Yes, I travel with kids. Here are 8 things I think like-minded parents should know.

This is the exact scenario we found ourselves in on an extended trip to Costa Rica we booked when our first child was just 10 months old. “Book the red-eye!” we thought. “He’ll sleep the whole flight!” we thought. The joke was on us. Instead, we paced the isle with a crying babe for most of the flight—much to the dismay of many guests trying to sleep.

Since then, my husband and I have traveled around the U.S. and Canada with a few trips to Central America with kids. These days, we’re learning how to get around with two littles (ages 3 and 6 months) in tow—the equal child-to-parent ratio is a whole new challenge.

Personally, I’m a very type-A, left-brained thinker. I’m always prepared with a plan B, but traveling with kids has been humbling for me. Now I have to be more creative and flexible with my plans. If you’re a parent wanting to travel more with your children, I’m here to pass along what I now know. Here are a few of the things I’ve learned along the way.

Roadrunner: Hold your plans loosely

If you travel at all, you already know that holding your plans loosely is important—especially during travel days. With kids, you just have to plan for the worst-case scenario and be pleasantly surprised when and if things do go smoothly.

I love planning everything down to the nitty gritty details where I know everything from estimated cab drive time and meal expenses. But when traveling with kiddos, you just can’t possibly predict how these minor details will go.

Make sure you give yourself extra time to get anywhere, and ample time to enjoy whatever excursions you have planned. If a city stroll says it’ll take an hour, just plan for two. Then you’re not disappointed when you’re running later than expected for your dinner plans.

Pack food for everyone

Speaking of dinner and food, make sure you always pack at least one simple snack for each of you. That means you too! Lugging kids around with their gear takes extra energy for everyone. You’d be surprised at how much quicker it is to work up an appetite while travelling and no one is a happy camper when they’re hungry.

Depending on where you’re traveling, your choice of on-the-go snack might look different, but having a protein bar, fruit leathers, or trail mix are usually easy picks and filling enough to tide you over until the next meal in a pinch.

If your trip is happening while you’re still nursing your baby, the bonus is that you can feed your child at any time. That said, in my experience, it’s a good idea to take along water and an extra snack for yourself. Feeling hangry while nursing is no fun!

Think multipurpose

I personally think there’s way too much gear on the market for babies and kids these days. But the beautiful thing about having options is that you can find one thing to serve multiple purposes to make your packing lighter.

For example, we packed along a stacking cup set for our Mexico vacation with my crawling infant son which worked great for playtime in the pool water, on sandy beaches, or inside our place. One toy, three applications.

Maybe that looks like a stroller that can be pushed up to the table as a high chair or a soft book that can be used for teething and bedtime reading.

Research the Kid Culture

Before we spent some time in Costa Rica with our son, we had read how much the locals love babies. Add to that the blue eyes and blonde hair, and our little man was a popular guy in Central America.

I’m so glad we had researched this ahead of time, because otherwise, it would have felt like a shock compared to the city culture where we live. At home, people don’t always acknowledge our baby with kindness. These locals genuinely wanted to engage with our baby, hold him, and even get a photo with him in some cases!

Know your physical touch capacity

Kids need nurturing, holding, hugging, and help with all the things. If you’re someone who can quickly become “touched out,” plan for that.

Most airlines allow your child to sit on your lap without requiring you to purchase an extra seat until they’re two years old (as of the return date of your trip—pro-tip!). This is great for keeping the trip budget down, but can quickly become overwhelming with too big of a toddler.

If you’ve got a busybody on your hands (specifically between the ages of one and two) or a longer flight, just pony up and get the extra seat for everyone’s sanity. If buying the extra seat isn’t an option for you, go up to the counter at your gate as soon as you can to ask if there are any extra seats on the flight that you can get in your row. Some flight attendants are understanding, some aren’t. But, it’s worth a shot!

Consider your child’s comfort zone

When traveling with our littles, we always bring the sleep essentials: their stuffed animal and a soother for the baby. We try to keep the comfort items at home to a minimum anyway so our kids are flexible when we’re on the go and don’t require a lot of extra toys, blankets, and games. Having that stuffed animal is enough to make them feel secure and safe to sleep wherever we are.

With a younger baby, the sleep essentials might just be packing along the same bassinet or pack-and-play for them to sleep in wherever you set up camp for the night—new place, same bed. (This tactic worked great during a six-week road trip we did with our 10-month-old.)

Be ready for anything

Accidents happen. Kids get bumps, scrapes, bug bites, and sunburns. Whatever you use from your medicine cabinet at home on a regular basis will definitely be needed on your trip too. Grab travel sizes and make sure things are labelled well or protected from kids when they’re packed away in your bags.

We always keep our travel insurance documents in a sealed plastic bag in our homemade “Emerge Kit” so that they’re handy in case we ever need them—thankfully not yet!

Keep things consistent

Earlier, I mentioned holding your plans loosely, but also try to keep to your normal routine while you travel. It sounds counterintuitive, but somewhere in the balance between exploring new places and keeping things constant, you’ll have the best trip. Kids thrive with clear expectations. Sticking to the same general routine you have at home will help your kids cope with all the new things around them: naps at the same times, bedtime routines staying consistent, and eating some familiar foods even when experimenting with new cuisines.

The travel bug doesn’t have to end when you start a family. The trips sure look different after kids enter the picture but wanderlust can easily be part of family life.

While we have not wanted to disrupt the hostel vibe with unpredictable infant sleep, we look forward to giving our kids the hostel experience in future family travels.

Here’s to nurturing the spirit of adventure in our own little adventure buddies!