A couple of years ago, I wrote this blog post, sharing some tips and tricks for traveling with little ones. Pandemic aside, we travel a lot. In the last 7 years, we’ve traveled to 20 states, and 5 countries with our four children (and a couple international trips without kids!). Ron & I both loved to travel before ever meeting each other, and we didn’t want to stop once we had children. Of course travel looks very different now than it did 10 years ago. I’ll be honest, it’s a lot of work, it’s stressful at times, and not always restful. (Am I selling you on traveling with kids yet?) But at the end of the day, it’s so worth it. The memories we’ve shared with our children, the cultures they’ve experienced, the sheer beauty of this world, are all indescribably worth it.

I get asked about traveling with kids quite often. Most recently, I’ve been asked about how to pack “lightly” with little ones. I have always prided myself on being an expert packer, never bringing more than a single carry-on anywhere I traveled. We’ve had to adjust over the years as our family has grown, but I like to think that I’m still that same expert packer, just now packing for 6! To give you some context, most recently, we traveled to Hawaii for two weeks, and we only checked one bag.

That’s right. 6 people, 2 weeks, 1 checked bag.

How did I do it? Let’s break it down.

Pack a week’s worth of clothes.
If we’re staying somewhere a week or 2 months, we still only bring a week’s worth of clothes. For shoes, everyone wears their tennis shoes on travel day (as they weigh more and are bulkier to pack), and then I pack everyone one other pair of shoes (usually flip fops because we tend to go on beach trips). I promise you, you do not need more than 2 pairs of shoes!
We all wear our jackets on travel day as well, so those are not packed either.
We have the Away suitcases and love them!

Travel Day Pro Tip #1: Match Your Children
I’ve been doing this since we had more than one child, and I’ve found it to be super helpful, especially now with 4 children. Getting through the airport, and specifically security, can be fairly stressful with children. By having all of the children in matching outfits, I can quickly do a head count and keep eyes on everyone when I’m only looking for one outfit!

Don’t pack things you can purchase at your destination.
There’s no reason to pack a suitcase full of diapers, squeeze pouches, snacks, etc. These are all things you can easily pick up at your destination, and save yourself the room in your suitcase. On our most recent trip, I actually placed a Target Pick-Up order for a week’s worth of groceries and diapers the day before we flew out. As soon as we landed and had our rental car, we swung by Target and picked up our groceries on the way to our AirBNB. It was so incredibly easy!

Pack minimal toys.
Sometimes we think our kids won’t be able to live without their favorite 37 toys for a week or 2 of vacation. Don’t be fooled. Kids are incredible at adapting, and I love using vacation as a time to expand their imaginations. We let our older children pack their own backpacks (that they wear and carry on the plane) with whatever toys can fit. Their backpack also has their water bottles, iPad, and headphones. So it ends up just being a handfull of toys. My kids all have a Fjallraven Kanken Mini backpack. They are incredibly durable and fully unzip, making it super easy to access everything. (I have actually used the regular version as my diaper bag for the past 4 years! After probably a dozen different diaper bags, the Fjallraven Kanken + this organizer makes for my favorite dipaer bag!)
For the little ones, I bring just enough toys to keep them entertained on the airplane ride. All of which, fit in my diaper bag. And that’s it. The rest, the kids can get creative.

Pack travel-friendly baby gear.
This is where the minimalist-packer thing gets difficult. Babies are high maintenance and need a lot of “stuff.” Sometimes you can rent a car with car seats or an Airbnb with travel cribs, but sometimes it’s just unavoidable. On our latest trip, we brought a double stroller, 2 car seats, a baby carrier, and a travel crib along with us. We have these travel booster seats for our oldest two. The infant car seat is still easy, as it clips onto the double stroller, which we keep all the way to the gate. So really that just leaves one car seat and a travel crib to deal with. We have had this travel crib for 7 years now. It is incredibly light, can be worn as a backpack, and is the size of a carry-on. Most baby gear can go on a plane for free, but unfortunately, a travel crib is not one of those. So plan to either have one at your destination, pay to check it, or find one that is small enough to carry on. For the car seat, make sure you have a travel bag to put it in. This will protect it a little, help it to not get so dirty, and help you carry it from car to check-in a bit easier. Shed that heavy, bulky car seat as soon as you get to the check-in counter. It’s for sure the worst item to travel with, and thankfully can be checked for free.
I always keep my baby carrier easily accesible on travel day. It’s easiest to strap them to you when moving everything through security, and it’s also easier to get on and off the plane with your baby strapped to you and hands free.
You can check your stroller (and car seat if you wanted to) at the gate for free. This means you can keep your child(ren) and all of your bags on the stroller until the last possible moment before you board. Again, I would highly advise on getting a travel bag to protect your stroller. We had a very expensive stroller broken in half by an airline once, and they merely offered us a $25 flight voucher. Lesson learned.

Pack a snack bag.
Okay, I know I said earlier not to pack food…but do pack enough for the plane ride. Kids are bottomless pits when traveling, and nothing keeps cranky babies happier than a canister full of puffs. I love these bibs for a mess-free experience, and they can’t pull them off!

Travel Day Pro Tip #2: Pack Apples
Pack apples, oranges, raisens, etc., any food that will take a long time for your antsy toddler to eat!

If you’re questioning packing it, leave it.
This is not the time to have multiple wardrobe choices. Pack what is essential for exactly a week. Leave the third pair of shoes at home. If you’re feeling really ambitious, just pack a few clothing items that can be worn multiples times.

But also, if it makes life easier, pack it.
For years, I haven’t bothered packing things like sound machines, for example. This past trip, we decided to pack it. Our sound machine provides the white noise our kids are used to sleeping with, is also a night light, has the time on it (which let’s Aly know when to stop reading her Kindle), and is programmed to change colors in the morning, signaling to the kids that they are allowed to get out of their room. All in all, it keeps our kids functioning well through the night, and two weeks without this bit of our routine felt daunting. So we packed it!

Travel Day Pro Tip #3: Get TSA Pre-Check
This is worth every penny if you travel often and have children. Going through security is stressful enough, alleviate as much of that as possible! And bonus, many credit cards offer this as a free perk!

What’s in my toddler’s carry-on?
For a toddler, I usually have our oldest iPad (like 10 years old and cracked) with a few games and movies downloaded on it. The Peek-a-Boo Barn app is for sure our go-to app for toddlers. Fish School, My First Words, Farm 123, Holiday Trucks, and Toca Monster are all other free options that a 2 year old can do. Remember, there is no wifi usually, so download a couple of shows or movies on Netflix or Disney+. (I’ve never been able to keep headphones on a toddler, so I don’t usually bother with them, I just use them for the older ones). Beyond the iPad, I like to pack post-it notes and crayons, any small toys that you don’t mind if they get lost, magnet toys like these are great for travel, and so are the Water Wow books. And then of course, all the snacks. On travel days, I let the kids have endless screen time and snacks!

Remember, traveling is fun!
Whether you decide to pack up half your home or only a carry-on, you’re getting ready to embark on a great adventure with your little one(s)! Pack in a way that will be the least stressful for you, personally!

Traveling with Little Ones