First, the bad news: There is no easy way to travel with two kids under four. There is only prepared or unprepared. Parenthood is nothing if not managing expectations. So when my husband and I decided to take a family trip in which we'd be both flying and road tripping, we knew we had no choice other than to account for every possible scenario.
While my daughter is almost four and therefore more self-sufficient, she has opinions that can be hard to budge. My nine-month-old son has fewer opinions, but by virtue of his size and, you know, laws pertaining to child safety, he needs more stuff. And because they are both young, yet in dramatically different phases, they each need entertainment geared toward their attention spans.
To pull this off, our key to success was getting ahead of boredom or fussiness, keeping everyone fed and hydrated and ensuring we had all the gadgets we'd need along the way. And with nearly 80 million Americans traveling more than 50 miles this Thanksgiving, we're surely not the only family looking to keep drama at bay during holiday travels.
From what went into our carry-ons to gear on the go, here's what we relied on.
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Travel essentials for families
This backpack is perfect for preschool-age children because it's big enough to hold a tablet, headphones, coloring books and toys, but small enough for them to carry on their own. Our hands were already full, so enlisting our daughter to take care of her own things was crucial. It has kid-friendly zippers and an insulated front pocket that's perfect for snacks, as well as a mesh side pocket that fits most water bottles.
My daughter only watches her tablet when she travels, which makes it special. But as with all things, she grows bored after a while. The Yoto Mini is an excellent screen-free choice for keeping kids entertained en route. You just pop in one of the preprogrammed cards and listen. It also offers sleep sounds and white noise, can act as a Bluetooth speaker, and even provides access to kid-friendly radio stations in the Yoto app. I recommend the silicone Adventure Jacket, which is a great way to protect the device when it's repeatedly dropped by small hands.
If you've ever had a child who's a temperature queen, like my 9-month-old, then you'll understand the dire importance of this product. It can warm 8 ounces of water, formula or breast milk in four minutes; offers four warming temperatures; is mess-free and easy to use; and fits easily inside our diaper bag. We used this constantly on our trip, and we'll continue to take it with us every time we leave the house. It's easily rechargeable, but be sure you always have the USB cable with you, because the charge didn't last as long as I'd hoped.
My daughter has always been particular about animal protein, but she loves jerky. Because travel days are often an "anything goes" kind of day, she ends up eating a lot of foods that will make her crash and burn (read: juice, pastries, pizza and fries). Having a turkey stick at the ready was a lifesaver when I needed her to eat protein, ensuring she'd stay fuller longer. I like that Lorissa's Kitchen snacks are free of the top nine allergens (peanuts, tree nuts, wheat, milk, sesame, eggs, fish, shellfish, soy); are made with grass-fed and finished beef and free range chicken and turkey; and are gluten-free, nitrate-free, non-GMO Project verified and contain no sugar or preservatives.
My daughter's first headphones were a pair I bought at random, and they were garbage, so I was excited to try Avid WonderEars. The sound quality was much better than her old ones, and I like that the headset is cushioned, that they're easy enough for my daughter to adjust on her own and that there's a volume limit. The only downside is that the cord isn't detachable, meaning you have to choose between a 3.5mm connection or USB-C, which could get complicated with multiple devices.
I needed activities to entertain my daughter on the airplane, but I also needed to keep her busy at our destination. We had friends to see! Adult conversations to have! The Keke bag was brilliant for bringing to restaurants, as well as busting out during leisurely at-home dinners. This easy-to-unzip, grab-and-go activity bag has four pouches to target different emerging skills: social/emotional, fine motor, preacademics and creative. Plus, there's extra storage for all the random things kids pick up in a day. (Rocks? The one sequin at the playground?) I also like that you can opt into Keke's subscription service and swap out pouches every three months.
This was the first trip where we'd be traipsing all over town with two kids (plus getting through an airport with two large suitcases, a travel crib, a car seat and three carry-on bags). I was so grateful to have this double travel stroller, not only because it was one of the lightest strollers I've ever used (19.7 pounds), but also because it was easy to unfold and had plenty of bottom storage for our smaller bags. I was worried it would be too wide for certain spaces, but we didn't have any problems getting through standard doors or aisles. It's compatible with certain car seats, which was crucial, as our son is on the cusp of transitioning. The adaptors were easy to install. Note that the way to unfold the stroller is by lifting the handle — which is also how we carried it when folded. This led to a few mishaps, like unintentionally opening it half the time we picked it up, but that could be remedied by putting the stroller in its travel bag.
A travel crib is a no-brainer when jet-setting with babies, but because my son is crawling and we couldn't possibly watch him every second of every minute, we needed somewhere safe to plop him. We used this Newton travel crib for both sleep and play, and it's one of the best I've ever tried. It's lightweight, criminally easy to assemble and disassemble, has a super cushy mattress, is Greenguard Gold certified and has a surface area that's two times larger than other leading crib/play yard combos. It also has an optional bassinet insert for infants up to 15 pounds.
This trip involved a three-hour car ride upon landing at our destination, but I didn't want to lug a cumbersome, forward-facing car seat for our 3-year-old. The WAYB Pico was an absolute game changer for us. It's only 8 pounds, easy to install, folds up to fit in its requisite backpack and passes all US safety standards for motor vehicles and planes. Note that it's only made for kids 22-50 pounds and 30-45 inches, but that's a pretty big range.
Every parent knows that you never, ever travel without medication – and thank the stars we didn't make that mistake, because both kids got the crud while we were away. (Not to mention, my son has been teething for a decade.) What I love about Genexa is that their formulas use the active ingredients you know and trust, like acetaminophen, but none of the junk. Their products are certified gluten-free, non-GMO verified and free of common allergens, sweeteners, dyes and artificial preservatives. Because why should something called "FD&C Red #27 aluminum lake" be in my child's medicine?
As a parent, few things are more valuable to me than safe, clean and ready-made products. I have tried to be the kind of mom who hand-pours my children's various toiletries into generic travel bottles. Somehow it's always so messy. The labels fall off when they get wet. I forget to refill them. This time around, we used b.box minis, which are dermatologically tested, full of botanical ingredients and free of parabens, dyes and synthetics. At 60 milliliters, this was plenty of product for both my children, but the packaging is small enough to squeeze into any of our carry-ons.
This last one isn't an individual product, but rather a marketplace you should know about. I'm all about second-hand shopping, especially when it comes to kids, but sometimes you want new gear, without the price tag. Rebelstork is the country's largest retailer for open-box and overstock baby gear. We used it to get the superlightweight Cybex Anton G car seat because it was compatible with our Silver Cross double stroller, but they sell all varieties of baby gear. I love that this concept gives parents an affordable alternative to purchase trusted brands, and I especially love that it diverts 12 million pounds of products from landfills each year.
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Ultimately, our greatest asset on this trip was our patience, and managing our own expectations was a crucial part of our success. After all, no amount of stuff can step in and parent when both children are simultaneously screaming in the car. But with enough planning, proper snacks and good gear, you can take a fun-filled family adventure with two young children and have minimal tears involved.
Opinions expressed by CNET Voices contributors are their own.
