If someone goes on a journey, they’re bound to have an experience — as the saying goes. But what happens when the whole family comes along? One thing’s for sure: the adventure multiplies — and so do the preparations and safety considerations. Today, I’d love to share how my husband and I approached planning a world trip with small children, step by step.
How to take a break from everyday life?
We’re traveling as a family of four: my husband, our two children (ages 3 and 6, not yet in school), and myself. Before our eldest starts school, we wanted to take one last extended break together as a family.
We chose a travel period of just under four months — long enough to truly count as a break, but short enough to manage alongside our jobs, thanks to emails, laptops, internet, and modern virtual conferencing systems.
Setting the timeframe, destination, and route for a family world trip
There are many ways to plan a world trip in terms of destination, route, and duration. Since I lived in New Zealand for over a year, my husband has family in Western Australia, and we’ve already traveled across Canada together, we chose Australia, New Zealand, the USA, and Canada. Based on our experience, we can recommend these countries as safe destinations for extended travel with preschool-aged children like ours.
We planned to spend about one month in each country. That gives us enough time to settle in and acclimate properly. We minimized jet lag by traveling in smaller stages around the world. This way, each destination only involved a few hours of time difference, which our children handled very well.
Also very helpful and reassuring is the travel insurance from Europäische Reiseversicherung. We always have our policy details, travel information, and emergency assistance at hand via the Europäische app; linking it with existing documents is truly child’s play. This allows us to start our world trip worry-free, knowing that if anything happens, we’ll have access to our data and support from our travel insurance services.
Packing for long-haul flights and road trips
Well, the answer is: just like for any shorter vacation. Although we’re traveling for several months, we’ll be doing laundry along the way and may buy additional clothing as needed. March in Australia is still quite hot, while April in New Zealand is noticeably cooler. In other words: we pack in layers, like an onion.
Whether it’s a long-haul flight or a campervan road trip, it’s important to think about “on-board entertainment” for little travel companions. Thanks to many outings and even multi-week trips across Europe with our kids, we’re well-practiced. Must-haves include coloring pens, small favorite books, cuddly toys, and toy race cars; maybe even a favorite puzzle or two that’s currently popular.
But I also trust that the world itself is such a breathtaking, fascinating (natural) playground that our children will never be bored. And if they are — well, that’s okay too sometimes.
Do you have specific questions about preparing a world trip with children? Then don’t hesitate to ask! I’d be delighted to help: on my travel blog www.CreativElena.com you’ll find lots of practical tips and resources for planning family travel.