Whether you have several kids you need to keep an eye on or you have multiple sets of parents travelling with all their children for one big, family holiday, heading to an airport with a group of children can seem quite intimidating. Here are some tips to help you manage your time there.
Practice Basic Crowd Safety
Just because an airport is a finite space does not mean that your children will not be able to run off and get lost. Therefore, you need to make sure that you know for definite that they are able to keep themselves safe even when you do not have your eyes on them.
Make sure that each child has a buddy and drill into them the importance of sticking together. You should also arrange a meeting place in case anyone becomes separated. If your children are old enough to have their own mobile phones, make sure that everyone in the group has each other’s numbers and all phones are fully charged and ready to go. It would be frustrating for all involved if you missed your plane simply because a member of your family got lost. Stick together and make sure there is a game-plan in place if you end up separated.
Drive Yourselves to the Airport
The more heads you have, the more expensive it will be to just get to the airport in the first place. Bus shuttles and express trains are extremely convenient but they can be expensive when you have a group which is easily fifteen heads or more. They can also cost a lot of money if you are heading to one of the London airports like Luton. Instead of forking out huge amounts for shuttle transport or hiring a minibus taxi, why not just take your own car to make use of the official Luton Airport parking services?
You can park at Luton Airport cheap thanks to Luton Parking. You prepay for your parking space online, then all you need to do is find your designated parking space and head into the terminal. There are also meet and greet services where you head into the drop-off zone and hand over your keys to a driver who takes your car to a secure compound during your holiday. If you are on the hunt for a solution which is minimal fuss for you, you should definitely look into this style of airport parking for you and your family.
Bring Your Own Snacks
It is no secret that airport food is very expensive, whether you are sitting down in a restaurant or picking up something to go. If you were to buy food for everyone in your party in this way, it would add up to some serious money spent. Instead, you should definitely think about bringing your own snacks to feed everyone with.
Not only will this allow you to check that everything is healthy and meets any dietary requirements your family might have, but it will also save you quite a bit of money. Set aside time the day before you go away to make sure that you have enough time to go to the shops to buy snacks and make them up if you need.
Another great idea is to make sure that every member of the travelling party has their own reusable water bottle. Take them through security empty and then fill them up on the other side from a tap. There should be plenty of places you can get some drinking water once you are airside. By using this, you can make sure that everyone in your family can keep themselves hydrated no matter how long you may end up delayed in the airport.
Dress Comfy
If you are travelling with very little children, consider dressing them in pyjamas or a smart onesie for the journey through the airport. Not only will it make them easier to spot in a crowd, but it also means that you know that they will be comfy no matter how long they are delayed.
You should also make sure that you have a change of clothes for each child your carry-on. If your child spills something down themselves early into the journey, they are likely to become grumpy if they have to stay grumpy and sticky for the rest of it. Err on the safe side, and make sure that you have something fresh they can slip on if needs be.
If you follow these handy tips, you will hopefully find any trip to an airport with a large family a lot easier. Trying to manage so many people at once can be difficult and adding children into the mix can be even more of a challenge. However, if you plan it sensibly, there is no reason why you cannot get through the airport with as little hassle as possible.
To read more on topics like this, check out the travel category.
Leave a Reply