Going on vacation is exciting, but the time spent on an airplane with children can be anything but. Even kids who are excited about the flight will quickly tire of sitting still.
Being prepared with plenty of games and toys will prevent an endless chorus of "Are we there yet?" from your children. The key is finding age-appropriate games that easily fit in a carry-on bag.
A shape-sorter or board puzzle will engage your toddler for quite some time during travel. Buy him a new puzzle or pack some of his current toys several weeks before the trip so that they are exciting when you reveal them on the plane.
Crayons and a coloring book will hold a toddler's attention for at least a short time. When a child is forced to sit still, you have a great opportunity to teach him about keeping the colors on the paper and show him how to draw straight lines and basic shapes.
Pack some paper and crayons. Draw a list of uppercase letters on one side of a paper and lowercase letters on the other side. Ask your preschooler to draw a line connecting uppercase letters to their matching lowercase letters. Draw shapes all over a piece of paper and ask your preschooler to count them. Allow your child to take a turn drawing shapes for you to count as well.
Decks of cards are easy to pack for a flight and will allow you to play several different games. If you are traveling with children of different ages, a deck of cards can help get them all involved in a game. Basic card games like Go Fish and the memory game are great for preschoolers.
School-age children can learn new games with more complicated rules. Purchase travel versions of classic games such as Guess Who" and Battleship or use a deck of cards to teach children to play solitaire. "I spy" and the alphabet game require no equipment. Take turns spotting items on the plane or pick a category and take turns naming items in that category that start with each letter of the alphabet.
Pre-teens are old enough to learn card games such as gin, rummy and cribbage--games that will keep you entertained as well. Pre-teens can also play travel versions of their favorite board games with you or younger siblings. Check out a library book on origami before your trip and purchase a package of origami paper. Learning origami will keep a pre-teen busy for quite some time. Younger siblings will have a lot of fun playing with the origami creations.
Promise your teen that he can download a new game to his iPod touch or to his laptop for the flight. Make him wait until just before the flight, though.
If you want to keep your travels technology-free, teens can play card games such as euchre or Skip-Bo. Take advantage of those "Sky Mall"-type catalogs the airline leaves in the seat pocket. Have your teen look through the magazine and pick out a virtual gift for each family member. Then you can try to guess what he picked. Then take a turn being the one to choose gifts. These catalogs generally have crazy and unusual items that can lead to a lot of laughter.
