We Traveled! I Hadn’t been on a Plane since I headed to the Dominican Republic back in 2010. It’s now 2018 and though we weren’t traveling International, we were still hopping on a plane to the Happiest Place On Earth. My kid had NO idea and it was her first time traveling, so imagine the skill it took to pack things in her Luggage and trying on Summery outfits to make sure it fit her. Here’s how we packed for a week of fun with a Wedding on the side…
1st I’d like to share a quick flight purchasing tip. If you travel domestic and are going for 1 or maybe even 2 weeks, Buy the Flight without Bags. We got a GREAT JetBlue deal which came out to $69 (before tax) per flight each way. About $273 for both my 5-year-old and I. Had we opted for a checked luggage, we would’ve paid a bit over $400. Now back to packing.
Know Where You’re Going
I know that you’ve obviously got your destination planned, but what else will you be doing out there? We Headed to Orlando with intentions of going to Crayola Experience, Wonderworks, Disney Springs, A-AKI Sushi & Steakhouse, Walt Disney World, Seaworld Aquatica, Sealife Orlando, Florida Mall, and a Wedding. We needed Outfits for many different activities and Occasions. Oh, and comfy shoes!
Kid Carry-On
Since I was traveling with my kid, I made sure to layout the outfits she would wear out there. I made sure to check the 10-Day forecast to see what type of outfits we could wear. A full week of High 80’s and low 65s meant lots of flowy outfits and simple things. I did many combos just by grabbing a Top and pairing it with Leggings or a skirt. Here’s what I packed:
1 Towel, 2 Bathing suits, 3 Tops, 2 Skirts, 3 Dresses, Party Dress (for the wedding), Her travel necessities, Costume (For Disney), 1 Legging, Undies, socks, 1 Pair of each; Sneaker, shoe, sandal, slipper.
I know it seems like a lot written down, but it actually left a LOT of space in her Kid Carry-On. Let’s face it, Kids get dirty no matter how hard we try to keep them clean so it’s typically better to have extra clothing.
Parent Carry-On
We are much more careful with not dirtying our stuff so we can pack even less for ourselves! My bag consisted of:
2 Tank Tops, 1 Blouse, 2 Jeans, 2 Skirts, 2 Dresses, 1 Sandal, 1 Sneaker, 1 water shoe, Towel.
My Bag literally consisted of air and definitely had a lot of room for whatever we decided to bring back.
Personal Bags
In my kid’s personal bag I put in a Tackle Box filled with her favorite snacks, a Take n Toss with actual food, a coloring book, Her iPad, & Headphones. My Personal bag consisted of Travel necessities, my Hot Air Brush, Headphones, Passport, Wallet, More snacks, Toys, and last minute Dress and cardigans I grabbed on the way out of the house. It wasn’t heavy and got me no complaints.
Strollers?
You Know your kid. If you feel like they’ll get tired of walking or you’ll be out for LONG periods of time, Bring a stroller. I took one to Florida. At first, I thought about bringing my Pockit, but then I thought about comfort level and realized my kid would want to be comfortable and not constricted under the very warm sun. We brought our Britax B-Free and it was a GODSEND! My kid knocked out TWICE on it and it was a LIFESAVER on our way back… But I’ll tell you that story later.
Papers and Passports!
I had physical attraction tickets, Groupon Printouts, Birth Certificates and Passports to carry. I made sure to keep it ALL in the same place and kept it in my purse at all times. That way I was sure that I wouldn’t forget it and would have it on hand should we have a change of plans.
There you have it, Folks. Everything you need to spend a week in a Warm Weather state when you have a Week’s worth of activities planned. Did I miss Anything?
Those are all good tips, although I'm worried about walking around with a passport and birth certificates. When you travel within the US, you only need an I.D card and kids don't need anything at all. Keep the passport and birth certificates at home.
These are great tips to know since I haven’t traveled on a plane with my kids yet
We typically only do road-trips with our kiddos right now, so packing is much more flexible for us. But I'll keep these tips in mind for a few years down the road, when we're ready to fly with them!
Love this! And that you don't really suggest making your kids carry any bags- that always backfires!
Such great tips! I have to admit that I get nervous about having to carry around passports now that I have a baby, because I feel like my head is all over the place and I'm always worried I'll lose them!