Tips, tips, tips..

-- Museum & stickers -- Plan your sights to interest the child. That still means you can go to any museum you would like to see. Just make sure that you can make that museum meaningful for the child. When we took my granddaughter to the Louvre in Paris, we took along animal stickers and made a game of matching the different animals she could find in the pictures with those in her sticker collection. We also looked for new animal stickers in the museum gift shops.

-- Museums & games -- Just ask! At museums, check with the information desk for the areas especially for children or those that are kid-friendly. Often they have printed handouts with activities and games you can play with children as you tour these museums.

-- Guidebooks -- Lighten your load! Before you leave on your trip go to the reference library and browse the guidebooks especially for kids. Make notes on the places and restaurants to suit your little travellers. This way you're travelling with a game plan but you're not lugging lots of guidebooks around.

-- Scrapbooks -- Before the trip I bought each of my two kids (6 and 8 years old) a scrapbook, glue stick and coloured pencils. At each of our stops they collected ticket stubs, brochures, menus and postcards. When we were in the train or hotel room they diligently worked on putting all this stuff into their scrapbooks/diaries. When we got home everybody got to see where we were and what we did. Their Grandma even gave them each $5.00 for giving her such a terrific armchair travel experience. "Better than a movie," she said.

-- Double Everything-- When travelling by plane with an infant, always pack double the diapers and formula you figure you are going to need. Make sure you have an extra outfit for the babe as well. Our plane was six hours late leaving Florida but we were cool. We found a quiet little corner in the airport. Our son was dry and well fed and he slept like... (you got it) ...a baby.
Ed. note: Moms should pack an extra top for themselves as well. Babies love to "spit up" at the most inconvenient time.

-- Light Strollers -- Strollers are a must if you're travelling with young ones. However we found a lot of places in Europe are not stroller-accessible so bring one that is light enough to be carried on and off of trains, etc. The worst scenario for us was the Paris Metro - there was not an elevator to be found so we had to drag the stroller up and down the steep staircases. Very hard if your stroller is a big one!

-- Rain Gear -- Think carefully about which clothes to pack for children. Rain gear for little ones is an essential. Rain coats and "splash pants" will ensure that your child will be able to get outside even if the weather is poor. We took a rain cover for our stroller too and that came in very handy.

-- Pink Lemonade -- Avoid dehydration in little children. We bring along powdered drink mix and put it in the bottled water and shake it up so we have pink lemonade or other flavors to tempt them during our treks.

-- Internet Site -- Just a quick note to introduce ourselves, Travel for Kids. We are a family travel guide that combines fun things to do with practical travel tips. Visit us at: www.travelforkids.com to see what we have to offer.

-- Parks & Playgrounds -- Parks and outdoor play spaces are a wonderful way for children to run off steam and to meet other children. Our son played in various languages with children from all over the world during our two-month trip. Parks let you see the "everyday life" that people are living.