Aibaby Parenting Network | Source: Issue 78 of the newsletter published by the Jingjuan Foundation
During every consecutive holiday, many families plan to go traveling during these rare breaks. Here, we offer some safety tips for parents to ensure everyone has a fun and safe trip.
Taking the whole family out on a rare holiday is a precious experience for both adults and children. Many families opt to drive in order to make travel arrangements more convenient or to enjoy greater freedom. In addition to ensuring the driver stays alert and doesn’t drink and drive, don’t forget to keep an eye on the little ones at home too.
Safety reminders:
1. Be sure to prepare a “dedicated seat” for your child — a child safety seat. This not only ensures their safety while riding in the car but also helps you avoid fines. According to foreign research, in the event of a collision, it’s impossible for an adult to hold a child securely with their hands. To ensure your child’s safety, always use a child safety seat correctly.
2. Children over four years old and weighing more than 18 kilograms should sit in the back seat and wear a seat belt at all times, regardless of the road section. For added safety, use a “cushion-type child seat” to elevate them, in combination with the rear seat “seat belt,” to provide the best possible protection for your child.
3. Whether in the front or back seat, adults should also remember to fasten their seat belts. The serious injury sustained by Ms. Shao Xiaoling in a car accident shows that wearing a seat belt can indeed protect passengers and reduce the severity of injuries in the event of an accident.
4. In addition to providing appropriate seating for your child, also be mindful not to let them stick their head or hands out of the window while the vehicle is moving. Never allow children to stand up or poke their head or hands out of the sunroof to feel the wind or enjoy the view.
Such behavior not only risks injury from low-hanging branches or flying debris but also, in the event of sudden braking, a child standing in the sunroof could fall out of the vehicle, hit their chest, or suffer spinal injuries. They might also accidentally hit the steering wheel and cause an accident.
5. Help your child open and close car doors to prevent them from getting their fingers pinched or from suddenly opening the door upon exiting and getting hit by a passing vehicle.
6. Teach your children regularly, and remind or stop them while in the car, from playing with power window switches to avoid getting their fingers caught.
When traveling, besides driving yourselves, you might sometimes arrange for a group of family and friends to rent a tour bus, plan the itinerary through a travel agency, or organize it yourselves. Recent tour bus accidents have made us more aware that, given the government’s incomplete oversight of tour bus management, there are several important factors to consider when renting a tour bus for self-protection.
Safety reminders:
1. When planning the itinerary, also consider whether your child has the stamina to handle it, whether the chosen destination is suitable for children, and whether there are any particularly dangerous terrains or structures (such as deep pools, fast-flowing streams, waterfalls, cliffs, etc.). Very young children are not suited for long bus trips, and steep scenic trails or mountain paths are also not suitable for very young children.
2. After planning the itinerary, remind the children traveling with you about safety principles before setting off, especially not to stand, run around, or move about inside the vehicle to avoid injury in case of sudden braking or rough road conditions.
3. When visiting crowded tourist spots, always pay attention to where your child is, whether they are approaching dangerous areas or engaging in risky behavior. You can also rehearse with your child in advance what to do if they accidentally get separated from you during the trip.
Recommended reading:
4. Before signing a contract with a travel agency or tour bus company, confirm that they are a legally operating business, and ask the travel agency (or tour bus company) to provide the driver’s license and the vehicle’s registration for the driver assigned to your trip.
5. Before departure, check to ensure that the driver and vehicle are the ones agreed upon in the contract. This is to avoid situations where the driver is not using their usual vehicle, is unfamiliar with it, and cannot handle problems that arise unexpectedly.
Also, if the travel agency (or tour bus company) has arranged a vehicle from another city, the driver may be fatigued from long hours of driving and unfit to continue. Additionally, request the travel agency (or tour bus company) to provide information on the driver’s physical and mental condition as well as the “pre-departure inspection record form for rented tour buses,” and verify the driver’s license and vehicle registration.
Nowadays, more and more parents are willing to take their children abroad to visit relatives or explore new places, allowing children to experience different lives and cultures from a young age. But taking young children overseas requires even more thorough preparation in advance.
Safety reminders:
1. Before departure, educate your child about safety and prepare the necessary items for daily life and the trip. While it's good to have fun, rest is equally important. Children should not stay up late and should return to their accommodation early each night. If a child feels unwell, they should rest more, postpone the itinerary, and see a doctor.
2. Since children have lower immunity than adults, if you discover an infectious disease (like chickenpox or measles) in the travel area, consider changing your destination or cutting the trip short.
3. When flying, to avoid motion sickness, pay attention to your child’s diet. Try to avoid foods that can easily cause motion sickness, such as sweets like chocolate. Some children are also more prone to motion sickness when drinking juice or on an empty stomach. If motion sickness occurs, applying a cold small towel to the back of the neck can bring some relief.
4. If your child has special dietary needs, such as vegetarian meals, baby food, or children’s meals, inform the travel agency or airline in advance. If your child is young and requires a child safety seat on the plane, you can also ask the airline in advance about borrowing one so your child has their own designated seat.
5. Travelers often experience digestive issues abroad, and children’s stomachs are even more sensitive than adults’. It’s recommended to eat lightly and in moderation while traveling, maintain food cleanliness, avoid raw or undercooked food, and prevent food poisoning.
Recommended reading:
6. Travel medicine-related websites: http://www.astm.org.tw/
A smooth and enjoyable trip brings wonderful memories and great experiences for the whole family. Making thorough preparations in advance and paying attention to safety details to return home safely are also essential for creating happy memories. Here are some small reminders—hope you all have a joyful holiday!
Reprinted with authorization from [Aibeiqi Parent-Child Network]. Original source: [Travel Safely]