Taking a trip with a three year old anywhere takes a lot of planning, but when going abroad it takes even more thought. You never know what you will be able to buy overseas that you may need so you can't always rely on buying things there. We tried to pack everything we knew our son would need to ensure a smooth trip. Here are my recommendations:
For The The Plane Ride I bought a new Thomas backpack and filled it with new toys. My son loved the assortment of things I packed including matchbox cars, the Thomas the Train Takealong Trains, mini aqua doodle set, a shake and go Batman car, books, a small motorcycle with driver, view master, sticker books, coloring books with crayons and lots of snacks. We didn't let him open the backpack until he was bored on the plane. He was so excited when he opened it up and checked out all of the new stuff. It kept him busy for a while.
My husband and I always use backpacks as carry on bags to keep our hands free when traveling with our son. In my backpack for the plane ride, I had a two changes of clothes for my son and one change of clothes for myself (in case he got me dirty or something). I also packed kids travel Benedryl, Tylenol, Motrin and Zyrtec. There are some new travel friendly types of delivery options making this easy. I had my personal medications and toiletries I could not live without along with lots of snacks for all of us. I also brought a few sippy cups and made sure to buy bottled water after going through security in the airport. I bought a few good quality bibs for toddlers (the kind that the arms go through - check IKEA or Target...the bibs were expensive, but made of a nylon wipeable fabric - great for traveling). I also made sure to have at least 2 days worth of diapers and baby wipes in case we got stuck in route somewhere. I also bring antibacterial wipes for face/hands to wipe off the airline table and my son's hands before eating. In my husband's backpack, he had the small DVD player, DVD movies for my son, the camera and video camera, along with some toiletries and travel documents. I strongly suggest shopping at Target or Babies R Us and seeing what types of disposable items that work well for travel (bibs, sippy cups, changing pads, table toppers, etc...).
We always put our son's clothes in with our luggage so we only have 2 suitcases for clothes. We take an additional bag full of snacks, diapers and baby wipes and use that as my son's checked luggage. The bag allows us to bring everything we need for him and either collapse it and pack it on our way home, or use it for the things we purchase on our trip that we want to bring back with us. I like using a Le Sportsac type bag that is easily packed if it's empty.
To minimize bringing a ton of luggage for a long trip, we plan to send out for laundry half way through the trip and we just bring enough clothes for half the trip. It's worth the expense of laundry to not have huge suitcases to transport around. We also like to bring luggage that is expandable so it allows for purchases and souvenirs.
Traveling with a stroller and car seat can also be a big challenge. We like to take our Britax Marathon car seat with us and our Peg Perego P3 stroller. I like bringing a good quality stroller over an umbrella stroller for a few reasons. First, you can recline the stroller back and place the car seat in the stroller and push it through the airport or train station easily. Also a good quality stroller will recline nicely and have a canopy to block the sun making it easy for my son to nap anywhere when he wants. This stroller also did well on the european streets which are not so even. An umbrella stroller would not have done well for this trip at all.
Snacks that travel well for us are applesauce containers or fruit cups with plastic spoons to toss after a snack. Peanut butter crackers in individual packages are easy for my little one to eat and at least offer some protein if he skips a meal. We also brought Cheeze Its, wheat crackers, individual bags of cookies, granola bars, Nutrigrain Bars, and individual packs of Pringles chips. I also bring ziplock baggies in case we buy more snacks and need to take them to go easily while touring. I tried to make sure to have enough for the whole trip because buying American foods in Italy is expensive, if you can find what you want anyway (they don't always carry American branded foods).
Make sure to pack a first aid kit! We had one with us and it was well needed to dress my son's cut before we went off to the hospital. A small kit will do. Make sure you have antiseptic wipes, gauze, tape, small scissors, band-aids and Neosporin To Go. Sunblock is also a must if you will be out in the sun at all. I like bringing a sun hat or baseball hat for my son too. All of the new delivery options for kids medicines came in handy. I had the Benedryl pre-measured packages, Tylenol Meltaways and such and that made giving medicine much easier while on the go.
One other thing I did was pack some "presents" for my son. I knew that we would want to see the sights and be out all day and there would be moments when my son would not cooperate. I bought tiny "presents" and wrapped them in colored tissue paper and stuck several in my suitcase. Each day when we left for our day of sightseeing, I put a few in my backpack to take with us. When he got irritated or disinterested in something, I pulled out a special "present". He was so excited and it usually bought me twenty more minutes (which was my goal!). I had small sticker books, matchbox cars, small motorcycle and tiny trains. They were not expensive things, just something to keep his interested for a few minutes. This worked great for us throughout our trip.
I guess the biggest advice I have for anyone traveling with kids is to really plan ahead. Try to have as much on hand with you that your know your child will need or want. Without planning, it is a recipe for disaster! Happy travels!
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