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It’s officially Fall! It definitely doesn’t fe It’s officially Fall! It definitely doesn’t feel like it in Miami, it really never does but that just gives us a reason to explore other states. West Virginia is one of them, fun fact I actually lived here between undergrad and grad school! Here are Things to do in West Virginia (SAVE + SHARE): 

1. Enjoy New River Gorge National Park & Preserve, or visit any of the states 35 state parks as West Virginia has 1.5 million acres of parks and public land. We personally walked the Shavers Lake Trail and canoed on the lake. 

2. Enjoy some serious adventures! We’re always trying something new and West Virginia offers a lot of options from whitewater rafting, to 1,000+ miles of off-road ATV trails, to rock climbing, caving and mountain biking . 

3. Take a train ride on the Cass Scenic Railroad which stops at the Whittaker Camp where those who worked in the lumber and coal industry lived during the work season. 

4. Explore Cranberry Glades Botanical Area where you might just get to see some black bears! 

5. Walk the Falls of Hills Creak trail to get up close to some gorgeous waterfalls! 

This week I’ll be sharing various cities and states you can experience a beautiful Fall getaway. What are some of your favorite places to enjoy autumn?

Tap the link in my bio for my West Virginia blog post and a blog post of the best places to experience Fall in the US!
Still not over our day exploring the waters of For Still not over our day exploring the waters of Fort Pierce. We danced, snorkeled, fished and went tubing. Definitely want more days like this and still pinch myself that this is what a day of work looks like for me sometimes. Thank you @seadoo for the opportunity.
If you know my husband you know water activities a If you know my husband you know water activities are his favorite! Fishing, jet skiing, just being on a boat on the ocean relaxing, name it, he’s there. So we couldn’t be more excited than to not only get the chance to test out the new @seadoo Switch but be the stars of a whole commercial for it. We had entirely too much fun filming this. Of course now he wants to buy one!

Do you like getting out on the water? Favorite activity?
Our 3 Day London Itinerary (SAVE + SHARE): 

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Day 1: Walked across the Tower Bridge (you can take a tour of London of Tower as well), walked along the River Thames and took a make a fascination hat class with @create_your_own_hat! 

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Day 2: Harry Potter walking tour, checked out Borough Market and went on a night ghost bus tour. 

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 Day 3: Morning Tea at Peggy Porschen, Buckingham Palace for Changing of the Guards, and explore Westminster for the infamous red telephone booths, Big Ben and Westminster Abbey.

If you have more time on previous visits to London we have taken a day trip to check out Stonehenge, Bath and Windsor Castle, rode the London Eye, took a ferry ride down the Thames River, checked out Warner Brother Studios, and did a graffiti/street art tour.

Is London on your list? If you’ve been what did you do that you think is a must for visitors?

Things to do in London, London with kids, family travel
Then vs Now (swipe left)!🥹🥰 My babies are no Then vs Now (swipe left)!🥹🥰 My babies are not babies anymore. Where has the time gone? Excuse me while I go cry in the corner 😭😭😭😭. 

Too in my feelings to provide an informational post, I’ll be back tomorrow.
Why is this man always trying to stop my fun? List Why is this man always trying to stop my fun? Listen replace husband with whoever you need to but why these ppl keep acting like we can take our money when we’re gone?!? Y’all feel me or nah? 😅😬😩
Morning Tea in London! Afternoon or High Tea is us Morning Tea in London! Afternoon or High Tea is usually on everyone’s things to do in London list but since the girls and I don’t eat beef or pork the menus for most places didn’t make sense for us as they are filled with ham sandwiches and other things we don’t eat. I ended up finding Morning Tea at Peggy Porschen instead which offers a tea menu with breakfast items, while not traditional it worked best for us! It cost £35 pp.

For a traditional Afternoon or High Tea Try:

🫖Palm Court at The Ritz
🫖The Diamond Jubilee Tea Salon at Fortnum & Mason
🫖Theatre Royal Drury Lane
🫖The Grill Room Hotel Cafe Royal (has vegetarian an vegan options)
🫖Coronation Afternoon Tea at Cellarium, Westminster Abbey
🫖The Rosebery Coronation Afternoon Tea at Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park
🫖The Goring Hotel

Afternoon Teas Geared Towards Families:

☕️Peter Pan Afternoon Tea at Aqua at The Shard
☕️Jurassic Afternoon Tea at the Ampersand Hotel
☕️Jungle Book Afternoon Tea at Brown’s Hotel
☕️Secret Garden Afternoon Tea at Taj 51
☕️The Buzzy Bees Afternoon Tea at St. Ermin’s Hotel
☕️Grover’s Children’s Tea at Grosvenor House Hotel
☕️The Peppa Pig Afternoon Tea Bus Tour
☕️Sherlock Holmes Inspired Afternoon Tea at the Mind Palace
☕️Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Tea at One Aldwych
☕️Mad Hatter Afternoon Tea at The Sanderson
☕️Wizard of Oz Afternoon Tea at The Soho Hotel

Have you done a proper Afternoon or High Tea in London before? Was the one you did on this list, if so what did you think of it? If you have additional recommendations please do leave a comment!

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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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