Travelsick child and flying

[LyrasOmlette]

Our 6yo gets very travelsick in cars and coaches and half the time on flights. We've mostly been travelling by train as a result for our holidays, but are now looking to meet up with friends on the continent this spring. DH is pretty adamant that we shouldn't fly bc DC might get sick. I'm happy to avoid car travel but I feel that a short flight (under 3 hours) woulnd't be horrible. Yes, DC might get sick on landing but sometimes she doesn't (about 50/50) and I feel, selfishly perhaps, that it would be worth the minor discomfort to have a proper holiday somewhere. Am I being horrible?

BTW, wristbands haven't worked and anti-travelsick meds help only sometimes and usually just make DC very groggy (which would not be ok if we were travelling by car everyday, but for two flights might be fine.)

I'd just really like to go somewhere warm and sunny for a change.

I don't think it's fair on the child or your fellow passengers to take a travel sick child on a plane. Unpleasant for everyone.

You can get to continent by train. Pretty selfish on child and other occupants of a plane to knowingly allow a vomit fest. Eurostar is the way forward. Devon can be sunny in July.

Usually only gets sick on landing, not throughout the flight and only on some flights; so not really a "vomitfest". The car is a different story though, which is why we're not even considering driving.

I'd go for it. Children go through phases of travel-sickness. You may find they've grown out of it for a while. But try and get a seat over the wings just in case. Don't feel too guilty, I'm sure your dc would rather have a holiday than nothing at all... lots of good family memories for only an hour or so of feeling sick.

You can't confine your child to places reachable by train just in case she gets sick!

I get travel sick in cars (unless I'm driving), coaches planes boats and on trains too. I just dose myself with Joyrides and if the worst happens well, aeroplanes have sick bags...

look at seat61.com for advice on train travel - we always like to travel by train if we can, over the years we've been to france (lots), italy (lots), croatia, slovenia, prague and berlin (twice). where are you going? you might be surprised how easy the train would be.

Stugeron is the only way, in my very-extensive experience of traveling with car sick kids!!!

Phenergan medicine works really really well

We've used Phenergan, but found it really knocked her out. Then she got sick once in Germany and the chemist there said they don't sell Phenergan there anymore and wouldn't recommend it for kids.

Haven't heard of stugeron before.

For our spring holiday I think we'll be going by train. Will have to think about the summer plan.

I wouldn't, it's a bit rotten for the other passengers. You couldn't go somewhere on a ferry maybe? We did that as kids to France and it was great fun.

The GP prescribed phenergan and it’s still available from the pharmacist. Really hope they don’t stop selling it here. It’s the only thing that works for us. DD1 - who once threw up as soon as 10 minutes down the road - spent 7 hours on a coach recently and didn’t even feel queasy!

Another vote for Stugeron - have to take it 2 hours before travelling, but my now 11YO very very travelsick DD has been taking it for years without any drowsiness or other side effects. Really worth a try.

How about booking a late night flight so she falls asleep. Make sure she has her seat belt on so you don't disturb her when coming in for landing.

I get really travel sick on anything that moves unless it's a car that I'm driving myself. Planes are better and don't make me actually throw up, I just feel horrible. Even if I was sick on a plane it wouldn't put me off flying, it's worth it to get away to somewhere that I want to be. If your daughter is sick she will be sat with her family and use a sick bag, it won't really impact other travelers. I would just go for it.

I get travel sick. Stugeron is great. And I'm better by plane than anything else, trains are far worse.

I get travel sick. I bear with it and refuse to let it stop me travelling.
The following help me:

Eating something light a few hours before the flight and nothing else until flight takes off. And again nothing a few hours before landing.

Sleep. Before kids, I'd take 2 night nurse at the gate and wake up in another country.

Those travel wrist bands. They work.

Booked sweets

Audiobooks to distract me.

Strictly no reading,

Also if I lie on one side I'm less sick, but this isn't possible during take off and landing.

A nice light smelling oil. Plane air is stuffy and smelly. I like lemongrass.

Layers so I don't get too hot.

Hopefully it will improve as she gets older and can deal with it better x

Another vote for phenergan.
I was prescribed it last year and it’s great. You do need to start taking it a couple of days before tho to get it into your system (at bed time so doesn’t matter if it makes you drowsy). The effects then last 24 hours but you can top up again if you feel ill.
I used to get horrendously sick on boats and coaches but I’ve managed a 9 hour coach trip and a cruise on phenergan.

Stugeron is brilliant. I've been taking it for years for car, plane and boat journeys.

The only downside is that it makes me really hungry. I take a bag full of food on every journey too

Sturgeron here too for me and dh when we're on boats

Something over the counter phenergan I assume for dd

You can't not travel because of sickness