Air travel may be a luxury, but when you’re on a long layover with children, it rarely feels that way. Traveling with small children or babies rarely feels like a vacation. When you know you’re in for a long layover, packing some healthy snacks and dressing in comfortable clothes is priority number one for the kids. But once the essential needs are met and you need to kill 4 or 5 hours, a little forethought will go a long way to help make traveling with kids a more enjoyable experience. Sure, you can try to nap, catch up on the book you’ve been wanting to get to for months or people watch, but until the kids settled, you won’t get much done.
How do you keep kids busy during the long airport layover? Here are some suggestions to turn your layover with kids into a “playover” for everyone – right on time for holiday travel! All of these are either free or very cheap, so you probably won’t even need to work it into the financial planning of your trip making it a great fit for any budget!
Artistic Endeavors
Let your kids practice their photography skills and get in on the fun too. You don’t have to be a professional photographer to capture interesting images. Smart phones have some interesting photography applications these days, and there’s always plenty to see at the airport. Practice your composition skills, use new Instagram filters, play with flash features or try capturing textures you’d otherwise ignore and get your older kids to help you find a great shot.
Scavenger Hunt
Experience the airport in a whole new way with your kids. You’ve probably searched desperately for a Starbucks before, but now you’re looking for some fun stuff. Everything from a time capsule to certain patterns. Larger airports, such as Denver International, have scavenger hunts ready to go and include an estimated time of completion.
Technology Time
If you’ve got a smart phone or a tablet with some good battery life left in it, there’s no end to what you can do. Listen to music, watch a movie, play some jewel quest online, catch up on your favorite television show or start watching a new television show. Don’t forget to save some battery for the next flight. If you find yourself in a pinch, many airports have rapid charging stations that can power your device quickly for a few bucks.
Take a Hike
You’ve just finished sitting on a plane and what will you be doing again soon? Sitting on a plane. Take yourself and the kids for a brisk walk around the concourse to get your blood flowing and combat that cooped-up feeling. After all, you probably missed the gym today anyway. Bonus points for knocking out some yoga with your kids in the concourse. (I’m sure you’ll entertain others doing that!) But please, wash your hands thoroughly afterward and don’t leave your luggage unattended (flight attendants hate that!).
Set Up an Office
If there is one thing the airport doesn’t feel like, it’s home. Or, for that matter, work. Once the kids are settled, take advantage of being in an environment devoid of your usual daily distractions to get some work done. Maybe you need to plan your holiday shopping or work on a proposal for work. Have you put off crunching numbers for a kitchen remodel? You’ve got plenty of time and nowhere to go, so take advantage and do some quality thinking.
What are your tips for keeping you and the kids entertained during long airport layovers?
Image credit: Flickr/Mike Cogh
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