How to prepare you and your kids for a family vacation

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Travelling with kids is not always simple. Of course, spending some time together with your family, away from your daily routine, can be a very fun and rewarding activity, but it takes a lot of patience and organization. Kids are different from adults and might not like what you like, so you need to keep them busy and prepare them for the journey while you are still at home. I previously wrote a post about preparing a two year old for a flight and today, I would like to talk again about preparing your little ones for a journey. I am sure that following these simple rules will help you to enjoy your family vacation with no added stress.

1.       Plan ahead

Planning is the secret for a successful trip with kids. Choose your destination, find a cozy place to stay and create an itinerary and do it beforehand. If you’re thinking about going to sunny Italy this summer, which is in fact a very child-friendly country, you might reserve your accommodation for instance in Rome on online platforms like this one. Read through reviews written by families, look for baby-friendly options with extra beds and activities for kids, to keep your children entertained and have some time for yourself to relax and enjoy the time off. Show them pictures of the place you have chosen, so that they know where they are going and what they can do there to make them curious and look forward to it.

2.       Make it fun

Children don’t understand why you are so excited about seeing a place, unless you explain your reasons to them. Share your interest and make the activity sound fun and enjoyable. Tell them where you are going and what you are going to do, show them some pictures of your destination on a book or its position on a world map. Talk to them about what you are going to do and see, explaining what’s behind it and making them be an active part of this journey. They will learn a lot and never get bored.

3.       Train them

If you want your kids to behave in certain circumstances while you are in another country on holiday, you’d better talk to them about it before leaving. Some of the situations you are going to experience on vacation are not exactly common and easy to understand for them. Spend some time to teach them how to behave in a restaurant or in a museum, for example, or train them to get used to long rides or walks if this is what you are going to do on holiday. Introduce different kinds of food on your table to get them used to other dishes and cultures. It will be a fun game to do at home for them, but it will pay during the holiday.

4.       Go for it!

Don’t forget to have fun. All these rules might help you to keep everything under control, but you should not spend your holiday worrying about what might happen or not. Try different activities with your kids and you will learn more about them and their reactions in different environments.

 This is a featured post by Mary Smith, an expert travel blogger