Summer Travel Series: Traveling With Younger Children (3-5 years)

Welcome to the third installment of our Summer Travel Series! Now that your children are big enough to sit in their own airplane seat and can entertain themselves for a slightly longer period of time, bring along some of their favorite items in the Melissa and Doug Ride-On Trunki Suitcase! At age 3, kids can sit on Trunki’s back and be pulled along in the airport if you would rather check your stroller than deal with gate checking it.



Trunki is big enough to hold you child's favorite blanket, sweatshirt, and big enough to hold plenty of toys to keep them busy. Some nice toys to try are Melissa and Doug's Pretend Play and Dress Up Dolls (Policeman for Boys, Princesses for girls). Another good idea is to bring along a "pet" stuffed animal for your child to take care of while flying. The responsibility of caring for a special little buddy is enough to take your child's mind off of, possible, first time flying anxiety. Have your little one talk to their pet and explain to their pet the process of security check points, the importance of seat belts on the plane, and good flying etiquette such as, "We have to use our inside voices, and we must not kick seats." This will help them process the information in an indirect way.

Your child may be big enough for their own seat on the plane, but the restraint system was not designed with little bodies in mind, so check out the Kids Fly Safe Cares Restraint Harness. It works in conjunction with the planes safety belts and is comfortably designed just for your little flyer. Avoid carrying your bulky car seat on the plane with you, check it as luggage and use the Cares Harness instead.

Chances are your child will need more than the small snack most airlines are serving these days, so pack a lunch in the Double Decker Meal Box. Extra snacks can be packed in the Itzy Ritzy Snack Happens Reusable Bags, and don't forget to bring along an empty lidded cup or water bottle if your child is not used to drinking from an open bottle or cup to fill with whatever juice or water is served on the plane.

Check back in with us for the last part in our Summer Travel Series: Traveling with Older Children (5-8 years) to see how Trunki grows with your child and more!

~Alena