Kids on the coast

At the risk of sounding obvious, holidays with babies require a little forward planning. Once you get it into your head that it will take longer to move around, require more luggage and test your patience, then it’s possible to sink into the groove and revel in watching your baby’s reaction to new experiences.

But what IS most important when choosing a holiday experience with your baby or toddler? It was a question close to my heart three years ago, when I started the research for my master’s in communication. The resulting industry research project Kids Welcome – the needs and desires of travelling families, was the result of several years’ research and surveys of the parents of over 80 children ranging in ages from newborn to teens.

The first stage of research started with informal interviews of parents with children in each of three age groups: Preschool, primary and teenagers. Parents were asked about the things they looked for when choosing products in five different categories: Attractions and activities, accommodation, camping, eating establishments and tours.
 
Results found that the features important differed substantially depending on the age of the children. Generally, parents with babies and preschool-age children, for instance, focused on the provision of appropriate equipment to make their lives easier. Things like high chairs, prams, easy walking distances and ability to bring their own food were very important. As children reached primary-age, parents focused more on meeting the emotional needs of their children.

Features like entertainment, maintaining a child’s interest and having appropriate activities were deemed more important as they got older. Then, when it came to teenagers, parents’ expectation and desires changed again… that’s so far in your future right now, we won’t go into depth!

The results of informal discussions were used to design a questionnaire which was distributed widely to schools and playgroups in the Sunshine and Gold Coast region and results were used to critique tourism products. For instance, when it came time to choose accommodation with your baby, small child-safe rooms, cleanliness, self contained options and child-friendly service were considered very important. All respondents rated the availability of a pool high on their list and preferably one with water features. Playgrounds and kids’ clubs were also valued for toddlers and, on a more practical side, highchairs, cots, baths and pram accessibility were helpful. More than half the parents surveyed said they would choose a self contained option (54%).

In research discussions with parents, many wonderful tried and tested travel tips emerged for travelling with babies:
Choosing accommodation

With small babies it is important to prepare your hotel room in the same way you would your own home: keep dangerous things out of the reach of children, close gates and doors to balconies and watch investigative fingers as they find new holes to explore. When booking, consider requesting a lower floor unit unless there’s a lift available, and find out if car parking has easy access to your room. Consider taking a folding cot with you and plenty of familiar toys.
 
Travel by plane

• Feed your baby as the aircraft descends to avoid inner ear pressure
• Individually package little toys and bring them out intermittently during the flight
• For small babies, book a bassinette ahead for long flights
• For toddlers, take them for regular walks down the aisles
• Instead of pre-boarding and sitting in your seats for longer than other passengers, spend the extra time letting toddlers run around the terminal and board later

Travel by car
 

• Plan for your trip to take longer than it used to! 
• For long distances with babies, consider driving at night when they are asleep 
• Make regular stops and head for a park and let off some steam 
• Carry lots of baby wipes! 
• Take a few small new books or toys and hand them out one at a time as the journey progresses 
• Consider having one parent in the back seat to keep babies amused 
• If kids are prone to motion sickness, give them Kwells (or equivalent) well ahead of travel

Further reading: Discover how travel can be the greatest education as your kids explore different cultures and meet local families. From tots to teens, this practical book will inspire every parent. It includes pre-departure advice from Lonely Planet authors and covers destination from Las Vegas to Vietnam.