Going on holiday with your family is generally a different matter than travelling on your own. With this in mind here’s some holiday advice that aims to deal with the specific headaches, problems and difficulties of flying abroad with your family.

Preparing for departure:
When travelling with your family it’s far more important that you make sure your seats are booked together. You’ll save a lot of trouble if you reserve seats far in advance and you can keep the family unit together, especially if you’ve got small children.

As the flight date – and your holiday – approaches, it may be hard to keep the kids calm but it’s really recommended that you try and get a good nights sleep before your departure. Although once you’re on the aeroplane you won’t be going anywhere, you’ll probably find it hard to get sleep in the cramped environments – particularly when your children are excited over the flight itself.

When you factor in possible problems with luggage, checking in and other theoretical nuisances, you’ll realise that it’s important to have a clear head. Also you don’t want to have to carry small children as well as your luggage if you let them get tired out too early! That said, if you’re booked for a long haul flight then once checking in is over it might be a good idea to let them burn off some energy before they have to sit down for hours on end. A lot of airports have play areas for kids, or if they’re not available, try exploring all of the terminal for as long as you can.

Packing for the flight:
For travellers without families, the issue of hand luggage is a lot less pressing than for the holidaymaker with kids in tow. Generally adults can get by when they’re bored and can’t go anywhere – kids on the other hand, are less reliable. Make sure you take books, toys or anything else that you can use to keep them entertained on the flight, particularly if its long haul.

Consider taking two bags, one of entertainment toys and the other of practical items such as food, wetwipes, clothing or chewing gum – useful in helping kids avoid the unpleasant effects of pressurisation when a plane changes its altitude. Food can be useful even if your kids are given a meal – you don’t want to be forced to buy sweets from the airline when they start complaining about how how hungry they are. Finally, if your kids have trouble not spilling their drinks, consider bringing flasks along.

Also, if your kids still need nappies, make sure you’re prepared; not only for the flight but for when you land. In some places this kind of babycare product can be far more expensive and really, it’s something you know you’re going to need.