Our Travel Our Way

Long-haul flights with children. The phrase alone strikes terror into the hearts of parents everywhere. We’ve done more 10+ hour flights with our kids than we can count, and yes, there were some rough ones in the early days. But over the years we’ve developed a system that actually works — and today we’re sharing all 15 of our best tips.

Before You Even Get to the Airport

1. 📱 Download Everything in Advance

Don’t rely on in-flight WiFi or entertainment. Before every long flight, we download a new movie they’ve been wanting to see, fresh episodes of their favourite shows, audiobooks, podcasts, and offline games. The element of novelty is key — new content they haven’t seen before is much more engaging.

2. 🎒 Pack a “Magic Bag”

We wrap up a series of small, inexpensive activities and surprises. Throughout the flight, we pull one out every hour or so — a pack of stickers, a travel journal, a small puzzle, activity sheets. The anticipation of “what’s next in the magic bag?” keeps them engaged and gives you something to look forward to together.

3. 🌙 Time Your Flight Strategically

Overnight flights are gold for families. If you can book a flight that departs in the evening (local time), most kids will sleep through a significant portion of it. It’s tough on arrival, but having sleeping children is so much better than having awake, bored children at 3am!

4. 🪑 Choose Seats Wisely

Bulkhead seats (front row of a cabin section) give extra legroom and, for babies, a bassinet. Aisle seats mean easier bathroom trips. We always sit in the same row rather than spread across the aisle — it’s much easier to manage and supervise.

5. 🍎 Bring Your Own Snacks

Airline food is often unpredictable (and the kids’ meals can be disappointing). Bring a variety of snacks — some healthy (fruit, crackers, cheese), some treats (a small amount of sweets or chocolate as a special travel treat). Snacks are also a great distraction tool.

During the Flight

6. 🏃 Build in Movement Breaks

Every 90 minutes or so, take a walk up and down the aisle. Even a 5-minute walkabout breaks up the monotony, stretches legs, and resets moods. Kids (and adults!) get restless — movement is medicine.

7. 🎧 Noise-Cancelling Headphones for Everyone

Seriously one of the best travel investments we’ve ever made. Kids’ versions are available at every price point. They reduce background noise, make it easier to hear content clearly, and honestly just calm everyone down. The difference is remarkable.

8. 📸 Make Them Documentarians

Give older kids a phone or camera and ask them to be the “official trip photographer.” They’ll spend ages taking photos of clouds, the seat in front, their food — and they love having the responsibility. It’s also amazing to look back at their perspective photos later!

9. 🧩 The Playlist Strategy

Mix structured activities with free time. Don’t let them free-watch TV for 10 hours — it leads to glazed eyes and grumpy children. Alternate: 45 mins of TV, 30 mins of activity, 20 mins of games together, 30 mins of reading, and so on.

10. 💤 Help Them Sleep

Travel pillows, familiar stuffed animals, their own blanket from home (small ones, not taking up bag space), eye masks for older kids. Create their normal sleep environment as closely as possible. Melatonin (with medical advice) can also help kids adjust to time zone changes.

11. 🗺️ Flight Tracker Fun

Most long-haul planes have a moving map on the seatback screen. Use this as an educational tool — where are we flying over? What countries are below us? How far have we come? How much further? It turns waiting into learning.

12. ✈️ Airline Kids’ Packs

Many long-haul airlines provide activity packs for children — always ask, as they’re not always offered proactively. These small packs of crayons, stickers, and activity sheets can buy you a precious 20–30 minutes of entertainment.

Managing Expectations

13. 🌟 Set the Scene

Before every long flight, we have a “flight meeting” with the kids. We explain how long the journey will be, what we’ve planned to keep them busy, and what we expect from them. Having buy-in from kids makes a huge difference. They actually look forward to it!

14. 🏆 The Reward System

We use a simple sticker chart during flights — good behavior, helping with younger siblings, trying new food — all earn stickers. A full chart by the end of the journey earns a special reward when we arrive (usually an experience they get to choose, like an ice cream or a special activity).

15. 💗 Lower Your Standards (Just for the Flight)

Is it a regular day? Let them have extra screen time. Is it a regular day? Let them have a treat. No, it’s a TRAVEL DAY. Screen time rules are suspended, treats are liberally distributed, and everyone gets a little extra grace. You’re all doing something hard — be kind to yourselves.

What are your go-to tips for long flights with kids? We’d love to add to this list — share in the comments below!