11 Family Travel Hacks That You Can Actually Use
Greetings from Paris, France! We’re here at Sacre Coeur in the Montmartre District; my favorite district in Paris. We always stay in Montmartre when we’re visiting Paris; good prices and great food in a wonderful atmosphere. Today, I’m sharing 11 travel hacks that all travelers should know. These are travel hacks that we actually use to make family travel with two kids much easier, so they are legit hacks that we’ve actually tested.
Family Travel Hack #1: Getting Cheap Airline Tickets
We travel a lot, and with a family of four, we always have to look for deals on flights. The trick is to book early and compare websites. We start with a few consolidator websites like Expedia, CheapTickets and Kayak. From those websites, you can see which airline has the cheapest flights for the cities you are flying to and from. Then, go directly to the website of the airline you found in your consolidator search. You might even save a little bit more money by going direct to the airline.
Bonus Travel Hack: Clear out your browser cache and cookies before you get online to shop for flights. Set your browser to private, or incognito. This can often get you a better price.
Family Travel Hack #2: Roll Your Clothes to Fit More In Your Suitcase
Jocelyn swears by this, and it does work. Rolling your clothes means you’ll have much more space – to pack more, or to buy more things on your trip.
Bonus Hack: Bring Downy Wrinkle Releaser to use when you unroll your clothes.
Watch: Travel Packing Tips & Hacks
Family Travel Hack #3: Use Dryer Sheets To Keep Your Clothes Smelling Clean
Throw some dryer sheets in your luggage and it will keep your clothes smelling fresh during your trip. Dryer sheets will make everything smell better, especially when you are mixing clean and dirty clothes in your suitcase. This will make a huge difference after a few weeks of travel.
Bonus Hack: You can also use Downy Wrinkle Release or Febreze for a quick scent boost on your clothes.
Family Travel Hack #4 Avoid Long Lines at Major Sites by Booking Tickets Online
Nobody likes waiting in line, but if you visit major tourist destinations in peak season, you can wait up to two hours to get in to places like the Louvre, the Vatican or the Coliseum. Where it’s available, I encourage you to buy your tickets ahead of time and bypass the lines when you arrive.
Bonus Hack: Pre-booking online sometimes gives you access to special deals, or perks like early entry or food discounts.
Read: Travel Advice That Every 20-Something Should Know
Family Travel Hack #5: Use a Ziploc Bag to Manage Electric Cords
You’ve likely got a lot of cords to manage while traveling. From Ipads, cameras and laptops, you don’t want a tangled mess of cords in your backpack. I recommend using ZipLoc bags to manage your cords. TSA loves this too, as you can easily pull out any electronics when going through security lines.
Bonus Hack: Sometimes I use my eyeglasses case to store my cords while flying. Since I’m wearing my glasses, the case offers nice storage for cords.
Family Travel Hack # 6 Call Your Bank & Credit Card Before You Travel
You want to be able to buy things when you’re traveling abroad. If you don’t let your bank and credit card companies know ahead of time, your card will probably be declined. If this happens, you might have trouble calling your bank, especially if it’s a weekend and you are eight time zones away. You don’t want to be stuck with no money when you arrive at your destination.
Bonus Hack: This also ensures your card is only approved for the countries you are visiting, so you’ll still be protected if your card gets swiped and used elsewhere.
Family Travel Hack #7: Borrow a Phone Cord from Your Hotel
It’s so easy to forget your phone charger when remembering everything else for a trip. Many people also leave their cords behind when checking out of a hotel, so your hotel likely has a collection of phone cords you can borrow. The key is to ask if you can borrow it during your stay. Since it’s technically someone else’s property, they can’t give it to you.
Bonus Hack: If you have the cord but forgot the plug, you can charge your phone in the USB ports on the back of your TV.
Family Travel Hack #8: Scan Your Passports and Important Documents to Your Email
It can be concerning to carry your passports and tickets and hotel reservations and worry about your bag getting stolen. We recommend scanning everything and having a copy in your email. Put it in a PDF file and email yourself. Then if you lose anything, you can get a backup from your email. I also like to download the PDF to my phone for easy access.
Family Travel Hack #9: Keep Your Passport in a Ziploc Bag for Protection
Hypothetically speaking, let’s say a bottle of baby’s milk explodes in your purse and gets all over your passport! That actually happened to me, but luckily the rest of the family passports were in a Ziploc bag. Even if you’re just keeping your passport in a money belt, a ZipLoc will keep it from getting sweaty. If you are traveling as a family, keeping them all in one ZipLoc makes finding your passports much easier.
Family Travel Hack #10: Order the Vegetarian Meal When Choosing Your Airline Meal
Who doesn’t love horrible airline food? To get fresher and slightly better tasting airline food, order the vegetarian option when choosing your meals for the flight. These special meals are made in smaller batches, so they’re usually made closer to the departure time, meaning you have a better chance of fresher food.
Read: The BEST Ways to Eat Cheap AND Well While You Travel
Family Travel Hack #11: Wear Your Bulkiest Clothes on the Plane
When you’re coming home from vacation, and your suitcase is full of new purchases, plan to wear your bulkiest clothes on the plane. This will save luggage space and give you extra layers for the chilly plane ride. Wear your heaviest shoes or boots; your bulky jeans, and a few shirts. You can also tie shoes on to your backpack if they won’t fit inside.
Bonus Hack: Wear pants with deep pockets that you can fill up with stuff.
I hope you find our favorite family travel hacks useful. They help us travel around the world as a family. Check out some of our other travel videos:
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Read: The Most Common Pickpocket Techniques That Get Tourists