Activities for plane ride

[cruisinaz]

We will have a 4 1/2 hour plane ride in December for our cruise. Curious for some new ideas of how people keep the kiddos busy on the plane. Our daughter is 4 1/2 so movies work well, but looking for options.

 

Thanks

[topspot]

A deck of cards is always good for using up some of the time. When my daughter was that age we would play simple games like war. (Split the deck, and you both flip over a card, and the one with the higher number wins) This can keep you going just keep flipping through the deck, and helps to reinforce numbers;).

I would also go to the dollar store before the trip and get some small coloring books and work books. I would wrap these up and whip them out just as she would start get too bored, but before any whining started.

[SingleFatherofDD]

Good Evening, I think that movies are a great idea for a plane ride but there are many other things that can keep them busy. My DD, who will be 5 in 2 weeks, loves to draw and color so I have brought some of her favorite coloring books on the plane with her. Also she has one of my old ipods. I put some of her music that she likes to listen to on it. The other thing is that she likes to sleep and play card games with me. I remember when I was little they made travel board games. Maybe you can find some of these board games also that she likes to play. Finally, when I am not playing with my own toy which is my Ipad, I allow her to use it. I have put some learning programs and also games on it for her. So I have her pretty busy on the plane. She loves flying.

[mass02703]

We always buy the small containers (the trick or treat size) of play dough to travel with, keeps them busy for awhile. Pipe cleaners is another fun craft activity that we bring......have even pulled a few of these out in long lines to keep the little ones busy.

[griffy116]

Go to the dollar store and purchase a coloring book/crayons, picture book and a couple of the very small stuffed animals.A ny quiet activity. Listening to music and a nap should take up part of the trip. Have a non-messy, easy to retrieve snack on hand.

[queenL]

In addition to coloring books, particularly the ones that you can color with the pen filled with water. I always bring the portable DVD player and the Nintendo DS. Even at 3 my daughter loves the Dora games. That will keep her occupied nearly as long as a movie.

[sargenet]

My son has been flying since he was 9 months old. Lots of plane rides around 2-3 hours. When he was 4 we flew to Hawaii from the east coast. One leg of the flight was 9 hours! I was really worried about keeping his occupied.

 

We always bring a DVD player. I also look for seats with an AC outlet and bring his charger just in case. Another purchase we made was a Leapster with the educational games. We only bring it out for car trips or plane trips so it is "new". I also buy cheap little coloring books, crayons etc along with the "sticker books" that have a theme. I also bring one spiral notebook so he can just scribble and create whatever he wants. I hide all this stuff so he doesn't see it till we get to the airport!

 

The time always goes faster than I think it will! Especially on our long flights to Hawaii. The thing I always notice is that my son does "snack" more during the flight so I always try to bring more food. We usually also bring a smaller little lunchbox and get a sandwich at the airport for him to eat in case he gets hungry when we are in the air! That way we don't have to scramble to get food once we land. Our favorite place to get food for the flight is Starbucks....they actually have really good sandwiches and you can find them in most airports.

[lmg1230]

In addition to many of the above recommendations, both of my daughters have enjoyed using DK sticker books on airplanes. They can take up a fair bit of time as there is reading to do on each page and you have to find the correct sticker to place in each spot in the book. Many of the books are movie tie-ins like Disney Princesses, Tinker Bell etc.

 

Lisa

[RoadTripFanatic]

Color wonder markers. They will not color on anything but the books they are designed for. They are wonderful. This way you don't have to worry about crayon stains on clothes or marker stains.

[queenL]

Color wonder markers. They will not color on anything but the books they are designed for. They are wonderful. This way you don't have to worry about crayon stains on clothes or marker stains.

 

Absolutely! They are a God send to parents! I echo what another poster said about the "new toy" effect. I usually go to the dollar store and let her pick out a few items that she can't play with until the plane ride. Likewise I get a few new movies etc that she can't watch until the trip. New toys hold their appeal longer than the things they are accustomed to playing with. I'm also not afraid to bribe my child with candy, fruit snacks or whatever other treats might be necessary once she starts to get bored on a long flight.

[MamaParrotHead]

The clearance aisle at any big box department stores are also great for this sort of thing. Snacks are good. Ipods are indispensable. The travel sized etch a sketches are fun. I've also seen some small magnet-type paper dolls that come in a tiny lunchbox looking thing (http://www.toywiz.com/doramagneticdolls.html).

[cruisinbanddirectors]

I too am a big fan of the Color Wonder line from Crayola!

 

Another suggestion is if you happen to have a smartphone, there are lots of free aps for kids that will operate in airplane mode.

[A&Jfamily]

I have found that having my kids pack and carry their own backpacks - with all the items listed above (DVD, Leapster/DS, coloring supplies, books, snacks, gum etc) is more than enough to keep them entertained. So, I start with theses basics and then let them put in the other things that are really important at the moment - for my youngest, it has been his blanket (though sometimes he choses for that to go in the suitcase to maxamize room for toys!), a small stuffed animal (or in your case doll), a Harry Potter wand (THAT got his backpack search by CCL when we were boarding - lol!), and match box cars. At times it has been a special boucy ball or mini-football.

 

Its really not so much important what goes in after some of the basics, but the fact that they are chosing the rest, knowing that is what they get to play with until they come home. They really think about what goes in, and it sinks in the message that "this is it kido!" My youngest was just shy of 3 when I started this, and now at 6, he can pretty much pack his backpack on his own for a trip.

[pwkreis]

We will have a 4 1/2 hour plane ride in December for our cruise. Curious for some new ideas of how people keep the kiddos busy on the plane. Our daughter is 4 1/2 so movies work well, but looking for options.

 

Thanks

 

I bought my kids small backpacks for their first cruse 3 years ago when they were 4 & 7 that they still use. The have been nicknamed the "the travel bag". Over the years the contents have changed but here are a few of the typical contents:

 

Leapster (which have since been replaced with a Nintendo DS)

3 or 4 small cars (or small dolls with out tiny parts)

Crayons - Washable Markers (Look at Crayola Twistable (no caps to loose))

Colouring Book - Paper

Storybooks (love the fact mine read their own now)

MP3 Player if you child likes music

Snacks

 

We always tried make make the small items new - this way no boredom and have found they seldom ask for the laptop tp watch a movie.

 

Good Luck

[goldne]

Our kids love playing with stickers on the plane...they like both the organized books and just making collages. They also like making up stories with small toys like littlest pet shop animals.

 

Leapster Tag pen also is great for plane rides.

[musik07]

an I Spy book would be good too! They make them in paperback. You would have to tell your daughter what she is looking for but she could be entertained for awhile. Also if you have an Ipod touch or a macbook you could use you could download movie rentals from itunes. they are like 4 or 5 bucks max and you download them on and then have 30 days from the download date to watch them. once you start them they work for 24 hours. You could download a few and have them for both ways!

[mj cruiser]

I dont know if you have a Ross in your area but the color books, activity books are usually pretty cheap!

[Mom2B&Z]

My DS1 also loves bringing his Leapster and playing on my iPod touch. IMHO I don't buy dollar store toys because they break so easily. I do buy their sticker books though. A combination of new and familiar toys and books work best with my kids, because they don't tolerate too many new things happening all at once...so plan according to your child's preferences. I brought Automoblocks the last time, they are small cars that come apart so you can mix and match the wheels, body parts etc. Both boys (who were 4 and 2 at the time) loved them on the plane or in the hotel room.

My boys also like a small blanket or pillow for the plane, especially since DS1 sits in the seat alone (DS2 is in his car seat) and can't get easily get comfortable to nap.

My boys get motion sick easily, so we always bring childrens Gravol.

ITA with teaching children how to pack their carry on and having them take responsibility for it early on. DS1 is already planning his pack and we don't leave until after Christmas lol!

Lastly, we went through a tonne of mints on take off and landing. I thought gum might work better, but they found more relief from sucking than chewing.

Enjoy your flight!

[crusinmama06]

Well I start out with booking JET BLUE. :D lol They have in flight Direct TV (built into the seat backs of every seat). And their snacks are awesome. But Jet Blue doesn't leave from all destinations, so that's not possible for everyone. ;)

 

Then I make sure we have NEW coloring books -- special ones like the crayola wonder ones. I go to the craft stores and buy all kinds of little crayola kits. Anything new is good.

[MMsteffey]

We've logged 100's of segments with our kids -- previous suggestions are great. Don't bring anything with lots of small pieces (puzzles, Polly Pockets, etc.) particularly if losing a piece could be a big problem. Airplane trays are very unstable, there are lots of places to lose little things, and very little room to manuver to look for them! My son is limited to 12 small cars, which always challenges the security checkpoint. Expect to be hand searched if you're bringing something like that.

[cantw8togo]

I always like to pack a few extra surprises just in case and was glad that I did on our last trip when the in flight tv's didn't work for the entire 4 hour trip. Like wise for extra batteries and chargers for electronic toys too. There was a little boy sitting behind us who got bored more easily than my kids do and he quickly tired of the toys he brought.

 

Ditto on the extra snacks. You never know when you could be delayed on the tarmac and a hungry child makes everyone unhappy.

 

I also bring a change of clothes in case of an accident; spilled juice or other type. I pack it in a ziplock bag with the air squeezed out and I include an extra plastic bag to hold the dirty clothes. Sad to say that I have needed this more than once.

[1of4]

My kids have been travelling long distances by car and plane since they were born. I find for plane travel that I bring small surprises for each kid. Each has their own backback that only gets used for plane travel. I pack these with things to keep them amused during the trip...everything others have already mentioned: electronic game, dvd player, favorite stuffed animal, small blanket (receiving blanket) for when they sleep and a travel pillow in the shape of an animal, new books and/or puzzles/word games for their age. I also buy a little surprise like Toy Story 3 small characters, for example. I also pack some of their favorite snacks.

 

I find the element of surprise goes a long way to keep them occupied.

 

Gail

 

[kassimer1]

My sister had a 6 hour flight with a 5 and 6 yr old. she bought them one of those Writing boards where you draw on it with a plastic pencil and just lift the plastic flap and it erases so you can start again. the girls loved it