HG3 Posted April 1, 2012 Share Posted April 1, 2012 Hi I am flying with Emirates to Perth in less than 2 weeks - how scary does that sound, still so much to do!!!!! I am flying with a 6 and a 4 year old on my own and just wondered what tips you had and what to pack in the suitcase and what to pack in the carry on?? Any essentials needed for the flight? Any top tips for entertaining the children? Any tips for the dubai changeover? Any tips would be appreciated. Going to rush off and do something as running out of time - arhhhhh!! Helen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eggwise Posted April 1, 2012 Share Posted April 1, 2012 (edited) Hi, My 2 boys were 7 and 5 when we first flew to Melbourne. Just the three of us! To be honest they were fantastic and coped with the journey so well. They had their own little back-packs which they packed with their favourite cuddly toy, a couple of magazines each, small pack of colouring pencils and a ds and games. They also had a change of clothes packed in there too...just incase of emergencies! And some sweets to combat the ear popping! I treated the while journey like a game from the moment we got to Heathrow....such as, I told them our flight number and they had great fun checking the boards for our gate number. Then i explained to them how they were going to "help" me find the gate...stuff like that.. kept them interested in what was going on and I think they felt quite grown-up helping mummy! I also found that having them focus on getting to the right place at the right time stopped the need in them to run off and do some exploring of their own, which was a concern of mine. My main worry was that they would run off in different directions and I wouldn't know which one to go after first! I know it sounds silly but I dressed them both in the same bright red t-shirts, baseball caps and bright blue "mario" backpacks so that if they did leg it i could spot them straight away! Once on the plane they were fine... the inflight entertainment was a great help and kept them occupied. Oh and another thing you should pack in your hand luggage are some wet wipes! They come in so handy if there is any travel sickness! Hope this helps All the best! Edited April 1, 2012 by eggwise Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quoll Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 Travel light and hope for the best I reckon. If your kids are prone to travel sickness then try out the travel sick meds BEFORE you even approach a plane as some of them can hype a kid up (most kids dont respond in that way but you dont want a kid bouncing off the walls in the air so try them first). Otherwise, as I said, travel light - perhaps each of you have a back pack and then you have your hands free to deal with the kids. I like the idea of dressing them in something eye catching, that certainly helps if they are inclined to wander off. They are likely to spend their time eating, sleeping and watching cartoons on the inflight entertainment system so dont go overboad with "stuff". We have done the random "little presents" for unwrapping at strategic points but in reality we never needed them as they usually got a kids pack with the essentials for colouring etc. I think the one toy we got most use out of was a little etch a sketch thing out of the $2 shop and the granddaughter was intrigued by a braiding kit I bought her (she is 4) and happily braided her way across Asia when she wasnt asleep. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Julz Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 I flew Oz - UK myself with 3 kids (5 year old and 2 x 3 year olds) a year and a half ago. Top tips are travel sickness tablets (they helped my 3 sleep too...for 9 hours solid), don't let them eat anything greasy (no burgers, chips) before flying, change of t-shirts (in case they are sick), travel pillows (the soft beany ones that go round their neck) - I put the arm-rests of the seats up and put one on each armrest so their heads fell onto it when they were sleeping. Get your oldest child to carry a ruck sack with their teddies, small water bottles and some colouring in books and pens....I chose the Crayola wonder ones for there's no mess. Lastly, buy some reigns for the 4 year old, its hard trying to get your luggage and keep tabs on the kids.....I tied the twins to the luggage trolley while the oldest held on to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Bazinga Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 Julz - what tablets do you use? I have a 6yr old boy who even gets sick on tube journeys and is reowned for projectile vomiting on take off amd landing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GilraenH Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 Julz - what tablets do you use? I have a 6yr old boy who even gets sick on tube journeys and is reowned for projectile vomiting on take off amd landing You should also check with your pharmacist/GP what will suit your kids, in case they will react with other medications/conditions. :smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HG3 Posted April 2, 2012 Author Share Posted April 2, 2012 Thanks for all the tips guys. Have been and got little pillows for them today and have rethought the huge amount of things i was carrying to entertain them. I had never thought of travel sickness but off to pharmacist tomorrow for some advice... saw some travel bands today whilst out and about are these any good? thanks again - just good to know people have done it and survived!! One last thing is there ever any staff around at perth to help with luggage as going to have a lot and wil be dificult to manage with the little ones prob clinging to my legs by this point? Helen x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quoll Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 You should also check with your pharmacist/GP what will suit your kids, in case they will react with other medications/conditions. :smile: And try before you fly!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Julz Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 Helen - I hope for your sake someone helps with the luggage, I struggled on my own, not one person offered any help however they did rush me through customs as they could see I looking particularly tired and stressed by that point. Who are you flying with? I flew with BA and didn't find them to be very helpful in flight. Good luck, it won't be as bad as you think. Bazinga - I got the travel sickness tablets in the UK, the pharmacist recommended tablets called joy rides (I think), they were little pink or red tablets. My daughter had really bad travel sickness on the Singapore - UK leg (I didn't know she suffered travel sickness until this point), these tablets helped heaps on the way home. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AaronS Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 Something I'd recommend is bringing a full change of clothes for them AND for you on board. If one gets sick you can guarantee that it will be as you are rushing them to the toilet resulting in you needing a change as well. Maybe a plastic rubbish bag to put the potentially soiled clothing in as well so they don't stink up the cabin. As far as entertainment for them all I'll say is if you bring small items be prepared to constantly have to fish them off the cabin floor as they drop them......crayons will never fly with me! :-) Best of luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AaronS Posted April 2, 2012 Share Posted April 2, 2012 Oh, the only real advice I have on the luggage and customs situation is have patience....lots and lots of patience. You are going to be tired and the kids will be whincing. Five of us (2 adults and 3 kiddos) had 15 bags in the airport and it took every ounce of my resolve not to go completely insane waiting to go through customs. Poor kids just wanted to get out of there....and so did I. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RockDr Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 The travel bands do help (we used them for my little sister in the car when she was little, and I've used them when going out on rough seas), but don't rely completely on them for particularly bad cases. ginger biscuits (or crystallised ginger if they'll eat it) and hard-boiled sweets (the saliva helps neutralise the stomach acid) can help settle the stomach. Also make sure the kid can see forwards, so getting a seat towards the back of the section and sitting him in the aisle seat (or window seat if they're tall enough to see down the side). And if it's a plane that has user adjustable ventilation outlets, point them at him and turn on high for take-off and landing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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