Share your tips for planning a family holiday with a baby or toddler with Thomas Cook - £300 voucher to be won NOW CLOSED

[JustineBMumsnet]

Going on holiday with a baby or toddler in tow means you’re likely having to plan for things you’ve never even considered before. Whether you’re new to holidays with a baby or toddler or feel like you’ve got too much experience, Thomas Cook would like to hear the tips you have for planning a family holiday with a baby or toddler.

Here’s what Thomas Cook has to say: “Going away with a baby or toddler can, at times, be a little stressful; there are lots of readers out there with some great tips to help make things easier for other mums, meaning that everyone can enjoy their well-earned time away”

Do you find that it’s easiest to book a package holiday so that the big stuff is done all in one go? Perhaps you have tips for making a flight run smoothly? Or maybe you have ideas for keeping them entertained when you’ve had to scale down their toy collection for the week?

Whatever your tips, share them below to be entered into a prize draw where one MNer will win a £300 voucher for the store of their choice (from a list).

Thanks and good luck!

MNHQ

Standard Insight T&CS apply

Keep transfers from airport down to an hour or under - the last leg is the killer. Ring Boots in duty free and pre-order babyfood and nappies so you don't have to squash into hand luggage or eat at security. No short haul night flights...however a good a bargain, it is not worth it.

make lists, plan, imagine a worst case scenario then relax and enjoy it

I find it easier to book a package holiday as they can help find a place that has good stuff for toddlers to do

We adjusted our eating times to fit our baby when our son was little and tried not to plan too much as we found going with the flow a lot less stressful

Try to avoid having to fly! We learnt the hard way by being stuck on the tarmac in the plane for 3 hours before then having a 5 hour flight!

When my children were very young, we took our holidays in the UK. I didn't want the hassle of airports and flights when there lots of lovedly places in the UK we could go to.

We took our daughter 5 and son 3 to Florida last May for 2 weeks. We tried to plan as much as we could for early in the day so the afternoons were free for us to relax. Some days went really well and other days were manic.

The flight was harder with our son as he didn't like the idea of being sat in one place, he kept wanting to switch seats with daddy, nanny and grandad. But he was happy once he had moved. We took colouring, ipads and headphones for the flight. All were ok for a short time.

We made sure both children had a cuddly toy from home to help them settle better in our villa. As above we did some advanced planning of our theme park days but it was easy enough to change if the kids were not up for something. We purchased x1 fold up pushchair for our son but ended up getting another for our daughter as we found she was wanted one for her 'tired legs'.

My advice would be to make use of any planning apps, book tables at restaurants and be flexible.

Do you find that it’s easiest to book a package holiday so that the big stuff is done all in one go?

Yes, because you'll usually get somewhere where most others are in same situation as you, plus food transfers etc. Feels like less to go wrong and generally the plane is full of kids so nobody cares if yours cries!!!

Perhaps you have tips for making a flight run smoothly?
Short flight, comfort blankets, a drink, and something to occupy them

Or maybe you have ideas for keeping them entertained when you’ve had to scale down their toy collection for the week?
We take some colouring, but buckets and spades and cheap toys there and let them go to kids club to play

I always make sure I take our own sheets and pillow case when we go away on holiday for babies or toddler. This along with their favourite bedtime toys means that getting them to sleep at night is a breeze as the sheets and pillow case at least smell familiar to them making them feel calmer.

Make sure you take enough of your 'own' brand things like lotions, bath stuff etc - often you will struggle to find the same things and rashes and reactions d not make happy holidays!

Dont travel too far if you can help it and avoid planes where possible.

I organise everything within an inch of its life before we arrive...that way when I get there it all runs smoothly. I have backup plans, I check reviews, I check restaurants, I check nearby attractions...everything. I shop about.

Whilst there I try to keep to my daughters routine as much as possible. She's 6 but I have found that keeping some stability has prevented the over tired, too hot, too excited meltdowns that I'm sure all parents have experienced at one point on holiday.

I involve the all the family when planning the trip, to ensure that we all have input and decide what were going to do together. It means that no on is disappointed.

For travelling and flights, me and my daughter always make her fun travel backpack. This is full of little toys, paper and pens, snacks, travel size drinks and a tablet with cartoons and games at the ready, downloaded to the device. Extra things to keep her entertained :)

Make sure you book a room that has a fridge & Kettle and microwave
Take extra baby nappies,milk and food just in case of flight delays etc
Buy disposable sterilising bags it saves a huge amount of room in your case
Buy SPF90 ,UV protection top and water shoes to protect baby from sun exposure
And finally write a list of everything you need to take and tick off as your packing each item

Somewhere with a good pool, usually go somewhere on the beach too so not got lots of walking and can come and go from the beach easily. Somewhere nice and hot too! Always book alltogether, saves the hassle of trying to do it all separately. Try and get decent flight times as I hate getting up early to travel.

do not let your toddler or younger children take their own separate luggage. As a main priority is keeping hold of the children, easy to lose items on buses etc. found this out with our first trip abroad with 3 children under 7. much easier to take just a couple of large suit cases even if children protest and want their trunki

My main tip is invite the grandparents so that you have on hand babysitters as then everyone can have some alone time to chill on holiday. Otherwise I try to book places that I know are family friendly. The last thing that I want is to be worried that my toddlers are disturbing others

Bring a sheet from your toddler's cot/bed. It's small enough to tuck in a bag, and the familiarity of the smell and comfort will help settle a child not just on a flight but also when sleeping in an unfamiliar bed.

Endurance. Energy. Enthusiasm that it will end soon m

I pore over reviews of places before we book, and check (being a worrier) about things like access to medical facilities should we need them.
I try and pack lightly: a few toys and books for the journey, a medical kit, lots of snacks and drinks, plus a few clothes (always easy to rinse out if you are in a hot climate, so you need less than you think).
I use a cheap lightweight buggy.
Main thing to remember? A good sense of humour!

Take lots of games and snacks dress children in comfortable clothes to travel in and take the favourite teddy or blanket

Outfits in clear ziplock bags!

Early flights best they sleep! Dressed in a favourite sleep set helps and p patents keep calm

Take baby wipes for quick clean up and plenty of snacks and drinks. Make sure that you have a toys and games but not so many that they become a nightmare to keep track of.

Keep it simple and don't make too many plans! Just make sure all the basics are covered and anything after that is a bonus. See how it goes! Relax!

We found having our own villa and swimming pool was great, we could chill around the pool and when they went to bed we could still sit outside rather than having a hotel room where one of us would have to sit in the bedroom. I was lucky to breastfeed both of them so no need for sterilising, bottles and taking powder/ liquids on planes. I recommend taking a baby carrier, I could walk them through the airport and from the plane to baggage collection. It was more convenient than taking a buggy.