4 hour flight with 9 and 12 year old - no screens

[supersun23]

Need ideas to keep them amused. We don't have access to screens. Any good ideas? TIA

A book? Crossword, sudoko, spot the difference etc if needed. How do you plan to entertain yourself?

If they don’t have screens, what do they usually do? Read? Draw/colour? Mind puzzles?

Food and colouring in? Read a book. Listen to an audio book? If no access to screens your dc will be used to this. What do you do on car journeys?

Listen to music, chat to them? Are you very young?? Until a few years ago we didn't all have screens all the time!

read, puzzle books, colouring / drawing, quiet card games, audio book or music if you've got a device to download onto.

the plane doesn’t have screens or you don’t have any screens at all they can use on the plane?

we did a 4 hour flight with our 9 and 12 year olds earlier this year and it didn’t have screens. Mine were allowed to bring an iPad though and watched a film on it but didn’t use it the whole time

they also did some colouring, drawing, reading, played games like dobble and uno etc

At that age mine'd be expected to sort themselves out.

A book, probably buy a magazine and some snacks at the airport.

Easy!

My mother did 2 x 15 hour flights (plus return) with my sister and me. My sister had colouring books, I read and we all slept for most of the journey in the darkened aeroplane

Uno, travel games mini draughts, guess who etc), paper and pen games like hangman...

Books

Books, sudoku, travel games, talking to each other…

Seriously? What do they usually do at home?!? It’s 4 hours and they aren’t babies - this is a huge non issue!!

Mini lego bags (maybe a little tub to put the pieces in so they don't get lost). DS really liked these Smart IQ games too, the kids can set them for each other.

https://www.boots.com/smart-games-iq-fit-10279765?traffic=paid.shopping&gclsrc=aw.ds&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=19973634862&gbraid=0AAAAA-AdmwSqQMFx0fUM1XdZbh990RCGB&gclid=Cj0KCQjw6bfHBhDNARIsAIGsqLhKkXYq0xK6tn3s9cvs3Lb3PecQ1ZZaaveIcjLT1YLrT6IyYYSHw-oaArDcEALw_wcB

Why no screans? Personally I’d take a tablet or a phone with some pre downloaded stuff to cover at least an hour of the flight. Then colour in, word search, book or magazine. 4 hours isn’t too long to be fair, pad it out with some snacks and they’ll entertain themselves.

No, I'm pretty old! Just after some travel games etc... probably should have put that in my post....

Ok....

Thank you, good idea with the IQ games

Who rattled your cage? The OP is only asking for ideas.

Years ago I travelled with two young children without screens and organised a treasure hunt around the plane once the seatbelts signs were off. I hid a series of clues and prizes around the plane and once they got bored of looking out the window they were allowed to start.

It kept them amused for 20 minutes before someone complained and they were asked to sit down again. People moan when kids are in screens and they moan when they're given an activity to do - you can't win.

Gosh that’s ambitious considering most adults would watch something to pass the time on that length of flight! Can you really not borrow an old iPad from somewhere so they can watch a movie with a headphone splitter? But failing that, then at those ages surely they can choose what they want to do? Obvious ones are books, puzzle books, magazines, small lego sets, colouring, travel scrabble - but they know best what they enjoy so have them pack their hand luggage themselves.

Yes, a tad over the top....

Just done similar with dd14 and we played uno and read.

I would avoid anything with small parts as one will inevitably end up lost under or inside the seat and then that game is useless.

Books, magazines, “grown up” colouring books (the TopModel ones are good for girls, or look for adult mindfulness colouring books), age appropriate crossword/sudoku, card games, make fortune tellers, hangman, more books. Oh and snacks, lots of snacks.

However if you can get hold of a tablet I would do that at least for some of it. Just makes life easier for everyone.

I just don’t understand why they won’t just be like ‘I’ll take a book, some colouring etc etc. they aren’t tiny and it’s only 4 hours! Do people just not take their kids anywhere anymore without hugely over thinking it?!

She was just asking for ideas 🤷🏻‍♀️