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After spending 48 hours in Osaka we went to Kyoto. After spending 48 hours in Osaka we went to Kyoto. Here’s how to get here and where we stayed (save + share this post):

1. You can take the Shinkansen (bullet) train from Shin-Osaka Station to Kyoto Station if you have the JR Pass and it will only take you 15 minutes. If you don’t have a JR Pass the Shinkansen ticket costs about 1,420 yen (right now that’s about $11). 

2. If you don’t have the JR Pass you can take the Hankyu Kyoto Line or Keihan Main Line. These are regular non express trains and will increase your travel time to from 15 minutes to 45-55 minutes but they only cost 400 yen (about $3) so you can save money, especially for a large group.

3. There is also a bus that leaves picks up at Hotel Keihan Universal Tower, Universal Studios Japan and Namba and goes to Kyoto Station. I’m not sure of the costs.

4. If you flew into Osaka you can also take the Haruka Express train from the airport to Kyoto Station. 

In Kyoto we stayed at The Chaper Kyoto which is a Marriott property. The rooms are on the small side but the hotel is clean and modern. There is a bus stop down the block which we could take to get to Gion in 9 minutes. The room was about $240/night since it’s busy season.

The weather this time of year is pretty sporadic. Some days it was hot and sunny and some days cool and gloomy so definitely pack a variety of attire and bring some layers and the weather changes throughout the day. Will be sharing our itinerary soon.

Have you been to Kyoto? If you have other accommodation recommendations please share them below to help others!

📍Fushimi Inari Taisha
Want to visit Super Nintendo World at Universal St Want to visit Super Nintendo World at Universal Studios Japan? You need to know this (save + share this post):

1. Just because you have tickets to the park doesn’t mean you’ll get into Super Nintendo World, it requires a timed entry ticket. These do run out so it’s not a guarantee you’ll be able to enter! If you get your park tickets in advance you might be able to grab an advanced booking in the app but if these are all gone by time you get your tickets you’ll need an area timed entry ticket. These are only available the day you’re visiting & you can only attempt to get it once you’re actually in the park! We got to the park when they opened at 8am & there were only two entry times left so arrive early! You can get them on the app (you must grant the app permission to see your location so they know you’re inside) or you can go to one of the ticket kiosks.

2. To really enjoy you’ll need a power band which are sold for about $35. If you don’t have one you can walk around & go on the 2 rides but you can’t play the games & collect coins.

3. The wait times for both rides are usually 1-3 hours! To avoid this you can purchase an Express Pass (most people said this reduces wait times to a mere 15 minutes). Express Passes were sold out the day we went so we only got to ride Mario Kart: Koopa’s Challenge but not Yoshi’s Adventure. To avoid the 2 hour wait for Mario Kart we actually went through the singles line. We did end up in two different karts but we only waited 20 minutes to ride instead of 2 hours. Yo Shi’a Adventure doesn’t have a singles line or we would have done that too!

4. If you want to eat at Kinopio’s Cafe you also need a timed entry ticket so be sure to grab this as soon as you get inside Super Nintendo World. It’s usually a 1-2 hour wait once you get your timed entry ticket.

5. Once you leave you cannot reenter (if timed entry tickets are required at the time) so be sure to do everything you want before leaving.

Universal Studio Japan is extremely popular & tickets do sell out often so buy in advance. The most popular sites to buy them are Klook (where we bought ours) & KKDay.

Hope this helps! Who has Super Nintendo World on their list?
How We Spent 48 Hours in Osaka (save + share this How We Spent 48 Hours in Osaka (save + share this post):

1. Kicked off the day trying soufflé pancakes, you’ll find restaurants all over the city that sell these. We personally had them at Belle-ville Pancakes.

2. Visit the Cup of Noodles Museum where you can make your own Cup of Noodles logo and then customize the flavor and toppings for your noodles. They also offer a ramen making class here in addition to the museum where you can learn the history of the company.

3. If you’re visiting in March check to see if the March Sumo Wrestling Tournament is taking place at Edion Arena Osaka. If so def try to get tickets in advance (they go on sale a month prior) or arrive early to get same day tickets. It’s a fun afternoon.

4. We also did a Tea Ceremony class but photos/videos weren’t allowed.

5. End the first day getting cheesecake at the infamous Rikuro’s for their jiggly Cheesecake.

6. The other day spend at Universal Studios Japan for thrilling rides, shows and to relive your childhood at Super Nintendo World.

Where to stay in Osaka? The W Osaka is gorgeous but a little pricey and the Fairfield by Marriott is more budget friendly with nice, modern clean rooms just less amenities and smaller rooms (will post stories of both so you can see).

How to get to Osaka from Tokyo: We took the Shinkansen bullet train which takes 3 hours but is such an experience as it goes up to 199mph. Be sure to sit of the right side of the train for views of Mt. Fuji. You can also take a quick flight!

Other things to do in Osaka we didn’t travel time for:

1. Visit the Osaka Castle

2. Go to the top of the Umeda Sky Building

3. Go out in the Dotonbori

4. Walk around Kuromon Market

5. Watch a show at the National Bunraku Theater

6. Explore the Sumiyoshi Shrine

Which activity would you most want to do? If you’ve been to Osaka before what other recommendations do you have?

#osakajapan #travellingwithkids #cupofnoodles #universalstudiosjapan
6 Ways to Earn Delta Skymiles without flying! (SAV 6 Ways to Earn Delta Skymiles without flying! (SAVE + SHARE this post):

1. Link your Lyft and Skymiles accounts to earn 1 mile per $1 on US rides and 2miles per $1 on airport rides.

2. When booking Airbnb stays go to delta.com/Airbnb instead and you’ll earn 1 mile per $1 spent on airbnbs.

3. Order groceries online with instacart? Go to instacart.com/delta to link your accounts and earn 1.5 miles per $1 spent. If you’re new to instacart you can also get 3 months free.

4. Link your Starbucks account with your Skymiles account at delta Starbucks.com and you’ll earn 1 mile per $1 spent at Starbucks. Plus on days your flying with Delta, you’ll earn DOUBLE stars at Starbucks.

5. Sign up for SkyMiles dining at  Skymilesdining.com and is link your credit or debit card. Every time you use your card at a participating bar or restaurant, you’ll earn between 1-5 miles per $1 spent.

6. And nope you don’t have to use a Delta credit card to get miles for any of the above, no matter how you pay you’ll earn BUT is you do pay for them with a Delta co-branded credit card (there are several and depending on which one you have) you can earn anywhere from a additional 1-5 miles per dollar spent on purchases, even if they aren’t Delta airline tickets.

The cash price for the flight we took to Tokyo was $2,600pp so it would have cost me over $5,000 for this since it’s peak travel to Japan (never in my life would I pay that, we would have went somewhere else). Instead I only paid $118 total by using all of these ways to earn Delta miles over the past few years which gave me enough miles to redeem even though we don’t get to fly Delta on a regular since they don’t have the strongest presence at MIA airport as it’s American’s hub.

Do you use travel credit cards and/or points and miles from loyalty programs to offset the cost of travel? If so what are your favorite ones? Let’s all travel for less!
Konnichiwa from Japan! So excited to be spending s Konnichiwa from Japan! So excited to be spending spring break here with Jordyn on our annual mommy and me trip. Here’s everything you need to know about visiting Japan right now (save + share this post):

1. US passport holders don’t need a visa to enter Japan for stays under 90 days but if you hold a different passport you may, so definitely check as passport holders from only 68 countries can visit visa free! 

2. Japan still has panini restrictions. Adults must have 3 doses or provide results of a (-) test taken no more than 72 hours before departure. Children 6-18 are exempt if the accompanying adult has 3 doses or they have 3 doses themselves. If the accompanying adult doesn’t they too require - test results. Children under 6 are exempt from all requirements.

3. While Narita airport is well known, Haneda is actually the closet airport to Tokyo.

4. Everyone regardless of age needs to fill out a the questionnaire on Visit Japan Web (https://vjw-lp.digital.go.jp/en/). It is used for Immigration and Customs declaration procedures and will speed up your process on arrival to the airport in Japan.

5. Japan uses the Japanese Yen and the current exchange rate is $1 to ¥132 but this fluctuates so be sure to always check current exchange rates. Credit cards are widely accepted including AMEX but always travel with a Visa or Mastercard as a back up in addition to cash.

6. The train system in Japan is extremely functional and the main mode of transportation even to get in between cities. You have to ride the bullet train (Shinkansen) at least once while here! Walking is also popular and Ubers are available.

7. The rainy season is officially June-Mid July and very humid while spring and fall are the most popular times to visit. When visiting in March and April especially since it’s Cherry Blossom season expect lots of crowds and be prepared to book hotels well in advance.

I first visited Japan in 2015 and so excited to see how it’s changed since then and do some things I didn’t do before. We’ll be visiting Osaka, Kyoto and Tokyo. If you have any recommendations especially on the best places for ramen and mochi ice cream please let us know!

Have you been to Japan?
When I tell you the #GalaxyS23 Ultra has it all an When I tell you the #GalaxyS23 Ultra has it all and I haven’t even scratched the surface of all the features this phone has. Can’t wait to share more but I promise you don’t want to miss out on these amazing features. 

Tap the link in my bio to learn more about the Galaxy S23 Ultra and consider switching to @SamsungMobileUSA! 

#SamsungPartner #TeamGalaxy #WithGalaxy
3 Ways to Get Good Pictures of Your Kids (save and 3 Ways to Get Good Pictures of Your Kids (save and share this post)!

Because spring break, Easter and graduations is coming up I’m resharing my tried and true tips of taking good photos of your kids.

Have you tried these? What trips do you have coming up that you can test these out on?

#phototips #travellingwithkids

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Tips for Flying With Toddlers That Will Have Prepared on Your Next Flight

September 21, 2016      Tips on Traveling with Kids

This post contains affiliate links. If you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small commission at no cost to you. Please see our disclosure policy for more information. All opinions are my own.

Does traveling to Europe with two toddlers by yourself sound crazy? Well I’ve done it twice amongst other short and long haul flights to Kenya, Cuba, and Aruba. Here are my tried and true tips for flying with toddlers! Looking for tips on flying with babies, click here.

mom sitting on the plae with her young children

Tips for Flying with Toddlers: Book the Right Flight 

Always Fly Non-stop if Possible

I know it can be a bit more costly but not having to board and de-board multiple times or dealing with a layover is usually worth the cost. Click here for tips on surviving connecting flights.

Book a Flight with a Departing Time About 30mins Before Nap or Bedtime

If your child is used to a routine and generally tired around this time, it should be easy for you to get them to sleep. If you have a shorter flight they might sleep the entire time but even if you’re on a longer one they will still be knocked out for a good majority of it.

Aisle or Window Seat When Flying with Toddlers

If you know you will have the entire row to yourself this doesn’t matter much as your child can sit on whoever’s lap, but if you don’t there’s a lot to consider. On one hand the window seat seems like a great idea, your child can look out the window and get lost in the clouds. They can rest their head against the window and they won’t be able to kick people as they walk by. On the flip side, what about when they want to use the bathroom 15 times or you have to change their diaper more than once? What if they have a lot of energy and you want to take them for a walk down the aisle. This one is all about preference, but these are important things to consider, you know your child better than anyone.

Tips for Flying with Toddlers: Getting Them and Their Stuff to the Gate

Traveling with toddlers usually means you have a lot of extra baggage. You may be traveling with a car seat, diaper bag, and more all while trying to make sure they stay near to you. If you don’t have TSA Precheck I highly recommend investing in it. We got Global Entry for free which also includes Precheck through our Delta Amex credit card.

mother pulling a car seat with her child in the airport


How to Prepare for Flying with Toddlers Before Your Flight

If you allow your child screen time download all their favorite movies, TV shows, and apps. Make sure whatever you download doesn’t require WiFi to watch or play as not all airlines have this service available and even if they do you don’t have access to it while you are waiting to take off and during the final descent. The last thing you want is to have all these things to entertain your child and find out midair you can’t access them.

Let them roam around while you are waiting to board. They are about to be cramped up for the next few hours so use this time to have them tire themselves naturally. Check to see if your terminal has a playground, many do. Here’s a video of my girls playing at the airport in Zurich before our flight.

If there isn’t a playground hopefully you have lounge access. We get access to tons of lounges through our Priority Pass membership. Thankfully is comes as a free perk through our credit card, all of these cards offer a membership. Lounges offer a comfortable space with free food, drinks, wifi, clean bathrooms and some even hav beds!

READ THIS: TIPS FOR SURVIVING LONG HAUL FLIGHTS WITH KIDS

On the flip side let them sleep if they are tired. I know you want to have them sleep on the plane as long as possible and forcing them to stay up when you see them falling asleep just 30mins before boarding seems like a good idea but let me tell you it isn’t. Toddlers act crazy when they are over exhausted and getting them to sleep at that point usually involves extreme crankiness, tantrums, and a lot of effort. That is not what you want to deal with while you are on the plane in a tight space so if they doze off before the flight boards let them, a well-rested toddler on the plane is a much better experience than an overtired one.

READ THIS: TIPS FOR GETTING THROUGH THE AIRPORT WITH KIDS

Tips for Flying with Toddlers: When Should You Board Your Flight?

One of the “perks” of flying with children is that you can board early, but should you? With a non-active baby, hands down yes but with a toddler, I say no. Why? Toddlers are super active and the last thing I want is an extra 30mins on the plane with them in a cramped space.

I usually aim to be the last one on the plane, having as little time on it as possible. The potential downfall to this is a lack of overhead bin space and having to check your luggage at the gate. However, if you checked another bag, stroller or car seat at the ticket counter and have to go there any way I just see it as one less thing to carry. It could also make life easier if you have a layover.

Flying with Toddlers: What to Do on Take Off and Landing

Toddlers can still be affected by the changing pressures during landing and take off. Have them chew ice, drink water, or eat something during this time to prevent their ears from popping.

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you click a link and make a purchase, I may receive a small commission at no cost to you.

What to Do During Your Flight When Flying with Toddlers

Distractions are the name of the game at this age! I recommend a different toy/ activity for every 30mins to 1hr. Bring a few of their favorite toys, coloring book, reading books, and flashcards. I have found that buying some cheap new toys (hello $1 store) holds their attention a little longer since they have to figure it out. To make the excitement of these last even longer, wrap them if you have time. Why do toddlers get so excited by unwrapping things?


Get up and walk around! Toddlers love waving and saying hi to everyone they see. If you see them begin to get antsy take a few laps up and down the aisle. Be prepared with food including many snacks for the flight. Have the snacks separated into single serving size snack bags and keep them easily accessible.

One time I made the mistake of having my daughters snacks in the overhead bin. While we were taking off she had a meltdown because she really wanted a snack but I couldn’t stand up to get them.  If your child is under 2 and is a lap child they will not receive a meal on an international flight. Be sure to have a proper meal packed for them or you’ll end up sharing yours.

If you allow your child screen time, this is the time to whip out the tablet of your choice. I highly recommend the Kindle Fire Kids Edition Tablet that comes with a protective case. It ranges from $99.99-$119.99 depending on the memory size. One year of Amazon FreeTime Unlimited is included.


Flying With Toddlers: How to Let Your Child Sleep Comfortably

I was so happy when we discovered Fly LegsUp, which is a flight hammock that allows her to lay flat and sleep comfortably in her own seat. Use promo code FLY CHILD to save 5% on your purchase. There are also many other options for in flight beds for kids to make sleeping on the plane easier.

little girl sleeping on the plane


I hope you now feel prepared for flying with toddlers. Found this article helpful? Please share it!

The Traveling Child is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com, amazon.co.uk, amazon.ca. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.

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Comments

  1. Christine says

    June 27, 2017 at 2:08 pm

    Very helpful thank you !

  2. Charisse says

    January 2, 2018 at 4:30 pm

    Very helpful indeed!! Thank you.

    • Monet says

      January 8, 2018 at 2:54 pm

      You’re welcome, glad you found it helpful!

  3. Sathya says

    July 11, 2018 at 7:40 pm

    My daughter is 2.5yrs and this is her first time international travel. This is very helpful, thank you!!

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Hi! We’re The Hambricks

Hi! We’re The Hambricks

If kids live there, kids can visit! That's our motto and you'll often find us exploring destinations most don't find "kid friendly". We've traveled to 35 countries on 6 continents with our children since they were 10 weeks old and share tips to make it easier and affordable. But mom and dad are people too so we also write about solo travel, baecations and girlfriend getaways.

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