Whether your kids fall asleep the moment they’re in the car or plane, or if they hate even 10-minute trips
to the grocery store, this section will offer ideas to make the journey to Walt Disney World as easy, quick,
and pleasant for everyone as possible.

Traveling by Car
  • Before your trip, register for free traffic alerts on www.traffic.com. They can be emailed or text
    messaged right to your cell phone.
  • If your vehicle’s windows aren’t tinted, you might want to put up removable shade screens for the
    windows. They’re sold at baby supply and discount stores. Peel-and-stick shades are more
    secure, so safer, than those that attach with suction cups.
  • Pack some of your kids’ favorite books and toys to keep her entertained on the trip.
  • Bring soft toys that won’t become dangerous projectiles in an accident and quiet toys that won’t
    annoy other passengers.
  • Listen to the Classic Disney CDs and play name the movie.
  • Bring a Walkman and Disney books on audio tapes.
  • Pack a backpack full of small toys, a coloring book, and travel games. (You can use the same
    backpack later to carry things around the parks.)
  • Fill mini snack bags with Cheerios, crackers, and other finger foods.
  • Consider getting a DVD player for the car and watch Disney DVDs.
  • Stock the car with wet wipes, diapers, a flashlight, first-aid kit, bottled water, and lightweight
    blankets in case of an emergency.
  • Plan your departure time around your child’s sleeping schedule. Leave early in the morning or
    late at night when he’s still sleeping. This way hopefully you’ll beat some traffic, too.
  • If possible, avoid traveling during the most accident-prone times. According to the American
    Automobile Association, most accidents occur weekdays between 3 and 6 pm and weekends
    from midnight to 3 am.
  • Plan your meals around your child’s regular eating schedule as well.
  • Take frequent breaks. Toddlers, for example, may need to stop as much as every 1 to 2 hours to
    stretch their legs, go to the bathroom, or have their diapers changed.
  • Stop for breaks and meals at family-friendly restaurants, such as McDonald’s with play areas.
  • Driving to Disney? About 58% of children get car sick. Here are a few tips to prevent it:
  • Have her sit in the middle of the car.
  • Have her look out the window in the distance.
  • Don't let her read or play video games.
  • Avoid heavy meals before driving.
  • Avoid strong odors such as perfume.
  • Open the window for fresh air.
  • Distract her with music or conversation.

Traveling by Plane
  • Book a "nonstop" flight, not "direct." "Direct" is airline code for "you'll stop at least once,"
    increasing your chances of a flight delay.
  • To try to avoid airplane delays, get on the first available flight, preferably on a plane that spent the
    night at your airport.
  • If you must change planes, choose flights with at least 2 hours between connections.
  • Check into discounts; some airlines offer them for travelers under age 2.
  • If possible, reserve a bulkhead seat (just behind the bulkhead that separates coach and first
    class), since it has the most leg room. Once the plane is in the air, your kids will have a little extra
    playing space. Don’t bother asking to sit in the emergency exit row. Though it does offer more
    room, babies and toddlers aren’t allowed to sit in it.
  • Request a window seat if possible to give your little one something to look at. Though, some
    airlines insist toddlers sit by the aisle. A window seat offers a bit more privacy if you’re nursing as
    well.
  • Sit in coach. It’s a myth that first class is the safest place on a plane. When you look at crash data
    over the long term, passengers in the back have a slight safety advantage.
  • If you’re nursing, bring a blanket and two safety pins. You can use the pins to tack the blanket to
    the top of the seat in front of you and the top of the seat you’re in, creating a wall between you and
    the people sitting next to you. This makes your space a little darker, too, so maybe your baby will
    fall asleep.
  • If you're traveling with another adult, consider booking seats apart from one another so one of you
    can rest while the other entertains the baby.
  • Order your kids’ meals ahead. Most airlines have baby, toddler, and child meals. Call the day
    before your trip to make sure they have your order.
  • Two or three weeks before the trip, hide away a few of your baby’s favorite small toys. During the
    flight, you can pull them out for some nice periods of play with some now-new-again beloved toys.
  • A few days before your trip, talk with your toddler about the flight. Go over in advance what will
    happen at the airport and on the plane. Prepare him as best you can for security checkpoints and
    long lines.
  • For children younger than age 4 and weighing less than 40 pounds, bring a car seat. It’s safer
    and far more comfortable for both your baby and you. Both the Federal Aviation Administration
    and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend children younger than age 4 be bucked into
    car seats on all flights. Most infant, convertible, and forward-facing seats are certified to be used
    on planes. Check the label on your child’s seat and call the car safety seat manufacturer before
    you travel to make sure the seat meets current FAA regulations. Children who weigh more than
    40 pounds can use the standard airplane seat belt.
  • Pack things in see-through plastic bags. This way the security personnel won't have to rummage
    through everything and contaminate pacifiers, nipples, and teethers when searching your bag.
  • Pack some of your kids’ favorite books and toys to keep her entertained on the trip.
  • Bring soft toys that won’t become dangerous projectiles in an accident and quiet toys that won’t
    annoy other passengers.
  • Wrap your baby’s toys individually in towels to make the unraveling of each new one that much
    more exciting and momentous. Once on the plane, bring out one toy at a time so your supply will
    last longer.
  • In your carry-on bag, pack diapers, wipes, a change of clothes for the baby, a change of clothes
    for you, a bag of toys and books, and snacks for the trip. A backpack is especially helpful  to use
    as a carry-on bag because you don't have to carry it in your hands.
  • Always bring something for your kids to drink, whether that’s a bottle, sippy cup, or sports bottle.
    They’re great for drinking during take-off and landing to help prevent ear pain and also to keep
    your kids from getting dehydrated in the dry airplane air.
  • Bring plenty of snacks. Your child may not be hungry on the flight attendants’ schedule. Great
    choices include anything packaged, which helps get it through customs and the security
    screeners, such as cheese and crackers packets, fruit roll-ups, and cookies.
  • If two of you are traveling, send the first person ahead with the car seat. Let him be one of the first
    ones on. Then the second person should try to be one of the last on the plane. That way the kids
    get a few extra minutes of crawling/walking time. Plus when the second person gets on the
    plane, the first person will have the car seat all set up and ready so you just can place the child in
    and don't have to hold up the line of people boarding.
  • To relieve ear pain during take-off or landing, nurse or bottlefeed the baby or give her a pacifier. (If
    your baby is restrained in a car seat, it may be best to give her something to suck on such as a
    pacifier, rather than taking her out of the seat to nurse.) Give older kids a sippy cup, sports bottle,
    or if they’re old enough a lollipop to suck on. The sucking motion will help unblock his or her
    Eustachian tubes.
  • If your baby is nursing, try not to nurse her or give her a bottle for a little while before takeoff and
    landing. That way she’ll be hungry enough to nurse during those times.
  • Have your baby or child drink plenty of water during the flight to keep her nasal passages moist.
  • But don’t drink the plane’s water. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, the water on
    commercial airplanes may be tainted with bacteria. This is especially dangerous for young
    children. Skip coffee and tea, too, and wash your hands—and your kids’ hands—with sanitizing
    wipes instead of water from the rest rooms.
  • Your child’s pediatrician might suggest giving her an over-the-counter decongestant before the
    flight to keep her from getting congested or an ear infection.
  • If your child is older, teach him how to equalize the pressure in his ears by holding his nose,
    filling his cheeks with air, and then trying to blow out through his nose until he feels his ears pop.
    Caution him to not do it too forcefully, though. Or simply tell him to yawn, which also can equalize
    the pressure.
  • Try to keep your baby or child awake during take-off and landing. That way he’ll swallow more,
    which will help to keep his ears clear.
  • Preboard, or not. Depending on your child, you might want to preboard so she has time to settle
    in, or you might want to wait until last to board so she has more time to run around the gate area.
  • When your kids get older and enter the seat-kicking stage, taking their shoes off when you get on
    the plane.
  • After the pilot turns off the "fasten seatbelts" sign, take your little one for a walk up and down the
    aisles. Pacing is far better than screaming!
  • If your kids are still in diapers, use the changing tables in the plane’s restrooms. Most airplanes
    have at least one changing table. Other passengers won’t appreciate you changing your baby’s
    diaper at your seat.
  • If the seat belt sign is turned off, take your little one for a brief trip up and down the aisles.
  • Play the “quiet” game, using “inside” voices and communicating with gestures or the “mouse”
    game, being as quiet as mice.
  • If you have a very long layover, take a free shuttle bus to a nearby hotel. You’ll get a change of
    scenery, plus hotel lobbies usually have comfy furniture, clean bathrooms, and sometimes
    televisions
How to Get There
Transportation