How to travel safely with children

Travel provides enriching learning opportunities for the entire family, even its youngest members. You don’t have to put traveling plans on hold until your children are older.

How can I ease my child's discomfort during airplane pressurization?

To avoid ear aches from the change in air pressure during takeoff and landing, give your child something to eat or drink. Swallowing helps clear the ears. Even pretend yawning can ease the pressure.

Can you do anything about jet lag?

There is no safe medication for children to help with jet lag. The best thing you can do is to switch over to the local time as soon as you arrive at your destination. Make sure your children are exposed to sunlight during the day, which helps the body adapt to the local time more quickly. 

If your child does wake up in the wee hours of the night, stay quiet and don’t start any activities. Keep the environment dark to help him or her get back to sleep. It can take about two weeks to adjust fully to a new time zone.

In addition, don’t skip regular bedtimes and naps just because you’re on vacation. Try to stick to a regular schedule so your children stay rested.

Children usually find it really exciting to be on an aircraft. And if the little ones have been well prepared, the parents can relax on their journey. Special rules apply for children who are travelling alone. Your child will require a valid ticket, but does not have to have its own seat. The ticket will cost about 10% of the standard price. During the flight, an infant will sit on an adult's lap, secured by a special seatbelt. Newborns less than a week old need to have a doctor's certificate stating that they are fit to fly.