Tips for travelling with kids to developing countries

Travelling with children is always an eye-opening experience - both for you and your little ones. Besides broadening your children’s education, helping them develop their communication skills and making them more flexible, travelling as a family can also help you understand the importance of slowing down while travelling and it allows you to spend more time as a family while creating new memories.

Despite all of these advantages, however, some parents still feel reticent about travelling with their children. Especially when it comes to travelling to developing countries as these are perceived to be less safe, more disease-ridden, and more culturally shocking than developed nations. Nonetheless, the benefits of taking children on exploring trips to countries such as India, South Africa, or Bolivia are endless and they can be successful when the right precautions are taken. We have put together a list of tips to make sure your next holiday to a developing country is safe, smooth and successful:

Come Prepared

Before leaving, make sure to do your homework on the country you’re about to visit and talk to your child about it. This includes learning about the country’s history, traditions, customs, and language. This is will help to increase the curiosity of your child prior to departing and as well as to give them a contextual understanding of your holiday abroad once you arrive.

Learning some key phrases in the language of your next holiday destination is also a fun activity to do with your child prior to departing and it will come in handy when you’re travelling!

Another part of the preparation phase is knowing about the needed health and safety precautions necessary. It’s always ideal to see a doctor before departure to ensure you and your family get the needed vaccines and medication.

Make Them Comfortable

If you’re visiting a developing country, chances are you will have to endure a long flight. And you may also do additional travelling on the ground so it’s important to make sure your children are comfortable during these particularly tiring travels. Some things to consider bringing along can include books, a portable movie player, and some easy-to-carry games. These may help your child settle down during the flight, fall asleep at night and even unwind after a full day of exploring.

Search for family-friendly activities

Besides visiting the usual local attractions or even venturing off the beaten path, you have to keep in mind that you are travelling with children! It will be crucial to include family-friendly and child-friendly activities in your itinerary to ensure the success of your family holiday. And this won’t necessarily be difficult to do. Shopping centres with playgrounds, family-friendly safaris, or theme parks for your little ones can provide a fun afternoon for the whole family.

Learn to go with the flow

It’s great to have a plan when you travel - it may make you feel safer to know exactly where you’re staying during your time abroad, what local attractions you’re planning to visit, and even which restaurants you want to try. But it’s important to remember that travelling with children can entail one or more detours - and that’s okay! It’s all part of the fun of creating new memories as a family while travelling abroad.