Holiday Travel Survival Kit

Knowing how hectic it can be to travel with kids anytime, let alone the holidays, we know how important it is to have a survival kit of some sort (for both the kids and the parents, ha!). It’s just as important as packing a diaper bag when you go out. Don’t book that plane ticket or plot that road trip without it!

Survive Holiday Travel with Kids

Note: This “kit” of sorts can be adapted to fit your family’s needs, but it’s meant to be an add-on to your normal clothes-shoes-toiletries packing list.

Entertainment

Kids: Restriction-protected iPads/iPods, Kindle Fire Kids’ Edition, and similar electronics are great, but kids get bored easily. Grab a travel tray and some washable crayons and paper, or a magnadoodle. Magnetic building toys like Tegu blocks and Magna Tiles are great too (especially for road trips) since they stick together even if you’re on the move.

Parents: Audiobooks, Apple Music, and T-Mobile’s Binge-On unlimited streaming have all been roadtrip favorites for us. On the plane we’re usually wrangling kids but when I get a minute, I usually read or write, and hubby always has a plethora of audiobooks or podcasts saved to his device that he listens to by bluetooth headset. YES. You need a bluetooth headset if you don’t have one already (the workhorse we have loved for the last couple years now is made by Sennheiser).

Cleanup

Kids: They say the definition of a boy is “noise with dirt on it.” Kids can be messy. Really, really messy. When you least expect it messy. So you should always have a travel-size pack (or in our family’s case, a normal or extra-large pack) of hand and face (or baby) wipes in your bag. I try to have a sanitizing pack and a pack that’s safe for faces and other sensitive areas if possible. I also carry 3-5 cloth wipes for things that might need mopping up (I’m not going to go into detail here—if you’re a parent, you get where I’m going with this). A Ziploc bag may be a good idea too.

Parents: Okay, so usually we can contain our messes as adults… But one of us always ends up with an elusive stain somewhere. For this reason, whenever possible, I try to bring a travel-size Tide or Shout pen. I also LOVE my quick-dry Exofficio clothes because I can clean out almost any mishap and they’re dry within minutes (mom win right there). Last but not least, those sanitizing hand wipes are great for basically anyone.

Well-Being

Kids: Have something on hand for motion-sickness that’s safe for kids, and 2-3 gallon-size Ziploc bags just in case. Even if you think they’ll be fine, they may surprise you. Our 4th child has peculiar sensitivities to granola bars especially when in a moving vehicle, and we found this out the hard way… A couple times. I also found out I have super-mommy powers, but that’s a story for another day.

Parents: Having a variety of foods while traveling (that are bodies aren’t used to) can pose several issues if you have even a remotely sensitive stomach. To keep everything smooth sailing, make sure you have these essentials on hand—PEPCID® (our fav) for indigestion, IMODIUM® as an anti-diarrheal, and LACTAID® for dairy sensitivities (all available at Walmart). Better safe than sorry, so they say—and you could be really, really sorry if you don’t have at least one of these and things go awry.

When you’re prepping for your holiday adventures this year, make sure you grab these essentials (especially the PEPCID®!) and everything else you need at Walmart. Not only do they have the digestive health remedies you need to keep the holiday a… well.. holiday—they also have everything you need to fill out your Holiday Travel Survival Kit. Make your one-stop shopping, and relax the rest of the most wonderful time of the year—through all the glorious sights, memories, and food it brings.