Babies Worldwide

Taking the kids on trips abroad is a great idea and a great learning opportunity for them but parents need to take some precautions, here are a few suggestions which should make your trip a more secure one.

Fill out all emergency information on your passport and ensure that all members of the family have their passport with them at all times. If a member of the family has an ongoing medical condition and/or takes medication at regular intervals have all that information inside the passport.

While traveling abroad is usually pretty safe it is always a good idea to read, understand and follow all travel warnings issued by your government, or your travel agent, for the area your are visiting. Unless you have a very good reason for doing so avoid unsafe areas.

It is also a good idea to make two copies of everyone’s passport id page. Carry the first copy on your person but in a different place from your passport e.g. jacket pocket and trouser pocket. Leave the second copy with a family member or friend back home. If you are a parent they carry an additional copy of your children’s passports.

Leave a copy of your travel plans with family or friends, include hotel names, and hotel phone numbers, have your children carry the address and phone numbers of the hotel you are staying at with them at all times just in case you get separated, and ways have a current photograph of your child.

If you are traveling to a country that has a different religious or legal framework from your own get a grip on local laws and customs and be sure your children understand them as well.

Never, never, never leave luggage unattended in airports, bus depots or train stations, a careless few moment could wreck the family holiday. Make sure your children are aware that they are not to touch or handle other peoples luggage. If someone approaches you and asks you to carry something on board, don’t do it and contact the nearest security person immediately.

If your trip is prolonged, say more than three weeks it is always a good idea to let your local embassy or consulate know where you will be staying in case of emergencies back home. This is more important if you have sick, aged or infirm relatives back home

Don’t show off that piece of expensive jewelry you have back home it’s a marker for thieves. Don’t carry more than one days’ cash with you and keep it in two places.

Consider the use of plastic as your main method of payment. If you are fearful of going over budget, or don’t want to get caught for interest payments, consider lodging the money to your credit card account before you leave.

Remember though it’s not a war zone out there, it’s generally a pretty decent place, especially if you behave sensibly. Enjoy the holiday and let the kids learn what other people live like; they’ll love you for it!

Tags: travelling

This entry was posted on Saturday, July 4th, 2009 at 11:39 am and is filed under Featured Articles. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.