
Schedule Downtime From Day One
This is the “travel with kids” hill I will die on: build in rest on purpose, not as a backup plan.
One to two hours of quiet time each day, even if it’s just books and calm play in the hotel room or on a lounger in the shade. Protect naps when you can, even if it is a stroller nap, car nap or contact nap.
Alternate big-activity days with low-key ones. If you hit a museum or hike one day, the next is for the pool, the playground, and an early movie night.
Leave time for unstructured play every single day. Find a playground, a patch of grass, a field to run around in. Set them up on a towel with a few small toys, books, or some drawing materials. Kids process new experiences through play. The afternoon where nothing happens is often what makes the next adventure possible.
Travel Toys: Playdough Sticks / Magnetic Puzzles / Mini Magnetic Tiles / Travel Tangrams / Water Color Booklet / Clixo Travel Pack / Plus Plus/ Plus Plus BIG / Squigz / Mag Cubes / Construction Cubes/Reusable Sticker Book / Mini Animals/ Mini Pets / Road Tape / Mini Cars / Mini Blank Books / Draw And Write Journal / Travel Rummy / Mini Scratch Art / Mini Colored Pencils / Mini Washable Markers / Dot Stickers
Carry on Favorites: Travel Tray / Soft Headphones / Soap and Water Wipes / Muslin Blanket / Backpack / Snack Spinner / Snack Jars / Memory Snack Tray /
While we waited at baggage claim, I made eye contact with the mom from the row in front of me. I turned to my own teenager and said, “That’s what ‘crushing it’ looks like as a mom.” My daughter groaned, muttering, “Mom, no. Seriously… just don’t,” knowing exactly what was coming next.
I leaned over to her and said, “You are crushing it. My three are teens now, and I remember how much work it is when they are little. Be proud of yourself. I am. I hope you have a great vacation.”
Her tired eyes lit up, and as she shifted the baby from one hip to the other, she said, “Part of me feels like a crazy person attempting this trip, but we’ll see how it goes.”
I didn’t see them again, but I hope they know that traveling with little kids, laughing at the small stuff, and surviving the big stuff is what they’ll remember when their kids are grown. And it matters.
That’s it- everything I learned from years of traveling with little ones. Take what works. Leave the rest. And if this helped even a little, send it to another parent who could use a vacation that doesn’t end in, “we aren’t doing that again for at least five more years.”
x Lizzie
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