Top 10 Things To Pack For Your Family Holiday

Family holidays mean leaving the daily routines behind and replacing them with holiday fun, relaxation and new experiences.

We talked with some parents who have been there and done that to find out their top tips for ensuring you are prepared for anything so that your memories are of fun times, not inconvenience and whining!

1. Beach shoes

These soft upper and rubbery base shoes are light and fold up small for packing. They have a toggle on the back and are stretchy so one pair can fit multiple sized feet. Because they are so soft they are ideal for sore, grazed or blistered feet. They are still comfy even filled with sand, are easy to wash and dry quickly and are perfect for almost any activity. rain or shine.

2. Wound care

Holidays mean adventures and adventures often mean cuts and grazes. Even if it’s just a small injury, having a plaster popped on seems to help kids quickly forget about it. Have a range of plasters including waterproof on hand. Pop a crepe bandage in too for any sprains – kids aches seem to feel better somehow covered with one!

3. Hand sanitiser

When you are out and about it’s not always easy to keep hands clean as you are unlikely to have a plentiful supply of warm running water. An alcohol-based hand sanitiser that doesn’t require water is an ideal solution.

4. Sunblock

It is recommended that we put on sunblock every day and given that you are likely to be outside more often during a holiday, sunblock is essential.

5. Multi USB plugs

Being able to charge your phones and devices all from one wall plug is great. Track down a travel plug that has multiple USB ports. Take the fittings for the country you are travelling to and leave the rest at home.

6. Water resistant jackets

Choose jackets that are rain and wind resistant. They are not too bulky and are ideal for all weather conditions.

7. On the go entertainment

You are probably hoping to encourage the kids to stay off their devices as much as possible but bad weather or travel delays can put this goal in jeopardy.  Depending on the age of your children include some activities that are not too bulky and easy to play within cramped conditions. Cards for games like Memory, Snap or Solitaire, UNO, colouring pages and crayons or felt and some stickers are ideal.

8. Pain relief

Being away on holiday unfortunately doesn’t make the family immune to viruses and with all the exploring and adventuring, it’s almost inevitable that someone is going to hurt something. Make sure you have age-appropriate pain relief with you at all times!

9. Baby wipes

More than just for bottoms, baby wipes are perfect for wiping everything! Sticky hands and faces, spills, hot faces, messes, tables, toilet seats, BBQs, picnic equipment… anything that needs a bit of a clean!

10. Day pack

It really is worth investing in a good day pack that is comfortable to wear and has pockets and sections to store sunblock, plasters, jackets, hats, drink bottles and more. One with a dry section for wet or smelly clothes is a bonus!

8 Comments

  1. dawnblyth 30/09/2019 at 1:04 pm

    Great comprehensive list! My mum used to always carry a wet, soapy face cloth in a plastic bag when went on day trips – this would give us someway to wash our hands etc should the need arise. Once baby wipes came about, I can always remember Mum having a packet in the glovebox of the car – and now I do to!!

  2. MuddledUpMolly 30/09/2019 at 12:20 pm

    This list is brilliant! My family and I go camping every year and this year will be our first with all three kids! As the years have gone by we have definitely found it is so essential to be super organised as more people need to be planned for so this will be a good point of reference for us to ensure we pack essentials for a variety of possible scenarios.

  3. Alezandra 29/09/2019 at 11:42 pm

    This list makes me want to plan a family holiday. The multi usb plugs is something you didn’t think you would need but always comes in handy. My hubby has a lot of his gadgets that he takes with him so it’s a must have in our holidays.

  4. Loucyd3 29/09/2019 at 5:27 pm

    This looks like my camping hear list, our family goes camping every summer and these items are always in our pack. You always have to prep for any scenario especially when holidaying with the kiddies.

  5. Mands1980 26/09/2019 at 7:35 pm

    Plasters, sunblock, pain relief , day pack and baby wipes would be my must haves whenever we go away. Plus our kids love playing uno so that comes with us everywhere. Plasters are so handy, sunblock for the hot days, pain relief when headaches arrive or injury’s. As for baby wipes they can be used for everything they are so handy.

  6. Bevik1971 26/09/2019 at 4:38 pm

    We actually haven’t had a real family holiday yet 🙁 We are planning to hopefully get over to Australia next year (I’ve never been!) for a family break, or maybe Rarotonga. I don’t think we would pack too much, but good tips here!!

  7. Shorrty4life1 25/09/2019 at 12:01 pm

    Thats a great idea to bring baby wipes. So much easier to use to clean up than paper towels. And you could even use baby wipes for cleaning up your cooking area if you have your own. Can’t wait for the camping season. It couldn’t come soon enough. Beaches, sun and family. Always bliss ❤️

  8. Micht 24/09/2019 at 6:44 pm

    I am absolutely convinced that baby wipes are the solution to all mishaps… they work to clean all things and they a small enough to pack in all bags…the device tip is handy and we found that out the hard way when we banned it for holidays and realized we needed it in bad weather too… great tips…will keep in mind!!

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