Make 11 Pre-Trip Preparations to Travel Abroad Happily with Your Kids

After having children, every time you go out, you always have to prepare a lot of things. The big and small bags make many parents feel that traveling with kids is such a hassle. But at the same time, you also want to take your children on trips to explore many beautiful places around the world. What a great deal!
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Actually, as long as you prepare thoroughly in advance, taking kids abroad is not difficult at all. When Tangtang was 1 year and 8 months old, we went to Okinawa. After having our second child, we traveled to Hong Kong when Tang was 3 years and 2 months old and Guo was 10 months old. Both of these overseas experiences were very enjoyable, memorable, and went very smoothly. Come and see how we prepared!

To protect the public’s rights and prevent passport fraud, starting from July 1, 2011 (100), individuals applying for a regular passport for the first time who are unable to apply in person at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Bureau of Consular Affairs (hereinafter referred to as the Consular Affairs Bureau) or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Central, Yunlin–Chiayi–Tainan, Southern, and Eastern Branch Offices (hereinafter referred to as the Four MOFA Branch Offices).

may first go to any household registration office to complete the regular passport application form and undergo identity verification. Then, they can entrust a travel agency, relative, or colleague to submit the completed passport application form along with the required documents to the Consular Affairs Bureau or the Four MOFA Branch Offices on their behalf.

Applying for a passport requires either going in person to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Consular Affairs Bureau or first going to a household registration office for identity verification. Since you have to make the trip anyway, you might as well apply in person at the Consular Affairs Bureau. Plus, you can get your passport in just four working days—upgraded. I took Tangtang with me to apply in person at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the fee was 900 NT dollars.

Xiaoguo’s passport was applied for through a travel agency because the Consular Affairs Bureau is about a 30-minute drive from our home, while the household registration office is only a 3-minute drive. At the time, I was really too busy, and going to the household registration office for identity verification seemed more convenient to me, so I had the travel agency handle it. The cost was $1200.

Babies do not occupy a seat. If you need a baby basket (weight limit is 10 kg) or baby meals, please request them when booking your flight seats. This time when we went to Hong Kong, we booked a baby basket, but I completely forgot about it. On the way there, Xiaoguo slept the whole flight, and my arms were almost broken from holding her.

I think flights of about three hours can be considered, but because I personally get motion sickness easily and feel uncomfortable, for these two trips abroad with our kids, we only dared to choose countries with flights of just over an hour: Okinawa and Hong Kong. The kids wake up upon arrival at the destination. If they’re not sleepy, they can eat, drink, and play on the plane, and the time flies by!

Plus, both KT and I have been to these two countries before, so we didn’t have to spend much time doing research or planning the itinerary, which made things much easier for me.

Both options have their pros and cons. The advantage of joining a tour group is that you don’t have to spend time doing research or arranging the itinerary, but the downside is that you have to stick to the schedule. If the child has an emergency, it’s hard to adjust the itinerary. We prefer the freedom of independent travel, where we can arrange the attractions the kids want to visit, stay longer if needed, and head back to the hotel when tired—very flexible.

The time we went to Okinawa happened to coincide with a strong typhoon, and our itinerary was completely disrupted. We spent most of that day in the hotel, and the shopping malls were also closed. But because it was an independent trip and there was no fixed schedule, changing plans on the spot wasn’t a problem.

Since you’re traveling with children, try to avoid situations where you’re “walking non-stop.” When choosing a hotel, try to pick one near a subway station, otherwise both adults and kids will get tired. When we went to Okinawa, we rented a car, which made it very convenient to drive to our destinations. There’s also a monorail in the urban areas of Okinawa.

Hong Kong’s transportation is also very developed. We stayed at a Disneyland hotel that offered a shuttle bus to the park, and taking a taxi to the airport was affordable, quick, and convenient!

If your child has a comfort doll or pacifier they never leave behind, remember to bring it when traveling abroad—it can help stabilize their emotions. During takeoff and landing, children may also feel uncomfortable, so you can let them drink milk or water to ease the discomfort through swallowing.

Traveling abroad inevitably involves waiting in lines. Sometimes waiting to clear customs can take a long time... To prevent your child from getting bored or restless, you can bring small toys, a few sticker books, cookies... etc., to pass the time and also use the opportunity to teach your child how to wait. When I took Tangtang to Okinawa, other travelers even told us, “It’s so good that such a little kid can patiently wait in line with you!”

I was busy packing, and Xiaoguo kept whining. As soon as I pulled out the rice crackers, she quieted down for 20 minutes.

Even if your child can already walk, I still recommend bringing a lightweight stroller when traveling abroad, unless the child is old enough not to need one. At some venues, you can rent one if needed (such as in amusement parks). Because the child may get very tired from walking or may fall asleep, and that’s when you’ll really need the stroller for them to sit or lie down and rest. Otherwise, you’ll be carrying them until your arms break—and you’ll be annoyed, haha!

When the child doesn’t want to sit in the stroller, it can also be used to hold bags and souvenirs, so parents don’t have to carry a bunch of stuff. If you’re traveling to a country with unstable weather, remember to bring a rain cover!

If you’re traveling with a baby, it’s also recommended to bring a baby carrier. When the baby is awake, you can face them outward to provide stimulation. When they’re tired, they can fall asleep right in the carrier without you having to put in effort to soothe them to sleep—super convenient!

1. Clothing: thick/thin jackets, gloves, socks, small blankets, shoes (it’s recommended to pack a set of clothes in your mom bag for easy changing in case they get dirty outdoors). 2. Lightweight stroller, baby carrier, rain cover.
3. Diapers, gauze cloths, wet wipes, pacifiers, comfort items, distraction tools (sticker books, crayons, paper, thin picture books), utensils. 4. (Remember, food scissors are absolutely not allowed on the plane. I had to throw mine away when we went to Hong Kong this time.)
5. Food suitable for your child’s developmental stage: formula, bottles, nursing covers, insulated bottles, rice cereal, portable food blenders, mixing sticks, water bottles, small snacks. 6. Cold medicine, fever patches, ear thermometers, sunscreen.

Every trip is also a learning opportunity for children. You can prepare them in advance for what they might encounter during the journey. And explain that taking a plane involves various checkpoints, so they can have a concept of airports, planes, and travel, which helps reduce anxiety.

So before our first trip abroad, I showed Tangtang this English picture book about airports and told her, “We’re going to take a plane to Japan to play soon!” I explained the situations she might encounter: waiting in lines, feeling a bit uncomfortable during takeoff and landing, the places we’d visit, possibly traveling by car or bus for long periods, and how mommy and daddy would help her—so she could mentally prepare.

If you’re traveling independently, prepare the itinerary, transportation, addresses, phone numbers, business hours, public holidays, etc., in advance to avoid spending a lot of time asking questions or going to the wrong places.

Even if your foreign language skills aren’t great, it’s not a problem for travel at all. You can prepare pictures and list the Chinese and English (or other languages) names of sights and information. That way, you can ask locals for help when needed. Once in the Czech Republic, we were dying to eat beef, but not knowing any Czech, KT ended up drawing a cow on a piece of paper—and we successfully got beef dishes, haha!

Since you’re traveling with kids, it’s recommended to include more attractions that will make them happy, such as amusement parks, aquariums, parks, beaches... etc. Don’t plan too many shopping activities for the adults, or the kids will just end up waiting and compromising the whole time.

It’s recommended to plan just 1–2 main attractions per day. For example, on one of our days in Okinawa, we headed to Kouri Island around noon, then went to the Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium, and after that returned to the hotel to rest a bit, had dinner nearby, and took a short walk around the hotel area before calling it a day.

This time in Hong Kong, even though we only had two short days, we spent the whole time at Disneyland. We didn’t get to eat the food I’d been longing for or visit other places, but we didn’t feel like we missed out. Seeing our child happy made us happy, and besides, there will be plenty of other opportunities in the future.

Usually busy with work, family trips are really rare moments when you can be with your kids 24/7.
So please keep a relaxed mindset. Of course, there should still be rules, but don’t push yourself or your child too hard, or it might harm your parent-child relationship. For example, at home, Tangtang is only allowed to watch cartoons before or after dinner when I’m busy in the kitchen.

But while traveling abroad, after a whole day out, we let her relax and watch TV when we got back to the hotel so the adults could take a break (of course, we set a prior agreement not to watch for too long). At Disneyland, we even broke our rule and let her have a lollipop—she was so surprised when she first got it, not knowing whether to lick or bite it... haha.

I ate an ice pop for the first time in Okinawa.

Kids gain a lot of valuable experience from each trip, and parents learn a lot too. On this trip to Hong Kong Disneyland, as soon as Tangtang entered the park and saw Mickey and Minnie taking photos with visitors, she insisted on joining the line—but the queue was super long. We estimated it would take at least 1–2 hours, so we explained to her that we should go try other rides first. She threw a little tantrum at that moment.
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KT, who was determined to take her to “It’s a Small World,” also thought the kid was insisting on wasting time in a long queue for no reason. But I told KT that what seems trivial to us is a big deal for a child. If she asks again next time, we’ll wait in line with her.

The next day, when we were leaving the park, we ran into Mickey and Minnie again. Tangtang of course wanted to queue up for photos again, so we kept our promise and waited with her. But we did explain beforehand: the line would be very long, we might not even get to take the photo, and it would be uncomfortable standing under the hot sun for so long. KT also patiently used her phone to explain that they had already taken a photo with Mickey at the hotel, and it wasn’t absolutely necessary to do it again this time. If she really wanted the photo, we’d wait with her, but if we were running late for the flight, we’d have to give it up.

In the end, after waiting for about half an hour, Tangtang suddenly said, “I don’t want to queue for the photo anymore. Mickey needs to rest, and we can do it another time!” When we heard her say that, we immediately left the line and rushed to the airport. The parents waiting in line gave us envious looks—so funny.

Then there’s Xiaoguo, who’s usually a crybaby who smiles a lot. This was his first time abroad, but unexpectedly, he was very well-behaved. He slept the entire way on the plane there, woke up before boarding on the way back, but didn’t make a fuss during the flight and just sat quietly playing by himself. At night, he suddenly woke up looking for me, but I was in the bathroom, and he actually let KT soothe him to sleep. That was so touching.

That’s pretty much how we prepare for every overseas trip. I encourage everyone not to be afraid—if possible, gather your courage and take your kids abroad. Don’t think, “They’re too young, they won’t remember, it’s such a waste of money.” (Even if you take them to the park, they won’t remember either, so why go? And haven’t they already forgotten almost everything they learned in school? Isn’t school a waste of money too?)

They’ll know that mom and dad didn’t leave them behind to go have fun just because they were little troublemakers—they brought them along, no matter where they went. (Of course, it’s totally fine to travel without kids too—this is just based on my own experience!) Moreover, traveling with kids also enriches the parents’ memories. All in all, it will definitely be an unforgettable experience.
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