11 Amazing Tips For Traveling With Grandchildren in 2023

11 Amazing Tips For Traveling With Grandchildren might not be a best seller yet, but just wait! My mother always told me that the best thing about having grandchildren was winding them up by doing the fun stuff, and then sending them home after a full day of Red Vines and Mountain Dew.

Author, Cynthia Ross Tustin – December 22, 2022

I don’t threaten my son with that, but I have been known to consider buying young Jack a full drum kit! But I digress. The thing with taking your grandchild (children) on vacation is similar to the phrase “you break it, you bought it.”

In other words, if you wind them up, it’s your responsibility to unwind them. And that just sounds exhausting. Truthfully, traveling with your children’s children can be a great bonding experience and tons of fun.

So let me share these 11 amazing tips with you for having a great time with the grandkids. Some are my parent’s advice, and some ideas are from how my in-laws did things. Other pieces of advice come from friends who are well-versed in traveling with their own children’s kids! I’ve curated the best of it for you!

By Using Some, Or All Of these 11 Tips, You Can Have An Amazing Time Traveling With Your Grandchildren!

Insurance

Consider getting insurance for this intergenerational road show. Getting both cancellation and health insurance for adults and kids can be a sound investment. If you’re considering purchasing insurance, here are a few questions you should ask.

If one member of the family gets sick and has to cancel their plans to travel, does the cancellation insurance cover everyone? Or are all of you expected to still go while the sick person stays home? Does the cancellation insurance just cover the flight? Or will it also reimburse for things like hotel deposits and prepaid tours?

If you bought the medical insurance for the trip, are the grandchildren covered? And I don’t mean just in case they need antibiotics. Does it include things like local ambulance and fire department fees in case someone requires emergency evacuation? How does your granddaughter get to the hospital or back to the hotel if you need an air ambulance while on an outback tour? Who looks after her?

Does the plan include emergency transportation benefits to get everyone back home in the event that one of you suffers a serious illness or injury? Or does it cover additional accommodation if you have to stay longer because someone is too sick to travel?

Does the plan have a 24-hour assistance line that can answer questions, guide you to the nearest medical expertise, provide interpreters, or obtain some emergency cash?

Sometimes it’s just easier for your grandchild (children) to have their own coverage individually. Just food for thought before you depart.

Group Tours

Consider taking a group tour. There are plenty of sites out there that specialize in this form of touring, from Road Scholar to Intrepid Travel.

A group tour can help in several ways. Tours like these have multiple tour guides, which provide you with help supervising the kids. By sharing the supervision, you get a bit of a breather and you can enjoy the tour too.

Sure your grandkids love you, but there are kids their own age on the tour. That can be helpful because you’re not solely obligated to entertain them. Plus it helps them socialize with different people. Always a great life skill.

Destinations that Interest both of you

Strike a balance when choosing a destination. If you’re a snowbird and you’re all going to your annual vacation spot, they know upfront what to expect. But what if you want to take them someplace neither of you has been? Compromise is essential.

If you can’t go full-tilt, for 7 hours, in the sun, then Florida-based amusement parks might not be the best choice. Although staying at the park, and mutually agreeing to divide the time between the hotel pool and the rides might work.

Know your limits and theirs before making expensive plans.

Have the Right Documents

Documents are hugely important. Aside from passports, health cards, and birth certificates, it’s considered best practice to have a notarized permission document. Grandparents are legally allowed to travel with their grandkids without one, but why risk it?

Letter of Permission

A permission document includes the following info:

Gives consent from the parent(s) to allow their child(ren) to travel with their grandparents, and includes all children’s full names and ages. It should also outline the travel period from departure to the date of the return. Make sure to include a few days before and after in case of any travel changes along with a general list of the destination(s).

The name of the notary and the date that it was notarized. Notarized documents do not expire. But because this permission letter is specific to date and location, it cannot be re-used. And I have never heard of any lawyer or notary that will stamp or seal a permission letter without specifics. So the next trip will require a new letter.

It provides full contact information for the parent(s), including full name, full address, and any major phone numbers. It should also provide all the same information about you.

The signature of the parent(s) and the date it was signed will be above that of the lawyer or notary.

Check with a lawyer, or your home country’s consulate, if you think extra details may be required if you’re traveling out of the country. This can be especially helpful if your kids are divorced, custody may need to be spelled out in the permission document.

And in cases of divorce, it’s best if both parents sign the document. Sometimes children are transported across borders during custody disputes, so both signature help alleviate any potential issues.

Passports

Passports aren’t required if the vacation is within your own country. And if you’re traveling to Mexico, Canada, Bermuda, or other areas of the Caribbean, most grandchildren 15 and under can travel using certified copies of their birth certificates instead of a passport.

The exception to this is air travel. If you’re flying, they must have a passport. Getting a passport takes time, especially in the post-COVID world of delays. Passports need to be an important part of your planning process.

Other Documents

Other documents that are sometimes requested by customs and immigration staff are health cards and birth certificates. Check the entry requirements of your destination country.

Educate them on Air Travel Etiquette

Have “the chat” with the grandchildren about travel etiquette. Things like not kicking the seat ahead of them or playing music/games too loudly. How to behave in airport lines and not to be horsing around at customs.

Make sure your grandchildren understand how important it is to be polite to customs officers and that they are required to answer their questions.

Tell them about what they can expect to happen along the way. It helps them to know the duration of the flight, what the seatbelt sign means, and the rules for moving about the cabin of the plane. If you can afford some sort of preferential boarding, do it. That way your grandchild’s stuff is in the compartment immediately above you and them.

For younger children, be prepared with gum or hard candy for ear popping and something for upset stomachs. Most of all, help them not be “those kids” that everyone cringes about on long flights.

Consider a cruise

Cruises and all-inclusive resorts can be a preferred option for a multi-generational vacation. They have structured and supervised activities so that the grandchildren have kid fun and you get the opportunity to relax and unwind a bit.

Cruises and all-inclusive resorts also frequently offer babysitting services. You might not be ready for bed at 8 pm.

Start ticking off your bucket list – read my blog post and discover the best tips for fixed-income travel!

Have Rules about screen time and devices

This is a conversation worth having early with your grandchildren. Let them know your expectations around screen time. Be prepared to compromise. And if their parents pay for their phone plans, a reminder to them about roaming charges and data usage may be in order.

Discuss what discipline with your grandchildren’s parents

No one likes awkward conversations, and sometimes family really is the other “F word”. Nowhere can this be more true than differing parenting styles. If your child-rearing principles are drastically different from your son-in-law, then this needs to be done upfront. This is especially important if step-grandchildren are involved.

Do your grandchildren know your boundaries? What are the acceptable punishments for bad behaviour? A scolding? A time-out? Loss of screens?

Be fully versed on any medical conditions, allergies, and medications

You don’t just want the grandkids to have a blast. You want them to be safe and healthy in your care. If they take regular medication, ensure there’s enough for the entire trip, and extra. If they need medication that requires needles, syringes, or a medical device carry documents that support the medical conditions. This can be a big deal at the airport metal detectors.

Be aware of their allergies. Not just to avoid what may cause a reaction, but also to ensure you have the essentials. Do your grandchildren require epi-pens? If they do require, it’s helpful to know how often allergy attacks occur so that you have a suitable number of pens with you.

Consider the vaccine requirements for the country you’re visiting. Taking your grandchildren could mean expensive pre-trip health costs like Ducoral or Denga fever shots. This may also cause a problem if your own children have anti-vaccine philosophies.

Are the Kids out of school for this vacation?

Depending on the age of your grandchild, taking them out of school for a week or two may be a problem. However, certain aspects of academia like exams, or required grade testing might delay your plans. Or require school assignments to be done while away…that’s code for you may be back to doing homework! If your grandchild is home-schooled, will you be expected to continue with the curriculum?

Pick A Duration You Can Handle

There are bound to be hiccups with this kind of trip. So relax. Just know that there’s no such thing as a perfectly smooth dream vacation (yours or theirs). But take comfort in knowing that you have control over the duration of the trip, and to a great extent, the destination.

Newbie grandparent? Consider a test run. Try a long weekend trip first. If you have lots of energy, consider something longer.

11 Amazing Tips For Traveling With Grandchildren Worth Trying

You also get to choose how many kids you want to travel with. And as long as you’re fair and each kid gets the same quality of trip and time with you, they often won’t mind waiting their turn.

Now granted, you may not think every single one of these 11 tips for traveling with grandchildren is a gold nugget. But try two or three. Hope this helps! Taking a grandchild on a trip is a pretty large gift. So enjoy.

Cheers,

Cynthia

Looking for something to do on that vacation? I recently wrote a blog post called E-Bike Tours For Seniors. They’re a blast at any age!