Create Great Art: Always bring art supplies while traveling. Encourage your child to connect with the cities that they are about to visit by creating similar art. For instance, on a recent Kosher vacation to Spain I showed my 5 year old pictures of Gaudi’s architecture and had her mimic it with play dough. Not only did this keep her engaged, it also taught her about a fantastic architect!
Talk about one person from each city and play games that incorporate that person: For instance on a trip to St. Petersburg we became obsessed with princess Anastasia (daughter of the last Czar). When my daughter finally visited the winter palace she became incredibly fascinated with the museum and wanted to visit every room the princess slept in.
When visiting a restaurant ask if you can have some pizza dough. This will entertain your little one for hours. Or bring a roll of aluminum foil and spend the day hours creating clothing for dolls, hats, flowers or anything you can imagine.
Play Marco Polo or create a scavenger hunt in museums. It will engage the child with the museum and make you happy!
Go to the dollar store! Get 20 items and give your child a little present each morning. This will keep them occupied for a little while and give you a chance to prep the day.
Talk to all the natives of the place you are traveling to. Ask your child to become a newspaper reporter. This will really allow your little ones to get to know the cities in an intimate way.
Below are some suggestions from Budget Traveler:
MAKE FRIENDS WITH THE NEIGHBORS Before I took my son on his first flight, I printed out stickers saying: "I'm sorry if I'm a little fussy. This is my first flight, and it's a bit overwhelming. My parents are doing the best they can, and they appreciate your patience. Owen, 8 months." I attached the stickers to candy bars that I gave to nearby passengers. We all enjoyed the flight!
FINISH UP YOUR HOMEWORK My kids often end up doing homework on the plane. To avoid having to pack a lot of paper in my carry-on, I create a makeshift dry-erase board by mounting a plastic sheet protector on a piece of cardboard. We slip math problems inside and work them out with dry-erase markers. We can wipe the surface clean and retry as many times as necessary without wasting paper.
BLOCK OUT THE NOISE To block out noise on a long flight or in a noisy hotel, I downloaded an 80-minute white-noise track from iTunes onto my iPod. I keep the track on repeat, and it works wonders. It was only $10—which is much cheaper than a sound machine or noise-canceling headphones—and since it's on my iPod, I don't have to pack anything extra.
VISIT THE SPA FROM YOUR SEAT Flights tend to dry out my skin and sinuses, so I always pack a rolled-up washcloth in my carry-on. During the flight, I ask the flight attendant for a cup of hot water, then dip the washcloth and place it over my face. Breathing in the steam helps my sinuses, and the warm, damp cloth hydrates my skin.
WE WANT TO KNOW HOW YOU WOULD ENTERTAIN YOUR KIDS. WE LOVE CREATIVE IDEAS!
Image Source: mirror.co.uk
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