Traveling With Kids: 5 Safety Tips To Know

Family travels offer a great opportunity for children to learn and discover new things.

However, with the pandemic going on, along with safety issues, traveling with kids can be extra challenging.

Here are some safety tips to know if you’re traveling with kids:

Update Your Travel Medical Kit

When traveling with kids, your main concern is their health.

Always have a travel medical kit that contains all your kids’ essential medicines. Pack plenty of paracetamol, pain reliever, antihistamine, topical ointments for cuts and wounds, gauze and medical tape, band-aids, and more.

You should also have some cough and cold medicine. If you have a child with a health condition, make sure to bring his or her medical equipment (even if they only use it occasionally) and prescription medications. For example, if your child has asthma, pack a nebulizer just in case.

Since it’s pandemic, you want to be extra vigilant in protecting your kids.

It’s okay to stock up on face masks, alcohol, sanitizer, disinfecting wipes, and disinfecting spray. Have each of your children carry a hygiene kit in their backpack for easy access, and remind them to wash their hands frequently.

Take your child to their pediatrician a month in advance to ensure that they get all appropriate vaccinations before travel.

Depending on your destination, your pedia may recommend certain immunizations against various infections, such as typhoid fever, yellow fever, rabies, etc.

Use Car Seats

Using a car seat is the best way to protect your little ones when they are in a car. Vehicular accidents are among the leading causes of death and injury in children.

If you’re traveling abroad and will be renting a car to explore your destination, consider renting car seats for your kids.

Choose a seat that meets or exceeds the safety standards, and has the specs suitable for the age and weight of your child. Learn how to install the seat properly before the ride.

Book Child-Safe Accommodations

When traveling with kids, you have to be extra picky in terms of accommodation. Lots of hotels claim to be kid-friendly, but here are some of the most important things you should consider before you book your stay:

• Central location. The hotel should be strategically located close to the attractions you plan to visit.
• Hotel grounds. Look for a hotel that provides a place where your child can run off some steam when they’re feeling bored.
• Baby-sitting service or kid’s club. If you plan to go out without the kids, this certainly helps.
• A mini grocery. You don’t want to go out late in the evening looking for ice cream or some midnight snacks for your kids.
• Mini Kitchen. Kids get hungry quickly. Look for a room that has a fridge, mini-bar for storing snacks, and microwave to easily warm up snacks and make a simple yet healthy breakfast like oatmeal.

Consider RFID Technology

RFID is a versatile technology that benefits most people, including travelers. RFID credit cards enable contactless transactions so they’re very convenient when you are traveling, especially with kids to look after. There’s no need for you to insert the card into a chip reader or swipe it. You just hold up the card to the reader and it reads information from there.

Unfortunately, RFID cards are prone to hacking. They can be read even if they’re in your wallet.

To protect your credit card information from being stolen, consider using a travel wallet that has RFID-blocking technology. You’re more careless about your items when being focused on kids, so grabbing is easier, but not with RFID blocking wallets.

Use RFID wallets as they allow contactless payments and transactions and prevent scanners from accessing the information stored in your cards and ID.

Be Careful Of Food Choices

There’s nothing wrong with indulging in cultural food and street food. But make sure it looks fresh and healthy. Food poisoning can be a serious problem and can lead to hospitalization.

Also, if your child has an allergy to some food, be extra careful and don’t be shy to ask the restaurant’s server if it contains ingredients your child needs to avoid.

Unless they are used to eating raw food like sushi and fresh salmon, avoid letting your kids eat them. Same thing with soft cheeses like brie and Camembert.

Make sure the food is thoroughly cooked and still warm when it’s served. For takeouts, reheat them at the hotel before you eat.

Conclusion

Traveling with kids doesn’t have to be stressful or scary. By keeping in mind these safety tips, you can have a fun and enjoyable trip with your little ones. You can have a memorable holiday with the family without worrying about their health and security.

Have a wonderful trip!