10 Tips for Long Haul Flights with kids

WOW! Just. Wow! It was the girls first long haul flight and we can now honestly say we have experienced the dark side of travelling with kids and come through the other side relatively unscathed. We can now see why not many parents attempt a long haul flight with kids.

But there was light at the end of the tunnel. Freshly baked Spanakopita, ancient Greek ruins and a cosy bed awaiting us at our apartment.

So what did we learn when travelling with kids on a dreaded long haul flight?

Here's my top 10.

1. Snacks. The ones they know, recognise and love. It's a lot easier to deal with a snacked up kid. Try and mix it up between high protein and those airy rice cracker style. Steer clear of anything sugary or super salty unless you enjoy meltdowns and hyperactivity in an enclosed space forty thousand feet.

2. More than just the screen. We're a screen free family so we raw dogged the flight and it's tough. So try and encourage colouring in, pack a set of Uno cards or one of our family favourites is a game called Pass the Pigs. We also had activity books with mazes, find-a-words and these awesome binary puzzles that we did with the girls.

3. Unscented wipes. There's honestly nothing better than washing your face on a long haul flight. We also did a full treatment with the moisturiser and brushing their teeth. We got involved and made it a full family exercise.

4. Pack plenty of mints. They're of course an easy snack but they also help with ear pain from the change in air pressure particularly during landing.

5. A teddy. The girls got to choose a small teddy to remind them of home and to snuggle into on the flight. It's like their little buddy that they can regulate with and not feel so overwhelmed during take off, landing or during the delays at customs!

6. Keep warm. The last thing you want is a cold kid at altitude. We dressed the girls in warm clothes, fluffy socks and we had a small blanket. It seems like a lot but they goal is to get them to sleep and if they're warm then you're halfway there.

7. Noise cancelling headphones. We bought a pair that doesn't rely on bluetooth to play music...they're literally like the style we had as kids with a noise cancelling function. We then bought a jack to go into the aeroplanes sound system as well so they could rock out to classic Mozart. We tried to keep to calmer music during the flight or our flight even had an hour long whale song which was a hit and totally our vibe. We then kept the more upbeat music for just before disembarkation.

8. Get up and walk around. It's a long time for the little ones to be sitting down. Heck it's also hard for the parents. But it's easy to get up, walk to the back of the plane, see what the stewards are doing and walk back...maybe a quick yoga stretch, lunge or star jump on the way back to your seat?

9. Stretch out meal time. The longer you can keep the kids occupied with meal time the shorter your flight will feel. 

10. Parents sit separately. Ok...it seems controversial but hear me out. In our opinion and our family dynamic one parent can manage both kids. This left the second parent to rest. We were never more than a row apart and the girls could migrate between parents easily but it meant that one parent could close their eyes and actually rest up knowing that the layover required half functional parents not strung out shadows of ourselves.

Bonus tip. Embrace your inner dolphin and get the kids to drink plenty of fluids. We packed those hydration salt tablets to help with their fluids. Dehydration is a real thing and kids will only tell you when they're thirsty and won't be mindful that staying hydrated is a long game. We started getting everybody well hydrated 24-36 hours before the flight with Kangen Water and that's our water preference but the take home message is start hydrating early.

I hope these 10 tips for travelling with kids on long haul flights gives you some guidance and rest-assurance that it can be done. Yes it's a big undertaking but it's not a big deal.

You'll be fine. What could possibly go wrong?