Tips for Stress Free Travel from London Gatwick

October 06, 2015
Jess

Negotiating your family through a busy airport can be a stressful and even traumatic experience, with a recent study revealing that a large number of parents put the stress of getting through a packed airport with their kids on the same level as the stress of moving house – ouch! If the thought of taking your family on a plane is enough to make you cut up your passport and run screaming to the nearest campsite instead, don’t worry as we have put together a list of helpful tips to help you get through travelling with your family from London Gatwick – stress free, wherever you’re jetting off to.

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Before You Leave

You can start to take steps towards ensuring that the experience is less stressful before you even leave your house by checking into your flight online, meaning that you’ll be able to beat the rows and rows of departure queues and go straight through to sorting out your luggage. This can significantly reduce the stress on parents with children, as there’s no need to deal with a bored child stuck in a long queue, and we all know how tiring that can be, especially if they decide to start crying or constantly ask questions that you’ve already answered what feels like a million times. Instead, check in online and you will be sat in the airport café sooner rather than later.

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Packing

Security regulations when it comes to hand luggage are constantly subject to change, so it is a good idea to spend a bit of time double checking them before you do your packing to ensure that you don’t fall victim to a hand luggage regulations change and get held up at the airport because you’ve got something that shouldn’t be in your cabin bag. This is especially important if you’re travelling with kids, as you’ll need to know all the latest rules regarding taking items such as medicines or even baby milk. You can find guidelines and regulations on your airline’s website.

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Getting to the Airport

If you have got an early morning flight, waking your kids up to take them to the airport in the early hours of the morning is probably not a task that you’re really looking forward to doing. Instead, why not make it easier for yourself by spending a night at a hotel close by to the airport instead, meaning you’ll be less stressed about getting there on time, and you won’t need to wake the kids up at 3AM. IHG.com offer a great selection of hotels nearby to Gatwick Airport with parking, so you’ll be able to relax in great accommodation. Some hotels even offer parking for the duration of your trip, and transfers to and from the airport.

How do you make sure that travelling as a family is as stress free as possible, no matter which airport you are flying from? If you have got any great advice for other parents planning a family holiday, we would love to hear from you – leave your response in the comments below.