Some of my fondest childhood memories are of family vacations. Now that I am a parent myself, I have discovered all of the "behind the scene" work that goes into getting a family ready to make these cherished memories.
- sunscreen, check
- swimsuits, check
- airline tickets, check
- digital pictures of the children before we leave the house? What?
When you are traveling with children, not only do you have to think about packing everything the children might need once you get to your destination, but you also need to think about their SAFETY while traveling to this destination. Being prepared is the key to a SAFE and happy vacation.
If something happened to your child, right now, do you have a current photo of your child that you could give authorities? Being at home that might not be a difficult thing to do, but imagine yourself in an airport, would you have a current picture of your child? Most of us would have to sadly say, no.
Thank goodness for digital cameras and home printers! Before you leave the house for your next family vacation, snap a picture of each child. Print these pictures and take them with you. Now, are you thinking, a bit over the top? But just think about it. In a busy airport, if your child wandered off, you now have a current photo of your child, in-hand, and you don’t have to remember what the child was wearing, it’s right there in the photo! Sadly, it only takes minutes for predators to strike. At a moment when time is so very important and emotions are running high this photo will be paramount in the recovery of your child.
Another great tip for families traveling together is this; wear the same color shirts. I know this is going to be a hard one to pull off with teenagers, but it’s well worth the arguments. In a busy airport, train station or amusement park your family is much easier to locate if they are all wearing a fluorescent PINK t-shirt! Okay, maybe not pink, but you get the idea.
With a little thought and pre-planning, you can make sure your air trip is as comfortable and pleasurable as possible. Here are some great tips to help you determine if you’re in line for an upgrade, which are the best seats on the airplane, and even what to do if you find your passport has expired shortly before you depart.
What does that letter on my airline ticket mean?
Of all the information on an airline ticket, a single letter can tell you just how comfortable your trip is likely to be. The letter you’re looking for is just before the date of the flight. It tells the check-in person just how much you paid for your flight, which dictates your chances of getting an upgrade or even a decent seat at the front of the plane.
The letter Y on a BA ticket, for instance, denotes a full economy fare, while S, Q and O are evidence that it’s a discounted fare and your rightful place might well be by the toilets. Each airline has its own code, but luckily www.flyertalk.com, which is devoted to airline minutiae, gives a detailed rundown in its Miles & Points forum.
Which seats should I prebook?
Check out www.seatguru.com, which will steer you towards the choicest seats. They have plenty of tips, such as which rows are closest to the air conditioning - and therefore colder - and which have no window.
You have to wait until check-in to request seats by the emergency exits. These are never available on the web because the airline must ensure you are able-bodied.
However, they’re not always the best choice. On some planes, the emergency exit row is impeded by the shape of the door. Similarly, if the plane is fitted with an emergency chute the smart position to try for is the window seat of the row behind the exit. It will have no seat in front of it so that the cabinet holding the chute can be accommodated. You should also check out the rows near the back - as the cabin tapers towards its tail, some seats have extra pitch.
Which seats should I avoid?
It’s easier to suggest rows to avoid.
If you think children and air travel do not mix, steer clear of the area around the bulkhead. This is where airlines usually place those with babies and toddlers. And give the rows directly in front of the bulkhead and at the very back a miss, as these seats generally do not recline fully. If noise disturbs you, again avoid the back, where the roar of the engines is louder. And if you suffer from airsickness, aim to sit close to the leading edge of the wing, where you are least likely to end up searching for the sick bag.
How to get an emergency passport
For the inefficient would-be traveler who has failed to realize their passport is two years out of date, there is an alternative to full-scale despair.
First, do an Internet search on ‘emergency passport’ and find the telephone number of the appropriate government department. Then telephone and plead your case for immediate help. Different countries run different emergency schemes, but be prepared to attend in person, and to pay extra fees for fast-tracking your passport.
As more and more people get connected to the wired world, so does the services offered over the World Wide Web by different sites. Today, one can have a hotel room reserved over the web. There have been a lot of sites which offers different hotel deals from cities around the world. As there are a huge number of these sites, one would think that it would be easier to find hotel deals. But one should consider that it gets confusing if you jump from one site to another just to compare deals. It is a good thing that sites which combines the resources of other sites exists. One such site is Hotels Combined. Said hotel deal finder searches thirty plus sites and returns a list of hotel deals to users. With thirty sites on tap, Hotels Combined provides a wide selection of hotel rates to users. That sure is a good way to start your vacation; with a hassle-free search for hotels.
I have been holidaying for many years now and the best way to grab a bargain is to book your holiday at the last minute. Late deals are the way to go to get that half price holiday bargain. Travel agents have to slash the prices of holidays the nearer they get to departure, if they do not sell them they will just expire. Its better for them to get something for them instead of nothing at all. You can even try to haggle the price down even further if there is just a day or so left until departure. Make the travel agent an offer and you may be surprised at what they are prepared to accept, especially if you are buying your travel insurance through them, as they can make a nice commission on travel insurance. They may sell you the holiday at cost if they know they can make 50% on the travel insurance you take out. I saved 70% once on the brochure price if a skiing holiday. But be aware last minute holidays are getting in short supply, so you have to search pretty hard to get that holiday bargain. But I think its all the more satisfying if you have to do a little work for it.
If you are like most people you travel to an amusement park at least once every year. Reasons why people may do this are to spend time with their family, get away from everyday life, relax, let their children have fun, and many other great reasons. Most people, however, fail to realize that amusement park travel is something that should be well planned and well thought out.
One of the most important steps in the planning process is picking a park that is within your budget. There are many great amusement parks out there that provide quality family entertainment, while being light on the wallet. Another important aspect to take into consideration is how many of the attractions you can do together as a family. Many rides and attractions have height requirements for safety reasons, and that prevents many small children from being able to participate. This rule gets many people upset and frustrated so it is very important to check ahead and research this policy.
Amusement park travel is something that everyone in the family can look forward too. Kids especially enjoy the planning process that goes along with it. Get your kids involved in the planning process, and who knows maybe they know more about a place then you do. Amusement park travel is meant to be fun and exciting for everyone. The planning and development stages are always the least exciting part about amusement park travel. Do not let this get you down, make it exciting, make it fun, and most importantly do your research.
Did you find these tips on amusement park travel useful? You can find more great information on amusement park travel by going here, http://amusementparktravel.blogspot.com/