Tips for Traveling with Kids

Tips for Traveling with Kids

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When my daughter was a toddler, we decided to take her to Disney for the first time. At home, she enjoyed watching the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and dressing up like the princesses, so we figured she’d love it.

Boy, were we wrong! It turns out the intense heat and long lines weren’t super fun, and seeing a life-sized Donald Duck walking towards her with arms outstretched was terrifying, not thrilling. We had jumped the gun and spent a fortune on a total bust.

I shared the cautionary tale on a recent episode of the Maggie and the Moms Podcast, where our group of moms, including travel writer Terry Ward, shared travel tips and hacks for saving time, money and your sanity when traveling with kids.

Best time to Travel

✈️Shoulder Season

When possible, visit popular destinations between the peak season and off-season. Since schools in Tampa Bay let out sooner than other parts of the state and country, consider a late-May trip to places like Europe and big U.S. cities that are packed with tourists over the summer.

✈️During the School Year

Pulling the kids out of school for a week is not advisable for middle school and high school students who would have too much catching up to do afterwards, but because the prices are lower and the crowds more manageable, it may be worth considering during the preschool and elementary years.

✈️Spring Break and Thanksgiving (for overseas travel)

Prices are lower, the weather is cooler and popular destinations are less crowded during spring break versus summer. Over Thanksgiving break, domestic travel can be pricey, but it’s a great time to find deals to the Caribbean and Europe.

💸Saving Money on booking travel, activities and dining

  • Nightly rates are generally lower for condos than hotels, and having a kitchen makes it easy to eat in rather than having to go out (and spend more) for every meal.
  • Find a property that works for your family on a third-party vacation rental site and then reach out directly to the property manager to book it. Skipping the middleman will likely result in a better rate.
  • Make rental car reservations as soon as you know your travel dates. They can be canceled without penalties.
  • Sign up kids older than 2 for airline rewards, and try to fly the same family of airlines to maximize points.
  • Become an expert on navigating “the points game” on sites like Point.Me and The Points Guy.
  • Dine at local dives rather than tourist traps, where prices are steep. Use the Maps app on your phone to find restaurants near you and then read reviews for each one to choose the best.
  • Visit National Parks when your children are in the fourth grade because access to more than 2,000 federal lands is free to U.S. fourth graders and family members through Every Kid Outdoors.
  • To ensure you don’t miss out on visiting popular destinations that require reservations, set reminders on your phone for when the reservation window opens so that you are among the first to have access. Free or low-cost tickets to places like the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor ($1.00/ticket) are snatched up within minutes of being offered online.
  • Take advantage of the “rider switch” or “baby swap” option at Disney and other theme parks so guests can take turns experiencing an attraction without waiting in line more than once. Rather than waiting outside a ride with a child who’s not eligible to ride while the rest of the group goes in, the whole group can line up together. At the front of the line, part of the group boards the ride while the other waits for them to return, at which point they can swap places.
Tips for Traveling with Kids
Catch the Maggie and the Moms Podcast on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts and all other major podcast platforms.

 

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Originally published in the July 2025 issue of Tampa Bay Parenting Magazine.