9-Must Have Holiday Essentials for a Family Holiday

When you are traveling with kids – things can get a little more complicated than when you are going on your own – and all of a sudden, your luggage is much heavier, and your to-do list is much longer.   Packing can become a long and arduous task fraught with anxiety in case you miss something out. We thought we’d create a list of must have holiday essentials for a family holiday to make life a little easier for you.  

Planned Travel to and From the Airport

There is nothing more chaotic than the morning or evening of a holiday.  The last thing you want to worry about is rushing for buses or trains with lots of luggage or being worried that the taxi might not arrive on time.  As such – driving your car to and from the airport is a much more viable option and means you can even put your suitcases and backpacks in there in advance.  There is great parking at Bristol Airport for example. It doesn’t need to cost you a lot of money either, there are lots of cheap Bristol Parking options available.   You can book your slot ages in advance, and it will only take you a couple of minutes to do on their Bristol Parking website.  That way you can enjoy a stress-free trip to the airport without any issues with getting to your flight on time.

Create a Holiday Checklist

When you are getting packed for a family holiday – you need to make sure you are incredibly organised.  If you forget their favourite comforter or cuddly toy – you could be off to a rocky start to your trip. As such, having a checklist in place is essential for making sure you don’t forget anything.  If you don’t fancy doing it on the traditional pen and paper route – there are apps on your phone that you can use to create your checklist. They allow you to check things off as you pack them, and portable so you can take them wherever you go in case you are going shopping for some of the items.  If you want to reuse that list for another holiday or trip, you can just untick the boxes.

Toiletry Essentials  

When you have children, your toiletry bag also gets much larger and is full of baby and toddler essentials.  If it’s only a short trip you are going away for, you can get small travel size bottles from the likes of poundland and fill them up with your existing kid’s products which will also save you some money too, rather than buying new.  When they are still at the younger stages, you will probably want to make sure that they are using child-specific soap – but as they get a little older, they will be fine to share with you for a couple of days.

First Aid Kit Essentials

There’s lots of room for kids to get cuts and scrapes on holiday – that’s why a family first-aid kit is an essential.  It alleviates the worry of having to find a pharmacy when you are in a brand-new environment that you don’t know.  In your first-aid kit you should find a thermometer, kids paracetamol and Ibuprofen, antiseptic wipes and creams, tablets for motion sickness, plasters and any special medication needed.  You can get some premade first aid kits perfect for travelling that can make life easier for you.

Lots of Toys for Entertainment Value

You will need lots of toys to keep your child occupied – not only when you are on holiday but especially if you are on a long-haul flight.  Puzzles and colouring books always go down well, as do teddys and soft toys to cuddle into and act as a comforter. If your child hasn’t been in the pool too much, some bath toys that they are familiar with may be a good option to bring too.  An inflatable ball for playing in the pool is always a popular choice also. If you are travelling for some time – having an iPad loaded with some of your kids favourite shows could be a good way to keep them amused on the plane for a while. Make sure there is lots for them to amuse themselves with.  

Documents for Travelling

Although it can be on the boring side making sure you have all the right documents in order – they are critical, so make sure that they are on your holiday checklist.  Other things can perhaps be replaced when you get there, but you can’t replace documents. There are the obvious ones that you need to remember such as passports and flight and booking confirmation – but there are others that you may forget that are necessary to your travel.  This can include the likes of travel or medical insurance, any loyalty cards for hotels or airlines – and of course credit cards should you need them. Finally – visa documents should be on your list. There are some countries such as Turkey that require for you to have visa’s these days.  It’s worth checking in on this well in advance before you go – and bringing those documents.  

What about the Beach?

If you are going on a beach holiday there are even more things to take into consideration.  There are often cheap toys available by the beach which means you may not have to use valuable room in your suitcase for that – but there are lots of other things that should be on your list.  First of all, a beach bag is essential to carry all of these beach necessities. You might want to make sure you bring sun cream for protection, swimming nappies, insect repellent, arm bands and any coverups you might need to make sure you are prepared for all events on the sand.  This will of course also come in handy for pool holidays too.

Carry on Luggage for Toddlers or Babies

If you have a baby or toddler, you should really think about bringing your nappy bag with you when traveling to take on the plane with you.  It has all of those compartments you need to make things nice and easy for you. This is perfect if you need to get something quickly. Make sure you fill the bags with some wet wipes for the inevitable mess that your child could make on your journey there, and maybe some nappies in case your child needs changed.  To be on the safe side, it’s always a good idea to bring a change of clothes – you never know what might happen when on your travels. It might also be worth packing a change of clothes for you too just in case there are any spillages involved which can most definitely happen.

If you are getting prepared for a summer holiday with the kids, then make sure that you are as organised as you possibly can be to make it a more relaxing experience for you.  Hopefully our list will help you on your way to a stress-free journey and holiday overall.